Vincent Black Shadow New Zealand. Journalist Hunter S. Thompson wrote "If you rode the Black Shadow at top speed for any length of time, you would almost certainly die. That is why there are not many life members of the Vincent Black Shadow Society." The bike is mentioned several times in Thompson's 1971 novel, "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas". Black Shadow serial number F10AB/1B/900 was a specially prepared model sold to American John Edgar for the purpose of challenging the American land speed record for motorcycles. The goal was to take the AMA National Class A flying-mile record then held by Joe
Vincent Black Shadow engine's ports. Early Black Shadows have a third inner valve spring not shared with the Rapide, but this feature was dropped from later bikes. Due to the low-octane 'Pool' petrol that was all that was available in the early post-war years, bikes of the period could have only low compression ratios. Although the prototype Black Shadow was built with a compression ratio lower than the Rapide's nominal 6.8:1, production Shadows have a ratio of 7.3:1 due to having different pistons from the Rapide, although still supplied by Specialloid. The Black Shadows have different carburettors than the Rapides, with Series B