Austria’s Top Mountain Crosspoint motorcycle museum has been destroyed by fire.  Over 200 classic motorcycles (and cars) may be a total loss.   The museum is at the base of the Timmelsjoch pass road that connects Austria and Italy.  It is Europe’s highest motorcycle museum located at about 7,135 feet MSL.

It has (perhaps had) one of the most extensive and valuable motorcycle collections in Europe.  Over 230 classic motorcycles called the Top Mountain Crosspoint museum home.  With classic bikes from 120 international manufacturers and hand-picked curiosities, the facility measured more than 2,600 square meters (nearly 30,000 sq. ft.).  Inside were motorcycle exhibits starting with the year 1894.  Inside are examples from Vincent, Brough Superior, Sunbeam, Matchless, Zundapp, and many more.

Motorcycles are not the museum’s only attraction.  It also hosts some cars (such as an Aston Martin DB-5 made famous by the James Bond films), a ski history exhibit, and a restaurant.

According to the Telegraph, museum co-owners and brothers Alban and Attila Scheiber have always loved old motorcycles.  Putting the museum on the Timmelsjoch just made sense.

“My brother and I have always loved old motorcycles. When our collection had grown to around 20 or 30 we thought about creating our own museum. This is our way of making this dream come true.  It’s also very appropriate considering how many passionate motorcyclists come here to ride along the Timmelsjoch High Alpine Road.”  – Alban Scheiber to the Telegraph

The fire that leveled the museum erupted at about 4:00 AM local time.  The cause of the fire is under investigation.  But as you can see from the short video above, the fire was quite intense.

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