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Paradise & Gell has been located on Michael Street in Peel since 1974.Here you will find a wide range of furnishings to enhance any livingspace. Whether you are looking for something contemporary or a moretraditional piece, then look no further than Paradise & Gell.
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Contents
Editor: Harley Richards [email protected]
Cover Picture:- Details of the riders, machines and the year have been lostin the mists of time but where else could this be but the Isle of Man?
Page 2 Secretary's Notes
Page 3 Chairman's Chat
Page 4 YBN “Turning Japanese"
Page 7 MGP Memories
Page 14 New Members
Page 15 Floggers Corner
Page 16 Trials Results
Page 20 Book Review - A stupid thing to do
and An Alpine thing to do
Page 22 Second Jurby Test Day
Page 23 A Moment in Time & Where is it now?
Page 24 "Go for it" - Noel Pope
Page 30 Rider Profile No. 25 - F. L. Frith
Page 31 Stanley Woods & the DKW Lightweights
Photo by Amulree
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Secretary’s Notes
Tony
Printed by Peel Copy CentreTel: +44 (0) 1624 843889
Hi Everyone,
A rather short Secretary’s Notes this time as I was delayed in the UK due toweather, and consequently everything has got behind.
The recent Jurby track day was held in good weather and was well attended.We obviously need to repeat it in 2015 as it has proved to be very popularwith our members.
The TT Rally and the MGP Rally are well into the planning stage and willhopefully attract more entries than ever, although I understand that ferrycrossings are now scarce at popular times for the MGP and even harder toget for TT and this may well affect our entry numbers. Watch out for theadvert in Jan/Feb Old Bike Mart!! Additional support for the MGP Rally isa pop up Museum by the National Motorcycle Museum and Footman James,this will be featured at the Festival of Jurby.
To safeguard the Committee against litigation, the Festival of Jurby is set tobecome a limited liability company and will be called the “MotorcycleFestival of Jurby”. Also, the event has attracted a posse of racing RotaryNortons, plus up to a hundred BSA Gold Stars will be celebrating theiranniversary and many, many celebrities have pledged attendance already.Lots to look forward to.
Don’t forget the Hangover Run on December 28th, starting from TynwaldInn at 12 noon. The finish will be finalised in the next few days and will beon our Section web site, or give me a ring closer to the time on 878242.
Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
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Chairman’s chatSeasons greetings and a happy and prosperous new year to you all.
2014 proved to be a good year for motorcycling and our Section, with 2015promising more interesting and enjoyable events for you all to enjoy.
In this issue of Vintage Mann you will find a copy of a survey which I wouldlike you to complete as honestly as possible, it's anonymous and all individ-ual comments will be confidential. Hopefully it shouldn’t take to long toanswer but we do feel this is an important step in making sure the Sectiondelivers what you, its members, want going forwards. Please use the en-closed stamped, addressed envelope to return the survey.
The survey has been produced with grateful thanks to Alastair Alexander(Scottish VMCC rep), and Gary Corlett.
I would also like to thank all of our committee members for their commit-ment over the year and especially to Joann and Harley for the production ofour excellent local magazine. A great deal of hard work is carried outseamlessly behind the scenes on your behalf.
Richard
It is difficult for some of us to think of a Honda Gold Wing as a Vintage bike,but early versions have no trouble in complying with the 25 year rule. Atalmost 900 lb (408 kg) ‘fully-dressed’ and fuelled, the Aspencade versioncertainly had a presence when ridden two-up. Back in 1985 a tester wrote:“It takes a certain style and class to ride a Gold Wing Aspencade, and lookas though it is yours by right. We didn’t have it. Our legs are too short”.
David Wright
Did You Know?
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Yellow Belly NotesTurning Japanese
I answered the telephone a while agoand was asked “Are you going to theStafford show in October?” This isnot an unusual question but when Ireplied that I was only going for theSunday, things became somewhatodd. The question was being posed byGerry Daine, who went on to say thathe would like a bike to display on theBritish Historic Racing stand in the“GP Paddock” at the show. Gerry, forthose of you who don’t know him, isthe Obergruppenfuhrer of all thingsracing in the Vintage club, and wasasking me to provide a Japanese racebike! He said that he would pick it up
on Friday and return it on Monday - and that it would be on display todemonstrate the Club’s commitment to the new class on the grid for2015.
I said yes, and then later let it sink in. As a member of the VMCC for anumber of years I have my own stereotypical view of the membership -elderly male riding a British single from the fifties, on a club run to a countrypub, wearing a fluorescent Sam Browne belt and Derri boots. I know I’m inthe wrong and I apologize immediately, but that is the picture I have in mymind. I certainly qualify for the elderly male part but have never been on aclub run in my life. If I have this right, to participate in a club run, a bikemust be a minimum of 25 years old. Well I have a bike that I use regularlyon the road which qualifies. It is a 1987 350 c.c. power valve Yamaha. Pic 1Your Lincolnshire correspondent nipping down to the shops.) However if Iwere to use it to turn up one Sunday morning to the square in Market Rasen,to join the boys of the Mid - Lincs section, I would be made welcome (bysome) but feel that I would be rather missing the point.
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Anyway, once at the ClassicMechanics show at Stafford Iheaded to the Bonhams’ auc-tion and had a look at someMV Agusta race bikes, whichturned out to be mainly bitzas.Outside in the “GP Paddock”,there was my ’72 Yamahanext to a Roger Moss Scott(Pic 2), proving that, in engi-neering terms at least, nothingis new under the sun. Thebike that lays claim to be thequintessential “boy racer” ofthe 80’s was, in fact, done somuch better in Shipley in the30’s. Ho hum!
Pic 1
Pic 2
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Gerry told me that the Yamaha had been well received and the club wantedthe bike for the Newark show in January, but I will make sure to take myGreeves Oulton along as well, just in case.
Pat Sproston. Louth, Lincolnshire
P.S. How’s this for commitment? (Pic 3) This Enfield will be back on thegrid next season.
Pic 3
Does anyone know the whereabouts of a BSA 500 that was bought bysomeone on the island around 1980? It came from Reading and its UKplate was RD 3952. The daughter of the gentleman who owned it hasdiscovered some photographs which might be of interest to the currentowner. All leads to Tony or myself please. Thanks.
Where is it NOW?
Harley
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I competed in the Manx Grand Prix between 1974 and 1983, ridingvarious British 4 – strokes, and, although I didn’t have any real success-es, I thoroughly enjoyed my years racing on the island before a youngfamily meant it was time to hang up the leathers and call it a day (Pic 1)
Time moves on andthis year I found my-self with an opportuni-ty to enter my latefather’s Norton Inter-national (named“Boanerges” after TELawrence’s Brough)in the Vintage Parade.I took the entry withsome trepidation –would I still rememberthe course? Would Ibe at one with my fa-ther’s bike – after all,it had spat me off oncebefore?
Come the day of the Parade I found myself in Pit Lane warming the Nortonup – the cacophony of noise from the other exhausts gave me goosebumps!Looking down towards Bray Hill was daunting though and memories of myracing days came flooding back – the dry mouth, the racing heart beat – andthen the flag dropped and we were off!
On the move, my anxiety vanishes and is immediately replaced by thememory of me and my Dad waiting at St Ninian’s cross roads for the arrivalof Bob McIntyre and John Surtees in 1957 (Pic 2). Gilera leading Agusta -the sight and sounds so fresh it felt like yesterday.
MGP memories
Pic 1
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Heading down BrayHill, I notice the rider infront move to the middleof road. The racing linecomes back to me and Ihead for the right handcurb at the bottom of thehill, avoiding a verybrave (and hopefullywell paid!) photogra-pher. At least the starsonly have a man holecover to deal with!
Up towards Ago’s leap and it’s impossible to forget the iconic picture of theman himself up on his MV’s rear wheel at full race speed. (Pic 3) No suchheroics with the Norton on a Parade lap however!
Although it is a Parade lap, the approach into Quarter Bridge is damp enoughto warrant some caution and I use the gears and brakes to bring things under
control. Despite the roads beinggreasy through Braddan and on toUnion Mills, I find I’m looking out forthose braking markers of years goneby and remembering little bits of localinterest along the course: the housewhere the BeeGees lived, a small shopon the right hand side of the track, andso on.
Looking into the far distance I can seeother riders following Marshall No. 2(I think it was Jim Hunter – a formerMGP winner) and realise catching thepack would not be impossible. Deci-bels and speed rises as Boanerges’voice bellows out of the Brooklandscan. I sense the lap is only just starting.
Pic 2
Pic 3
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The old racing focus is becoming to come back to me as I head past the campsite and into Ballagarey. The memories are taking a different twist now as Iremember great riders such as David Jefferies paying the ultimate price forracing on these roads. Although I am gaining on the pack through Crosbyand Greeba Castle, I take things easy into the right-hander at Ballacraine asthe words “It’s OK, they’re open” from George Formby’s film, No Limits,joins my memories.
Hardly a mile goes by withoutanother image or memory pop-ping up: Ballaspur, whereMilky Quayle’s televised bigoff made him famous overnight(Pic 4); Ballig Bridge, nowflattened out but, in days goneby, machines would be air-borne through here (Pic 5);Black Dub, with the petrolstation on the right hand side
before the peel-off point. I’m brought back to reality as I catch up with arider who doesn’t seem to know where the road goes and I have to pay closeattention to where he’s going until I can get by.
Through Glen Helen I’m enjoy-ing the picturesque toweringtrees, rocks and river while re-membering my many earlymorning practice sessions, andthen reality rears its ugly headonce more as I run into wavedflags at Sarah’s Cottage andcatch site of marshalls wheelinga bike back down the hill. Asalways, I hope the rider is OKand it’s just a machine failure.
As I break out onto Cronk-y-voddy I’m taken by the contrasts that greet youaround the circuit. Cronk-y-voddy itself is a fast, bumpy straight but, justaway to the left, I recall the tiny church near Little London, sitting in
Pic 4
Pic 5
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beautiful scenery and surrounded by rolling green hills. I’m still chasing thehare, however, and press on through the glorious 13th which sees me up andout of seat, the Norton’s saddle handing out a real pounding: this is reallyliving! Past experience tells me a slow approach into Kirkmichael is wise asthe road narrows and, even at Parade speeds, it would be all too easy to getit wrong. Even so, the exhausts bouncing off the cottages create a lovelyatmosphere – although how lovely it must have been for the residents in thefirst light of an early morning practice session is a question I will let othersdebate!
On the way towards Ballaugh Bridge I pick up another rider and we’re soonhaving a good dice through the flowing curves. At the bridge itself, I applyextreme caution as generations of scratchers have discovered that take off isalways a distinct possibility, followed by coming a cropper on landing.
Exiting Ballaugh, I remember Gwen Crellin checking off the riders as theypassed, tea and cakes ready in her front room for any competitor who brokedown within walking distance of her house. The Helicopter Fund was tobenefit enormously from her fund raising activities and she was eventuallymade a, very well deserved, Lady of Man. I finally catch up with theMarshall on the approach to Balacrye and see him chastising a rider who hadcrept past him. That is breaking the Golden Rule of a Parade lap: “Neverovertake the Marshall”. The Marshall dropped his speed down to bunch usup again, before speeding off into the distance, leaving us to timidly get backon the throttle in our own time.
Left to our own devices once more, we’re soon battling neck and neck downthrough Sulby village – this is one hell of a way to enjoy a Saturday!Unfortunately, I forget to engage my brain through Sulby Bridge and com-pletely mess up the line around the right hander. I give it the gun on the exit,determined to regain my usual confident riding past the Ginger Hall pub. Ilove this left hander, over camber and into a short down hill section. On therun towards Ramsay, I brace myself for the inevitable wiggles and shakes asanother out of saddle experience awaits. I’m getting huge amounts of feedback via the stiff girder forks and the bike is keeping really steady, even overthe bumps towards Glantramnan. However, there is so much energy neededto keep the Norton on the boil, and in control, that my mouth is dry within
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seconds. Just another ten miles or so until I can enjoy a cuppa and relive thelap with the other riders.Coming into Parliament Square, my brain is disengaged again and I mess upthe line completely, heading over to the left hand gutter where, by coinci-dence, Ma and Pa, on the Norton, had enjoyed an ice cream in years gone by.However, memories of getting May Hill wrong in my racing days mean Ifind the right line across the bumps – with the exhaust grinding out andpitching me onto the left hand side of the road.
I get things back in line for theapproach to the uphill section andreach the Hairpin in bottom gear. Alittle clutch slip is needed to makeit around but it’s then back on thepower towards the two right hand-ers that make up the Waterworks.It’s easy to get caught out here asthe second exit tightens up on itself,that well known image of SammyMiller going over the wall popsinto my mind for moment (Pic 6).
By the time I reach the Gooseneck I’ve managed to tuck in behind theMarshall and we both head away up the Mountain. Predictably, we’re joinedby faster bikes along the Mountain Mile but Boanerges is doing all I couldask of it. It’s comfortably holding its own against the other machines and notmissing a beat, I take a moment or two to just savour the glorious atmos-phere. I’m joined by a lightweight Ducati or Aermacchi on an open megabetween the Mountain Box and the Veranda- if anyone knows who that riderwas I’d love to get in touch (any suggestions to the Editor please).
There are more glorious views down the valley towards Laxey as I cross,cautiously, over the tram lines at the Bungalow, looking up to the heavens tosay a big “Thank you Dad”. Rolling down the Mountain, famous sections flyby: Windy Corner, the 33rd Milestone, Keppel Gate, Kate’s Cottage, Cregny Baa and then into Hillberry which, if I say so myself, I take very nicely!Which is more than can be said for Signpost Corner which I approach far tooquickly and get completely wrong as a result. None of that matters, howev-
Pic 6
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er, as I pull in at the end of the lap and start the climb down from Cloud Nine.It was “only a Parade” but, for me, it was absolutely magical; the miles,smiles and memories combined to make it a run I will never forget. ThankYou to the Isle of Man Section for making it all possible. (Pic 7).
John DalyPhotos by John Daly and Amulree
Pic 7
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A hearty welcome to these ten new members:-
K Lowney: 16 Ballachurry Close, Onchan, IM3 4BE
R Taylor: 2 Sprucewood Rise, Foxdale, IM4 3JS
C Miller: 8 Tynwald Road, Peel, IM5 1LA
H Richardson: Pitcairn, Quarterbridge Road, Douglas, IM2 3RQ
R Elstrop: 5 Windsor Road, Ramsey, IM8 3EG
J Joughin: 60 Victoria Road, Douglas, IM2 4HQ
D Whalley: Signpost Cottage, Cronk Ny Mona, Onchan, IM3 3TD
P Burden: 39 Barrule Road, Willaston, Douglas, IM2 6LN
D Craine: The Carrick, Port Lewaigue, Ramsey, IM7 1AG
W Dearing: Brottby, Peveril Road, Peel, IM5 1PJ
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Flogger’s Corner1972 Kawasaki 500 H1B.95% original, it appears tohave been in dry storagesince 1976 with just over19,000 genuine miles on theclock. All the chrome isvery good indeed, no dinksin the pipes which is ex-traordinary all things con-sidered. The bike runs welland is currently registeredhere on the Isle of Man.
£6950 ovno. Ade: 898155 or 478353
1979 (First registered) Silk700S. 2 owners from new.2,680 miles. Sabre model fit-ted with the “Comfort seat”option and AP brakes. Enginehas had a recent full re-com-mission with new liners,rings etc and runs beautifully.Otherwise the bike is all orig-inal, unrestored and in fullworking order. Currently on aUK plate.
£15,000 Dave: 496461
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TRIALS RESULTSWest Baldwin Bridge 19th October 2014West Baldwin Bridge offered tricky conditions for riders, however ShaunHuxley parted with only 5 marks to win the Vintage 'A' class, with KevinWhiteway close behind on 6 and Steve Taylor taking the win in Vintage 'B'.Top runners in the Invitation classes this year have been the youngest riderin class 'A', Daniel Smith, and the oldest rider in class 'B', Andy Sykes. Bothmaintained their winning ways, while Juan Lace and Josh Blackburn headedYouth Invitation classes 'A' and 'B'.
VMCC Members 'A' route:1. Shaun Huxley (James) 5 marks lost2. Kevin Whiteway (Triumph) 63. Jim Davidson (Triumph) 114. Steve Lace (Triumph) 175. Neil Kerruish (Yamaha) 196. Graham Thomas (Honda) 237. Geoff Griffiths (Fantic) 498. Ashley Gardner (Honda) 52
VMCC Members 'B' route:1. Steve Taylor (Honda) 472. Jon Duncan (Yamaha) 643. Alastair Robertson (Montesa) 81
Invitation 'A' route:1. Daniel Smith (Triumph) 92. Sammy Ball (Fantic) 13 (27x0)3. Paul Smith (Fantic) 13 (26x0)4. Mike Stevens (Gas Gas) 25
5. Gary Dudley (Yamaha) 406. Andy Wilson (Fantic) 467. Paul Ansermoz (BSA) 58
Invitation 'B' route:1. Andy Sykes (Rigid Bantam) 22. Curtis Kelly (Gas Gas) 153. Billy Booth (Beta) 264. Jonathan Watts (Scorpa) 455. Phil Pemberton (Gas Gas) 65
Youth Invitation 'A':1. Juan Lace (Beta) 12. Sophie-May Hardie (Gas Gas) 53. Fraser Heginson (Beta) 154. Ashley Gardner Jnr (BSA) 32
Youth Invitation 'B':1. Josh Blackburn (Beta) 152. Toby Lace (Beta) 16
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Dhoon Quarry 16th November 2014With the VMCC's club championship nearing its finale, Clerk of the CourseSean Seal set some testing sections to sort the front runners at Dhoon Quarry.In the premier Vintage 'A' class, best on the day was Phil Ward, closelyfollowed by Steve Lace and Shaun Huxley, while Vintage 'B' saw a welcomeappearance by Stuey Clague, who took the win from Mike Ellis.
It was Sam Ansermoz first home in Invitation 'A', although Daniel Smithextended his championship lead with second place. Runaway leader in Invita-tion 'B', Andy Sykes, was pressed hard by Keith Thompson and Chris Palmer,but managed to stay ahead for yet another win. First time out on his new 125Gas Gas, Dylan Groom had things his own way in Youth Invitation 'B'.
VMCC Members 'A' route1. Phil Ward (Bultaco) 10 marks lost2. Steve Lace (Triumph) 113. Shaun Huxley (James) 134. Jim Davidson (Triumph) 295. Graham Thomas (Honda) 426. Neil Kerruish (Fantic) 457. Chas Watson (Honda) 518. Geoff Griffiths (Fantic) 62
VMCC Members 'B' route1. Stuey Clague (Fantic) 122. Mike Ellis (Kawasaki) 383. Richard Bairstow (Yamaha) 484. Steve Taylor (Honda) 585. Jon Duncan (Yamaha) 59
Invitation 'A' route1. Sam Ansermoz (Montesa 4RT) 22. Daniel Smith (Fantic) 73. Nick Warburton (Montesa 4RT) 12
4. Paul Smith (Triumph) 185. Sammy Ball (Fantic) 196. Nigel Woods (Honda) 287. Mike Stevens (Gas Gas) 348. Andy Wilson (Fantic) 539. Allan Lund (Fantic) 63
Invitation 'B' route1. Andy Sykes (Rigid Bantam) 112. Keith Thompson (Scorpa) 123. Chris Palmer (Beta) 134. Billy Booth (Beta) 155. Curtis Kelly (Gas Gas) 186. David Craine (Montesa 4RT) 257. Paul Ansermoz (BSA) 278. Mike Vinton (Sherco) 299. Ian James (SWM) 3210. Jonathan Watts (Scorpa) 39
Youth Invitation 'B'1. Dylan Groom (Gas Gas) 33
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WE PRINT
YOUR PHOTOSPeel Copy Centre
1 Atholl PlacePeel, IM5 1HE
Tel: [email protected]
6x4 / 7x5 / 8x6
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Never one to do things byhalves, when 73-year-oldNoel Whittall suffered aheart attack, he was flyingat over 1,000 feet, pilotinghis own paraglider. After along recovery period he wasadvised to keep active to im-prove his health – perhapssome light work in the pot-ting shed or maybe a tripdown to the shops on amotability scooter?
That was not the sort of activ-ity Noel had in mind - he dugout his belt-driven 1918 Tri-umph 550cc Model H motor-cycle and embarked at shortnotice (with no back-up andvery little planning) on the“End to End Run” – the jour-ney from his home in Leeds toJohn O’Groats, down toLands End and back to Leeds.
BOOK REVIEWSBy Jonathan Hill
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In all, Noel covered approximately 2,000 miles, with the Triumph im-pressively averaging over 100 mpg.
Noel’s Model H was one of 30,000 made for the War Office for use bydespatch riders in WW1. Christened by the DRs as the “Trusty Tri-umph”, it had a 550cc side-valve engine with a three-speed gearbox, a rimrear brake and a stirrup brake at the front “of a pattern normally found onold-time vicar’s bicycles”. This is the story of Noel’s battle against theelements, the traffic and mechanical tribulations, but it is also a humorousstory of his joy of meeting fellow travellers, locals and motorcycleenthusiasts, at being close to nature and having the time to philosophiseabout the state of the world.
Several years passed and after winning a prestigious award in the VM-CC’s Banbury Run, what other challenges were there for an old bloke ona near 100-year-old machine? What about a trip to Europe? What abouta ride over real mountains? This second volume is the story of Whittall’sride over the Route des Grandes Alpes, the spectacular tourist trail fromLake Geneva to the Mediterranean Sea, via the highest passes in France.Noel rode “H” (as the machine is referred to) in both directions – andthrew in a lap of the Monaco Grand Prix circuit for a good measure.Noel’s powers of observation and recall of his epic journeys are astound-ing and his dry wit and command of the English language make for ahighly recommended reads.
Author: Noel WhittallDistributor: York Publishing Services Ltd., 64 Hallfield Road,
Layerthorpe, York YO31 7ZQ. Tel.: 01904 431213.E-mail: [email protected]
Both books soft back (laminated), 160mm x 215mm,
149 pages, 22 photographs; 157 pages, 44 photographsISBN 978-1-908037-14-5 ISBN 978-1-908037-26-8
£10.00 £12.95
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Much to everyone’s surprise, and relief,the sun shone for the Section’s secondJurby Test Day. The basic format was thesame as before with groups going out forten to fifteen minute sessions – the rela-tively small numbers of riders on track atany one time meant you were unlikely tobe fighting for your line through thecorners.
The afternoon sessions were run withriders tackling the course in a clockwisedirection, which was an interesting varia-tion for those of us who had only everridden the circuit anti-clockwise before!
The Test Days really have been greatopportunities for members to fettlemachinery, and “see what they’ll do” with-out having to worry about other road users.Hopefully, more will be run next year andall members will be welcome.
More photos from the day, and TT/ MGPgalleries, can be found at:[email protected] shots courtesy of Pete Jackson
SECONDJURBYTEST DAY
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A Moment in Time
1922’s TT was to be a year of mixed fortune for Alec Bennett. He isseen here receiving trackside first aid (in the form of a plaster and whatlooks like an unfiltered cigarette) after a spill. However, he went on totake his Sunbeam to a win in the Senior by a very healthy margin of 3minutes and 53 seconds.
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Go For It!Noel Pope – Brooklands to Bonneville
July 4th 1939 was a day of uncertain weather at Brooklands race track.Periods of bright sunshine alternated with sharp showers and fitfulgusts of wind. But in the competitors’ paddock the red-haired youngman giving a final fettle to a much-modified Brough Superior was quitecertain what he was going to do that day.
Noel ‘Bill’ Pope, successful racer and, in his day job, foreman in Comerfordsmotorcycle workshops, intended to set up the fastest lap-time for a solomotorbike in the 32-year history of the track. Pope had held the record
almost 4 yearsearlier, but EricFernihough, ‘TheScalded Cat’, hadbroken it soon af-ter with a lap at123.58mph. Therecord still stood,but Fernihoughwas gone, killedin Hungary twoyear’s earlier dur-ing a world speedrecord attempt.Pope was certainthis would be hislast chance tocrack the Brook-lands record; war
with Germany seemed just around the corner and, so convinced was he of itsinevitability, he had already enlisted in the regular army and expected to bein khaki within the month.
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A group of Pope’s friends and some reporters were watching him at workwhen a tall, burly fellow in sunglasses quietly joined them. The newcomerwatched Pope for a time, then whistled softly. ‘Old Pal,’ he remarked beforestrolling away, ‘You wouldn’t get me on that thing for all the tea in China.’
It might have seemed a typical non-motorcyclist’s daft remark, but Popeknew it for a genuine tribute, for the man in sunglasses was John Cobb,holder of the Brooklands lap record for cars, and himself about to attackGeorge Easton’s current Land Speed Record of 357 mph. ‘I’m going for it.’Pope announced. As he rolled out the supercharged Brough, the rain hadstopped, but the unbanked sections of the great concrete saucer still gleamedwith damp, and sharp gusts of wind were snapping at the clubhouse flag.Conditions remained far from perfect, but Pope had made his mind up andhe roared off on the first of his two preliminary circuits. His friends and thereporters waited for him at the vantage point known as The Fork – a longblind right hand curve which led into the equally taxing left-hander of thesheer Home Banking.
On his third lap, the timing clocks now running, Pope put the Brough intoThe Fork at 118mph, banked over so fully the footrest struck sparks off theconcrete – seconds later the opposite peg was grinding the track. Thehowling Brough disappeared from view behind Members’ Hill.
One of Pope’s friends recalled: “There was a terrible silence. No-one spokea word. But as we wheeled round to focus on the spot, half a mile away,where Bill would reappear - if he reappeared - I saw sweat shining on everyman’s face and I was aware of it trickling down my own.” The Broughhurtled into view. At the tail end of Home Banking, the track rose in a humpwhere a viaduct carried it over the River Wey; the Brough hit the brow andtook off, a clear foot of daylight visible below its wheels before it struck thetrack again, snaking wildly, and flew down the Railway Straight, the fastestsection on the circuit, at a speed of 160 mph. Then onto the Byfleet Banking,lower, less steep and therefore more treacherous than the Home section,Pope fighting the bike and centrifugal force within inches of the concrete lip– finally he hurtled again across The Fork, “slamming past, heeling overdizzily, first right, then left again ... we were far out of danger, but every oneof us took an involuntary pace to the rear.”
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Pope had smashed the record – hisepic lap had taken just 80 seconds, butwhen he halted the Brough ‘… hescarcely had the strength left to holdthe bike upright … his breath came inpanting gasps … his hands shook ...we had to help him from the saddle ...”
Pope had recorded an average of124.51 mph, beating Fernihough’s 123.58 mph. No-one knew it then, leastof all Bill Pope, but it was a record destined to stand for all time.
WW2 marked the end of Brooklands as it had been – after 1939 its glorydays would pass into legend. But after the war was over, Bill Pope, nowback at Comerfords as workshop manager, began thinking about anotherrecord attempt. The World Motorcycle Speed Record set by Ernst Henne in1937, which Fernihough had lost his life trying to beat, still stood. Pope stillowned his blown Brough, and he believed that it had the potential to breakHenne’s record. However, he knew it would be a non-contender without thesort of fully streamlined shell the German had used on his machines. Theproblem was, such a shell had to be scientifically designed and precisionbuilt, and that would cost a great deal of money. Pope didn’t have that kindof financial resources and, as usual, no help could be expected from theBritish government. For a long time Pope thought about the problem,lobbied personalities in the motorcycling world, and tried to find a backer.Finally, in 1950, his persistence and determination were rewarded. His boss,Mr E Comerford, and George Brough (with his unerring flair for publicityand love of a sporting challenge) pledged to back him.
Within a few months a streamlined shell (“the Brough Bullet”) had beendesigned and built. It completely enclosed bike and rider, mounting a singlehigh stabilising fin and two stubby ‘wings’. It had been built in three sectionsfor ease of transport, for Pope’s record attempt was to be made at theBonneville Salt Flats. Both Brough and ‘Bullet’ were very carefully cratedand packed, and later that year, the Comerford-Brough-Pope team set sail forAmerica. Their HQ was to be the small town of Wendover, Utah, on the edgeof the Salt Flats.
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Everything went well – until the team began assembling the bike and itsstreamliner. Somehow, inexplicably, the ‘Bullet’ had become severelywarped in transit, despite all the care lavished on its packing. The threesections of the fairing were so twisted they could only be aligned by bruteforce or by re-fashioning them from scratch. The second option was notpossible – there were no technical facilities of the sort needed in Wendoveror anywhere near. In addition, the professional timekeepers of the AAA hadalready arrived in the town from great distances, and the cost of keepingthem there for several days was more than the team’s limited funds could runto. Pope said simply: ‘We’ve no choice. We have to go for it.’
He got his way, and with mucheffort, the ‘Bullet’ was manhandledinto shape. It looked all right to thenaked eye, but how it would behavetravelling at two-and-a-half milesper minute was another matter – butit was a chance that Pope, who wasas brave as he was determined, wasprepared to take.
There was another problem too. Shortly before, a local car club had used theFlats for amateur speed trials and cut the salt up very badly on each side ofthe record stretch, effectively narrowing the strip to about 60 feet across.This was adequate if everything went according to plan, but left Bill verylittle elbow room if the bike began to drift. Pope was well aware of thedangers, and faced them with his usual calm.
On the day of the record attempt, encased in his ‘Bullet’ with the sounds andsmell of the roaring Brough, half-deafened despite helmet and earplugs, Billopened the throttle and went for it. All went well until he reached around 150mph. Then, inexorably, the Brough began heading off-course, towards theruts and potholes at the track edge. Bill knew exactly what was happening –the force of the airstream on the now imperfect streamlining was taking thesteering out of his hands. He fought against it for over a mile, leaning all hisweight against the inside of the shell, but the force of the airflow was toostrong. The Brough’s wheels left the narrow strip of safety and struck theruts – in a second the bike was plunging hopelessly out of control. Bill
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groped desperately for the release catch that would free the streamlinedcanopy above him, but before he could reach it the ‘Bullet’ toppled on itsside, the canopy was torn away and he was flung out through the opening.For yards he hurtled on his back along the salt – friction dragged the top andbottom halves of his leathers apart, exposing a tender part of his anatomy tothe gritty, abrasive crystals at high speed. Just as he was wondering howmuch worse things could get, the Brough, which had been keeping pacealongside, suddenly somersaulted into the air and came down on top of him… and everything went black.
Bill Pope, incredibly tough and lucky, survived, though he spent a fair timelying on his front in hospital. It was the end of the dream however – theComerford-Brough-Pope team had to return to England with ‘the bikebroken but not the record’. It had been a brave and somehow, sadly, typicallyBritish attempt, dared by sporting-minded individuals with plenty of courageand skill but nothing in the way of official back-up or funding. Henne’srecord stood until the following year when another German, Wilhelm Hertz,finally shattered it on a fully-streamlined NSU with a speed of 180.172 mph.
Allan JermiesonAll acknowledgements to the photographers
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F. L. Frith – Rider Profile No.25Freddie Frith, one of the TT Stars of theThirties and Forties, was born in Grimsby,Lincolnshire on 30 May 1909.
On his first appearance at the Manx, when hewas 21 years of age, he finished 3rd in the Junioron a Velocette. 1932 saw him finish 3rd in theSenior on a 350ccNorton and the fol-lowing year, again
on a Norton, he was 2nd in the Junior. In 1935,his final year in the Manx Grand Prix, he wonthe Junior and was 2nd in the Senior – both onNortons.
He then turned professional and rode Nortonsin both Junior and Senior races from 1936 to1939. In 1936 he won his first Junior TT, and was 3rd in the Senior. He was2nd in the Junior and won the Senior in 1937, and took 3rd place in bothclasses in 1938.
Returning post-war, he won the 1948 Junior TT on a Velocette. 1949, hisfinal year of racing, saw him at his best. He won the Junior TT on his 350Velocette and went on to win the 350 classes at the Swiss, Dutch and Ulster
races and, of course, the 350World Championship – all onhis trusty Velocette.
He was later awarded the OBEand was the first racing motor-cyclist to do so. Freddie Frithdied on 24 May 1988.
Dorothy Greenwood
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Stanley Woods and the DKW LIGHTWEIGHTSMy interest in DKW arose from a letter I received from SiegfriedWunsche in 1979, ahead of his visit to the Isle of Man for the "MilleniumTT" as he particularly wanted to see Mike Hailwood race on the Moun-tain Circuit.
Siegfried was a former DKW fac-tory rider whose competitiveyears began as a young man be-fore the war, and ended in 1955.A very able competitor, his bestyears were undoubtedly lost dueto the war and German riders be-ing subsequently barred fromcompeting in post-war WorldChampionship events until 1953.
As well as wanting to see Mike Hailwood race, Siegfried had been offered aride in the "Millenium Lap of Honour." This was courtesy of Neil Kelly whohad procured a 500cc CX Honda for Siegfried to ride. Perhaps not quite afactory `Deek`, but a gesture Siegfried forever appreciated and never forgot.All this was the genesis of a great friendship which lasted to the end of hisdays a little over fifteen years ago.
Siegfried was a humble man and a real gentleman and, despite our agedifference, - he was born in 1916 - our mutual interest in road racing bridgedthat gap with ease.
This was a fascinating friendship for me as I have always enjoyed thehistorical side of racing. His stories of the pressures of being a factory riderfor a leading German team in the years leading up to the Hitler War provideda real eye opener for me. This sparked off some research into the story ofDKW in the Isle of Man which I put together in the 1980`s. This, in turn, ledto some greatly valued exchanges with Stanley Woods to discover whathappened to him on his one and only TT ride on the "screaming Germantwo-stroke."
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DKW made their firstvisit to the Island forthe 1935 TT and field-ed a factory team ofKurt Mansfeld, ArthurGeiss and WalfriedWinkler in the Light-weight Race, withMansfeld also havinga ride in the Senior.However, a practicecrash on the Seniormachine, in whichMansfeld suffered ahand injury and the
machine was badly damaged, ruled out any Senior honours. Another Ger-man, Otto Steinbach, took over Mansfield’s Lightweight ride.
Regrettably, the initial factory effort was rather a damp squib with Geissproviding the only finish in 7th place at 64.27mph.
They were certainly up for learning however as, for 1936, the team of Geissand Steinbach were massively bolstered by the signature of Stanley Woods- you couldn’t get any higher ambition than that!
Up for learning – yes, up for listening – perhaps less so as Stanley’s article(below) reveals their poor wisdom in forking out for the top man, withmassive Isle of Man experience, and then failing to heed his advice. It stillhappens!!
Starting at number 30, Woods was straight away into a commanding lead,smashing the lap record with a “tour” at 76.20 mph (compare that to Geiss’time from the previous year). I don’t want to spoil his story, however, saveto say it was ultimately not to be his day with the win being taken by BobFoster on a New Imperial (the last British 250 win until the 1980s).
Runner up was Henry Tyrell-Smith on an Exelsior Manxman, with a conso-lation 3rd place for DKW and Geiss who grabbed the final podium position.
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I hope everyone enjoys a race around the Island with the great Stanley Woods:
“It was reported in the motorcycling and general press that “The Mountain”burnt up my screaming DKW. Not true! My trouble was ultimately down toan oiled plug! It happened thus.
Before the TT, I had ridden the DKW in the Solitude Race at Stuttgart. Sofar as I was concerned it was a waste of time, for, although the other worksentries ran faultlessly, my machine suffered from persistent misfiring.
Later on we went to the Nurburgring where the machine ran perfectly. I waswarned however that I must not exceed 4,400rpm. If I did, one of the nine(?) reed valves between the supercharging piston and the crankcase wouldbreak.
I was supposed to be able to feel when the engine was at peak for norevolution counter was fitted. This was more than somewhat difficult for meas, during the last season, virtually all my riding had been on Moto Guzzis.On both 250 and 500cc machines, their normal peak revs were 7,700 rpmand it did not seem to do any damage if this figure was exceeded.
Revolution counters were also fitted to my 1936 Velocettes. The 350 ran to7,000 and the 500 to 6,000. The 500 would simply not exceed this figurewhile on the 350 the valves floated above this figure - simple!
I begged Dr. Prussing to fit a rev counter, or even a speedometer, to theDKW but he would not do so.
However, by race day, I was fairly confident that I could judge the rightmoment to change up, except on the Mountain Mile on Snaefell. On thisstretch the engine reached peak revs in third gear so slowly that the only wayto avoid trouble was to change into top gear early and let her slog.
I started the race quite confident that I would win if I had no trouble. AtSulby, my first signalling station, I got the signal “First by 7 seconds”. Thiswas not as big a lead as I had expected so I went a little faster for the rest ofthe lap—but not by any means extending myself or the bike. At the end ofthe lap, my first lap position at Sulby was confirmed. However, I had to wait
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until Sulby on lap two tolearn how the little bit extrahad affected the position.Sulby signalled all well“First by 24 seconds”. So,having found the correctspeed to give me a comfort-able lead, I maintained it.At the end of the second lapI had established a lead ofone minute and eighteenseconds and by Sulby onlap three I had extended itto one minute thirty sec-onds. Then the troublestarted!
On the Mountain Mile I oiled a plug. I had not been driving hard enough tokeep her warm on the long climb in third gear. I did a quick plug change butby the end of the lap I had dropped back to second place, twenty five secondsbehind Foster on his New Imperial. Both Foster and I stopped for petrol atthe end of the third lap, so the pit stop loss of time could be ignored, more orless, a few seconds either way would hardly affect the result!
Off again on the fourth lap but now pushing myself that little bit nearer thelimit on the bends and corners, and knowing that I would have to risk gettingnearer the engine’s danger zone in third on the Mountain Mile. Back at SulbyI had a five second lead and, by the end of the lap, led Foster by twenty sevenseconds. However, a second pit stop, although only a short fifteen seconds,was enough to drop me back to second place again, five seconds behindFoster at Sulby. Nothing to worry about I thought, I could still win by aminute unless I had more trouble - and that is what happened.
Singing along in third towards the end of the Mountain Mile she went flat -just off tune. By the end of the lap I was down to second place once more,thirty five seconds in arrears. On the last lap, the trouble became progressive-ly worse and at Sulby I was more than five minutes down and, just beforethe top of the Mountain, she ran out of fuel.
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On the previous lap (sixth) on the Mountain Mile I must have exceeded thepermitted 4,400 rpm and broken one or more of the reed valves - reducingthe crankcase pressure and increasing the petrol consumption by blowing itout through the carburettor.
She was a lovely machine to ride and handled to perfection but I found therigid frame and fairly small section tyres very tiring, although I did notbecome aware of the fatigue until after the race.
As bad weather had postponed the race from Wednesday until Thursday, andI had another little job to do on my Velocette before the Senior weigh in onFriday, I did not have the time for a full “post mortem”. However, they gotthe message and, for 1937, their race bikes were fitted with rev counters andspring frames.”
Adrian Earnshaw and Stanley WoodsPhotos by Amulree
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300+ VEHICLES ALWAYS ONSHOW AT BETTRIDGE’S
Mines Road, Higher Foxdaleopposite Foxdale School
