One of the highlights of the Barber Vintage Festival is sidecar racing. If you’ve never seen sidecar racing it is one of the most unique and exciting types of motorsport you’ll ever see. Drivers have to unlearn the riding techniques they are accustomed to on a motorcycle as they deal with a machine that doesn’t lean (well to some degree anyway) as a normal two-wheeled bike would.

The passenger, or “monkey”, is constantly climbing around on the rig to get their weight as far to the inside of the turn as possible to keep the machine on track. They are also trying to hang on and not be thrown onto said track while all this action is happening. It’s grueling and dangerous for the team but as much for them as it is for those watching.

While Johnny and I were at the Barber Vintage Festival this fall, Johnny was able to talk to one of the teams about this unique and exciting sport. Hit the video below to see the interview with Hannah Mathews and Dale Lavender as they discuss being a “monkey”, a driver, and how their rig was made.