WELCOME
TO THE SPONDON OWNER'S CLUB WEBSITE
THIS
SITE IS DEDICATED TO MOTORCYCLES BUILT USING FRAMES MANUFACTURED BY
SPONDON ENGINEERING LIMITED, OF DERBY, ENGLAND.
SPONDON CHASSIS' ARE NOW CONSTRUCTED USING 7020 ALUMINIUM EXTRUSIONS
ALTHOUGH EARLY
SPONDON FRAMES WERE BUILT USING REYNOLDS STEEL TUBING. THE FIRM
BECAME REKNOWNED FOR THEIR
ALUMINIUM BEAM FRAMES BUT IN RECENT TIMES THEY HAVE BECOME THE
LEADING MANUFACTURER OF BESPOKE TUBULAR
ALUMINIUM CHASSIS'.
MANY DIFFERENT ENGINES ARE CATERED FOR, FROM GSXR'S
AND FIREBLADES, THROUGH HAYABUSA'S,
CBX1000'S AND ON TO HARLEY'S AND
DUCATI'S, WITH THE ODD TRIUMPH
THROWN IN FOR GOOD MEASURE. THEY EVEN CATER FOR TWO STROKE FANS WITH
CHASSIS' FOR RG500'S
AND TZ/RD'S, AND EVERY ONE IS A WORK OF ART. IN FACT, IF YOU'VE GOT
AN ENGINE AND WANT A FRAME BUILT AROUND IT, SPONDON'S THE PLACE TO
GO.
WHY BOTHER?
IN THE OLD DAYS, JAP BIKES MADE BIG POWER BUT HANDLED LIKE PIGS ON
ROLLERSKATES. SPONDON FRAMES WERE A SOLUTION TO HARNESSING ALL THAT
POWER AND OFFERED VASTLY SUPERIOR HANDLING.
NOWADAYS, THINGS AREN'T SO CLEAR CUT. BIKES ARE SO GOOD NOW THAT IT
IS A TALL ORDER TO IMPROVE THINGS MUCH. PEOPLE NOW BUILD SPONDONS
SO THAT THEIR BIKE STANDS OUT FROM THE CROWD, TO BE DIFFERENT. LUCKILY
THERE ARE MANY PEOPLE WITH THIS OUTLOOK AND SPONDON ARE STILL ADDING
NEW MODELS TO THEIR RANGE OF CHASSIS. NO MATTER HOW GOOD THE GSXR1000'S
AND R1'S OF THIS WORLD GET, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOMEONE WHO WANTS
TO WRAP A PIECE OF SPONDON ARTISTRY AROUND THE ENGINE AND A FEW SPONDON
GSXR1000 HAVE ALREADY BEEN CREATED.
THE
S.O.C.
THE SPONDON OWNER'S CLUB WAS FORMED ABOUT 12 YEARS AGO BY A GROUP
OF LADS THAT MET OVER THE COURSE OF BUILDING OUR BIKES. WE RECEIVED
GREAT ENCOURAGEMENT FROM SWEARY BOB (BOB STEPHENSON, ONE OF THE PARTNERS
IN SPONDON ENGINEERING) AND HE ATTENDED ALL THE PISS-UPS (ERMM, MEETINGS)
AND STILL DOES, AS HE LIKES THE ODD BEER OR TWO!
MEMBERS WERE DOTTED THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY AND THERE WAS A HARDCORE
OF ABOUT A DOZEN LADS WHO MET EVERY THREE MONTHS OR SO AT VARIOUS
PLACES IN THE UK, DEPENDING UPON WHO HAD VOLUNTEERED TO BE THE HOST
FOR THE NIGHT. IT WAS A CHANCE TO SEE WHAT EACH OTHER WAS UP TO AND
TO MEET NEW PEOPLE. I MADE MANY NEW FRIENDS FROM ALL CORNERS OF THE
COUNTRY, NOT TO MENTION NUMEROUS HANDY CONTACTS. WE GOT RAT-ARSED
IN PLACES AS DIVERSE AS EDINBURGH AND LONDON, AND A WHOLE LOAD MORE
IN BETWEEN.
HOWEVER AS TIME WENT, ON SOME SOLD THEIR BIKES, PRIORITIES CHANGED
AND INTEREST WANED. THERE ARE JUST ABOUT HALF A DOZEN OF US THAT STILL
REGULARLY MEET, INCLUDING SWEARY BOB, SO I DECIDED TO DO THIS WEBSITE
TO TRY AND DRUM UP A BIT OF INTEREST AMONGST YOU NEWER SPONDON OWNERS
OUT THERE. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN JOINING THE SPONDON OWNERS CLUB,
PLEASE GET IN TOUCH WITH ME VIA THE GUESTBOOK AND I'LL ENDEVOUR TO
GET SOMETHING ORGANISED. I WILL REPLY TO ALL THAT INQUIRE.
I CAN APPRECIATE THAT NOT MANY OF YOU WOULD WANT TO HAND OVER YOUR
DETAILS TO A COMPLETE STRANGER SO IF YOU WANT TO CHECK ME OUT, GIVE
BOB A RING AT SPONDON AND HE WILL CONFIRM THAT THIS IS ALL ABOVE BOARD.
HIS REPLY WILL GO SOMETHING LIKE, "F**KIN' 'ELL, YEAH, I F**CKIN'
KNOW THAT F**CKIN' C**T, HE'S A F**CKIN TW*T BUT THERE'S NOWT F**CKIN'
DODGY GOIN' ON." OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT!
cheers,
STEVE NICHOLSON