[TwoFaced]

And again in action

[TwoFaced]

And again

[ahensman]

82 Bank Holiday Bikes

I just joined this forum from here in Colorado, USA as the result of surfing for UK dragbike history. I get to the last picture (the one of Hobbit in the foreground) of a set of photos and there. low and behold, in the center background is an orange van labeled "Knight & Cross" which was one of my sponsors. My crew chief back then, Tony Osborne, worked for K & C and was able to persuade the owner to let us use one of his vans as free race transport. You can just see the DC 226 number of my bike protruding out from the back of the van.

My number 2 crew member back then was Steve Warner of Blue Blazer fame and presently pilots the 2-seater dragster that runs at the Pod, and who I recently hooked up with via Santa Pod's contact list.

Apparently, I had quite a few "crew extras" with me that day as I was able to recognize the skinny looking guy looking down at my bike as Rob Boyles, a co-worker of mine at the leather factory where we made all the hides that went into Lewis racing leathers and Frank Thomas boots amongst many customers.

I think the guy in the striped wooly hat is another co-worker of mine named Paul Garner.

Since my race number shows as DC 226, this was my second bike which (not surprisingly) was named "Last Chance 2" since all my bikes had the "Last Chance" moniker. LC2 was traditional a blown pre-unit 750 Triumph, hooked to a 4-inch M&H slick via a dry Norton clutch and 4-speed box. It had the "standard" Hagon nose-cone fairing and we ran it on 25 - 50% nitro and learned a lot from it including why a head bolt-down kit was essential if using stock cases. I recall i purchased it as a "runner" from somewhere in North London and it came complete with silver Hammerite paintjob. I used my leather finishing spray-gun expertise to repaint it Metalflake electric Blue and Gold before our first outing to (dare I say it) an NDRC meet at Blackbushe.

Anyhow, based upon the Knight and Cross van and LC2, this must have been one of my last outings on it as I purchased Chris Russell's turbocharged alcohol burning 1015cc Kawasaki (Oriental Wizard) by season's end. I remember traveling from Bedford to Chris' Chelmsford home and laying down 1600 pounds for it as a turnkey operation. The last words said as we drove away still bounce around inside my head. It was Chris' wife jokingly saying, "Can I get that new washing machine now?" That Kawa was renamed Last Chance 3 and was the last bike I raced in the UK or Europe during the '83 season.

I still have that turbo Kwacka motor having brought it to the US with me when I emigrated mid 1989. My original plan after running it as purchased during the '83 season was to purchase Tony Lewis' rolling chassis and transplant my motor. Tony was planning to build himself a new frame and wheels. In fact, Tony borrowed my S&S alcohol carb for a few seasons which he used on his bike. However, between financial challenges within UK drag racing and getting married, those new bike plans sort of got shelved. I sold the Oriental Wizard" chassis in readiness, but the motor stayed with me. I had it for sale for a while but there just wasn't any serious buyers. So it got crated and shipped to the US where it's followed me around to all the various locations including Wisconsin, Minnesota, Colorado, Texas and Colorado again.

Last Chance 1 is a history lesson in itself as it was Norman Hyde's World record holding 500 cc unit Triumph powered sidecar unit, MINUS the sidecar, but still had all the 3rd wheel attachment brackets protruding off the left side. I'll spare you further info on that bike until another "rainy day"

Now my racing consists mainly of watching the ever increasing US Television coverage, plus going to the Mopar Mile High nationals every year in Denver.

Thanks for the memory and maybe someone else has phots of a bike with 226 as it's race number?

Regards
Andy Hensman

[muddytalker]

Hi Andy and welcome to the forum. What a great story. I'm sure we'll turn up some photos of DC 226, and I'm sure that Keith Lee and Phil Steele will be here shortly to welcome you to the forum as well.

Its's really surprising how many cross overs we uncover on this forum with former car guys being linked with bike teams and vise versa!

Have you come across any nostalgia British Drag Racing books while over in Denver? I f not then you should look out for Keith Lee's excellent history into Drag Bike Racing In Britain from the mid 60s to the mid 80s published by Voloce in there Those were the days series. Also in the same series is Nick Pettit's (Time Travel) look at British Drag Racing The Early Years. Finally if you really want to spend a few weeks reading up on what's happened before and after you emigrated (as well as this forum of course) then look for a copy of Crazy Horses by Brian Taylor. A great coffee book read which will keep you amused for days. All I'm sure you will be able to get via Amazon.

So lets see what comes up on here. I think you've got a lot of winter catching up to do. Welcome again to the forum.

Jerry Cookson (Muddytalker)

[muddytalker]

A few from the JWR Archives.

Terry Revill and Dave Rawlins square off against each other in Street Bike at Silverstone 1974.

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[paso]

Hi Andy great to have you here the more ex dragbike or current Dragbike racers the better Im sure mr Lee will have a photo of DC226 somewhere.

Regards Phil

[ahensman]

Hi Andy great to have you here the more ex dragbike or current Dragbike racers the better Im sure mr Lee will have a photo of DC226 somewhere.

Regards Phil

Thanks Phil.
Just trying to trace my mis-spent youth, I guess.
I had been a regular race fan, attending meets around the country since about 1971. In 1976, while a full time student sponsored by my employer, I decided to become more active in the sport. After talking to a number of folks at various meets, it became apparent that there were two completely different ways to do that.

Either, plan and build your own bike, then go racing OR take the "jump in the deep end and learn to swim" approach by purchasing an already existing bike.

So, jump I did and purchased a blown unit 500Triumph that I later learned was what was left of Norman Hyde's World record sidecar outfit. It was neither pretty nor quick, but was cheap and easy to work on.

My first trip down the quarter on it was at the "Pod" but at an NSA sprint event and not a drag race. After talking to a number of racers, they suggested this route because they said racers at sprints were more likely to help a newbie (such as me) if issues arose.
I remember that first run like it was yesterday.It felt like nothing I'd ever experienced - and you have to be aware I'd been a pro-rugby player since I was 16 years old. An unglamorous 13.34 seconds at 112 mph, but to me it felt like I'd been shot from a cannon. I was now 100% hooked on this noisy yet exhilarating motorsport.

Back in the pits and my buddies and I had no idea what to do next or how to do it. I have to confess that we didn't even know where or how to drain the oil...or for that matter why. So we're all sitting around this ugly little heap of a drag bike, looking quizzically at each other when who should walk up to our little group? None other than Brian Chapman of Mighty Mouse fame.

So after we all had got over being gob-smacked by a "big-name racer" talking to us, we followed his every spoken direction and got that little 500 ready for another run. Thanks Brian where ever you are. You made us feel like we belonged. He even pointed out a hairline crack in the pressurized side of the intake manifold, suggesting that it probably wouldn't be detrimental but that we should get the torch to it and bead it up with weld. Things were just getting neater by the minute.

Now you need to understand that up until the Triumph, all our bike mechanical experience had been with Japanese motors and, in particular, those of the two stroke variety. Now I'd jumped into a such a deep end because I'd no knowledge of the machine I'd just ridden down the track.
However, I had had just enough foresight to purchase a Haynes manual for unit 500 Triumphs before heading to the sprint. Since we didn't wish to give the appearance that we had no idea what we were doing, one of us would climb into the back of our transporting van, close the doors, read a relevant section, then return to the rest of us and explain what to do next. So what should of taken just minutes to do, took a heck of a long time, must have looked extremely comical. Especially when the rest of our group appeared to be just milling around the bike, doing absolutely nothing in particular until the one guy reappeared from the van before a spanner was turned. Then for a while, a whole lot of spannering occurred until the Haynes information was processed., followed by a lull while another team member dived into the van to read the next section. We weren't smart enough to continuously rotate a reader into the van while the rest of us worked on the bike.

Thinking back, we must have looked like a Laurel and Hardy movie to the other racers, but we got through it, made a few more runs and went home with the biggest smiles we'd had for a long time. And that was the start of an 8-year racing experience.

Anyhow, thanks again for the welcome and I just hope someone has photos of one or more of my bikes. Either EC 226 (Last Chance 1) or DC 226 (Last Chance 2) or BC 226 (Last Chance 3). I used to have a photo done by one pro cameraman, but it has disappeared over the years. I do have a shot taken at the August '83 Drachten meet, but I'd sure like to track down shots from an English venue. I recall one National Drag Racer magazine picture (maybe even a cover) had me on DC 226 in the far lane running at my only time at Blackbushe.

Thanks again
Andy

[paso]

Thats a great story about Brian there Andy he is still around. Last time i saw him was at the 50th anniversary of the NSA at santa pod where he did some burn outs on his 500 mouse. I was there with Keith Parnell and Rouge et Noir 2 keith said hey thats Brian chapman over there ...keith walks over says hi brian you havnt changed ...brian looks at Keith and says Who the f**K are you ?? Keith has changed I too started racing in the 70s in the street class with the likes of Mr Rawlins & Revill ..see muddys pic above ...When Keith P ran the first Euro rider 8 in 75 i was next bike down the track now that must have been an anti climax...Now i am lucky enough to ride ReN 2 and Keiths latter bike the Parny Express and best of all Keith still crews for me ..Oh and im chairman of the NSA southern section. Cheers Phil

[muddytalker]

Here's a couple of mystery Pro Stockers plus a couple of burnout shots which should be easy to ID!

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[Kelvin Fagan]

No3. is Jim Challenger
No4 is Steve Wollatt