Hello, List:
I've been off the list for a few days and so may have missed this point being brought up, but I think there's an exception to the rule that collectors try to purchase (and thus prices are highest for) what they wanted most when they were teenagers, and that's when there's an event so special that people begin to seek out machines that will permit them to participate.
Among car collectors, a vehicle that's worthy of prompting an invitation to the Mille Miglia will be worth more than a car that's a year or two past the deadline, while Britain's long-running London to Brighton veteran car run ensures a high level of interest in cars built prior to the 1904 cutoff.
On topic, L'eroica has provided me an impetus to find a 1950s Italian bike, which I would likely not have bothered with had the event not been around. I expect others feel the same.
Kris Hicks-Green
Olympia, Washington State, USA