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.....

Keith on his 1939 BSA Gold Star before he prepared it to race....
The BSA in race trim
1929 Chevrolet as transport to Bathurst for the Easter GP races in 1946
At Bathurst, tinkering with the BSA.
At Bathurst with the BSA


BSA with rear suspension fitted...


1949 7R AJS at Fisherman's Bend circuit in Victoria.




Keith was unsure when this was at Bathurst. However I scrutised the field and early programs and feel sure it is the start of the Senior GP in 1950.




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.
Map of the Mt.Panorama circuit at Bathurst, NSW which was first used in 1938, then unsealed with a dirt surface. Sealed in 1939, it is still in use today but now only for production V8 saloon car racing.
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.

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