Lessons in French Life: Solex Revival

Kristin’s son suggests giving a garden relic a new lease of life.

“Allo?,” I said. “Hi, Mom,” said my son, slightly winded. “Where are you?” I asked, hearing noise in the background.

“At work. I passed a scooter repair shop while delivering wine. They said they could fix our Solex. What do you think?”

“I don’t know… it’s pretty rusted, maybe beyond repair. I’ll think about it,” I said. But my son’s call had already sent me off on a trip down memory lane.

We acquired the vintage motorbike in the summer of 2012 when we moved to Saint-Cуг-sur-Mer to plant a vineyard. The elderly couple who sold us the farmhouse left behind a few antiques they wouldn’t be shipping back to the UK. Among the treasures there was a mid-century Danish enfilade with a sliding door that disappeared around the back, two teakwood tables de nuit, three nesting gigognes and a dining table with one broken leg (“mended” with my husband’s trusty silver duct tape). Twelve years on, these pieces feel like part of the family, just like that old Solex – though it’s become more of a fixture in our garden over the years…

A classic in the cellar

We discovered the iconic motorbike in the farmhouse cellar beside a classic Motobécane (which we gave to my motor enthusiast beau-frère). First released in 1946, the Solex quickly became a popular deux-roues in France, its charm boosted by stars like Brigitte Bardot, who made it synonymous with a carefree, French lifestyle. Jean-Marc even managed to fire it up and take it for a spin around our budding vineyard, but after that brief escapade, the Solex returned to the cellar.
We took the motorbike with us when we sold our vineyard, Mas des Brun, and moved to La Ciotat. But after converting our garage into a studio for my mom, the Solex moved to the garden, becoming a sort of objet d’art and a favourite perch for our local doves, who land on the handlebars.

I’ll never forget the travelling bra salesman (long story!) who paused in his busy day to admire our mobylette, green vines crawling up through its spokes. “Vous devriez la rénover,” he said. But the Solex stayed tangled in the garden’s overgrowth as life bustled on with a new dog, adult kids flying the nest, Grandma moving in, and my husband off making wine in New Zealand. With everyone busy, the Solex was low on the list of priorities.

Mr Fix-It calling

“So, what do you say, Mom? Do we fix it?” Max’s voice brought me back to the present. Pourquoi pas ? I could leave this project to my son. And who knows? If all goes well, maybe Max could tackle that duct-taped dining table next.

Indeed, I had a list as long as my arm-but one thing at a time… starting with the Solex. After all, if a travelling bra salesman could stop and appreciate the allure of an old bike, maybe it just needed a little TLC to rev up its charm and become so much more than a seductive centrepiece of our garden!

FRENCH VOCABULARY

• ALLO = hello
• UNE ENFILADE = sideboard
• LA TABLE DE NUIT = night stand
• LES (TABLES) GIGOGNES = nesting tables.
• MOTOBECANE = motorbike manufacturer
• LE BEAU-FRÈRE = brother-in-law
• LE DEUX-ROUES = motorbike
• LA MOBYLETTE = moped
• VOUS DEVRIEZ LA RÉNOVER = you should renovate it
• POURQUOI PAS ? = why not?

From France Today Magazine