The Leader and Arrow were motorcycles produced by Ariel Motorcycles of Birmingham in the 1950s and 60s and were both examples of the way that the company tried to adapt to the 1960s idea of what a motorcycle should be.
Ariel were an old firm of motorcycle manufacturers having been established in the previous century and had a reputation for producing fine motorcycles with large engines but it was decided, at the end of the 1950s, that for the new decade they would try smaller two-stroke machines. The Ariel Leader, designed by Val Page, was a very advanced machine for the time and a 250 cc two-stroke motorcycle was ideal for learners.
The Leader was a success and, based on that success, the Ariel Arrow was produced which was essentially a stripped down version of the leader with lower handlebars and generally a more sporting appearance. One thing that Ariel had done was to pioneer the use of different and more striking colours for their machines and the Ariel Arrow was available in a golden colour and so became known as the ‘Golden Arrow’.
Although these were excellent machines, they were unable to compete with the tide of motorcycles arriving from the Orient and eventually BSA, the parent company, decided to close Ariel and production ceased. However, both the Ariel Leader and the Ariel Arrow were excellent motorcycles and, with different company management, perhaps the result could have been a continuation of the machines into the 1970s.
