Old Bike Australasia Issue 98

Join the club I know this magazine’s ethos is heritage and nostalgia, but it’s also about continuing tradition. One such tradition began back in 1949 when Eric McPherson finished equal third in the inaugural 350cc World Championship. It took a further eight years before an Australian, Keith Campbell, became World Champion, again in the 350cc class. Then came Tom Phillis (125cc 1961), Kel Carruthers (250cc 1969), Wayne Gardner (500cc 1987), Mick Doohan (500cc, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998), and Casey Stoner (MotoGP 2007, 2011). And now we can add Remy’s name to that list after a nail-biting finish to a season where he took five wins in the Moto2 class. In doing so the Gardners became only the second father and son to take World Championships, after Kenny Roberts Senior and…

Ups and downs in Upton Thyroid With reference to the above article (OBA 96 Edgar Jessop) the aircraft appears to be an early radial engine variant of the Armstrong Whitworth Whitley. The Bristol Badger was an inter-war single engine recon plane. Thanks for the excellent mag. I am the owner of a BMW R65LS, Royal Enfield 350 Classic, Purple Postie Honda 110, Chang Jiang CJ-750 outfit and Dnepr K-750 twin. Wife and I rode a BSA A10 around Asia in the ‘70s, Vespa around in Indonesia in the ‘90s, Urals, Dnepr, Minsk and Honda (Indonesian GL7175) around Vietnam in the 2010s and a Royal Enfield Classic 350 around Sri Lanka in 2018. I have owned many other bikes in the intervening years including Honda fours (750K2 and 500/4, both with chairs), Norton…

The story on “Scoring a Nought” in OBA 96 brought back memories of different times and different licensing requirements. In New Zealand in the ’60s you only needed to be 15 to get a car licence. I had been driving my parents’ car for at least 2 years, so three days after my 15th birthday I got my licence with much the same process as written about in the story. Answer a few questions, drive around the block, sign here! In those days a car licence also entitled the holder to ride a power cycle up to 50cc. The next year the powers that be decided that a motorcycle licence was required to ride all these small machines. At that time licences had to be renewed every year, there were no…

Jack and John Towner To get ahead and be noticed with good results when racing at Bathurst and other circuits in the post war years usually required a rider to have an overhead cam machine such as a 7R AJS or a Manx Norton. Alternatively some people did get good results on modified pushrod machines such as John Shanks on his Red Hunter Ariels. However one Newcastle rider, John Towner had remarkable results with 350 and 500 Royal Enfields. That make was usually not renowned as a high performance machine although the Enfield swinging arm frames had been successfully used on Short Circuit, but usually with some other make of engine fitted such as a JAP. It is not surprising that Towner did use the Royal Enfield as his father, Jack, was…

Shannons Insurance Broadford Bike Bonanza celebrates the Z1 2022 marks fifty years since the iconic 903cc Z1 arrived in Kawasaki showrooms and became an instant classic. To celebrate this milestone, organisers of the SIBBB are working on a fitting tribute to the Z1 over the Easter weekend. “We are confident of having a big display of up to 50 bikes featuring every model in the Z900/1000 series, right up to the 1983 Z1000R on display,” said Committee Chairman David White. “As well as the static display, the owners who take out an MA One Event licence will have the opportunity to take their bikes onto the track, which should be a very colourful sight. It is intended that a separate display will include a wide range of Z models from the 1970s…

Matt Daley Three times Australian motocross Champion and twice Australian Short Circuit Champion, MATT DALEY, died on 1st November 2021, aged 77 after a long illness. Born in Queensland, Matt came to live in Wollongong in 1964 where he worked for Geoff Martin, who was president of Wollongong MCC and proprietor of a successful engineering business specialising in engine reconditioning. It was here that Matt learned the skills that would stand him in good stead in later years. Geoff also had strong ties with the Cotton factory in UK and provided bikes for Matt to race in motocross, and it was a rare occasion when he was beaten. I first saw Matt at Moorebank Scrambles track in Sydney. He was incredibly fast and also incredibly unspectacular. He had a way of riding quickly…