British Historic Racing - Mallory Park, Round 1

Round one of the British Historic Racing championships was held at Mallory Park last Sunday 15 April in glorious but chilly sunshine. I decided to ride the tried and tested 1954 NSU Sportmax replica I raced last year in the pre-63 250cc solos as the NSU Norton is still not fully race ready.

Having raced the bike quite a few times last year, I was quietly confident before practice. As it was a sunny, crisp but quite cold day, my mechanic decided to fit a slightly larger carb jet. The bike felt faster than I remembered it, we also raised the rear shocks to speed up the handling. Things were looking good.

Come the first race of the day, I was allocated 7th on the grid - dead last. At least I had nothing to lose. My start was disappointing however as I failed to find second gear after what was a pretty decent launch. I then spent the next five laps chasing the backmarkers and after three laps found myself in fourth place. The race was then red flagged following a red flag incident.

The second race after lunch saw me sat in pole position - all was to play for and I had my eyes set on a podium finish. I managed another good launch but once again fluffed second gear, this time only worse. I found myself dead last, sixth again. The field managed to pull away and all I could manage was to harass the rider in fifth position through some of the tighter turns.

So, before Cadwell next month I will be practicing my starts, (especially selecting second) and looking for some more power with a larger carb to help me on the 'mini-Nurburgring's' long straights.

Until next time...

Isle of Man Senior TT 1961

These fantastic images are a selection of a photos taken at practice for the Senior TT of 1961, by John Byatt and provided by Harold Nuttall. Thanks Harold!

Tom Phillis with Works Honda 249cc 4 cylinder

Manx Norton unfaired with no race numbers

Ralph Rensen and A E Shaw, both on Manx Nortons

Bob McIntyre pushing Alistair Kings Manx past No. 65, ridden by T Pound of Australia

Works Norton Domiracer, Tom Phillis lapped at 100mph in the race

Fabulous Beart Norton Manx, with special "Sabrina" petrol tank

Bob McIntyre Works 249 Honda 4

Gary Hocking Works 350 MV Agusta

Mallory Park Test Day - NSU Norton

These photos were taken at the recent Mallory Park test day on March 22nd - first time out for the NSU Norton! The new machine performed faultlessly apart from a trapped breather pipe that meant a little oil began escaping through the filler cap - an easy fix. The new bike replaces the NSU Sportmax replica that I campaigned in the VMCC Economy Appliances Championship in 2011.

Mallory Park is a relatively simple track but one that takes time to perfect. From the first gear bus stop chicane to the very fast Gerrards, it's a track that demands a combination of slow and fast bike control. My favourite corner has to be the devils elbow, a slightly downhill left-hander just before you cross the start/finish straight. One of the other great things about Mallory is the number of 'lines' at each corner. The track is quite wide, allowing plenty of overtaking and even spectators are well catered for thanks to the raised viewing banks.

The NSU Norton is a 250cc NSU Max engine, cradled in an un-modified Manx Norton featherbed frame. The first thing you notice is the front mounted oil tank, located low, out in front making the most of the cool air-flow- it also helps maintain a low centre of gravity. The next major difference to the original Norton layout is the drive-side. Located on the right-hand side, instead of the left, the NSU engine/gearbox unit is also self-contained.

Heading out onto the track for the first time the NSU gearbox is as sweet as a nut. Fitted with Sportmax cams, the engine thrives on revs and only past 3000/4000rpm does it come on song. The following 4/5 laps gave me chance to enjoy the fantastic handling while running-in the new engine. The first race is in 3 weeks time back at Mallory Park, I can't wait!

Tribute to Rudi Knees, son Peter and daughter Christa

Rudi Knees was born Rudolph Knees in Konigsberg, East Prussia in 1907 and before WWII was a works NSU rider. Known as 'Rudi Knees' on, he also raced his beloved 1939 350cc supercharged DKW, winning several races.

Rudi and his family started from scratch after the war but was keen to continue racing and wanted to compete in International events in mainland Europe. However, following the ban on forced-induction motorcycles, his supercharged DKW was ineligible.

In 1949 Rudi confidently placed an advert in The MotorCycle magazine, looking to swap with his beloved DKW for a 'pukka racing job'. He listed: post-war KTT Velocette, Manx Norton, 7R AJS, or GP Triumph - machines worth considerably less than the DKW in today's money!

A copy of the advert Rudi placed in The MotorCycle magazine in 1949.

The advert continues, "The DKW is good for about 110mph on 50/50 petrol/benzole." There is evidence he swapped his DKW for a Manx Norton. Rudi is shown handling his first Norton below.

Rudi with his first Manx, a machine that cost him his DKW 350.

Rudi was racing sidecars with a passenger named Ziemer in 1950 at the Feldbergring in Germany. He also tried his hand at ice racing, again as the rider of a sidecar outfit. In the same year, there is also evidence that he finished second behind Heiner Fleischmann (NSU-Kompressor) riding a 350cc AJS at Feldberg.

By 1952 Knees was one of the top riders, riding both 350 and 500 Manx Nortons, finishing second and first in that year's Feldbergrennen cup race. That year, he also went on to become German Champion in the 500cc class.

Knees continued to race in Europe with various amounts of success up to around 1960, competing all over Germany, Czechoslovakia (then CSSR) and in Barcelona. His transport was in the form of a race truck, shown in the photograph below.

During his many races he was joined by his son Peter Knees - who campaigned a mid-fifties BMW, and his daughter Christa, who was her father's travelling Norton mechanic. She wasn't allowed to work on the BMW, but remembers her father's Norton well and still knows lots about the engine.

Both Peter and Christa feature heavily in the photos. Peter is seen riding a racing BMW in numerous shots. According to Christa, she did once ride her Dad's Norton, when his back was turned. He noticed and shouted at her, but then turned to the other racers and smiled 'brightly'.

Source

I discovered this story through an online acquaintance Mike Muller, who was fortunate enough to meet Christa, now a lady in her late 70s. Christa provided the photos from her own personal album. My thanks goes to Mike and Christa for making this post possible.

Almost all the images are previously unseen. I hope you enjoy the gallery.

IMAGE GALLERY

Photo taken before WWII when Rudi was part of the NSU racing team. 

Peter Kness with the winner's reef. 

  

NSU 500 Kompressor

Christa timekeeping

Rudi and Christa

Peter and Christa

Peter Knees BMW

Rudi experimenting with streamlining

Here Rudi had a broken leg and Christa was allowed to push him in this race. 

Rudi's driving licence