Thursday, September 9, 2010
Keith Bryen, whose efforts as an Aussie privateer in Europe in the early 1950's, as part of the "Continental Circus" with wife Gwen leading the gypsy existence of the time finally culminated in his being offered a works Moto Guzzi ride in late 1956 only to get the heart breaking letter in early 1957 that the factory had with drawn from racing, started like all up and coming hopefuls with modified road machines, stripped for racing and progressing on to factory production racing machines.
Lets go back to just after WW2 and look at some of Keith and Gwen's photos, kindly made available to me....
I've covered nine previous blogs of these photographs and from the comments and emails these continuing additions are eagerly awaited.....
To look at earlier ones, go to the RHS of this blog and scroll down to "Keith Bryen racing photographs" and click on it to bring all these blogs up.
Left click on the images to enlarge.....
BSA with rear suspension fitted...
1949 7R AJS at Fisherman's Bend circuit in Victoria.
During the 1950 Junior GP at Bathurst. #24 is Dave Jenkins on a P & R Williams P/L ( the Velocette importers) ex works KTT Velo, #64 is not listed on the program and #37 is Keith Bryen on a 7R AJS.
The circuit rides to about 600' in height above the start-finish straight and the long slightly down hill straight around 1.25 miles long is called "con-rod straight"...for obvious reasons...many an engine conrod has been broken at speed along it.
The straight was altered some years back in an effort to slow speeds down with an "S" bend inserted into it. But engine development and handling improvements has seen speeds increase.....
Motorcycles stopped using it around 1987, due to the danger of the concrete barriers, suitable, at the time for car racing.