Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/141059
HOW IT ALL BEGAN American Road Racing Strategy , It wa s the American Jake d e Rosier and the champion of En glan d C.R. Collier, matche d in a series o f three ra ces to settle a stru ggle for world supremacy. The year was 191 I and the course ch osen was the fastest Brooklands, 2.7 miles of magnificently bermed concrete turns through the wooded English country. The two men were to run races of two lap s, five laps, and ten laps with the best two out o f three winner being declared world champion. De Rosier, clad in brown leather, lean as the red and silver Indian which Garrett, his tuner, wheeled alongside, walked with his mustach ed co m pe tition down to the track. Mustached Ch arli e Collier was dressed in aviat o r garb leathers, Snoopy helmet and belted coat. His bulky Mat chl ess was the fastest ra ce motorcycle Europe had yet produced. Both men w ore ne ckties and shir ts with tall white co lla rs , as was the fashion of that time . . Jake and Charlie ch atted - it was fine we ather...yes,Jake was enjoying his visit very much. There cer tain ly are a lot of people .. .The science of race psychology or "psy ching" was about to be inv ented . On the first flying st art the two bikes and the starter's automobile moved out , faster and faster until , when the two competitors were wheel-to-wh eel , down went th e red flag in the car and the race Was begun. T he Englishman took a sligh t lead. J ake was a cou ple of lengths behind, but began t o close the gap quickly. His thunderous roar, increasing, . sp urred Collier to magnificien t courage on the bumpy concrete b anks. Jake was seen to get a wheel ahead for a few seconds, but it seemed like all he could do. The Matchless gathered more speed and came into the home straight first. Then cam e a most magnificent piece of ridi ng by Jake. He suddenly dove off the banking and before Charlie co uld -----_... TROPHY , \1 q uic ken u p ;..sorry, Charlie. Co llier tucked in for all he was worth and whipped the Matchless to a final spurt, but it was too late, for although he seemed to be ca tc hin g up fast, the Indian crossed the line fir st, " al th o ugh ," records a journal o f the day, " t here wa s not dayligh t between them." Jake had won the firs t ra ce by just ' o ne length at a speed of 80 .59 MPH . On the second ra ce, over five laps , Collier deterrnined: to le ad from the start and relentlessly roared forward, keeping ahead of h is rival. With his head well down , the great American w as sheltering in Collier's slipstream. Faster still, the ' two were clocked at over 90 MPH when Collier b egan to sense that th e Indian was pacing - th e Matchless, co n ten t for the m o me n t to be pulled along in his eddies. The Englishman kept his throttle wide open until the final lap , when Collier glanced over his shoulder and saw the Indian receding, wobbling badly. Jake's front tire had burst. At that speed i t co uld have b een a disaster for the skinny kid fro m America, but Jake rode it out and he In a struggle for w o rld supremacy . Br it ish exhaust pipe s discharged almost directly into the atmos p here. Th e A mer ican d iscard ed h is usua l nar row ba rs fo r w ider ones o n t he bumpy track . Collier's 985cc JAP powered Matchless had 2 6 inc h ex ha usts w ith a 2 % inch diameter. Th e Matchless used w id er tires and a spring fork . , -~----, NU MBERED PLATES Pr ic es varY ... sen d $8.5 0 we wilt p ay all p o st age & send you a set of 3 custom Plat es & your change. Specify all p er t in en t Info. Pl ai n or fancy letter ing. Orders sh IPped same day rec eiv ed. Uu=Lnginr. NUMBER PLATE SERVICE 212 So. Wash ingtoJ1 St. LOd l, Calif. 95240 (209) 369-1552 Sa les - S ervic e Cus tom work" mail o rd er S up er Tuni ng o n CYCLE C.R. Co llie r is by no mean s out of the race, however. The American sees he has to get his head down again as the Match less co mes pounding up on his tail. Glancing over his shoulder at 80 MPH through the bumpy turns, the little American ad de d half-a-second between him and h is rival in th e ultima te lap and won the final, the prize money and the world ch am p io nsh ip o f 1911. In his book Motor Cycle Racing, Peter Carrick co ncl udes "This series had been a triump h for American tech nique. As English champion , Charlie Collier had b een cond itioned to racing to the front at the start of t he race and st ayin g th ere until the end . J ake de Rosier's p attern of riding was to stay close to his rival , nursing hi s ma chi ng along for most o f the race, and then - to make his supreme effort d uring the final stages : th e astuteness of the rider, as well as his co urage, strength and te chnical skill, was now becoming an important factor in th e winning of ra ces. " T he British may call it as tu tene ss. T o American racers it is simply ra ce strategy . Champion Charlie Collier (left) met American Jake de Rosier who ro d e a 994 cc India n w it h 28 inch wheels and th in tires . The three inch , NOR. CALS TOP COMPET IT ION SHOP Su zu k i an d Garrett prepared for the fin al race. T he decider, ten laps long, live d u p to all the d rama and excitement that was promised by the first tw o acts. The d rama was heightened a t the start, with both ri ders ready to go, when de Rosier discovered some loose nuts on the Indian and had to sen d someon e in sear ch of a wrench . Then came a fa lse start, after which Garrett replaced a suspicious magneto pickup. More delays, More psy che-out. Tensio n is unbearable. At last they ar e aw ay, with the Matchl ess out front by less than a length into lap two ; but then de Rosier spurts -ahead , spurrin g Collier t o gas it. The English man opens up a 10-length lead . The crowd is go in g wild, it lo o ks lik e an English victory. But J ake de Rosier rej ects the possibili ty . As the y ra ce around the b anking for the 5th time, he is b ack in Charlie's draft. Eyes rivet on the aviator-clad ride r. His m achi n e begins to misfire. Charlie glances d o wn , see s a spark plu g w ire adrift, and swiftly re connects it. But in th e mean time Jake is racing far ahead. He sits up in the saddle and begins to take it easy . The redoubtable * Maico . RJAfCFR 184 San Anto nio Way Mt. View ;CA 94040 (4 15 ) 941-7317 F IO~lIy . a 5l ep · by · sl ep ,"UedUCll0fl 10 m010rcyc1lOg's fle w . co lo rful ~I M Olo · Cro ss n ilS book l eUs t he begmfler whe re to beg m . With c hap te r s Ion . M Ol o ·Cro ss BIk e Afla lys.ls , P' ep .r. t IOfl S. M lll fl te na fl ce . Phy Sica l COfldl llO fl lflg . W ha l To W e. r. Racm g Tech m qu es . W h at To E ~ pect . Race St ra l egy . Race O. y l II", all lh ere Ifl 1hlS 112 ·p age . 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