- Joined
- Apr 9, 2025
- Messages
- 1
I’m trying to locate any information for videos I am making about my Dad’s life.
He won the Victorian TT (1965, I think), on a Manx-Norton, 2nd place in the 1966 Australian 500cc Championship on a Norton, and the 1966 Australian Unlimited Championship on ex-Arthur Pimm’s Vincent Black Lighting, the penultimate and final race for motorcycles at Longford. There could be other races that he won, but those are the only ones I’ve found and have verified so far. I know he was mentioned in articles as being the fastest rider on the day, reaching 151mph on a straight!
He worked/studied under Phil Irving at REPCO Brabham. He was part of the Preston Motorcycle Club and went on to open a motorcycle repair shop. He would pack up his bikes in his Kombi van (featured in an issue of Hot Rod Magazine in 1966) and travel to motorcycle races. He was always rebuilding, refining parts, always looking for those few extra horsepower.
In the 1970’s, he got into building high-performance engines using his dynamometer and lathe like an artist, drag racing (impressively outpacing Ian Splatt in one race), importing and exporting muscle cars and engines, which led him to emigrate to America.
There he went on to become a sought-after engine builder, and exotic car mechanic, specifically Ferrari. He met so many famous, fascinating and weird characters during that time, but oh the amazing cards he got to work on! In the late 90’s and early 2000’s he then got almost solely into early Ferrari (and some bike) restorations. In fact, he won 2 awards at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, helped immensely by his lathe and milling machine ability to make parts that no longer existed.
In 2010, at the age of 73, he decided that he’d try for a land-speed record on an old motorcycle at Bonneville - inspired after watching The World’s Fastest Indian - and decided that he could do it, by finding a class for which there was either no record, or where the record was reallly low.
He took 2 bikes, an 1954 Matchless and a 1966 Gilera, both modified, naturally. The Matchless developed mechanical issues, but the little Gilera set a record, averaging 72mph over both days. He was so proud.
But his love was always motorcycles, specifically Norton, and he loved when customers would bring them in.
I’m starting to look through all his emails and notes for any mention of them from his racing days, and will share when I find them. In the meantime, I know it’s a shot in the dark, but if anyone has any information about those old days of racing, I’d love to hear them. To be honest, I’m hoping “acotrel” will see this because I think he might have info from back then.
Ultimately, he passed from pulmonary fibrosis on January 6, 2025, from all the years of smelling the sweet fumes of racing and mechanics. As his illness quickly developed, he said to me one day,” You know, Tiger, I’ve had a great life, and now I’m just going to run out of gas”, a thought that seemed rather poetic.
Appreciate any information. I have a lot of photographs but I can’t see how to upload them since they are not on a website that I can link.
~Kerry Pound
He won the Victorian TT (1965, I think), on a Manx-Norton, 2nd place in the 1966 Australian 500cc Championship on a Norton, and the 1966 Australian Unlimited Championship on ex-Arthur Pimm’s Vincent Black Lighting, the penultimate and final race for motorcycles at Longford. There could be other races that he won, but those are the only ones I’ve found and have verified so far. I know he was mentioned in articles as being the fastest rider on the day, reaching 151mph on a straight!
He worked/studied under Phil Irving at REPCO Brabham. He was part of the Preston Motorcycle Club and went on to open a motorcycle repair shop. He would pack up his bikes in his Kombi van (featured in an issue of Hot Rod Magazine in 1966) and travel to motorcycle races. He was always rebuilding, refining parts, always looking for those few extra horsepower.
In the 1970’s, he got into building high-performance engines using his dynamometer and lathe like an artist, drag racing (impressively outpacing Ian Splatt in one race), importing and exporting muscle cars and engines, which led him to emigrate to America.
There he went on to become a sought-after engine builder, and exotic car mechanic, specifically Ferrari. He met so many famous, fascinating and weird characters during that time, but oh the amazing cards he got to work on! In the late 90’s and early 2000’s he then got almost solely into early Ferrari (and some bike) restorations. In fact, he won 2 awards at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, helped immensely by his lathe and milling machine ability to make parts that no longer existed.
In 2010, at the age of 73, he decided that he’d try for a land-speed record on an old motorcycle at Bonneville - inspired after watching The World’s Fastest Indian - and decided that he could do it, by finding a class for which there was either no record, or where the record was reallly low.
He took 2 bikes, an 1954 Matchless and a 1966 Gilera, both modified, naturally. The Matchless developed mechanical issues, but the little Gilera set a record, averaging 72mph over both days. He was so proud.But his love was always motorcycles, specifically Norton, and he loved when customers would bring them in.
I’m starting to look through all his emails and notes for any mention of them from his racing days, and will share when I find them. In the meantime, I know it’s a shot in the dark, but if anyone has any information about those old days of racing, I’d love to hear them. To be honest, I’m hoping “acotrel” will see this because I think he might have info from back then.
Ultimately, he passed from pulmonary fibrosis on January 6, 2025, from all the years of smelling the sweet fumes of racing and mechanics. As his illness quickly developed, he said to me one day,” You know, Tiger, I’ve had a great life, and now I’m just going to run out of gas”, a thought that seemed rather poetic.
Appreciate any information. I have a lot of photographs but I can’t see how to upload them since they are not on a website that I can link.
~Kerry Pound
