Map of Speedtracktales V2.0 readership for first year

It was over a year ago whilst searching for some ISDT specific archive photo’s I was given a number of photos I had no need for. Such things are not items you can simply fling and I looked for a home to donate them to. I was pointed to Speedtracktales but on arriving found the site had gone, unknown to me the originator had come to the end of his ability to sustain the costs with maintaining the url and servers for a labour of love. Luckily some persons had sidled it away onto a free site where the contents could be seen. Eventually finding Taff Issacs who was the originator he had no way to edit further and my photos were not of much use. After a bit of correspondence I agreed to set up a new website and rehouse the collection so that it could be easily accessed by persons wishing to research the historic years of the International Six Says Trial before it changed its name to International Six Days Enduro in 1981.

On about the 11th April 2012 the first of the new pages was started taking about 2 weeks to set about transferring the content which was lucky as the original archive server was shut down just after that work was completed. From now on the site stands alone from any individual or body I am just the Janitor / Librarian of the worlds information. In order to fill many of the holes of information I have obtained though the generosity of many of the followers of the old site a number of important documents not available before and have also been hunting out and acquiring valuable material from places such as eBay. The future of the site is however very much in the hands of those reading it and contributing to fresh material filling in lost memories of the event.

With this year seeing both the 100th anniversary of the first ISDT as well as a similar anniversary for the first Tour De France it will hopefully be a great year to recall the past days, the heros and the friendliness between nations this competitive event achieved often at times of great trouble and hardship of wars and economic woes and can do more to encourage nations to work together in cooperation than to try to diminish each others value by the outdated notions of national superiority.

Hopefully the many people selling material on eBay will not be using the below list to often to set the value of materials they are putting on sale.

The wordpress service comes complete with hand admin stats logs which although not as good as Google Analytics do provide some useful information about what is popular and what people come to the site looking for. Below as a first birthday review I have complied a number of charts based on the popularity by visits of material or the number of search engine queries that were made.

The above image provides a guide where visitors came from if their IP address had a national ID. the below is a list of the top 10 nations visiting the site. If reading this, you are one of the non British readers, a special hello is extended to you.

UK
Germany
USA
Italy
France
Netherlands
Australia
Canada
Czech Republic
Poland

The 10 most popular pages

Home Page
General History of ISDT
About
Rolf Witthoefts 1980 ISDT BMW
ISDT 1964
ISDT Tube
ISDT 1939
ISDT 1961
ISDT 1954
ISDT 1960

The search terms used by those finding the site through the popular search engines provides an idea of popularity of Events, Riders and Motorcycle Marques and Models

The ISDT event most appearing in search engine referrals was the very controversial ISDT 1939

Top 10 events via search engine referral

ISDT 1939 – Germany
ISDT 1953 – Czechoslovakia
ISDT 1964 – East Germany
ISDT 1952 – Austria
ISDT 1951 – Italy
ISDT 1971 – Isle of Man
ISDT 1913 – Carlisle
ISDT 1973 – USA
ISDT 1948 – Italy
ISDT 1974 – Italy

The top 10 riders from search engine referrals were

Ken Heanes
Herbert Schek
Georg Meier
Peter Bradley
Marjorie Cottle
Sebastian Nachtmann
Steve McQueen
Arthur Lampkin
Johnny Brittain
Bud Ekins

I am certainly not surprised at the popularity of Ken Heanes, the Germans and Steve McQueen but there were many great riders not there from the Golden era of the ISDT in the 1930′s and 1950′s.

The most popular search for bike make was BMW and the R68 being the most enquired about bike. Georg Meier a famous works BMW rider is also near the top of rider popularity stakes

Most popular Motorbike Make or Model Search terms

BMW
Triumph
MZ
Zundapp
BSA
Sunbeam

The run away winner was the BMW which sees by far a significantly higher numbers of queries. Apart from BMW popularity with big trail bikes, right now I think BMW is sitting on a potential gold mine if it were to release modified updated retro versions based on the simplicity of its 30′s and 50′s ISDT mounts because as far as models went the most popular model of bike by a mile is the BMW R68 which has a lot of fans followed by the R67 then R68. Triumph mostly picks up interest in the form of the later Cheney Triumphs although the Trophy models are popular. MZ and Zundapp are very popular and the surprise bike is the Sunbeam Sidecar as ridden by Peter Bradley as it would appear the rider and bike retain a popular standing as a legend of the sport. It will be interesting to see how these results change over the next few years as the site becomes more established.

We were excited when the FIM copied its archive collection of Stewards Reports and results still available in it’s archive. These have been very popular with site visitors looking at the download logs.

Our collection is not complete and today I am again endebted to ‘STB’ and Marc at the FIM for scanning this copy of the 1936 ISDT final report to add to our collection.

Download Steward’s Final Report for the 1936 ISDT here

One of the great features of the ISDT for most of it’s history was the participation of the motorcycle sidecar. Our site’s visitors logs show riders like P Bradley with his Sunbeam outfit or Stuart Weycott and his Velocette remain a popular search engine query that brings a lot of visitors

Photo shows WS Waycott (596cc Velocette sc) making his brilliant, unassisted climb of Fron Bache ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales Collection)

I was therefore very pleased when German reader Rainer Laidig sent me a copy of the guide he made to Sidecars in the ISDT 1951 – 1956. Although in German it contains many images, especially of British riders, that are wholly new to me as well as some of our own and its good to see our photos helping add to the knowledge of the world of this fantastic event and the amazing men and bikes and passengers too.

image of front of Rainer Laidig’s History of the ISDT Sidecar scene 1951 – 1956

Download the above document as a pdf

Just in a news release from Dot Jones with Centennial Ride news.

The original emblem of the FICM International Six Days Trial

April update.

On Monday August 18th 1913 one hundred and sixty riders set off from Carlisle to follow the route of the first day of the International Six Days Trial. The ISDT has grown in strength through the years to become the International Six Days Enduro with teams from all around the world competing for the World Trophy. In that very first ISDT there were fifty nine motorcycle manufacturers represented, one of which was a Campion ridden by a Mr George who won a Silver Medal.

On Sunday August 18th 2013 the Mayor of Carlisle will drop the flag to send a Campion 4 hp model as the first machine to follow the same route on the Centennial Ride. This Ride will start and finish in Carlisle, alongside the Castle to celebrate the centenary of the ISDT/E. The riders will enjoy lunch in Keswick just like the competitors on that first day. Amongst the machines already entered in the Centennial Ride are many with a long association with the ISDT including a 1931 AJS 498cc that was ridden by George Rowley from Wolverhampton. In those days machines were used in all disciplines of sport and George rode in the 1931 TT in the Isle of Man before making a few modifications to the bike ready for the ISDT.The following year in Merano, Italy George again rode his AJS to win the final Speed Test which suprisingly took place on the seventh Day and helped Team GB win back the World Trophy from the Italians who had been hoping to complete a hat trick of wins. There will be a brace of Jawas that competed in the 50th ISDT held in the Isle of Man and many examples of special Triumphs built by Eric Cheney. As yet there are no Morgan three wheelers or sidecars entered so please search around for at least one of each of these to make the entry list as varied as possible.We also need a few lady riders to represent those early pioneers.The last machine will be a KTM EXC complete with decals for the 2013 ISDE in Sardinia, so there will be one hundred years of bike development clearly on display.

The Ride is not restricted to machines or riders that have taken part in an ISDT but open to all as long as the machine is of a type that could have taken part. The route of the Ride is sadly now all tarmac but travels through fantastic scenery and over many iconic passes in the Lake District National Park. On Saturday evening everyone will gather at the Swallow Lynton Hotel in Carlisle for a buffet and natter when memorabilia will be on display. Please bring along any films, photographs, DVD’s, posters, pin badges etc for everyone to enjoy.

As part of this ISDT/E Festival there is also a Centennial Rally taking place over three days in the forests north of Carlisle. With classes for vintage enduro machines, trail bikes and rally bikes and this will be a fantastic event. Regulations and entry forms for the Centennial Rally and Ride are on line at www.bigbikerallychallenge.co.uk and for further information contact Dot Jones by email at isde100@live.co.uk.

For accommodation visit http://www.discovercarlisle.gov.uk or call the Swallow Hotel on 01228 525255 for special room rates.

I was very pleased to find this email in my inbox recently and thought it would be good to share with those who may be interested or inspired to repeat a similar venture.

Photo of George Rowley working on his AJS at ISDT 1939

This was one of a number of images clearly scanned from the original photo and sent in to Taff Isaacs by Stephen Dolling. The given dates of many of the images were subsequently found to be wrong and since the old site was disbanded Taff no longer has the senders contact details. I did however not long ago find an account on ‘Photobucket’ that had higher resolution copies of the same images. Attempts to get a dialogue with the owner have been pursued by myself and a few others with interest in publishing the photos have yeilded no response and is possible the account holder may have moved on.

Photo of # 135George Rowley on his works AJS [FXM 791] at the ISDT 1939 (courtesy Technische Museum Wien)

The above photo like a number on the 1939 has been found at the rather amazing archive of ISDT images held at the Technical Museum Vienna. The fact a government institution such as this is able to gather , and publish an authoritative collection of historically important images from professional motor sport photographers for public research is a credit to the Austrian Nation.The museum web entry for this image is here

The spread sheet John Tinsley prepared listing all the British Riders who took part in the 1939 event and other details known can be downloaded from here

Thanks to our European man Friday ‘STB’ we have already had sight of ‘the Motor Cycle‘ report on the 1927 ISDT. Luckily a copy of ‘Motor Cycling‘ of the 24th August 1927 turned up on eBay recently promising a full report on the ISDT of that year which was subsequently obtained and the relevant article is reproduced here. The issue was also stuffed full of trade adverts connected to the event which we have provided a few but will get around to scanning them all to be posted later.

image – cover of Motor Cycling 24 August 1927 ISDT 1927

The ‘Motor Cycling‘ editorial is reproduced below, which whilst noting the success of the event, in particular the British Silver Vase ‘B’ Team who ended up winners and the first and only team of women to win the Vase pointed out some shortcomings in the organisation.

“AN UNSATISFACTORY TRIAL.

THE International Six Day Trial, just concluded in Lakeland, has provided another victory for British machines. That was by no means unexpected, but, as a study of our report of the trial will show, it was thoroughly complete and convincing and by no means a mere “win on points.” It is further to be noted that the foreign team who were the runners-up for the International Vase – beating the English “A” team were mounted on British machines. Throughout the trial the riding of the Continental competitors earned high praise, and it may therefore be inferred that the British triumph is due to the excellence of the motorcycles produced by this country and not merely to the ability of our rider. We find, however, even greater cause for satisfaction in the achievement of the English ladies’ team in winning the International Vase That its members should have beaten their male opponents in a trial of this nature, over a course that was in portions, quite severe, speaks volumes for their skill and for the modern motorcycle, and the result of last week’s  contest will, we believe, do much to further the popularity of motorcycling amongst women.

To the visitors from abroad, and to the manufacturers of their machines, we can also offer our congratulations. They put up a spirited showing, and the Swedish team, in particular, was at one period distinctly menacing. We express the feelings of the whole of the British motorcycling world when we say that we look forward to seeIng an even stronger contingent from the Continent in next year’s International trial. In the past, after an important event organised by the Auto-Cycle Union, It has almost invariably been our happy duty to felicitate that body on its arrangements. Unfortunately, in the present instance , that impossible; on the contrary, we consider that the organization of the International Six Days’ was open to not a little criticism. It very largely failed both as regards planning and administration; the trial was not well conceived, nor was the conception carried out In a satisfactory manner. The selection of the routes can hardly be considered as fortunate ; the trial showed an extraordinary lack of balance , the serious work being almost entirely concentrated into Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. That was particularly unsatisfactory from the point of vIew of would-be spectators, and it may also be added that very little was done to acquaint the public of the fact that such an important and interesting event was being held.

The trial also partook too much of a test of time-keeping – a most undesirable thing in an event of this kind – whilst the number of protests at the conclusion of the trial indicated a certain slackness in the administration, as did the numerous unofficial complaints that were heard from competitors. It was singularly unfortunate that the A.-C.U. should have selected the International Six Days’, of all events in the year, for the perpetration of a series of faux pas.”
View a copy of the report of the event can be read here courtesy of our issue.com library

Again I remain indebted to my European Researcher and top ISDT consultant ‘STB’ who has allowed us to access these daily route sheets for each day of the ISDT 1958 from the archive collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch.

These cards are provided each day to competitors not only indicating the distances and location of check points each day as well as fuel stops, tests and lunch stops. The cards also list the time schedules that are in place based on a number of scenarios directed by climatic conditions on the day. It also categorises the going on the ground as

• I Tarred,
• II Fair,
• III Bad and
• IV Very Bad

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 1 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 2 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 3 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 4 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 5 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

Image – Scanned Daily Control Sheet – Day 6 ISDT 1958 (Speedtracktales Archive) (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

!931 was the first year that the ISDT visited Italy outright. Although other events had crossed into Italy before, by 1931 Italy had a good home Motorcycle Industry and the sport was popular and growing. The ISDT 1931 was the beginning of many visits to Italy

Luckily one of this site’s keenest supporters has found and scanned a copy of ‘the Motor Cycle‘ issues produced in the run up to and during the event which provide an excellent record of the 13th event of the ISDT which was based at Merano near Monza.

You can read this scanned copy, here at our issuu.com library

I am really grateful to reader M Ryan who has been generous in taking the time to scan and send us his own copy of the ISDT 1938 Official Programme which can now be read on this post thanks to our library of documents at issuu.com

Cover of ISDT 1938 Programme

You can read the entire programme cover to cover here.

We always welcome the generosity of readers wishing to share their collection of old ISDT programmes or other printed matter

Image – scanned cover of Official Programme for the ISDT 1958 at Garmisch Parternkirchen (Courtesy of the collection of the late Mr Harro Esmarch)

This copy of the event programme is from a collection of documents that were gathered by the late Mr Harro Esmarch a German Motorsport Journalist and historian and have now been passed to our reliable european correspondent ‘STB’. As ever we are endebted to the many generous readers of this web blog about the ISDT for the gift of copies of the important documents and reports on the events which help many to recall past times as well as those like myself who were not there but want to know more or may be researching a project related to their family or the restoration of an old classic bike once ridden in the event. Without our contributors like ‘STB’ who has donated large amounts of often exclusive content to us much of the history the site protects would remain lost. Here we have a copy of the official programme of the ISDT 1958 event. In addition this copy has been annotated by hand to list corrections to rider machines and teams where they changed between the date of publication and event registration. Using our issuu.com library we can let those on devices that support ‘flash’ software the ability to read the original copy.

Delighted by the regular email from Bonham’s announcing their next classic bike Auction in Oxford on 15 June 1913 in association with the VMCC Banbury Run. I was pleased to see Brian Nash’s almost works 1953 Royal Enfield 700c Meteor Trials Outfit ridden in the 1955 ISDT in Czechoslovakia is available to a caring home.

Photo – 1953 Royal Enfield 700cc Meteor Trials Combination Brian Nash rode in the ISDT 1955

More information is available on this speedtracktale page alas we do not appear to have any original images of it in action, or much on the 1955 ISDT for that matter s oif anybody can help out please do.

Apologies for the brevity of posts recently its a busy time of the year at Speedtracktales Towers at the moment with the annual peak of the cycle and enduro calendar causing me much distraction.

Thanks to our ever reliable Euro correspondent STB who has provided us with a copy of the Official programme for the ISDT 1978 held at the High Chapparal in Sweden. The programme is not complete and pages are missing although these are likely to be adverts aimed at local service providers who helped support the event. We have uploaded the programme to our library at issuu.com

image – cover of official programme for the 53rd Edition of the ISDT being held in Sweden in 1978

Unfortunately due to changes made by both WordPress and Issuu we cannot at present get the document to embed in a page so for now to read the article you will need to read it by following this link

We have been provided with a scanned copy of Colin Moran’s appointment letter to the ACU’s British Trophy Team for the ISDT 1959 held in Czechoslovakia.

Image – scanned copy of Colin Moram’s appointment letter to the British Trophy team ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

also appearing in tonights swag are these images from the various ISDT

1935  (Courtesy Metzeler)

Photo – Joseph Müller winner of the ISDT 1935 (Courtesy Metzeler Tyres)

ISDT 1959 ( Courtesy Colin Moran and Ralph Brown

Photo – British Trophy team in Czechoslovakia ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

Photo – British team checking over the paper work ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

Photo – British Trophy team with their race face on in Czechoslovakia ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

Photo – Informal pre event British Trophy Team portrait ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

Photo – Informal pre event British Trophy Team portrait ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

Photo – Colin Moram ISDT 1959 (Colin Moram collection)

ISDT 1960 (as above)

Photo – ISDT 1960 (Colin Moram collection)

ISDT 1961 (Courtesy Metzeler)

Photo – Sebastian Nachtmann winner of the ISDT 1961 ( Courtesy Metzeler Tyres)

Our site logs show that a number of events receive substantially higher levels of hits (visits) than many events. Two of the most popular events appear to be the ISDT 1964 held in East Germany in which the legendary Steve McQueen competed in the American team on Triumphs. The other event being the ISDT 1939 which took place in the closing days of the shaky inter-war peace time and took place in what had been Austria until the Germans under the leadership of Adolf Hitler had annexed what had been his own homeland. The event ended with the British teams being evacuated to escape back to England by a variety of means including British Service teams who the Germans had pledged safe passage to return to a port from which they could reach England.

Our Euro reporter ‘STB’ acquired a rare copy of the Motorrad magazine article and report on the ISDT from 1939 and it is indeed quite amazing considering the amount of damage of the war this copy survived and I am grateful for another forum reader from German reader Andreas Holthaus who we are most indebted for translating the article for our use in this site. It is therefore a great pleasure for me to finally re-publish after nearly 75 years the German side of the story of the ISDT 1939

ISDT 1939 – Report from ‘Das Motorrad‘: The 1^st Day

report by Von Gustav Mueller

Photo – Dusty fume and stony boulder give a clear image of the arduousness of this six days trial. The moves of the people reflect the stress, which the riders have all day long.
The two with #239 led by F Weber BMW 593 from the Kraftfahrtschule der Luftwaffe [Air Force motoring school], in the foreground of the picture, have won some time [in advance of the schedule], which they now use for some smaller work. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

 With about 475 kilometres to acclimatise riders seemed to be to be quite much. In exchange, the riders had to face only little off-road, with the course mainly on surfaced roads. However, it should not be forgotten, that the Ostmark[1] roads are not of a Autobahn nature yet. There are some big main roads with formidable tar paving, and with bends! So, boys, one would really like to be born here, only to ride these bends every day and all day long. This is such a riding pleasure, that you always have to slow down yourself in order to be able to see the landscape, too. By the way, I do not advise anyone to watch the landscape in slowly rolling mode, if not just riding a mofa[2] or a 100 cc, but to ride shorter distances in a sportive way and then to stop [for watching]. On these narrow roads and with the heavy traffic these roads have to bear, you can’t look about, and watch the traffic around carefully at the same time. There are a lot of large buses around here, and they are quite wide. If you are not at the very edge of the road, the experience will often include the smell of burning rubber

The first days stage had the official name “Sudetenlandstrecke”[3] It ran from Salzburg over Passau up to close to Krumau, where the lunchtime checkpoint had been established at the “Pötschmühle”[4] Here, at the outermost part of the leg, was a hefty off road section, which could also be seen by the fact, that this was the slowest section of the day with only 33 km/h. In return, the owners of the paper mill did dish up an excellent lunch to the riders. In the large auditorium, the tables were festively decorated, and the riders welcomed it. The way back over Linz at the Danube then again brought some narrow forest tracks, mud and stone. But, in total, it had not been too bad.

The biggest experience of the first day had been, that loose gravel doesn’t have the same frictional coefficient as a nice rough asphaltic surface, and a lot of people already had gone to the ground.

As always, this six days trial generated a new “technical term”. It came from the “great creator of new terms”, our national rider Otto Sensburg, who always is creating gorgeous new terms at such opportunities, against him Chrius[5] From then on, the riders said, when they had gone into hedges or onto the ground: “da hat’s mi überlisted” [there it did outwit me].  And that is a pretty figurative saying. That day it did outwit many riders, this always happens at the beginning of a six days trial, as one didn’t find ones speed, yet. Here at the Ostmark, with its dust and gravel and the never ending bends, it’s something special.

Photo – That was the typical terrain at the first day, narrow forrest tracks, interrupted by short boulder sections and large bathtubs with mud. Rider is #41 NSKK-Obersturmführer [comparable to 1. Lieutenant] Meinl of the Motorgruppe Ostmark on BMW R 51.ISDT 1939 [Ostmark was the name for former Austria, after Germany annexed this country] (das Motorrad)

As a lesson for those who ride such events: The belt is not the correct place for spare tubes, they should be carried in separate bags. By the way, Otto Sensburg also had a puncture the first day. During the previous six days trial, after the third puncture he had put the “evildoer” into the pocket [as a talisman] , and from that moment on he had no further punctures during that event. So, this time he already put the first one into his pocket, if it did work out this time, I can’t tell.

There were a lot of defects already on the first day, and a number of retirements, too. The English private riders lost a whole clutch of men, but also the Italians and we did lose some riders. Anyhow, the affected English riders were more or less unknown people, who may not have been aware what a six days trial in Germanys mountains stands for.

Within the retired Germans was Hubertus Klett from Berlin, and the normally very good riding Herrmann on his small DKW 125 cc. Unfortunately, we do not always get information about the reasons for retiring. On Herrmann’s motorcycle, for example, the cylinder head had been distorted during assembly, so that it blew out.

Another promising competitor, Eisner from the DDAC[6] had been unlucky, as a wire from the condenser had come loose. He pushed his bike six kilometers to a workshop, where, with adequate devices, the problem could be found and fixed. Anyhow, this brought fifty seven points on his account. For the rest, Eisner did attract attention several times, as he has been fantastically fast with his 125 cc from the Auto Union[7]. Anyhow there is the rumor, that he already had outpaced a man like Mundhenke in the Ostpreussen- Fahrt[8] in the offroad sections.

Another unfortunate loss for us was the retirement of Döbereiner from the DDAC on a BMW outfit. At a parking space, he had to do a repair, and for that he had taken a drilling machine from a service car. The technical commissars interpreted this as outside assistance, so the DDAC team withdrew the rider. In contradiction to the opinion of the German sports commissar, the English didn’t agree, that the act of providing a drilling machine was outside assistance. But, the German organisers wanted to show their opinion was right in the beginning and avoid a long debate. After all, this shows clearly the need to check and discuss the regulations in this case, as well as in the case of the absurd interpretation concerning the absolute time for the vase teams.

Fifteen total losses on the first day. Six of them were from England. Between the retired riders unfortunately also was the excellently riding Hauptmann[9]  Jakobi from the Luftwaffe[10], who did break a cylinder off during a minor fall, it had only been a slide. If you are unlucky, it may happen this way, normally one can drop the BMW onto the side even with high speed, without anything happening.

The most important thing was, that all sixteen riders competing for the international trophy did stay without points, the Italian B-team, competing for the silver vase, took fourteen points. In the fight for the Hühnlein trophy and the Bowmaker trophy, most teams were without points.

This post is a serialisation of an article that originally appeared over 75 years ago in ‘Das Motorrad’, the popular Motorcycling magazine in the German Language as it covered the proceedings of the 1939 ISDT, an event to finish in controversy and the results eventually annulled by the FIM.

The first part sets the scene of the first day and here we move to the second day.

ISDT 1939 – Report from ‘Das Motorrad‘: The 2^nd Day

report by Von Gustav Mueller

If only the riders had seen more of the wonderful route we travelled the second day! This route perhaps is the most beautiful one could pack into 373 kilometres. The days route was named “Salzkammergutstrecke”[1] but it could have been named “Five Lakes Day”, too.

The first lake was the ‘Mondsee’[2], which everyone will know. From the Mondsee, the route led to the ‘Attersee’. Unfortunately, the route went only a short section along the lakes shore, and then turned off to the side. Whoever comes to this place once, of course must take the wonderful road, running directly along the lakes shore. It is very pretty, but also very narrow. And if you drive along there, think about the Six Days riders and how they had to “conjure” to be fast. From the Attersee, the route took a big loop over to Gmunden, to the maybe most beautiful lake of the Salzkammergut, the ‘Traunsee’, which we renamed “Traumsee”[3] due to its beauty. From the Traunsee, the road went over to the ‘Wolfgangsee’, you know about the “Weiße Röß’l”[4], and then along the valley of the river Traun to Bad Ischl and Bad Aussee.

Here they had chosen a stunning terrain, and here many did earn points. The roads, on which one eventually might have been able to win some time, were so narrow, that there was no progressing. Additionally, there were large buses, which, although perfectly driven by their drivers, in the end could not be made less wider than they are. And many stupid private drivers, who thought they were absolved from their duty to ride on the right hand side of the road, when hooting loudly.

Photo – Here #34 Harold Taylor BSA [EZY 928?] still had been happy and was full of hope, his machine was o.k., and he, as a careful rider and great expert, had nothing to fear from his side. Second man behind him is the Italian #43 Ranieri on a 500cc Sertum, behind him Feldwebel [Sergeant] Grimm from the Kraftfahrtschule der Luftwaffe [Air Force motoring school], a man who took part at such a big event for the first time, and he made it quite good. On the first day, he had been outwitted by so many tyre punctures, that he did earn 35 points, all the other days he remained without points. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

One of these drivers rammed the English sidecar outfit rider Harold Taylor, who, although he has only one leg left, rides in all Six Days Trials. Harold Taylor had to go into the hedges, where his outfit turned over and buried the disabled rider under it. The car driver did not even see any reason to stop and help the sidecar rider, who lay under his bike that way, that the hot exhaust did burn a hole into his trousers. There are some “Himmelhunde”[5], if only one could once get hold of such guy. – By the way, Harold Taylor did admire the BMW forks, he said that with them it must be a joy to ride an outfit.

After the bad offroad section of Bad Aussee, again something magnificent could be seen, namely the ‘Hallstädter See’. Motorized vehicles are not allowed to enter the city of Hallstadt, as the roads are too narrow. But, from the last parking area into the town there are only few minutes to walk, only solo motorcycles are allowed to pass. That’s again something we enjoyed.

The roads here alongside the lake are crazily narrow, and one bend after the other, one would not be able to imagine, if we hadn’t seen it. Here were needed a a great number of marshals, but as well as there were too many men at the checkpoints in the morning, here there were not enough. In these mountain regions, there are not so many people as they are in the more low lying regions at the Mondsee and the Attersee, and where they do not have so many inhabitants, one cannot expect so many NSKK men. But, they would have been needed there. Especially, as a 40 – 44 km/h average had to be ridden, and the time check was on the top of the Gschütt mountain pass, and this climb is quite steep.

Without doubt, there will be a lot of vehicles, which are not able to climb it, as it has a downhill grade of 23%, and when riding from the valley to the top, this is the percentage of the ascending slope. Of course, the vehicles of this event did use appropriate transmission ratio, but I would like to see the face of someone from the lowlands, coming here without preparation.

By the way it may be mentioned, that one Tommy from the Tank Corps ran out of fuel right below the summit of the pass, and what was he doing, he pushed his motorcycle up to the summit. With this heat and this ascension! It had been so hot, that one of our people stepped into the Mondsee with his rubber boots, as he felt so hot.

With Müller, we have an excellent successor for Mauermayer and Kraus. The new national rider rides in a perfect style, which may not be good looking, as he takes bends in multiple short straights, using his sidecar brake intensely.

But, it is fast and prevents the outfit from damage. This is the most important thing. And again, it was interesting to watch, how the passengers of the English and the German national outfits did sit in their chairs completely calm, while others did perform wildest gymnastic exercises. It seems, that there is no need for these exercises, as long as the riders skills are good enough.

Again the tyres did cause a lot of trouble. We met a lot of people during tyre repairs, and it is always interesting to watch the different temperaments undertaking this task. We met a Bavarian, who did curse so loudly and persistently, that it was a shame that we were not able to record this on a gramophone record. This was a masterstroke in cursing, which would have passed everywhere.The interesting thing was, that this man didn’t loose a second with it, as he, loudly cursing, did repair it in a hurry.

We met an Italian at the climb of the Gschütt mountain pass. With melodic voice and sadly looking, he was singing theatric accusations up into the skies. He was working diligently and in a great hurry, anyhow, the inner tube did blow off afterwards, so he had to insert a new one, again. This again gave him the opportunity for melodic accusations into the sky. The Italian language is a wonderful language, and if I was able to speak Italian, I would have liked to tell him that it might be appropriate to screw the valve completely into the tube…

It may sound hard, when we mock a little bit. But, it must be said clearly, that only a small number of these competition riders seem able to install a tyre in a correct and fast way. Of course, looking at the selected men of our trophy and vase teams, they can do it professionally. But the others waste so many precious minutes, because they didn’t practice tyre mounting.

Photo – This was on the second day, the “5 lakes day, on the road parallel to the Lake “Attersee”. As long as only one solo rider comes along, the road seems quite wide, but imagine how tight it will be, if a sidecar outfit wants to overtake a bus, and they meet up there at the hump!
The pictured rider is #217 NSKK- Truppführer [comparable to Sergeant] Wohlfahrt on Zündapp 245cc, a motorcycle that surprised some people with its performance. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

With the Gschütt pass, there still was no end to the difficulties of this day, and who might have thought, that the way to the Aussee checkpoint, respectively the stage between Aussee and Hallstadt, could not be beaten, was wrong.

The worst was yet to come, between Kuchel and St. Kolomann. The organisers had chosen something that was too much, even for a rider like Julius von Krohn. A steep downhill passage, over lumps of rock and tree trunks, this was amazing. Interesting, how carefully the English did ride here, and in which determination the Swedish simply went over it. Seems, as if they are used to a lot over there. But, all of the men who came over from Sweden, are first class riders. Anyway, they were superior in this terrain up there at the “Grubenwirt”.

At the end of the day, which had been very hot, there was a “heavenly” shower, which again brought the riders some trouble, as the roads did get wet and slippery. As it could be expected, there were numerous losses, and especially it did strike the outfits. The English did loose a number of good men, and amongst them was also the good solo rider Tiffen jr., who doesn’t miss any ISDT. Unfortunately, also Drax from Munich, the man from the sports outfitter, could be found on the “list of losses”. He had not been able to avoid a vehicle in the opposing traffic, and went through the hedges and down a slope with his outfit. Thank god, his injuries haven’t been too severe.

Not less than eight outfits could be found on this days loss list. Many of them could be booked under “broken frame”. The BMW people had a lot of trouble with this, and, of course, some “specialist” found harsh words. It must be said, that of those frames that did break, it was where the sidecar had been mounted at three points. Those with four point connection did last. (I’m talking only about those which did break without any incident prior to this. If somebody rides into a bus first, he shouldn’t wonder if the outfit breaks down afterwards! To whom it concerns will know what I’m talking about!). Concerning the sidecar connections it can be said, that the BMW factory at Munich did some investigation about the movement of the front struts. They replaced the fourth strut by a flexible one, and found out, that it did move up to 15 mm under road conditions. Under the loads endured during such an event, the movement of the upper frame tube will be much stronger.

It is an old matter of dispute, if the frame should be flexible, so that it is able to move, as done by Harley. In that case, the motorcycle will not be very pleasant for fast solo riding. Or should the outfit be made as rigid as possible? In fact, this should be left to the designer’s decision, and there possibly is no general answer to this question. It is a matter of calculation, whether one puts so much material into the frame, that it is able to endure the standard three-point connection, or if one uses a four point connection. For the use of the motorcycle as a solo, a lightweight frame with four-point connection instead, would be preferred.

At the end of the day we did notice with joy, that Germany and England were still without marks in the trophy.  In the International Silver Vase, both German teams were without marks, Holland the same, while England, Italy and Sweden (the Swedish only had one silver vase team) each had one team free of marks.

For the trophy of the Korpsführer Hühnlein trophy, still twenty teams without marks were competing. And in the Bowmaker trophy seventeen teams still were without marks.

For us it is mostly important, that our motorcycles and men are in good shape, the little shock, when Sensburg and Feldwebel[6] Reinhardt crashed into each other within a cross-country section, could be forgotten soon, as nothing too bad had happened.

Day three to follow

This post is a serialisation of an article that originally appeared over 75 years ago in ‘Das Motorrad’, the popular Motorcycling magazine in the German Language as it covered the proceedings of the 1939 ISDT, an event to finish in controversy and the results eventually annulled by the FIM.

After Day 1 and Day 2 we arrive at Day 3

ISDT 1939 – Report from ‘Das Motorrad‘: The 3^rd Day

report by Von Gustav Mueller

Of course, all the officials and team members did meet at the time check up at the Großglockner[1]. The road is too inviting, especially if you can’t get there for free! But even if one has to abstain from something else for this, if one is in this region, you have to ride up onto the Glockner, that is a point of honour. And, possibly directly afterwards to the Franz-Joseph-Haus. But the best is the descent to Heiligenblut. For this, you need to have some luck, as the weather changes quickly up there, and with some bad luck, you may sit in the fog. This part of the event gave a lot to the competitors, as the Glockner road is splendidly constructed, so that it could be done easily within the time schedule. At the top, right in front of the check point, they had some time to have an ample look around.

Photo – Sometimes it became very tough, and this picture shows, how Korpsführer Hühnlein [Head of the NSKK] himself gives a hand to help a stuck sidecar outfit.
The rider is DDAC [Der Deutsche Automobil Club – the German Automobile Club] man #29 Schrimpf on the BMW R 17 outfit. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

But, what came afterwards, wasn’t easy. Beyond Heiligenblut, the track partially was so narrow, that even a solo motorcycle wasn’t able to pass the postbus. Thank god, there are not many buses on that road, as they mostly use main roads. For the sidecar outfits, these narrow roads, without any chance of overtaking, are a big obstacle and an outstanding stress for the riders. I believe, that this had not sufficiently been taken into consideration, when fixing the time schedule. It’s not by coincidence, that so many outfits have to retire during such events. Eventually, these outfit riders have to ride fast to get some time in advance, as they, even if they have a spare wheel, need some time for the wheel change, and the punctured inner tube must be changed in the end, too.

The noon time check had been looked forward to by the riders. Bright sunshine and directly at the banks of the Millstättersee[2]. Like birds on the wire, they were sitting and watching the pretty girls bathing in the Millstädtersee. And the Ostmark girls are really pretty, besides the fact, that swimming suits are always a pretty costume… But always when it had been extra nice, the worst is yet to come. In this case the Turracher Höhe[3] with its 80% climb. Additionally, the road is not as good as the Glockner, but gravel with water gutters across the road. A lot of smaller motorcycles had to be pushed uphill.

The 125 cc DKW did it without problems. But these machines had rear wheel suspension and four gears. A clean design, made by the Auto-Union people, but on the other hand, does it make sense? On one side, everything is standardised, on the other hand they build special machines for these events. What we want to know is, how good the serial motorcycles are, and up to which limits they can be used.  One should add a clause about stock motorcycles into the regulations. I know, it is difficult to describe how to judge a serial version, but it should be possible, somehow. That is important, so important, that it should be dealt with vigorously.

Photo – #49, who may that be, always with some wild expressions [on his lips] and generally going strong, Julius von Krohn and his passenger Dürr on a Zündapp KS 600 outfit. But one can see, that even Julius wasn’t completely happy at this place, and Dürr had to get up from his chair. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

This day didn’t bring any changes in the competition for the International Trophy. England and Germany still are without penalty points. Italy took two points.

In the vase competition, still both German and both Dutch teams are without marks, also the English B-team and the Italian A-team. The brave Swedish team unfortunately did burst. Hedelin did crash into a lorry and had to retire, while Lindgren did destroy the plug thread by screwing the plug crossthreaded into the cylinder head, when changing the plug at his DKW 250, so that he wasn’t able to ride on.

Within the Adolf-Hühnlein-Trophy, sixteen teams did remain without penalty points.

In the valuable competition of the factory teams for the great gold medal, the Auto-Union, NSU and Steyr each have two teams, and Zündapp one team without marks. The Italians have two Sertum teams without marks, the English have the Norton -, the Triumph-, the BSA-, the Ariel-, the Royal Enfield –  and the Matchless-team without marks, and last but not least, the Dutch have their DKW team without penalty points.

In the next edition we will feature Day 4

This post is a serialisation of an article that originally appeared over 75 years ago in ‘Das Motorrad’, the popular Motorcycling magazine in the German Language as it covered the proceedings of the 1939 ISDT, an event to finish in controversy and the results eventually annulled by the FIM.

After Day 1, Day 2 & Day 3 we get to day 4

ISDT 1939 – Report from ‘Das Motorrad‘: The 4^th Day

report by Von Gustav Mueller

The forth day mainly went through the Tyrol region, so it had been named the Tiroler Strecke[1]. During this day, there were some bad off-road difficulties, especially where one would not expect them.  The pass of Grießen and the pass of Thurn were easy, but the Gerlos pass is quite an affair. And then, there were these well known old acquaintances from earlier six days and winter rides, the “Bauer in der Au” and the “Valepp”[2] where they once had to carry emergency supplies by ski to the riders caught on a winter ride, who had been trapped there by snow, and the Sudelfeld[3]. At the “Bauer in der Au” Wiggerl Kraus had been among the spectators, he was quite well again.

The officials had chosen to use this day to sort out the gold medalists. It is quite understandable, that the officials do not like too many gold medalists, but the method they used, simply shortening the time standards, is the wrong way. The very good riders normally will deal with this situation, but with highest dedication, i.e. riding with high risk. If there is opposing traffic in a bend they cut, a crash will happen. Of course, this doesn’t happen so often to the “extra class” riders, as it does happen to the “first class” riders, or even more to the “only good” riders. Reason is, that these “extra class” riders have extremely short reaction times, so that they can get out of these dangerous situations.

But it can’t be the purpose of this event to get the riders into life threatening situations. A different way, means a less dangerous way, must be found to screen out the gold medalists. Without any doubt, the organisers do know this, but they still haven’t found the right way to do it. Also, it is the riders own fault, that the time schedules get always shorter, as they often ride at such high speed, that they have to wait up to half an hour in front of the time checks.

Of course, you need some time in advance, as a reserve for some incidents, but that must be done prudential and within certain limits. As soon as one has some advance, the speed for the rest of the distance should be slowed down. The ambition of some riders to overtake everyone in front of them, is only silly. This senseless chase is the reason for many tyre punctures, and other defects, too.

The best proof that calm riding can be the right way is seen in Pierre van Maldeghem, president of the Belgian motorcycle association, who always rides smooth, and who did stay without marks until the 3^rd day, but then he took  3 marks on the 4^th day and another 4 on the next day, due to the shortened times. There are some sensible riders who say, that the rider who goes for a silver medal from the beginning, has the best chance to earn a gold medal in the end.

Photo – #110 The NSKK-Obertruppführer [comparable to staff sergeant] Röser, who right at his first appearance at Schönerlinde made people talk of him, did become an excellent off road rider. Here he can be seen with his BMW at a steep climb, on his way to the next to last checkpoint. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

The 4^th day was the day of incidents. The riders say, the route hadn’t been marked sufficiently. From our view, the marking had been as good as on the days before, but the speed was much higher, so one can miss a sign more easily.

Where have the stop points been, red dots on white ground, which show the rider he is on the wrong route, after he has missed the correct branch? Obviously, they were used so sparingly, that I didn’t see even one! But, the plentiful use of these signs is very important. A typical case was the Dutchman van Dinter, who was overtaking a lorry with his small 125 cc DKW just at the moment when the marked track turned to the right. Of course, he was not able to see the marking arrow pointing to the right, and so he rode sixteen additional kilometres, which resulted in eleven marks.

This incident results in the suggestion, that a minimum of at least two stop points, one on the left and one on the right side of the blocked road, must be attached and widely staggered.

The 4^th day was the day of exciting incidents. At the Sudelfeld we did meet Oberwachtmeister[4] Höser of the Kraftfahrtschule der Luftwaffe[5], whose clutch lever had been rolled up to a nice baroque curlicue. He fell off his bike between Jenbach and Bauer in der Au, and additionally he had hit a tree at this occasion.  Like these men are, he did deny this vigorously, but two holes in his helmet and fresh blades of grass in them did show it clearly. Only later I had the idea, if he might have forgotten his “emergency landing”? The bang had been quite hard, and in front of the time check at Bauer in der Au he had been waiting for some time, still a little bit dazed, and when it was his time, he opened the throttle and full speed ahead he did pass the timekeepers table, without stamping. Fortunately, there had been enough witnesses who had seen him at the time check in time, so he stayed within the ranking and without marks. His comrades had a funny interpretation of his strange behaviour after his accident, and they said: “Höser spurt nicht mehr”[6].

All along the track the men of the national team are under the surveillance of hundreds of eyes, it may be nice to know, how many people care about them, but the responsibility is also a nasty stress for their nerves. This time, “it did outwit” Rudi Seltsam in the test between Jenbach and Bauer in der Au. Some cows had it in for him, and although he did not fall, he had been bent his footrest and the lever of his combined brake severely on a stump. Adjusting didn’t help, so the man from Munich had to ride all the way to the finish without brake, using all his riding skills. There he had enough time to repair the defect. As a cautious man, he of course did carry some spare brake shoes with lining with him. It seemed that, due to overstressing of the brake something bent, so that the brake always did scuff. This lead to overheating of the brake and surrounding parts, so that grease from the transmission got into the brake drum, which lead to the complete loss of brake function. After cleaning, and installing of the new brake shoes, everything did work again.

Photo – This was the daily routine for the six days riders, very loose gravel and narrow roads, Additonally this seesaw, one bend after the other. Second man on this picture is the Swede Larsson on BMW R 51. In front Kurt Zimmermann, SS-Untersturmführer [comparable to 2. Lieutenant], on Zündapp KS 500. ISDT 1939 (das Motorrad)

The English national team had been less lucky. The English national outfit did collide with a rock, which the sidecar rim did take amiss. The Englishmen must have worked very hard to get the outfit into running condition again, the sidecar rider was covered in sweat. But all work didn’t help, as it cost them four marks. However, we had been looking at the wheel of the English sidecar before this accident, the hub was very narrow, and the spokes not strong enough, it looked quite soft to us. On the other hand, the extremely narrow track width of these English outfits is absolutely advantageous, as they get around bends easily, and do well offroad. But with our transversal cylinders, this cannot be obtained easily.

Germany had bad luck in the Silver Vase that day. Puch rider von Millenkovich had to retire due to an ignition coil failure. Shortly before, he had been announcing, the only defect he had was a terrible hunger for a sausage sandwich. Also a second man of this team, Gruber, earned some marks due to losing his way. Concerning the riders who are not in a team, the bad luck of NSU rider Walther has to be reported, who had a broken sidecar connection strut. The outfit did a somersault, but rider and sidecar passenger fortunately remained unharmed, and were able to proceed. Of course they did earn penalty marks, namely 23 points. Julius von Krohn lost the status of having no marks that day. The cable of the ignition kill-switch had been damaged somewhere, and before he could find and fix it, he had lost so much time that he earned two marks.

Bad luck for “Fat Schlichting” too. Close to the finish, as he had been thinking, he had a tyre puncture, he asked how far it was to Salzburg, and got the answer “2 kilometres”. In fact, it was 20 kilometres, as the people he had asked had only given the distance to the next village. Of course it was impossible to ride these 20 kilometres on the rim in time, so he had earned two marks. Completely unnecessarily, Ischinger and Keitel from Auto Union earned marks due to fuel shortage. At a checkpoint, they only got 5 litres for each rider, which was not enough to get to the next refuelling place. It cannot be understood, that these points were not cancelled after protest.

Next episode will be day 5

After picking up the task of restoring Taff’s old website Speedtracktales back in May 2012 from a cd of memories to its former glory, many areas of the story it told opened my eyes and dispelled a belief that our daily life was evidence that we had advanced as a society, it became clear we have in some ways stagnated or gone back in time by comparison to opportunities taken for granted in the past.

I was particularly inspired in reading and rediscovering the feats of the ACU ‘Ladies’, a fearless but quite civilised corp of women who took their place in Motorcycle racing as equals, although a minority. The history of Motorcycle sport that I have participated in has depended heavily on the willingness of wives, girlfriends and mothers to put in a great effort but sometimes felt that role was not properly recognised nor the many women racers adequately covered. This gave rise to an article I wrote about the many Women at the ISDT who were led by presence of the very strong character of Marjorie Cottle who featured in her own article, a great niece of whose recently visited this site giving much pleasure. Although towards the end of the ISDT women had all but disappeared, there has been a renaissance of recent years in world enduro and so much so there is a women’s team prize in the ISDE. My hope is the sport will get more competitive and more popular possibly as young women introduced into the sport through action & gravity sports, such as MTB downhill, find that they can transfer those skills to a motorcycle as Wales based international Downhill racer Fionn Griffiths has being doing in both British and European Enduro events riding for KTM.

Image – Article in Marjorie Cottle in FIM Women in Motorcycling Magazine

It came as a great pleasure when browsing recent FIM publications to see their ‘Women in Motorcycling Newsletter‘ which in issue 3 of 2013 featured a fantastic article on Marjorie, who remains a modern inspiration and, just like the often overlooked 20′s English travel writer Freyer Stark, her life is long overdue a Hollywood / Elstree Biopic feature film. I am please also to note that the FIM credits Speedtracktales as the source of their article. Its great to be paying back our gratitude to the FIM for the help they have given scanning their archive of ISDT results for our use.

I can recall whilst out trail riding in the Clwydian Hills in my teens during the late 70′s when one of the old blokes pointed into a hedge (they said it was a track, but you could not get into it to stand and look.. it was a hedge) and that once the ISDT had gone up there…. I knew the event and it filled my head with images of far off exotic trails in wild forests. I had never even heard of  the ISDT in Wales although I knew that once the Tour of Wales Enduro had come these ways it had not done so for years, the only active local off road competition were the Scrambles at Bodfari, the Fosters Cup an observed trial run by the South Liverpool Club and local observed trials organised by the Denbigh and Mold MCC. Even so that story stuck in my head and everytime i drive past this hedge I think the ISDT went there once.

Image – Scanned copy of course map as published in either Motor Cycle or Motor Cycling for the ISDT 1938

When I picked up on restoring Taff’s original Speedtracktales site, I saw the clear evidence that ISDT had once visited North Wales, not only once but a few times and these old guys maybe were no so crazy, indeed it appears to have not only made a number of visits to the Bwlch y Groes and Allt y Bady in Llangollen but found its way up into the wastes of Denbighshire and Flintshire on more than one occasion.
As digital mapping and cartography are part of my professional skills I immediately thought that at some point the mapping the ISDT was an essential part of the project to save for the future the memory of the event and it would be an ideal project for the next few winters. This post concludes that it’s not going to be an easy task, first of all the maps and knowledge available are limited.. I am sure not Clerks of the Course remain alive, so then the only reliable record is the maps which either appear in motorcycle magazine articles such as the example above, or are given in the programmes, these are usually not much better than an A5 or A4 plan covering all of Wales as provided below. They were mainly intended to inform spectators but were never a road book for the competitors who relied on road marking and time cards and so did not need to be accurate.  So details of the actual roads and tracks other than where they followed significant roads is often limited, although these maps do appear to have some cartographic truth about them so appear to have been an honest attempt to recreate the route, possibly created by tracing rather than simply a diagramatic explanation.

I started the quest this weekend with the ISDT 1938 and chose to commence with days 4 and 5 which were the clockwise and anti-clockwise routes that passed through the mid and north Wales countryside I am most familiar with.

Image – scanned map of course route taken fro mofficial programme ISDT 1938

So I now have two maps of similar origin showing the course. The greater scale being the programme map, although it is has the minimum of details, the newspaper map although smaller had some key features that would be essential in making sense of the maps. In terms of creating the line of the route I decided to use Google Earth which although supplied with fairly crude digitising tools, has access to a good map base. Also I have the resources to drop the latest OS 1:50000 and 1:10000 mapping into the map window, it contains height data and the data format it uses makes it easy to share a file or to convert to be input into a GPS device.

The first and most obvious features that are known and simplest to plot are the daily checkpoints. From the map it was clear one of the names were already known to me. Carno, which is currently the start venue of an enduro that I currently am the Clerk of Course of and is the only remaining truly open country enduro left running in the UK, the Powys Enduro run by the Mid Wales Trail Riders Association. Other places were familiar from various activities including cycling and sunday drives with the family as a child.
Although not able to pin point the location to the actual spot for every checkpoint I can get to guess within a few hundred meters where they were. The only difficult one was named the Cross Keyes which must be an Inn. I did know of a Cross Keyes in Ruthin that was not that far from a part of the route so made an assumption it was there in Ruthin.

I then strung together a line, like a dot to dot drawing, sketched to refect the general shape and location of the route as it passed between checks. Comparing that data over fairly crude OS 1:250000 data seemed to show a lot of similarity with the modern highway network which gave me a kind of general network of current roads I could edit the hand drawn data to resemble the programme maps but relating to real highways on the ground.

Image showing two ISDT Checkpoints – Bwlch y Groes and the Aber Hirnant: The Route of the event between points of familiar certainty can be quickly editied using small scale road map style mapping and fine tuned with Google Aerial images ISDT 1938 (speedtracktales collection)

I then refined those lines using more familiar OS 1:50000 maps to locate the likely route. This gave me slightly more confidence the route was correct and in places it is a familiar route and I am certain that the route could lie nowhere else.

Image of Google Earth with added OS mapping helps to better define the route of the event over this pretty iconic section of the ISDT that has more recently also been used by Professional Cycle Road races such as the tour of Britain. ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection)

It was fairly easy to map the section of the route running up from Bidno Bridge to Cemmaes Road Station, the earlier part passes through Staylittle and then heads towards Darowen where it picks up the modern course of the Powys Enduro and a couple of what remain even today as pretty ferocious sections of track that run up a bed of continuous polished rock wetted by springs and streams. The route heads up towards Bwlch y Groes along the valley of the Afon Dyfi passing Dyfi Forest home of the Dyfi Enduro, a round of the British National championships and run by MWTRA also.

Image of Route of days 4 & 5 between Staylittle and the Cemmaes Road Station checkpoint ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection)

The problem in getting the route finished lay with the northern most section. Although most familiar with the routes of the area, if the checkpoint was at the Cross Keyes in Ruthin and the map as accurate as I thought it might be, then much of that section did was not following routes that made any sense nor did they look like they were the route drawn on the map. It was obvious this was not the right Cross Keyes, a quick Google Search gave me only two pubs of that name in the region, I had never heard of any other pubs called the Cross Keyes. Pubs sometimes changed names and from time to time even were close. The lines on the magazine map, which named the main places along the route, placed the pub, in my view, to the north east of Ruthin near a village called Llandyrnog. In this instance the small newspaper map which had the locations of local villages made more sense than the larger programme map and confirmed the point was well to the North West of the lunchstop at Loggerheads which it could not be if it was at Ruthin. This village has two pubs with the same landlord, who I knew and they were the White Horse and Golden Lion which had never changed name nor was I familiar with any ex pubs of that name. I redrew the map to presume the pub was in Llandyrnog and this time the route made a lot more sense and even passed the very same hedge that my old timers had talked about.

Image of Route of days 4 & 5 between Staylittle and the Cemmaes Road Station checkpoint ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection)

Redrawing the route i did a number of Google searches on Cross Keys Inn to see if I could sake it out of the bits and binary of the internet but nothing came forward. I called a few people who were equally bewildered until one typed Cross Keys without the word Inn into Google and suddenly there was an answer on Zoopla the property site, which is now a small farm house set on a lane outside of Llandyrnog called Cross Keys, the bonus was it sat right at the side of the obvious route. A quick trip to the Vision of Britain website was able to summon up a colour 1″ OS map from the 1920′s which confirms the location of the Inn as being the same as the checkpoint on the map.

Image – scanned 1920′s OS 1″ map showing Cross Jeys Inn Llandyrnog checkpoint ISDT 1938

The 1938 Lunch stop was at Loggerheads, near where I live, and now a Country park once a tea gardens owned by a Liverpool bus comany, but has so far alluded my search for images taken during the event however between eBay and contacts at the South Liverpool MCC we have the following images of Loggerheads taken about 1938

Photo – Tea Gardens, Loggerheads c1935

Photo – South Liverpool Cup Trial start at Loggerheads 1938 (courtesy SLMCC)

So we had the final check pinned on the map and for the first time since 1938 I have the honour of reproducing here the map of the 4th (clockwise) and 5th (anti-clockwise) days of the ISDT 1938.

Image – The route of Days 4 & 5 of the ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection)

One of the benefits of working with Google earth is the background height data enables a quick profile of any route to be produced on the fly, and the next image shows the profile of the 401km, total climbing of 5000m that the route of the ISDT 1938 took.

Image – Profile of ridden route for days 4 (l-r) and day 5 (r-l) of ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection)

Image – map of route and height profile for days 4 & 5 of ISDT 1938 (Speedtracktales collection

The project will be an ongoing effort but I am still not sure how we will be making the data available. I am interested in any offers of help with recording the south Wales sections. The data can be output into popular GPS formats such as GPX once if anybody wants to go out and helmet cam a 400km ride through Wales. I think all of the route of days 4 & 5 of the 1938 ISDT is on public highways which are all open to vehicles today and not all are surfaced. It would probably be a good ride for a big trail twin the only uncertainty I have over the route is the section leading to and away from the Llanfair Caereinion towards Carno

Part 2 Update… inspired by this work, and with much thanks, a member of WTRA / West Glos MCC familiar with the South Wales area has strung together maps for days 1 2 and 3, here is the merged data for Day 1 with our original day 4&5 map

Image – talen from Google Earth the route of days 1, 4 and 5 with course profile for day 1 of ISDT 1938

Whilst recovering the history of the ISDT, sometimes from oblivion, much of what happened prior to the war is no longer accessible via living memory. Most of the pre-war racers and the event supporters have sadly left our company over the last 10-30 years. Whilst we may still have those copies of the old magazines ‘the Motor Cycle‘ and ‘Motor Cycling‘ neither are published any longer and so its a case of trawling old archives and eBay auctions to find any references to the ISDT which is often fraught with difficulty and significant cost. These magazines tell us the story from the enthusiasts point of view but it’s also clear the International was a major sporting man familiar with many people with little active interest in the events and it is intersting to see how it was perceived then by the man in the street to compare to the sports relative anonymity today. A surprisingly great source for this kind of material is the daily national and regional newspapers of the time.

image – scanned from the Courier – Mail, from Brisbane Queensland Australia 10th May 1937 ISDT 1937

the image of the cycling contraption is described in its caption as this: FAMILY CVCLE.— An unusual machine, devised by a resident of Kent, England, to solve the transport problem for five people.

This is born out by the Archives of the British Library in London which has started scanning all its collection of regional newspapers and putting them online.

http://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/?gclid=CLexq7TE57oCFcXKtAodAF8A9Q

If you have been checking any of the event pages on Speedtracktales you will see in the ‘What the papers said!‘ section examples of articles many local papers carried providing up to date reporting on the events across Europe up to, during and after the date which confirms the popularity of this news . Although a great service alas it is not free and each story has a cost to obtain, it still beats sitting down in the Britis hLibrary and thumbing through all the issues of every paper to find a small article.

I have therefore been delighted to find that not only does the National Library of Australia offer a similar service but for free, but that the newspapers of the interwar years were jammed full of stories about the exploits of the men and machines of the British Empire in a action at the ISDT

National Library of Australia Collection

The top most image of the page is an extract of the Trove copy of the 10 May 1937 issue of the Courier – Mail a newspaper of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia which was active between 1933 – 1955. The article gives a lot of detail of the course of the event and changes to the events rules for 1937.

1500-MILE COURSE

International Six Days’ Trial

By reason of Great Britain’s victory in the international six days’ reliability trial in Germany last year the Auto Cycle Union of Great Britain has undertaken the organisation on behalf of the F.I.C.M., and the trial this year will be decided over a 1500 mile course, the greater part of which lies in Wales. Llandrindod Wells will be the head quarters for the duration of the trial except for the last day, when a move will be made to Donington Park Derby, for the final speed test, The route foIlows much of that used in the 1933 International, and will be approximately as follows:—

Monday, July 12.— In a northerly direction Llandrlndod Wells — Welshpool — Llangollen – Bala — Llanldloes — Llandrindod Wells.

Tuesday, July 13.—In a northerly dlrec- tion. Llandrindod Wells — Bala — Dolgolley — Devil’s Bridge — Machynlleth — Llandrindod Wells.

Wednesday, July 14.— In a westerly direction. Llandrindod Wells — Devil’s Bridge — Tregaron — Lampeter — Llandovery — Llandrindod Wells.

Thursday, July I5.— In a south-westerly direction. Llandrindod Wells — Llandovery — Lampeter — Carmarthen — Ammanford — Builth Wells — Llandrindod Wells.

Friday, July 16.— In a southerly direction. Llandrindod Wells — Builth Wells — Ammanford — Ystragynlals — Crickhowell — Kington — Llandrindod Wells.

Saturday, July 17. — In a easterly direction. Llandrindod . Wells — Donington Park, Derbyshire.

Little alteration has been made to the regulations, except that there arc now defined classes for 125 c.c. solos, 350 c.c. side cars, and 350 c.c, 500 c.c, and 750 c.c. three wheelers. One Important addition has been made to Article 19, in which it is stated that the cylinder head will be sealed to the cylinder barrel, and the barrel to the crank case. Machines must be in full touring trim, with lamps (in working order) to comply with the International Convention, 1926, mud guards, two efficient brakes, silencer(s), saddle, and a starting device.

There will be no special tests other than the speed test at the finish. As in Germany last year, there will be a check each morning within two or three miles of the start, to test ease of starting. It can be gathered from the length of the course that the trial is likely to prove a strenuous one.

Many of the newspaper articles appear, on reading, to be often driven by articles seen in one of the main British Motor Cycle publications that arrived in Australia (all surface mail there was no airmail back then) or press releases provided by the dealers or importers of British motorbike makes.

Image taken from the TROVE web site showing its range of materials

You can check out the ISDT contents of TROVE here

http://trove.nla.gov.au/?q=international%20six%20days%20trial

Trove for Australian readers is well worth a check out not least because it indexes the entire collections including books of the National Library of Australia so apart from the press cuttings on the events, it also lists books it has in stock that should be available on loan to Australian readers including a number of books on the ISDT History including;

• International Six-Days’ Trial /​ Mick Walker &​ Rob Carrick.
• ISDT ’73: the Olympics of motorcycling : the official pictorial record of the 48th International Six Days Trial, Pittsfield, Massachusetts, USA. /​ Text by Ron Schneiders. ( a copy of which is currently on sale on eBay for a few hundred uk pounds)

More soon……