Continental Report
CONTINENTAL REPORT
B. R. NICHOLLS
STARTING OFF this month with the bog-wheelers, it was a foregone conclusion that Samuel Hamilton Miller would be lord and master of the Highlands in the annual classic Scottish Six Days trial, and just as the experts predicted, Sammy did, indeed, show complete mastery with his 252cc Bultaco. He took the lead on the first day and was never headed. ished in the runner-up spot, losing 34 marks to the 18 of Miller, for Dave was riding the 175cc two-stroke BSA developed from the Bushman model. With Bultaco winning and BSA finishing second, the spread of awards was completed by Greeves taking the team prize with Don Smith, Jim Sandiford and Bill Wilkinson.
No challenge came from last year's winner Alan Lampkin, BSA, who was excluded on the fourth day for changing a wheel. However, one cannot keep the family name out of the results and young Martin Lampkin, BSA, took the newcomers award. Biggest surprise, though, was the performance of Dave Rowland, who fin-
On the way home from the Scottish, Miller won the Alan Trophy from Mick Andrews, Ossa, by 14 marks to 21. Then, a week later. Miller was again tops in the Red Rose trial, which was poorly supported by the top men. He won with a loss of 42 to the 72 of runner-up Malcolm Rathmell, Triumph. Then came the Welsh Three Days event, which is a miniature ISDT with special tests being the order of the day instead of observation. The weather was atrocious, but it did not stop John Harris on a 252cc Suzuki six-speeder from gaining maximum bonus points on top of a clean time sheet to win the trial from John Lewis, riding one of the Comerford AJS machines and Mick Andrews, Ossa.
With the British industry not prepared to support the ISDT, the result of the Welsh suggests that for the first time ever, a British Vase team may well contain foreign machines with Suzuki and Ossa being favorites to fill the bill. Miller has never been overkeen on the event, so may well not ride in it at all.
The Rickman brothers have decided not to contest the 750cc Coupe d'Europe motocross series this year, in view of their commitments making Metisse machines, so the title won by Derek last year will bear a new name at the end of this season. One man anxious to get his name inscribed on it is the Swedish rider, Sten Lundin, one of the all-time greats of motocross. He won this year's first round held in Austria, riding an enlarged Lito. And a convincing win it was, too, for he won both races from John Banks, who had a 515cc works BSA, the added cc coming from a longer stroke to the type of engine used by Jeff Smith in the 500cc motocross series. Bill Gwynne on a Matchless Metisse 600cc was third and Jim Aim, on his first continental trip with the 600cc Kirby Metisse, fourth.
While the big machines were battling away in Austria, the 500s were having a go in Italy. In the first leg, the Russian, Gunnar Draugs, seemed intent on proving that his first round victory was no fluke and soon built up a good lead on his CZ with a great scrap going on behind him between Vic Eastwood, BSA, Paul Friedrichs, CZ, and Dave Bickers, CZ. The reigning champion, Friedrichs, made his mark by taking second place with Eastwood, third. Draugs' hopes of victory disappeared with an atrocious start to the second leg, when Eastwood took the lead and was followed home by Friedrichs, so that all three were equal on points for the meeting; the result was decided on a time basis giving victory by a couple of seconds to Friedrichs, with Eastwood, second and Draugs, third, his placing still retaining the championship lead, but this he now shares with Dave Bickers as a result of the Swedish round held a week later.
It was a meeting of surprises, for the first leg was won by Swedish rider Chris Hammargren, 360 Husqvarna, after Eastwood had fallen out with chain trouble. Bickers followed him home in front of Draugs and Friedrichs. The second leg, Eastwood was again the victim of chain trouble and Bickers took the lead, hotly pursued by Smith, who eventually passed him. With victory assured if he held second place. Bickers rode for safety, and with his two second places, gained overall victory to win his first-ever 500cc grand prix. Hammargren finished fourth in the second leg, to gain second place in his first-ever grand prix. The next round is the East German and for Bickers there will be a period of worry as to whether he will be fit, as he has torn shoulder ligaments. But, like all motocross men, he is determined not to miss it.
With two more rounds of the 250 class having been held, the positions are the same as last month, for at the first in West Germany, Hallman was overall winner. At first it looked as if Victor Arbekov, CZ, had found form and the luck necessary for a win as he won the first leg from Hallman, but then in the second he crashed to leave the Swedish champion undisputed winner. Joel Robert was suffering the effects of injury and did not figure in the results. His win gave Hallman the lead in the championship table, but it was shortlived; for the following week at the Dutch round, it was Hallman's turn to come a cropper. He won the first race from Robert, when the Belgian was delayed in an argument with some straw bales. But then in the second, Hallman did a Saturday spectacular over the handlebars and retired. Second overall was Arbekov, and Juri Storm, Husqvarna, of Finland, was third. Present leaders are:
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250cc CLASS Robert 32 points
Hallman 28 points
Arbekov 19 points
500cc CLASS Bickers 12 points
Draugs 12 points
Friedrichs 11 points
On the road racing front, the spring holiday meetings saw some close scrapping and the first appearance of the 250cc Starmaker AJS, ridden by Norton Villiers development engineer Peter Inchley. It was an unfortunate debut, made at Mallory Park, as he crashed at the esses. Luckily, neither man nor machine was badly damaged and repairs were made in time for TT practice. The race was won by Vic Chatterton, Yamaha, after Kevin Cass had led up to the last lap.
The first sidecar heat had 654cc BSAmounted Chris Vincent and Peter Brown battling with each other as if their lives were at stake. The effort was too much for Brown's outfit, which gave ignition trouble in the final, and so Vincent went on to win from Terry Vinicombe, Kirby BSA, and Pip Harris, BMW. A 750cc solo race gave exactly the same result as the 500 class with riders on the same machines, with Peter Williams, Arter Matchless, the winner from John Cooper, Norton, and Percy Tait, Triumph. The 350 final was a different kettle of fish, though, as Ron Chandler, AJS, showed his supremacy in winning from Pat Mahoney, Kirby Metisse and Paul Smart, Aermacchi. Smart is the find of the season, racing in all classes from 125cc, for which he has a Honda, up to 750, where he is sponsored by Paul Dunstall on a Dunstall Dominator.
The following day at Brands, Pat Mahoney got his revenge on Chandler with a most clear-cut win on the Kirby Metisse, which has the special short-stroke motor that has been developed by Tom Kirby. As Mahoney had crashed the previous day, he was starting from the back of the grid with a pusher, so had to fight his way through the whole field to score his first international win. Walkover winner of the 125 class at both Brands and Mallory was Bill Ivy with a water-cooled Yamaha twin. Mike Hailwood had a brace of Hondas, a 250 six and 500 four, the latter still with a king-size handling problem. Needless to say, he won both 250 and 500 races, then went on to take the 750 class with the 250 model. Peter Williams chased him home on both occasions.
The 500cc sidecar race was a question of who could keep going for ten laps to qualify for the prize money. The man who did was Helmut Fath riding his own homebuilt four-cylinder URS machine, and so scoring his first international win since his comeback to racing — this, despite the disadvantage of having his chair on the "wrong" side for the Brands circuit. Second to Fath was veteran Bill Boddice taking it gently with his TT motor.
A decade ago, the Irish North West 200 race was considered to be a testing ground for machinery prior to the TT, but it has now lost that significance, mainly because there are no British works machines to be tested. However, the race continues each year, and this year Fred Stevens gained a double victory for the Hannah Patons when he won both the 350 and 500 classes. The 250 class went to Steve Murray on a Bultaco.
So we come to prospects for the TT races. This year, as most will have read, is the Diamond Jubilee of the famous races, and to mark the occasion, a three-class production race is to be held prior to race week. No practice has vet been held for this event, so it is difficult to make any comment. But in the 750 class, it looks like a fight between Griff Jenkins. Dunstall Dominator, Ron Chandler, Norton Atlas and Steve Spencer on a Triumoh T120. Percy Tait with a Triumph T100 should sew up the 500 class, but the 250 is a much more open event with Bill Smith, Tommy Robb and Kevin Cass all on Bultaco Metrella Mark 2 machinery up against the Kawasaki AÍ Samurai of Dave Simmonds and the Suzuki T20s of Chris Vincent, Barry Smith and Kelvin Carruthers. Dark horse could well be Terry Grotefeld on a 246cc Yamaha YDS.
The most open race of race week itself is the sidecar class, where at least half a dozen BMW-mounted contestants stand a very good chance. Trying for a British victory will be Seeley, Vincent and Harris, but they will be up against it trying to stop the German attack of Auerbacher, Butscher. Enders, Kolle, Luthringshauser and Schauzu, not to mention Fath on his own URS.
In the 250 event, Hailwood has already scored a psychological win, for in practice, he has lapped with his 250 Honda six at 105.12 mph. as against his lap record last year of 104.29; Read has done a 99.33 and Ivy 98.99. That is the only class so far to break a record, though Anscheidt on the 50cc Suzuki has notched 84.11, compared with Bryans' record on the Honda last year of 85.66. Katayama leads the 125s at 95.64 and Agostini leads the 350 at 101.33 and the 500 at 102.71. But there is a long way to go yet with a whole week of practice in front of us. And, in any event, nobody gains a thing for the fastest practice lap. though Mike Hailwood must have gained a morale boost from that fantastic 250 lap in view of his appalling luck in that class so far this year, for it is quicker than Agostini's 350 lap record set up last year by over two mph. and is within two mph of Mike's own 500 class lap record of 107.07.
No comment can be made about the TT without the name Hailwood coming into it time and again, and for that I make no apology. He needs one more win to equal Stanley Woods record of ten TT wins; but already Mike has won more senior TT races than any other rider and has also won at least one race a year since 1961, a feat without equal, not to mention his three in a week achieved in 1961. And he is still the only man to average over 100 mph for the whole race on a single-cylinder machine, and that, too, was back in 1961. He should equal the Woods record in the 250 race, but whether he breaks it will depend on how reliable the new 350six is, and also how much better Agostini is over the mountain in the 500 race, for there is no doubt the MV three handles well and is quicker this year than last while the Honda is still handling badly. The Senior really does look like being the climax of the week.
