It was the Gilera that did it. Tucked away, in a back street garage behind the promenade in Douglas, Florian Camathias and his passenger Alfred Herzig worked away on their Gilera-powered outfit ready for the 1964 Isle of Man sidecar TT.
Barely a stone’s throw from the garage, at the Pitcairn boarding house, stayed a 10-year-old boy called Raymond Ainscoe and his parents. Ray happened to be a huge Florian Camathias fan so naturally, when he learned that the Swiss racer’s garage was so close to his digs, there was no hanging about.
“Camathias’ garage was just around the corner in one of the now-demolished garages on Finch Road, which led to the Villa Marina gardens at the back of the Sefton Hotel. I knew that he had entered a Gilera-engined outfit so I wandered round and was hooked by the sight of the multi. I spent hours every day gawping at the outfit and must have been a real pain. Remember that in those days four cylinder engines, especially in a sidecar, were still relatively rare beasts,” said Raymond.
Raymond describes the sight of the Gilera multi as if it was yesterday: “It was a beautiful-looking kneeler in a sleek red-and-white fairing and as for the noise: you only need to find the Stanley Schofield recording of the 1964 TT and listen as Camathias drops down the gears as he approaches Governor’s Bridge…”
Little did Camathias know that his presence at the 1964 TT kick-started Raymond’s lifelong love affair with Italian machines. Barely two decades later, Raymond had published his first book: Gilera Road Racers.
The 1964 Gilera outfit was especially exciting, not least because of its tempestuous pilot, Camathias:
Esta historia es de la edición December 2020 de The Classic MotorCycle.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición December 2020 de The Classic MotorCycle.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Runs should be fun
The club run is an integral part of the old motorcycle scene. During 2020, a variation on the usual theme emerged, enabling people to ride in the company of like-minded souls.
Hybrid chicken
BSA Bantams come in many forms, and the ability to interchange parts between different models permits an almost endless number of variants.
Green WITH ENVY
Life aboard a 1950s 350cc British single is perhaps as good and as uncomplicated as it can get.
Worth the wait
Captivated by sight of one as a small boy, finally our man has the chance to try an NSU Max.And a ‘Spezial’ one at that…
The Motorcycle: DESIGN, ART AND DESIRE
The concluding part of a two-part feature, in which the history of motorcycle evolution is examined and a new book’s author interviewed.
Cream rises
There were several ‘star performers’ at Bonhams’ winter sale, as the choice machines achieved huge sums.
The Giant of Provence
With so few events to report from, it’s time to look back over a spectacular French event and look forward to its hopeful resumption.
Store cupboard special
A big box of presents? Must be Christmas! More deliveries keep the project on track.
By 1929, CJP Dodson was a bona fide top level road racer, pretty much unbeatable on the sand, too.
The diminutive Charlie Dodson was the last man to win a TT, the 1928 Senior, on a ‘flat-tank’ machine, then the next year became the first (and only) winner of a TT on a saddle tank Sunbeam, as well as recording the last ever success in the Island for the Marston maker.
Cassandra the Canadian Commando
After landing a new job and with time on his hands, a young man in Vancouver decided to restore a British motorcycle considerably older than him.
