Countless motorcycle manufacturers popped up in the 1920s and ’30s in Britain, but somehow, none quite as cool as Vincent. High-end speed machines, combining old-school big-displacement twins, monochrome finishes and titillating names like Rapide and Black Shadow, a Vincent V-twin welcomes you into any roundtable of motorcycling, and it’s not hard to see why. A seat rarely opens at the Vincent Owners Club, even more so when you’re talking about an ultra-rare first-series Rapide.
One of just 79 built, the Series-A Rapide represents Vincent’s first foray into V-twins—an endeavor that established Vincent as the superbike of the day. There are faster Vincents, and on occasion more valuable ones, but the rarity and significance of the Series-A Rapide is hard to overstate.…