There are few better ways to spend a summer weekend than surrounded by a hundred or so pre-war motorcycles, Belgian country lanes, old castles and the unmistakable sound of old engines burning oil. That’s if you like old bikes of course!
Words + Photos: Rich Orriss
For 2026, the Where is Anna team crewed up with the Hesbaye Historic Festival at the Veulen Castle, putting a twist on the normally more intimate Where is Anna gathering. The event ran on 22nd and 23rd of August, with pre-war motorcycles, grass sprints, a closed circuit and rides through the surrounding Hesbaye countryside.
I travelled over with Adam and his little vintage caravan – now affectionately known by several people as the Caravan of Love. Between us we had two veterans: Adam on his 1915 Norton Model 9 and me on my 1912 Zenith Gradua 500 TT. Both are belt-drive machines, both make a considerable amount of noise, and both have a habit of attracting a crowd.
They also both have a habit of misbehaving.
Adam’s Norton developed an ignition problem on the first day, eventually leading to some fairly creative roadside engineering. With the magneto pickup refusing to play ball, he drilled through it and stuffed it with copper wire. It wasn’t necessarily how Bosch intended the system to work, but it got him moving again. The belt then decided it would rather spend its time on the ground than on the pulley.
My Zenith wasn’t much better. It simply seemed to decide for itself when it fancied starting. Sometimes it did. Sometimes it didn’t. Such is life with a 114-year-old motorcycle.
And that’s rather the point.
The Hesbaye Historic Festival isn’t about turning up with a polished machine and worrying about whether it makes it through the day without a mark. These are old motorcycles being used properly. They rattle, leak, pop, bang, throw belts and occasionally require a little resourcefulness to make them fire. When they do work, the reward is enormous, and very much worth it.
In this video, Adam talks about his machine from the campsite – and we tag along for a spin around the nearby countryside.
The oval grass track in the grounds of Veulen Castle was particularly entertaining, with pre-war machines being lined up for duels while a flag girl jumped up to signal each contest. The bikes spun up the dirt, entertained the crowds, and provided an extra splash of atmosphere to the event. There were numerous runs out from the castle too, giving the old motorcycles the chance to stretch their legs rather than simply parading around the grounds.
For me, the best ride of the weekend was the run out to Kasteel van Ordingen. The route through the surrounding villages and countryside was exactly what you want from an event like this – quiet roads, beautiful scenery and plenty of opportunities to stop and look around.
The castle itself has a remarkable history, dating back to the medieval period and originally serving as a fortified position on the boundary of the County of Loon. It later became a commandery of the Teutonic Order, before eventually becoming the impressive neo-Renaissance castle seen today.
Arriving there on a collection of pre-war motorcycles made the whole thing feel slightly surreal. Rather than simply being another destination on a ride, Ordingen provided the perfect setting for a relaxed break. Drinks, food and people sitting around chatting gave it much more of a garden-party atmosphere than a traditional motorcycle event. Engines came and went, bikes were inspected, stories were exchanged and nobody seemed particularly interested in rushing anywhere. It was also an apt spot for some photos.
That relaxed feeling extended beyond the festival itself. The Hesbaye region is full of attractive little towns and villages, with quiet roads winding through the countryside and plenty of places where you can pull up for a coffee. And the coffee stops were an opportunity for the locals to admire the machines, and that is precisely what this group of cyclists took advantage of – Adam thought he was some kind of celebrity!
There weren’t too many casualties over the weekend, although our mate David from the Timing Chest managed to provide one of the more spectacular mechanical moments. His 1925 Sunbeam threw him off on the field and then apparently decided that that was not enough – promptly exploding its gearbox. Once more – the joys of old machinery! Fortunately, David is very much the positive chap and is in the right trade to get it sorted, so I suspect the Sunbeam’s retirement will be relatively short-lived.
Among the motorcycles there were also some wonderfully eclectic interpretations of what constitutes a motorcycle – or, in the case of the Messerschmitt bubble car, perhaps what constitutes a car. The Messerschmitt KR200 is one of the strangest and most recognisable microcars of the post-war period. Designed by aircraft engineer Fritz Fend and produced by Messerschmitt, it was essentially a tiny enclosed two-seater with tandem seating, a lightweight body and a small two-stroke engine. The aircraft influence is obvious in the bubble canopy, which makes it look rather like someone has taken a fighter aircraft cockpit and put it on three wheels.
It was exactly the sort of machine that fitted the eclectic atmosphere of the festival.
My personal favourite of the weekend was a 1925 La Mondiale, fitted with a 350cc JAP race-bred engine and still wearing its original paint. It was one of those motorcycles that stopped you in your tracks with its pressed steel frame and unusual appearance. Tom, its owner, has an impressive collection of old motorcycles and consistently manages to bring something interesting along. The La Mondiale was no exception – original, purposeful, loud, and full of character.
Well ok I may have had another favourite. It was an FN with dinner plate wheels. Unlike the open-spoked wheels we commonly associate with motorcycles, a disc mounted to the wheel could offer aerodynamic advantages by reducing turbulence around the spokes. They also helped protect the wheel and bearings from dirt and debris. However, discs were relatively uncommon on early road motorcycles, with conventional open spoked wheels remaining the preferred choice because they were easier to repair, cheaper and better suited to the rough roads of the period. They seem to attract mixed attention, but personally I think they look the part.
The event also added another a rather special machine in the mix – a 1904 Lurquin- Coudert, brought along by its owner Paul Valkenet. Lurquin- Coudert was a small French manufacturer, producing motorcycles for only a handful of years between 1901 and 1908. Very few survive. Valkenet acquired it in 2010 and undertook a painstaking mechanical revival. Since then, it has been ridden on some remarkable journeys, including from Leusden to Paris and a commemorative ride to Madrid. It has even taken to the famous Montlhéry circuit, where its tiny 1.75hp engine reached around 60kph on the banked circuit. There is no clutch or gearbox. The rider has to constantly work the ignition and mixture controls, making adjustments as the road unfolds.
The Hesbaye weekend was a slightly different proposition from the usual Where is Anna events. Instead of the more traditional ride-out and social gathering, this was Where is Anna dropped into a much larger festival environment, with racing, grass-track action, cars, motorcycles, food, camping and plenty going on around the castle.
But the important bit was still there: old motorcycles being ridden, friends getting together and a good excuse to spend a weekend exploring the Belgian countryside. And despite the belts, magnetos, reluctant starting, exploding gearboxes and improvised copper-wire repairs, it was enormous fun.
Where is Anna will be back next year at the Coude de Shoeur. If this year’s Hesbaye adventure was anything to go by, it will certainly be worth making the trip.
Thanks to the Hans and the Where is Anna Team for making the event happen… roll on next year.
an article by The Girder Club
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