Continental Report
CONTINENTAL REPORT
B. R. NICHOLLS
BLAZING FROM THE HEADLINES comes the story to end all stories — a fairy tale that would do justice to Hans Christian Andersen. The most improbable challenge of all, car vs. bike round the Isle of Man TT course as a highlight of the 1967 Jubilee races. The automatic choice of contestants would be John Surtees and Mike Hailwood. Surtees would like the chance of taking a grand prix car round the world-famous circuit, and his knowledge of the course gained on bikes would mean a minimum of practice time for him to relearn it. The spectacle would provide interesting material for the R.A.C. (Royal Auto Club), who have already turned down suggestions to run a car race over the mountain course.
While the rejection may not have been to the economic advantage of the Island, motorcyclists breathed a sigh of relief, as car safety regulations might have made an even sorrier mess of the course than the “improvements” of recent years. But with the matter being seriously pursued by the ACU, few believe it can take place because of the risk involved, and at that time a grand prix car would be in the middle of a busy series of championship races. The form of such a race is difficult to envisage, as both starting together would be decidedly dangerous. Perhaps the best thing would be for a car to go around immediately after the Senior, to try and better the fastest lap of the race. But I cannot see Honda, Brabham or anyone else trying it if it were put on as a match race, for the slightest error could end up with the fairy tale being Grimm, indeed.
The present economic plight of Britain is reflected with the drastic cut in support to the sport by the Shell Mex and B. P. concern and their decision that they cannot finance the helicopter ambulance service for the TT and Manx Grand Prix races. When started in 1963, it was immediately dubbed the “Shelicopter,” and doubtless saved the life of Tony Godfrey, whose Yamaha crashed outside Ramsey. Everything will be done to preserve the service, and some good may well come out of Shell’s action, since all are agreed that the helicopter ambulance service should be there for practice week as well as for the races. This means an expenditure^ of something like $4,500. Previously it has only been on the Island for race week, but Provini’s crash during practice in 1966 underlined how essential it is that the service be available for the entire TT period.
With the road race season only eight weeks away, Gilera have still not announced their plans for 1967, but Derek Minter is hopeful that his wrist, broken in a TT practice crash, will not prevent him from riding. What a magnificent thing it would be if Gilera fielded Minter, Frank Perris and Benedicto Calderella to do battle with Mike Hailwood and Giacomo Agostini. There seems little chance of Peter Williams riding Arcore machinery now, which leaves Mike Duff as the most experienced rider without full works support. It looks as though any Yamaha support he gets will be on a private basis. Dogged by injury on the Japanese Grand Prix circuit two years running, he was riding brilliantly at the end of the 1966 season and is one of the few capable of lapping the Isle of Man at over 100 mph.
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No further news yet of the intended Norton Villiers 250cc AJS production twostroke racer, nor, for that matter, of their plans in the trials and scrambles world. Sammy Miller has agreed to ride Bultaco again in 1967. That marque ended 1966 well, following the British Experts win reported last month, with the Northern Experts title taken by Norman Eyre, the Southern by Miller, and the Irish, where Brian Lamb was tops. Eyre’s tally was six marks lost, compared with the 14 of runner up Jim Sandiford (Greeves), who was but one mark in front of young Malcolm Rathmell (Triumph). British Expert Alan Morewood (Ariel) was top sidecar.
Held a week later, the Southern Experts was drama-packed, for at the finish, both Miller and Don Smith (Greeves) tied on marks lost, as did sidecar contestants Ken Kendall and Ron Langston. The special test, a timed section, gave victory to Miller and Kendall. It was hardly surprising, as Smith had trouble in starting his engine, and in the section before the test, Langston had crashed heavily, breaking a bone in his wrist. He completed the remaining sections of the trial not discovering the break until an x-ray was taken the following day.
Behind Miller and Smith came Derek Adsett (Greeves) and Arthur Dovey (Bultaco), to repeat the first four positions of last year. In the Irish Experts where Lamb led by three marks from Benny Crawford, Bultaco filled the first seven places. There was no sidecar class.
With riders swapping allegiance at this time of year, it is interesting to note that Malcolm Davis is quitting Bultaco to ride for Greeves, while his brother, Tony, has joined Cotton and intends to do a lot of scrambling in 1967. It also looks as if Alan Clough will be leaving Greeves and privateering on a Husqvarna. Clough is reported to have expressed disappointment that the Greeves concern did not adopt the design of Eric Cheney’s latest “brain child.” Powered by a Challenger engine, it’s a real beauty. Dry weight has been cut to just under 200 pounds and the center of gravity reduced by placing the gas tank under the seat. What appears to be the tank is nothing more than a light alloy shield protecting the rider’s knees from the overhead exhaust system. The Challenger barrel has been modified so that the exhaust port is central, emerging neatly between the 17 gauge 1-1/8-inch duplex down tubes, which loop under the engine and up behind the Victor gearbox to meet the top tube. Ceriani forks are mounted in special Cheney yokes and taper roller bearings are used in the steering head. Rear chain adjustment is effected by matching serrations on the fork arm and spindle plates, as can be seen in the photograph taken in the rain before a recent television motocross event.
Rain is a regular feature of the TV series, making it good entertainment for the armchair viewer but very hard work for those involved in its presentation. Five of the eight rounds of the Grandstand series have now been held, and in the 250 class Dave Bickers (CZ) has five wins in five rides. He also leads the 750 table in pretty convincing fashion and seems intent on being the first man to win both trophies in one season. The last two meetings, though, have provided some welcome upsets to the form book. Young Roger Snoad (250 Greeves) finished second to Bickers at Tweseldown with Bryan Wade, similarly mounted, in third place, while in the 750 race, Vic Eastwood (494 BSA) beat Arthur Browning (360 Greeves) on the last lap with Bickers third and Jeff Smith (494 BSA), fourth. Smith went on to finish second to Eastwood in the Invitation race, proving that it will not be long before he is again fully race fit after his unfortunate bout of injuries.
The following week, Arthur Lampkin (441 BSA) showed great form to win the 750 race, although his younger brother Alan was hospitalized early in the race by a multiple pile-up. Bickers was a close second and Chris Horsfield (360 Greeves) showed some of the old sparkle in taking third place.
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Positions after five rounds:
Bryan Goss, who has not figured very much in the television races, was certainly in top form for the traditional Boxing Day scramble at Pirbright, winning his three finals. Roger Snoad (Greeves) chased him home in the 250 event, while Vic Eastwood took his dirt in the All Comers handicap. Nick Thompson, 650 Triumph, was the best of a big sidecar entry. Prize for determination went to young New Zealander John Bullock, who spent most of Christmas finishing his Cheney-framed Eso scrambler. Andy Lee is another who is using the Czechoslovakian unit in a scrambler, although his is in a Metisse frame. Both John and Andy have retained the total loss oil system, which presents a small problem of making sure the pump does not get damaged in the hurly-burly of scrambling.
Paul Dunstall’s latest attempt to get the world hour record with one of his Norton Atlas machines fully equipped for road use ended in disaster before reaching Monza, where the attempt was to have taken place. The van, in which two bikes with spare engines and tools was being driven along the autostrada near Turin, skidded off the road, and Griff Jenkins and mechanic Ken Curley were lucky to escape alive. Jenkins cracked a bone in his ankle, cracked his jaw and a kneecap and tore a muscle in the other knee. Curley sustained a head wound that later required six stitches. The van was a write-off and the bikes will have to be stripped down and rebuilt before another attempt can be made.
Freddie Mayes, the British 250cc scrambles champion, after much conjecture as to his future, which has linked his name with Sprite, Bultaco and CZ among others, has signed for Norton Villiers. Showing that they do not intend to let the grass grow under their feet, N-V (ain’t the abbreviation just great!) have negotiated with the Rickman brothers to use Metisse frames. The machines will race as Villiers Metisse Specials until such time as the new N-V scrambles machines are ready, and it is reasonable to assume that Mayes will be contesting the world 250 title, for only against the top opposition can the potential of the new machine be fully tested.
Norton Villiers have also issued a statement making it quite clear that failure to sign Sammy Miller for 1967 was not lack of interest, but the determination to put full effort into two proven units, the road racer and the scrambler. Once those two have been “safely launched, the questions of an improved Starmaker trials engine and the design of a trials machine will be dealt with.”
News has broken that Suzuki team ace and former world champion Hugh Anderson has definitely retired from road racing and will concentrate on scrambling in Europe for a couple of years. This has left Suzuki very light on team men and Anderson, who has been talent spotting for them, intimates that Stuart Graham will be given tests. This could be a sound psychological move, for after his treatment by Honda, the one way to show them what a mistake they made in dropping him is to beat the Honda men on opposing machinery. Also on the Suzuki short list are Malcolm Uphill and Gyula Marsovsky, the latter a most determined rider with knowledge of all the classic courses in Europe which should make him favorite.
Seems there will be a helicopter for the Isle of Man TT races and Castrol has agreed to foot the bill this year.
I was deeply shocked to hear from AÍ Fergoda that Bill Boyd had a bad road crash on Christmas day as a result of a head-on collision with a car while out on his motorcycle. Unfortunately, Bill had to have his left leg amputated. Bill spent much of 1966 under Fergoda’s sponsorship racing in the British Isles and was a firm favorite with the crowd wherever he rode. From his many friends and fans over here comes the deepest sympathy and every good wish for the future which, though cloudy at the moment, always has a silver lining for men with the guts and courage of Bill Boyd. ■
