For as long as he can recall, Robert Ames’ life has centered around Weirs Beach in New Hampshire and the Laconia Motorcycle Week, an AMA Gypsy Tour Heritage event.

“I grew up in Weirs Beach,” Ames said. “The family business, Half Moon Enterprises, which my dad, Sidney Ames, started in the 1950s, is at the center of Weirs Beach, and Weirs Beach is at the center of the rally, so I have been involved with the rally basically my entire life.”

Since 2008, Ames has served on the board of the Laconia Motorcycle Week Association.

Although he is not a motorcyclist, Ames is an enthusiast who has created an online archive of rally memorabilia and a history of the motorcycle rally. It’s located at www.weirsbeach.com/reasons-to-visit/events/motorcycle-week/bike-week-guide-covers.

American Motorcyclist: What prompted you to collect Laconia rally and Gypsy Tour memorabilia?

Robert Ames: Since I grew up here, I’ve always been interested in the history of Weirs Beach, in which the rally has played a major part.

There was quite a wide variety of rally items produced. Besides patches and buttons/pins, there were watch fobs, buckles, bracelets, rings, tie bars, bolo clasps, key rings, money clasps, ashtrays, pennants, etc.

But I only have a very few of the above items, which a rally old-timer donated to me.

Mostly I have collected the official rally magazines.

The first official Rally magazines were published in 1940 and 1941. Then, after a WWII hiatus, rally magazines were again issued from 1946-1965. They are fascinating sources of information about the rally in its middle days.

After 1965, no rally magazines were produced until 1991, when the modern era of Laconia Motorcycle Week began.

I began collecting the magazines in the early 2000s.

AM: Do you have your physical collection on display? Can people visit?

RA: Aside from the magazines, my collection is actually nearly entirely a virtual collection, not a physical collection of the items.

I have spent years collecting images from various online sources. However, the primary source has been, and continues to be, on the internet.

AM: When did you launch the website? Why?

RA: I started the WeirsBeach.com website in 1998, in the early days of the World Wide Web.

The website was started to entice visitors to come to Weirs Beach, as that would be helpful to my family business.

Laconia Motorcycle Week

Laconia Motorcycle Week (www.laconiamcweek.com) is June 9-17. The event is part of the 2018 AMA National Gypsy Tour.
For a complete list of all AMA National Gypsy Tour events, visit www.americanmotorcyclist.com
/Riding/AMA-National-Gypsy-Tours.

But, right from the beginning, I decided to intersperse historical info and images about Weirs Beach with current visitor information and photos showcasing the beauty of the area.

Weirs Beach has a rich history, and I thought people would be interested enough that it might prompt them to visit.

AM: Of the items you have collected over the years, which are your favorites?

RA: My favorite old rally magazine has to be the 1952 issue, because it is the only one with a photo of Lakeside Avenue, the main street of Weirs Beach, on its cover.

Since the rally magazine was revived in 1991, nearly every issue has had a cover photo of Lakeside Avenue. But during the 1950s, the covers were mostly of the races at the Belknap Recreation Area in Gilford.

AM: Which are the ones you believe are most significant?

RA: The photo from the July 12, 1917, issue of Motorcycle and Bicycle Illustrated proves without a doubt that there was a rally in Weirs Beach that year.

Officially, the first Laconia Rally has always been dated as taking place in 1917. So, the rally has been going on for at least a century, albeit with a few breaks. No rally was held during World War II, as well as in 1964, 1966 and 1975.

The rally has been reported to have started in 1916, which could very well be the case, but that was an unofficial rally for which there is no irrefutable evidence.

You can see a complete list of rally dates on my “History of Laconia Motorcycle Week” webpage.