Isle of Man TT sound stories on vinyl

As technology rushes forward at a dizzying pace, it's comforting to look back and see from whence we came and how we used to do things. Pull out that turntable and spin up some Isle of Man memories with us.  For many years, if you weren't able to go to the island yourself, you got your fix by listening to these Stanley Schofield (SS) albums. Here, in the USA, the importer was Grand Prix Records in Burbank, California although most fans found these listed in the back of Road & Track or Cycle magazines.





Graham Walker and his son Murray's commentary still resonates so well that it seems to put you right in the grandstands as you wait for Gary Hocking, John Hartle or John Surtees to rocket by. Then you'd  hear about the young Mike Hailwood as he enjoys a taste of victory and offers a glimps of what's to come.  





 BMW dominated the sidecar races with rider Helmut Fath and his passenger whose average speed was nearly two miles an hour faster than the second place finishers, also mounted on BMW.









The 1962 album has an illustration of Mike Hailwood and Gary Hocking duking it out on
MV Agusta's for nearly the enitre race with
Hailwood the winner at 99.59 mph. In the Lightweight 125 class, Honda mounted Luigi Taveri won, followed home by four more Honda racers to sweep the top five. It was the a magnificent time with exotic four cylinder machines dominating the races.

                                       


This 1963 Sound Stories features the Junior and Lightweight TT races with stars Hugh Anderson on the Suzuki two-stroke and Jim Redman on the Honda 250 four cylinder four stroke. Album illustrations by Bernard Wragg really captures the grace and speed at a time before we had slow motion film to allow us to appreciate the details.   Heat up some Castrol R on the burner and give it a listen!


 Here's a link to an earlier TT recording with Geoff Duke and Surtees doing battle. Give a listen !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlGTl5vHgKo

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Great Racing Nortons

You can almost smell the Castrol Oil  and hear the megaphones roar!  Let's check out some great production racing Norton motorcycles I've encountered in the past few years. Here's a few that fired my imagination. In this first group we see a 1962 500cc Manx with rider Dick Miles pushing off at Mid Ohio Vintage Days.






Below is a pre-war Inter with a rigid frame and girder forks. This particular bike has been raced on the Isle of Man in 1937 and was then raced in New Zealand for many years, winning a National Roadracing Championship.












Below is what may be the finest original long-stroke manx in existence, owned by racer Gary Maucher.




Daytona 2010. JL,  Peter Jacobs (ex-Cycle magazine), Dick Miles & ex- AMA Pro racer Gary Fisher, son of Ed Fisher.


Behind the scenes at shooting for the TV pilot for The Classic Motorcycle. We're about to take the Lex Dupont Manx out for some passes on the airport runway for the cameras.  


The man himself, legendary Grand Prix tuner Nobby Clark fettles " The Old Boy" at Roebling Road 2010. Rider Alex McLean swept all events entered on this Stu Rogers-built pre-war 500cc Norton Inter.








#22 Alex gets the holeshot and immediately pushes hard on the 'Old Boy', lapping the much newer 1948 Garden Gate International at Daytona 2010. 

After having problem getting the bike in gear on the start line at Mid Ohio Class C vintage race, I was on a charge to make up time, finishing in second place. I'm just passing #42  AMA Hall of Fame legend Ed Fisher (about age 80 at the time and still on the gas!) on his Triumph 500 racer. Ed's bike is very similiar to the one he won the 100 mile National at Laconia on in 1953.



This is an excellent video for those interested in the Garden Gate Norton Manx and
 early post-war racing on the Isle of Man.  One of many great motorcycling classic films from Duke Video. 

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The 1961 Norton Manx

After selling my 1949 " Garden Gate" Norton 500cc International a few years ago, I found the perfect Manx project to try the much sought after Featherbed Norton frame and 500cc dohc engine combination at last. The 1961 Manx I purchased came from New Mexico after being in storage for nearly twenty-five years. It has a noteworthy west coast racing history with original owner John McLaughlin (AMA Hall of Fame member) and then Tony Murphy, also known as the " King of Willow Springs" Raceway. Due to its chromed frame, it has become known as The Silver Bullet.

















After figuring out what was needed, parts orders were placed and the work
 could begin in earnest. Dick began the task of checking every detail before the build up.








Prying those 40 years old tires off in a cold garage was a chore!








The double overhead cambox exposed. 






Production racing motorcycles from the early pre-war period require the talents of s skilled
machinist to get the many tolerances correct.



Anything that was missing or in need of replacement was sourced from Ken McIntosh in New Zealand. Ken sells virtually all parts for the Manx and even complete machines either in standard form or offering the latest in upgrades.  In fact, Ken supplied the Manx that 1993 500cc Grand Prix World Champion Kevin Schwantz raced  during a recent visit to New Zealand. All parts are of the highest quality in fit and finish.  














So much of the Manx's secrets of success are in this picture. The set up of the Rex McCandless 'featherbed' frame and the timing gears of the dohc 500cc single.





That's a genuine Ray Petty brake muff on the front end. The late Petty was regarded as one of the most successful Manx tuners of all time.


It was a happy day when we brought the bike to completion.
Seeing the sun again after many years in boxes and garage storage, it was a sight to behold.

 Minutes later we were taking it for a test run up the alley.





When I got the bike, it was fully dismantled and in need of a rebuild. I was fortunate that an fellow manx racer and marque expert, Dick Miles, lives nearby and agreed to take on the project. Without his help, I would be lost. The photos will take you from start to finish over the one and a half year build which brought us to the first race at Roebling Road Raceway, near Savannah, Georgia in 2010.








A minor issue regarding sidelined us and it would be months later, in July before I got to really race the bike for the first time at Mid Ohio, where I finished 3rd in the 500 Grand Prix Class on both Saturday and Sunday. It was an experience I'll never forget. Long live the Manx.







Roebling Road Raceway near Savannah Georgia
AHRMA "Classic 60's" Class 3rd place on day 1 and 2nd place on day 2 



Excellent Classic 60's class race action with John and Alex McLean both on 1961
Manx Nortons early in the race.
McLean went by for the win at half distance.



Action photo by Dawn Deppi, Eye of the Beholder photography





                                                    

                                                                 

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