STROKER GENIUS
Two-stroke racing performance and its development can be sheeted home to one man
and another’s story of Cold War espionage
W
ay back in 1953, the race
department of East German
brand MZ was headed up by
one Walter Kaaden, who was
literally a rocket scientist who had helped with
the Nazi V-2 rocket program.
He developed MZ two-strokes combining
disc-valve induction with expansion chamber
exhausts. The exhausts were essentially Kaaden’s
invention and led to incredible results. In 1954, his
engines produced around 100bhp per litre and, by
1961, they belted out 200bhp per litre! While MZ
could pull the very best racers to ride its quick
machines, the company also took on a home-
grown communist up-and-comer, Ernst Degner.
Then, in 1961, with Degner poised on the
brink of stardom, the East German defected
while competing at the Swedish Grand Prix.
Within hours he was on his way to Japan,
where he signed to ride for Suzuki. At the
time, there were rumours he’d escaped
with a complete set of drawings or even a
disassembled engine in his luggage. That
needn’t have been the case. Degner wasn’t justa quick racer; he was a trained engineer who
had played an important development role at
MZ. The contents of his helmet were damaging
enough to the communist cause.
A er the Berlin Wall had been built in
August, 1961, Degner arranged the escape of
his family from the GDR in the boot of a car
on the weekend he himself was racing in the
Swedish Grand Prix at Kristianstad. In that
race he could have secured the 125cc World
Championship for himself and for MZ but his
engine failed early in the race. Ironically, his
main rival for the 125cc World Title, our very
own Tom Phillis, on a Honda, also failed to
fi nish the Swedish race.
It was a er the race, when he was able to drive
out of the circuit, that Degner defected by driving
his Wartburg car to West Germany via Denmark.
A er the MZ team discovered his defection,
the East Germans falsely accused Degner
of deliberately destroying his engine in the
Swedish race. This was a crazy accusation
since, having started the race, Degner surely
wanted to win it — and the 125cc World Title— as much as MZ. However, the East Germans’
accusations resulted in Degner’s racing licence
being revoked. This prevented him from racing
a borrowed EMC 125cc racer in the fi nal 125cc
World Championship round in Argentina.
Had he won that race, he could still have been
crowned 125cc World Champion.r Ernst Degner and colleague on the tools.r Walter Kaaden had a signifi cant infl uence on
two-stroke technology.18 | AUSTRALIAN ROAD RIDERUPFRONT
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