Lucky Man | MC M.C.

Photo: John L. Stein

What does the man who has everything get himself for Christmas? How about a sweet 1955 Matchless G80S to join the Manx Norton, Ducati Imola racer and fleet of vintage Yamaha and Ossa motocrossers in his garage? Contributing Editor John L. Stein’s middle initial must stand for “lucky,” because a local shop owner told him about this 500cc desert sled (and two others), asleep in a garage for 45 years. “The patina is just ridiculous,” Stein says. “It’s as if the owner rode it directly from the trail to the garage, closed the door, and walked away.”