news [3]

A massive fire has wiped out a third of the motorcycles at the National Motorcycle Museum [4] near Birmingham. 650 machines, out of the 900 collection, valued at an estimated £8m have been destroyed.

Fire investigators say the blaze, reported at 4.40pm yesterday (16th Sept), started in boxes old air conditioning units, triggered by a carelessly disgarded cigarrette.
A total of 120 firefighters tackled the inferno overnight which engulfed hundreds of rare and often unique machines.

The venue has been the home of the Acorn Midlands show [5] for a number of years, and as a Fireblade rider myself, I always enjoyed combining two hobbies in one day out. It is hoped that the venue will be up and running soon so that this years show can go ahead, however we suspect an alternative venue will be required.

We'll keep you updated with any show / venue changes as we get them.

Further stories: Motorcycle News [6], BBC [7] and follow up [8].