MAY 2014
WWW.PNWR.ORG
45
roaming the streets in a B&W time
capsule. With vast press exposure,
the 3 wheeler has been a tipping
point for Morgan (http://morgan-
3wheeler.us). The BBC named it
one of the "Ten Most Quintessential
British Cars". Richard Hammond
of Top Gear UK loves them, even
as his co-presenters Jeremy Clarkson
and James May steadfastly level
hurtful accusations that he is a
secret American.
Within the shadow of Mount Rainier is an
unlikely spot for the rebirth of a British icon.
I am willing to bet (again) this is where many readers do a
double-take. Seattle shares more in common with the British Isles
than rain and leaden skies. Across from a fish market, a discreet
historic industrial building on South Rainer Avenue is the home
of Liberty Sidecars (http://www.libertysidecars.us) owned by Pete
Larsen and his wife Patty Billings.
Since 1990 their main business
has been manufacturing retro-style
motorcycle sidecars—immaculate
sidecars. Pete is well-described by
the British automotive journalist
Andrew English, as an "artisan/
engineer/designer." I imagine if
da Vinci had made sidecars this
would be the place to see what they
might have looked like. Here, in
among mostly bits and pieces of Harley Davidsons is where the
modern Morgan 3 wheeler took shape.
The creative spark seen across the world.
You don't need to spend much time with Pete to detect a restless
mind. Long fascinated by the British three-wheeler concept; and
as he put it, "casting about for new products and challenges related
to our 3 wheeled specialty", by 2000 he began a six year project
that resulted in a three-wheeler he named, "the 'ACE' for the way
"In today's world it is
utterly unique – like a
teleported Flash Gordon
roaming the streets in a
B&W time capsule."
Father and son, Hans & Kurt Schmidt in their Morgan followed by the ACE with Pete Larsen at the wheel
