The Classic MotorCycle – September 2019

Toughchallengefor judges

ElkPromotionseventsat the

hugefield on the outskirtsof

HamstreetinKentare always

popular. From just aboutany

direction, thelocal roads make it

apleasantride,evidenced by long

lines of parkedbikes.

Theentries at the Romney

MarshClassicShow on June 23

demonstrated agreat varietyas

well as cr eatingtough calls fo rthe

judges tomake.Best pre-1950s

wasAnitaDray’s1948 1200cc

Indian Chief,‘Boudicca.’ Custom

paintworkmay offend thepuris ts,

buttherewas no denyingAnita’s

bikewas arealworkofart.

It wasatotal contrast to

runner-up,John Gates’Rotrax

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speedwaybike–alloy,plated

steeland abareminimum

of motorcycle.

Thenextcategories coveredthe

classic era. Greg Taylor’sVincent

BlackShadowgot an award,

possiblycompensatingfor some

electrical concernsthe bikehad

given him earlierin theday. Dave

Harding, hasowned his 1970

BSALightningfor some time ‘...

definitel yakeepe r,’heconfirmed.

With Bantams takingsome

individualawards ,and Vince

Gill’sC12 being judged ‘Best

Brit ish’,itw as agood dayfor

BSAowners.However ,many

would happilyhave gone home

with Kevin Goldfinch’s Norton

Howdoeshedoit? Keith Webb’s

very well used LaverdaSFlooks

like it hasjustbeenrolled o ut

of th eshowroom butisalong

distanceveteran.

AnitaDraylooks pleased with

theresultofh er day, col lecting

the‘Bestpre-1 950s’ awardfor

her1200IndianChief before

sherode i thome.

GregTaylor looksas if he has

forgivenhis award-winning

BlackShadowfor misbehaving

earlier intheday.

Commando,orDerek Jell’s 1962

650cc Triumph Trophy.

Keith Webb’s immaculate 1972

Laverda750SF looked as if ithad

just beenrestored.Keith actually

completedthe work in 1986and

many,manythousands ofmiles

ago. Amongseveral continental

trips the bike oncereceived

the endorsementofMassimo

Laverda, no less.

Competitionwas closefor the

awardfor the best club .Triumph,

Norton and theVinta ge Japanese

offered numbers andvariety,

butthe Bant am Club,regular

supporters of ELKevents, and

with acoop-full,wasnot tobe

denied.AlanTurner.

Historic racingtakesto the trackatLydden Hill

BritishHistoric Racing visited

LyddenHill circuit,east of

Canterbury,Kent,onJune

22-23, foraweekend of track

actionand entertainment.The

clubmanagedtocompletea

race programmeover thetwo

days ,with mostriders gettingat

leasttwo opportunities torace

ever yday.

With many categoriesfrom

which to choose, cateringfor

enginesfrom 50 to1300cc, the

gridscanhaveanassortmentof

machin ery.Theclassic eraevents

seefewerManxes ,7Rs and

G50s nowadays ,althoughthe

performancesputupbyVincent

Comets,Velocettes and assorted

otherhalf-litreengines pr ovided

an interestingmix andsome

unexpectedresults.

Interestint he BEARS(British,

European,AmericanRacing

and Supporters)series has

made this intoarealspectacle

with biggersports bikesbeing

wrestledaroundthe ci rcuit’s

near-constantright-handturns.

Triumph,Norton, Laverdaand

Moto-Guzziwere among those

fillingthe Lyddenvalleywith a

rollingthunder.Thethree-wheel

equivalentseesgrids-full of bikes

almost allpoweredbyBMW’s

effectiveK100‘bric k’ engine.The

sinuousLydden circuitprovides

opportunities forracecraftto

compensate foranyshortage

of power.

It maybeHistoricRaci ng,

butitw as up to the minute

entertainment.AlanTurner.

12 THE CLASSICMOTORCYCLE|SEPTEMBER 2019

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