Motorcycles @ Monument Circle

As part of the citywide celebrations of the opening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to motorized competition in August 1909, dozens of motorcyclists gathered at Monument Circle in the heart of downtown Indianapolis on August 12 to launch a parade throughout the city. While these motorcyclists were not the competitors from the Speedway, the machines were still such a novelty they could draw a crowd.
 
In a great public relations move, this historic event inspired the appearance of the MotoGP competitors to appear at Monument Circle this week. Below is a gallery of photos from the event by the Indianapolis Star. One hundred years earlier, a photo appeared in the Indianapolis Star of some of the motorcyclists around the perimeter of Monument Circle before the parade. Check out page 5 of a PDF you can see here by the launching the link you find on the page.
 
Indianapolis Star Gallery