Story by Brandes Elitch
Photos courtesy Solvang Motorcycle Museum
Solvang is a small town of about 5000 people, located in the Santa Ynez Valley of Santa Barbara County, about 140 miles north of Los Angeles. The name means “Sunny Fields” in Danish. It was founded in 1911 by Danish-American educators to preserve their Danish cultural heritage, and had a dedicated Lutheran church and Danish “folk school.” During the period 1850-1930 the Danish economy contracted, so about one in ten Danes emigrated, mostly to the U.S. In 1912, Solvang’s pastor traveled to Iowa to recruit more Danes, and was successful in getting enough of them to move so that the town’s future was assured. Today, it is a tourist destination that attracts a million visitors a year, on the strength of its uniquely Danish architecture, food, attractions, and museums.
1965 MV Agusta 3 cylinder. At the Quail gathering in May of 2016, this bike won the ‘Spirit of the Show’ award – top honors from a prestigious event.