The late Percy Tait and Slippery Sam was beaten by a Norton

I know Tony. He’s a top bloke, a bottomless pit of Norton knowledge and still an active restorer, tinkerer, rider of Norton’s.
 
Percy was a bit of a Legend around here (Warwickshire).
In the early days he sometimes used to test out his race bikes on the roads.
As a Meriden tester and farmer he would sometimes go to the factory, pick up a bike, ride it home and put it on a rig so he could clock some miles up while tending his herd.

I remember Les Williams letting me sit on "Sam" when it was in his garage at his house in Coventry in 1980. Two legends gone in the same year.
 
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Dommie Nator said:
Percy was a bit of a Legend around here (Warwickshire).
In the early days he sometimes used to test out his race bikes on the roads.
As a Meriden tester and farmer he would sometimes go to the factory, pick up a bike, ride it home and put it on a rig so he could clock some miles up while tending his herd.
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Soooooo, inspite of all that I read about factory motorcycle testers riding out in all weather in all seasons spring summer autumn and winter in the wind the rain the snow and the hail. . . .its not blooming true, I must have been really naive, if not xxxxxx!
 
This is an edited version from MCN. There is a much longer and more interesting edition on the website but I cannot find it - it's a more interesting read.
 
For the longer unedited version try and Google the following;
It happened to me: the day I beat Slippery Sam
 
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As for all weather test riding, Richard Stevens test rider for Enfield Interceptor has mentioned returning home from a day of test rides so cold
his folks had to help off his bike upon arriving home. Probably equally as wet too!
 
I don't doubt some test riders actually went out all day, but knowing what l know now I'll bet there was one or two unscrupulous ones who did what Percy Tait did, some would just disconnect the speedo cable and rig up another cable from an electric drill making the mileometer whizz round! Then they rode the bike back to the factory in the depths of winter saying to the foreman look how many miles I did today
 
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I think my Seeley 850 is only relatively fast because of it's light weight. In races, it keeps up with Rex Wolfenden's 1100cc methanol-fuelled CB750 Hondas - .What does a Trident weigh ? - Power to weight ratio might be less than it is for a Norton.
 
I think Percy's best achievement could have been his 2nd place in the 1969 Belgian 500GP behind Agostini on a works MV.
 
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Dommie Nator said:
I think Percy's best achievement could have been his 2nd place in the 1969 Belgian 500GP behind Agostini on a works MV.
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Percy Tait might have been riding the works 500cc Triunph racer, which had the 65 mm stroke. It would have been a very nasty little bike.
 
It was on one of the fastest tracks on the GP calendar, so he didn't do too badly what, with beating all those Manxs.
 
Bernhard said:
It was on one of the fastest tracks on the GP calendar, so he didn't do too badly what, with beating all those Manxs.
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A short stroke Triumph twin can beat a Manx, but it is a much more difficult ride. It is easier to ride a Manx fast. Percy must have really had his brain in gear.
 
I was given a write up by Les Williams about Percy's two bikes that went to Belgium and what became of them afterwards to see what I thought of it. It's a bit of a read and I'm not sure he submitted it for publication although that was his plan. He wrote it mainly to rubbish the story of it's supposed re-appearance some time later.
If it's of any interest I could post it?
 
If its bikes, by all means post it, I'm sure some people don't know about the panniner oil tank Triumph twin.
 
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