MY war surplus BSA 500 motorcycle used in North Africa during world War II

  my early motorcycle like the BSA 500 used in North Africa during 
World War II that my father and I bought when i was 17 (I was 17 in 1965) didn't 
have ANY battery
and operated completely on the magneto built inside the engine. So, you had to 
either kick start it or "bump start it" which means push start it by putting it in 2nd 
gear and then running with the bike with the clutch in and then suddenly letting 
out the clutch in 2nd gear and hopefully the thing would start. 

But, even without ANY Battery at all I could get it to start in any weather which is 
remarkable compared to any vehicle I know of now or motorcycle that you could 
say the same thing for without any starter motor or battery. but, the bike didn't have
any rear suspension so if you hit a serious bump you needed to be aware it was 
coming so you could stand up on the rider's pegs while holding the handlebars
or it could break your back. It ONLY had front end suspension and even then no
real shock absorbers front or rear.

But it did have springs on the seat so you had about 3 to 6 inches in a bump before it
broke your back. You just had to realize any real bump could paralyze you by breaking
your back on this
Motorcycle. This was just part of the risk of riding it.

But, I started that thing every time I ever tried to start it in any weather in the desert 
from the time I was 17 until I was 37 years old when my father passed away when 
my mother sold his house on 2 1/2 acres in the desert then. Amazing amazing piece
machinery that started every single time with either a kick starter or push starting.

Amazing!

So The only two drawbacks to this motorcycle out of World War II was sometimes 
if you used the kick starter it would throw you over the handlebars onto the ground
if if backfired while starting it, or you might hurt yourself trying to push start it on
 the left  foot peg trying 
to run next to it. But, for riding down dry washes in the desert even with someone 
on the back
across the deserts in the 1960s and 1970s and 1980s it was amazing and unstoppable.

They really built something amazing that could go anywhere and still start during world
war II. It was kind of like a Kalashnikov rifle where you could throw sand down the barrel
and it would still shoot okay without blowing up. amazing vehicle!

But, it was about twice as heavy as most off road or dualsport motorcycles are now.
It was built like a tank and this was interesting too. So, you could cruise all day at
40 or 50 miles per hour on this thing like they did during world war II across the North
African deserts.

I laid this thing down once at about 45 miles per hour in deep sand about 10 to 12
inches deep but I only had shorts and tennis shoes on with no shirt on because it
was hot going across the desert. Somehow I laid it down to the left and was able
to pull my left leg out without getting it pinned against the sand and getting injured.

I hoisted myself up using the large handlebar for leverage and stood on the right side 
of the bike waiting for the bike to stop while I stood on top of the right side of the single
cylindar 500 CC engine while I waited to sommersault into the sand to avoid serious 
injury. So, I did this when it suddenly stopped when the left foot peg and left handlebar 
grip stopped suddenly in the sand. I did two or three sommersaults in the sand and came
up with minor injuries laughing. My cousin was on a Honda 90 Trail bike and came
up right next to me very pale because he expected to see me injured. But, I was laughing
because I hadn't died doing something stupid. So, he started laughing too that 
I was still alive and okay and only very slightly peeled with blood and sand in my knees
and elbows. We didn't wear helmets then either because it was too hot because
we would have passed out in the desert trying to wear them then. So, we just wore
Bermuda shorts and tennis shoes to stay cool enough to be able to ride in the heat then

We really do some crazy things when we are only 17 year old boys.