Isle of Man Diamond Jubilee Tt

ISLE OF MAN DIAMOND JUBILEE TT

B. R. NICHOLLS AND IVAN WAGAR

WHAT Is IT that brings crowds numbering in the thousands each year to the Isle of Man for the TT races? Enthusiasm can be the only answer to that question, though the reason is easy to see, for wherever one wanders in Douglas it is never far from a garage being used by a racer. Go down a side street and chances are you will get a first-class view of mechanics working on a machine. The Japanese and MV teams are rather secretive, but anyone who found the Hannah Paton garage could see these beautiful machines with fairings removed and designer Ing. Patoni busy with Fred Stevens checking and testing.

For 1967, there was a bonus of absolutely fabulous weather for the whole of race week that had the editor thinking he was in California. In addition, racing started on Saturday evening before the traditional race week with the production events. Following the opening ceremony, which included a parade and the release of 500 pigeons, racing began at 6:30 in the evening with a Le Mans type start for all classes, the first away being the 750 group. Five minutes later the 500s followed and after a further five minutes, the 250s.

There had been pre-race drama when the official Norton Villiers 745cc Atlas machines had been withdrawn. Due to be ridden by Ron Chandler and Peter Inchley, a variety of problems led to them being scratched on the last day. John Cooper got no further than the warming up area, for his 654cc BSA Spitfire had clutch trouble and could not be started. Then, on the start line, Paul Smart had bother with the Dunstall Dominator and did not get going until the rest of the entries were out of sight down Bray Hill.

It did not take John Hartle, Triumph Bonneville, long to take the lead and once out front on clear roads he was never headed. He completed his first lap at a speed of 97.16 mph, well ahead of similarly mounted Steve Spencer who took over second place when Joe Dunphy retired at the Waterworks with no clutch. Third was Griff Jenkins, engaged in a

real short circit dice on the roads with teammate Paul Smart, who had really got cracking to be in fourth spot at the end of the lap.

On the second lap, Spencer crashed at Dorans Bend and Hartle, lapping even quicker at 97.84 mph, widened the gap between himself and second placeman Jenkins, who was still dueling with Smart. Then came Rex Butcher, Triumph, followed by Lance Weil on the Elite Motor Triumph battling with Tony Smith, 654cc BSA. The gap between these two at the end of the second lap was two tenths of a second.

Into the last lap and there was nothing to stop Hartle racing on to win at an average speed of 97.10 mph — a magnificent performance. Into second place came Smart, for Jenkins had gone out with

clutch trouble, though he coasted and pushed in to finish last. Smith finally got the better of Weil and took third place by 3.8 seconds, but a Yank finishing fourth in his first race round the Island is something.

Fifth was Peter Butler, Triumph, while next place was something of an AngloAmerican achievement as Jacques du Pont had loaned his 647cc Dunstall Dominator to Tony Godfrey and he rode it steadily into sixth berth.

Behind the 750 battle the 500s were sorting themselves out and one of the first to go out was the favorite, Percy Tait, Triumph, who, although he got away quickly, was only on one cylinder and with no spare plug he had to do a complete lap before calling at the pits to change it.

Rushing off like a devil possessed, to show who should have won the 500 class, he lost the plot at Appledene and sustained abrasions and broken heel bones that will keep him out of racing for a week or three.

Manxman Neil Kelly, not even a leaderboard man in practice, took the lead on the mountain climb first time 'round on his Velocette with another Velo behind him ridden by Keith Heckles. In third spot was Graham Penny, 444cc Honda. On the second lap Dave Nixon, Triumph, picked up third place when Penny stopped for fuel. Kelly put in a final lap fractionally over 91 mph to win from Heckles with Nixon third. Penny fourth and sidecar ace Norman Hanks fifth on a 498cc BSA.

The shattering thing was that the first four in the 250 class were all faster than third place man in the 500 group. From the start the Bultaco Metrallas of Bill Smith and Tommy Robb were up front. At the outset they were joined by Kevin Cass on similar machinery, but a misfire later dropped him to sixth place. Third through to the finish was Barry Smith, Suzuki, who many considered to be the moral winner, for the optional speed kit with the Bultacos made them out-and-out racers with no question of a muffler being fitted. They made as much noise and were quicker than the first Bultaco to finish in the international 250cc TT, where Marsovsky was seventh at a speed of 88.02 mph compared with Smith's winning speed of 88.63 mph. However, the A-CU had accepted the entry and that was that.

So, the production TT race came to an end and a highly successful event it was, capturing, in essence, the spirit of the original race in 1907, when miles per gallon mattered as much as miles per hour — after all, they are the Tourist Trophy races. What a pity consumption figures were not compulsory this year, for in 1907 Charlie Collier won at 38.23 mph and 94.5 mpg. Fears of the production racers wiping themselves off at every corner proved unfounded and the very fact that the works Nortons were withdrawn means they are aware of the problems and will get them rectified. Yes, these production races are a must for the future.

MONDAY

Under clear blue skies and a bright sun the crowds took up positions at their favorite vantage points all around the circuit, and while waiting for the sidecar race to start, discussed the possibility of Mike Hailwood winning his tenth TT, and so equalling the record held by Stanley Woods, the legendary pre-war figure of racing who was in the Island fully expecting to see it go. Everyone expected Mike to win the 250 race, but before that the sidecar was a much more open affair, though Georg Auerbacher had made himself favorite with that last 90 mph plus practice lap.

There were 83 entered for the event and with the surprisingly low figure of only four non starters, the grid activity was due to continue for some seven minutes as the riders set off in pairs at 10second intervals with the top 20 riders balloted for the first 20 places. The luck of the draw saw Auerbacher and Barry Dungworth, both BMW, first away, pur-

sued by Colin Seeley, BMW, and Helmut Fath on his home-built URS four-cylinder machine which, though the fastest machine in the race, has yet to prove its reliability. It gave no trouble on the first lap, though at the end of which Fath was fourth, less than nine seconds behind race leader Klaus Enders, BMW, who sneaked a 1.6-second lead from Auerbacher in the rush down the mountain. In third spot was the dark horse of the race, Siegfried Schauzu, with a works engine in his BMW outfit. Completing the first six were Seeley and Pip Harris, BMW.

Among the first lap retirements, Chris Vincent went out with gearbox trouble — not his year for the TT, as he crashed on the first lap of the production race on Saturday, suffering nasty abrasions to his hip. The second lap saw Auerbacher piling on the pressure, and with Enders having carburetion trouble, Schauzu moved into second spot by less than a second, though almost 15 seconds down on the leader. Fath had retired, Seeley and Harris maintained station, and so Dungworth was sixth. Then at the beginning of the third and last lap, a few miles from the start.

Auerbacher went out with a seized engine.

The question then arose, would Schauzu make up the 20-second time difference on Enders to lead on the road as well as lead the race. The attempt to do so almost cost him the race, for braking heavily for Governors Bridge caught passenger Horst Schneider off balance and he slid off the machine. Fortunately, he was unhurt and quickly got on board again. And so, at their second attempt, Schauzu and Schneider won the sidecar TT from F.nders and Seeley with Harris, a flu victim, fourth, Dungworth fifth and Terry Vinicombe on the Kirby BSA sixth — his best ever TT placing at 84.11 mph, compared with last year's 83.28 with the same machine.

The Hanks family must be able to claim something of a record, for father Fred finished 22nd, Norman, in trouble on the first lap, was 29th and Roy had the best ride with 15th place. The other family battle between Bill and Mick Boddice ended when father Bill retired, though Mick went on to share 8th place with Arsenius Butscher, BMW. The Hanks and Boddices were all BSA mounted.

Just to set the pace for the week, the race speed of 90.96 mph was a new record. Of the 79 starters there were 40 finishers, but, unfortunately, one of the many retirements around the circuit was American entry Maurice Candy, who went out at the Gooseneck. Passenger Jacques du Pont had to hitch a lift from a marshal to get back to the start of the 250 race for his Kawasaki ride.

With a little over an hour between races, the crowds settled down to enjoy lunch with a warning not to feed the sea gulls, which could present a rider hazard during racing, swooping low over the roads for food.

One thirty and Ralph Bryans, Honda-6, and Derek Woodman, MZ, pushed off the grid and disappeared toward Bray Hill — four-stroke and two-stroke screaming into the distance. Thirty seconds later, Hailwood set off in hot pursuit. Would he win his first 250cc classic of 1967? Would he equal that practice lap of 105.12 mph? Would he make it 10 TT wins?

At the end of the first lap, only three seconds separated the first three riders on the leaderboard. They were Hailwood and the Yamaha-4 mounted teammates Phil Read and Bill Ivy. Bryans was fourth, Woodman fifth, and the third Yamaha of Akiyasu Motohashi, sixth. With a flying start to the second lap Hailwood shattered the lap record, though not as quick as that practice effort. He went 'round in 21 minutes, 39.8 secs, for an average speed of 104.5 mph, so gaining a 12-second lead from Read. Motohashi retired on the second circuit, so Heinz Rosner,

MZ, took sixth place on the leaderboard.

Things were the same at the end of the third lap, with Hailwood having extended his lead. The end of the third lap saw the leaderboard men refueling. Peter Inchley on the AJS Starmaker had fueled the previous lap but with straight gas instead of a petroil mix that wrecked the engine in a big way. The fourth lap saw both the MZ machines retire, and Ivy, too, went out with engine trouble. Hailwood and Read remained out front with Bryans taking over third place with the fuel stop, having dropped his average to 99.53 mph. But, he was streets ahead of the new fourth man John Cooper, Kawasaki, at 92.29 mph with Dave Simmonds, Kawasaki, and Angelo Bergamonti, Hannah Paton, completing the leaderboard.

A second fuel stop for his thirsty Kawasaki dropped Cooper to fifth at the end of the fifth lap, but as always with the 250 TT the retirements continued to take toll of the leaderboard. Hailwood, Read, Bryans and Simmonds all continued and finished in that order, but Cooper seized on the last lap and pushed in to finish 25th. Bergamonti went out with engine trouble at Waterworks, and just when he should have gone into the first six, Terry Grotefeld, Yamaha, ran out of gas at Barregarroo, so fifth place went to Bill Smith, Kawasaki, who moved ahead of Mike Chatterton, Yamaha, on the last lap.

WEDNESDAY

The curtain raiser for Wednesday's racing was the 125cc event, and as conditions were again perfect, the question was whether Bill Ivy would lap at 100 mph on the 125cc Yamaha. This year's four-cylinder machines are much quicker than last year's twins, so it was quite in the cards that it could be done if all went well. But, there lay the problem, for all did not go well, and on the first lap, a plug electrode broke off; Bill retired at the end of the first lap.

This left a battle royal going on between Stuart Graham, Suzuki, and Phil Read, Yamaha, that had the crowd on its toes all the way round the course.

Graham was annoyed with the press never considering him as a serious contender as a winner, and this, together with the fact that his father's name is on the 125 trophy, inspired him to ride as never before. But he was handicapped by starting 40 seconds in front of Phil Read, and this I am sure is the reason he lost the race, for the Yamaha team were able to keep Read informed exactly how he stood in relation to Graham on corrected time and this is invaluable when, as in this race, Graham was a couple of seconds in front right up to the mountain climb on the last lap. But Read knew what he had to do, and riding absolutely on the limit, he screamed over the mountain on that final lap to win by a mere 3.8 seconds.

Phil paid Graham the finest compliment in the finishers enclosure when he said he could not believe his signaling station during the race that Graham was in the lead. Motohashi, Yamaha, was third and Dave Simmonds, Kawasaki, repeated Monday's fourth place with production Hondamounted Kelvin Carruthers and Fred Curry fifth and sixth. Fastest lap went to Read on his final circuit at 98.36 mph. More shattering is the fact that their speeds would have put Read and Graham in third and fourth places in the 350 race that followed. And what a record shattering effort that was.

All the superlatives in the world cannot impart the magnificence of Mike Hailwood during the 1967 TT. On Monday he won the 250 race with record lap and race speed and equalled the record number of TT wins. On Wednesday in the junior race he set off, in his own words, "to get a good lead on the first lap," and from a standing start broke the absolute lap record on his six-cylinder Honda with a time of 21 minutes 0.8 second, for an average speed of 107.73 mph, which shattered his own 500-lap record set last year. At the end of the first lap it gave him a lead of some 49 seconds over Agostini, who just could not match the pace, though his first lap was at 103.73 mph. A brilliant third was Renzo Pasolini, Benelli, with Rosner, iv*Z, fourth, separated from his teammate Woodman in sixth place by the Hannah-Paton of Fred Stevens. But Stevens retired on the second lap, letting in Alberto Pagani, Aermacchi, to sixth place.

The leaderboard remained the same at the end of the third lap, but next time around, Pagani moved into fourth place when Rosner went out with engine trouble and Pasolini broke a chain at Creg ny Baa. Into fifth and sixth places moved Chris Conn, Higley Norton, and Peter Williams, Arter AJS. Other retirements at this stage included the Americans Lance Weil with a split oil tank and Marty Lunde with a broken fairing bracket. Williams' place was short lived, for the engine seized fifth time around at Appledene, so Gilberto Milani, Aermacchi, moved into sixth place. And so it remained at the finish.

FRIDAY

Anti-climax and climax of the week's racing was the 50cc race followed by the Senior TT.

Previous winner of the 50cc event, Mitsuo Itoh, had broken a wrist in a practice crash, so was out leaving the three factory Suzukis of current world champion Hans Georg Anscheidt, Yoshimi Katayama and Stuart Graham. As there was a Japanese film unit in the Island it was assumed that Katayama would win, followed home by Anscheidt and Graham. Katayama oiled a plug at the start and spent a couple of minutes changing it, but Anscheidt and Graham hung around to such an extent that he caught them on the second lap at Ramsey, and as the fifty race was a mass start, there was no doubt about his lead. But Katayama really boobed on the mountain, looking back at the wrong moment and riding into the bank.

At least that meant that Anscheidt and Graham could treat the matter seriously and get down to racing. But not for long, as the world champion struck trouble and Graham went on to win a poor consolation prize after Wednesday's epic duel with Read.

Anscheidt finished second and in third place was Tommy Robb, over 15 minutes behind the winner. Does anyone really want to see the 50s again over the TT course?

The crowd's disappointment over the 50cc event had little time to foment, for the drama and excitement of the Senior TT knocked everyone sideways, as the titanic Agostini versus Hailwood battle exploded into life with the drop of the flag. "Ago," as the fans call him, was celebrating his 25th birthday and riding the three-cylinder 500cc MV — very fast and much easier to ride than the bucking bronco of a 500-class brute that Honda have built for Mike to tame. Mike did not rate his chances against the handsome Italian, who had headed the practice times 21 seconds faster. Wet weather would have helped the Honda ace, but there was no question of that, for race week was ending as it had begun in glorious sunshine — a fabulous Diamond Jubilee week.

Then came that shattering first lap and the honor of being the first rider to break 21 minutes that Hailwood had so nearly achieved on Wednesday went to Agostini. when, from a standing start he clocked 20 minutes, 53.2 seconds, a speed of 108.38 mph — a new lap record. Hailwood was 12 seconds slower at 107.37 mph, making it a two-horse race, for third after one lap was Pasolini, Benelli, at 100.61, and fourth, Peter Williams, who had achieved his personal ambition on the Arter Matchless by lapping over the ton at 100.35, and from a standing start.

Second time around, Mike set a new record at 108.77 and cut Ago's lead by a little over three seconds, with Pasolini still third and Williams fourth. As on the first lap, John Blanchard, Seeley Matchless, and Malcolm Uphill, Beart Norton, were fifth and sixth. On the third lap Mike slowly nibbled away at Ago's lead to cut it down to a mere two seconds as he came in to refuel.

A yell, and Mike was given a hammer to belt his twist grip, which was slipping on the handlebar. But, a 48-second pit stop ruined the riding effort, for Agostini refueled in 37 seconds and was away. Seven miles out on the fourth lap, Ago had regained a 13-second lead, but Mike cut this to 10 by Ramsey. Then, as they started their fifth laps, it was Ago again by 12. Responding to his pit signal, Hailwood cut back the deficit so that by the time he got to Ramsey, 24 miles out, he led for the first time unofficially by one second. How his fans cheered when they heard that and how Ago's cheered even louder when a further seven miles up the mountain the Italian was leading by two seconds.

Off the mountain flashed Mike, down through Hillberry and Signpost corner and past the start into his sixth and final lap. But there was no sign of the Italian, until at last it was announced that his chain had broken at Windy corner and he was coasting down the mountain.

So ended one of the finest duels ever to have taken place over the mountain circuit. But the drama had not ended, for on the fourth lap Pasolini had retired at Glen Helen and Joe Dunphy, Norton, had also retired, so that at the end of the fourth lap Williams had moved into third place. Uphill was fourth, Blanchard fifth and Chris Conn, Higley Norton, sixth. There was a further sort-out on the fifth lap when Blanchard retired with chain trouble, Mike Duff's Arter Matchless seized and Dan Shorey, Norton, also struck trouble.

Into the last lap they went and for Hailwood it was trouble all the way, with the Honda cutting out on corners with his twist grip slipping off the bar, this accounting for his slow last lap of over twenty-two and a half minutes. Out went Uphill with a broken valve at Glen Vine and third place man Chris Conn went out on the mountain with a broken gearbox. So at the end it was Williams second and third place for the Lancefield Norton ridden by Steve Spencer, heavily strapped up to stop him "falling to pieces" after his crash in the production race. John Cooper, Norton, was fourth and Fred Stevens, Hannah Paton, fifth. Completing the leaderboard was John Hartle, Kirby Métissé, who would have done much better had he not put a duff plug in on the start line and lost 600 revs.

So ended the week's racing with one man dominant in everyone's mind, and that man was Mike Hailwood. He has now won 12 TT trophies in seven years, starting with three wins in 1961 and repeating the feat this year. Stanley Woods was among the first to congratulate Mike on the new records he set, though Stanley still holds the title of youngest-ever winner — at 18 he scored his first victory in the 1923 Junior on a Cotton. Mike's only disappointment can be that it was Ago who first broke the 21-minute barrier.

For the Americans, apart from Lance Weil's fourth place in the 750cc Production race, it was a disappointing week, with both Marty Lunde and Weil failing to finish in either the junior or senior and Maurice Candy being out of luck in the sidecar class. Jacques du Pont fought on doggedly in the 250 class with his Kawasaki, rebuilding it after a final practice blow up and despite vibration rode on to a finishers award.

The aura that used to surround the 100 mph lap has now begun to lose some of its grandeur. The first to achieve this milestone was Bob Mclntyre on the Gilera during the Golden Jubilee races in 1957. In 1958, John Hartle and John Surtees joined following efforts on the works MV machines. Then, in 1960, Derek Minter and Mike Hailwood both achieved it on Nortons. In 1961, Gary Hocking on the MV and Tom Phillis, Norton Domiracer, made theirs, but it was not until 1962 that a Matchless achieved it, and then both Alan Shepherd and Mike Duff made it together with Phil Read on a Norton. Jim Redman, Honda, was the only new rider to achieve it in 1964 and in 1966, Bill Ivy, Yamaha, and Giacomo Agostini, MV, brought the total to 13 who had lapped over 100 mph in the ten years since it was first achieved.

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This year saw the "ton up club" joined by no fewer than six riders; Ralph Bryans, Honda, Renzo Pasolini, Benelli, Peter Williams, Arter Matchless, Steve Spencer, Lancefield Norton, Malcolm Uphill, Beart Norton and John Blanchard, Seeley Matchless. It was the new framed model that Blanchard rode with 1-inch 16 gauge tubing compared with the old that had 1-1/4inch 17 gauge. It is two inches lower at the head crown and a V-piece goes from the top tube to head crown instead of a single tube. Another change is box construction as opposed to plate for strengthening the swinging-arm pivot. An Ed Robinson twin single leading shoe front brake is employed and 18-inch wheels fore and aft compared with 18 front and 19-inch rear before.

With all the strain and tension of the TT period, relations between Seeley and Blanchard became a little frayed and Blanchard did not ride in the junior race. However, differences were settled for the senior and John proved the machinery with his consistent fifth place until his retirement on the fifth lap.

An interesting point that emerged from the junior and senior events is that Pasolini changed from an Italian chain to Renolds after his failure in the junior. This meant that only one machine in the senior race, that of Agostini, did not use Renold and it was a broken chain that forced his retirement.

This in turn led to discussion about how much more power the present motorcycle chains will stand. Will it be necessary through sheer power to go to shaft drive soon? And will power mean new thinking in terms of frame design? Certainly Honda with the 500cc model have a helluva problem in the handling department and only those who have seen Hailwood snaking under power realize how real it is and just how strong and courageous he is in riding the beast. Perhaps we have something to learn from the car world.

There is talk now that Honda, having produced a 250 six and the 297 six for the 350 class, will come out with a brand new 500cc six-cylinder model which some think may not have the handling problem of the present 500 four. But, as Hailwood himself has said, power in the Island is no use if it is unmanageable, and in a more powerful six they may have an even bigger problem. ■