Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Eventual Classic Race of the Year winner Chris McGahan (26) splashes his way around the Sneterton track. Team Obsolete's Dave Roper gave McGahan a run in the f inal until he crashed on the final lap. McGahan tops Roper in British Classic By Alan Cathcart Photos by Phil Masters SNETERTON, ENGLAND, JUNE 13-14 London, England's Chris McGahan crowned a superb display of wet-weather riding on a glassy track drenched by the British summer's relentless downpour by winning the Classic Race of the Year at Sneterton on his SeeIey G50 a f ter ~ race- Iong . duel with American Dave Roper 'and hi s Matchless G50. Roper slid off at Riches Comer at the start of the last lap trying to repeat his victory in last year 's event, leaving McGahan to tak e th e flag uncha llenged after the lO-lap race. In doing so, he completed a memorable double, having earlier that da y passengered driver Pete Kru skowski to victory in the Classic Sid~car R~ce of .th e Year aboard their twmcylinder BSA outfit. Hardly surprisingly, McGah an was a deserved choice as Man of the Meeting, a two -day affair attracting more th an 400 machines and riders from all over the world to th e premier gathering of h istor ic r aci n g ma chinery, "That was a fan tastic race," said a muddy, but u nh urt Roper after riding back to th e pits o n th e back of McG ahan 's bike on the slowdown lap . " I had to go fo r it there, because the next corner was th e o ne before th e stra igh t and he could ge t th rough it better than me. I lost the front wheel and couldn't get it back. Chris really rode well ; he deserved th e win. " By contrast to the earlier heat races , won by McGahan and Roper in- the dry, only a small field of riders braved the monsoon-like conditions for the Race of the Year; with the Historic GP at Assen and other major continental races coming up soon, most riders opted to preserve their bikes intact rather than risk them in th e deluge. The 350cc Race of th e Year su pported that view: six riders crashed, all at Riches, the scene of Roper's demise, and leading contender Dave . Hunt's superbly-prepared AJS 7R was badly damaged. Former Pro speedway rider Vic Cross put his loose-surface expe.rien ce to good use by leading all th e way to an unchallenged victory o n hi s Aermacchi-Metisse, with Paul Barrett 's H arl ey ERS and Ian Lee 's way behind. " Felt like I was riding my old j awa o n th e sha le again ou t t here;" grinned Cross afterwards. " Maybe I should have fitted knobby tires ! Fortunately I remembered to turn right as well as left, but I tried to sta y off the front brake and pretend there was n' t one, just lik e on a speedway iro n!" Former 1960's star Dave Degens snatched a narrow victory on his selfbuilt Dresda-Triumph from John Wittmann's 450 Ducati in the support final for roadster-deri ved bikes, with Dutchman George Fick 's amazingly fast twin-cylinder Honda 500 pulling up through the field after a slow start to fin ish third. Nev Watts and Paul Wil son staged a musical duel for victory in the 125cc final on th eir CR93 Honda twins, with Ray Spinks' unlikely but speedy BSA Bantam special thi rd after a race-l ong du el with Channel Is lander Malcolm Gall ichan 's TSSI 25 Bultaco. Even more exci ting was th e 750cc final , with a battle for the lead originall y between Tony Price's Norton-framed BSA twin and Geoff Baines' early V-twin Ducat i, before Jim Evans (Seeley-No rton) jo ined them o n lap four and sna tched th e lead . Bain es was tailed off into third as the o ther two passed and repassed all around the track, before Eva ns too k a narrow wi n. Mick H emm in gs rod e th e 1973 J ohn Player No rton mo nocoq ue , recently acquired by Team Obsolete, in this race after new recruit Phil Read practiced on the bike, his firs t ride on a JP N since he was a mem ber of th e factory team o n the panniertanked bik es in 1972. Read also rode Roper's backup Mat chl ess G50 in th e 500cc class, winning a last-chance heat after su ffering cons tant ignition problems throughout the weekend wh ich also put him out of the fin al after a sin g le la p wit h a badl y m isfir in g engine. With rid ers o n hand from eight other cou ntries besid es Britain , the an nual U K vs. T he Rest Match race took on an even more international flavor than in . th e past, with th e ho m e team sq ueaking a na rro w victory in spi te of Roper 's overall race win after an exciting d uel with Roger Wint erburn (Seeley No rto n). Hi ghli gh t of th is race was the 'mi ni GP ' in the mi ddle of th e pack, as a freight trai n of even ly-ma tched , dead original Manx Norton a n d Ma tch less G50s passed and repassed th rougho u t the 10-lap race, ridden by riders from Spain, Fran ce, HoIla nd, New Zeal and and Bri ta in eight o f th em a l toge ther which p rovided a p preciati ve spec ta to rs wi th a highly-nostalgic sigh t rem iniscent of th e 1960's Grand Prix scene. Braking fou r abreast into so me of the turns, de sperately trying to outfumble each other, slipstreaming down the straight, this was the spectacle that was promised for the Race of the Year in repeat form if only the weather hadn 't intervened. As Japan 's leading vintage racer Tetsu Ikuzawa, who brought' his high-barred Triumph 750 all the way from Tokyo to take part in the meeting, observed: " In England, you must be ab le to race in all conditions to win ." Chris McGahan was the man to show the proof of that. • Results CLASS RACE OF THE YR: 1. Chris McGahan (See); 2. Bill Brooker (Mat) ; 3. Pete Brown (Nor); 4. Bill Crowson (See); 5. David May (Nor). 350 CLASS RACE OF THE YR: 1. Vic Cross (Aer); 2. Paul Barrett (H-D); 3. Ian Lee (Aer); 4 . Malcolm Attrill (Aer); 5. John Holder (AJS). ALLCOMERS RACE OF THE YR: 1. Dave Degens CTri); 2. John W ittman (Due); 3. George Rek (Han); 4 . Rob Prior CTri); 5. Len Parsons (Due). UNLTD RACE OF THE YR: 1. J im Evans (Nor); 2. Bob Price (Nor); 3. Geoff Baines (Due); 4 . Perry Franc is (Nor t 5. Mark Wellings (M -G). FAST LAP OF DAY: Evans and Priea 1 min . 17.5 sees (B9.04 mph ).

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