Latest Car Extreme: Keith Bryen racing photographs

Showing posts with label Keith Bryen racing photographs. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Keith Bryen, Aussie privateer in the early 1950's on the Continental Circus...lets visit some more of his personal racing photos......

0 comments Posted by car 2011 at 11:04 PM

I've still a small "cache" of Keith Bryen's personal racing photos, kindly loaned to me several years ago by Keith and Gwen and as you will be aware I've run some 10 or so blogs on him so far...use the search facility over on the RHS of this blog to look at earlier ones, type in "Keith Bryen".
Lets have a look at some from 1953......

This will be the last blog over this Christmas period from me until after January 4th, as I'll be out of Sydney at the 65th Australian Jazz Convention at Orange, Central Western NSW from 26th December....thanks for supporting my blog ...
So a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from The Velobanjogent.
Left click on the images to enlarge....

Approaching Begarrow on IOM TT Circuit.

Approaching Ballaugh Bridge, IOM TT

Guthrie Memorial on IOM TT

Practice on his 500cc Norton, IOM TT, 1953

Keith Bryen with his 350 Norton at machine examination

Awaiting the start of the 500 TT in 1953. Keith Bryen #48 and Kev Kavenagh #42.

Australians Keith Campbell and Gordon Laing

Keith's van and Nortons after the 1953 Dutch TT.

Len and Neil Tinker at the 1953 Belgium GP.

Gordon Laing with Len Tinker at the 1953 Belgium GP

Ray Amm and Ken Kavenagh look over the circuit at the 1953 Belgium GP.

Gilera factory team at the 1953 Belgium GP.

Moto Guzzi factory team at the 1953 Belgium GP.

On the road between GPs in Europe 1953..Ray Amm, Sid Willis, Tony McAlpine and Keith Bryen. Likely Tony and Sid's car and caravan.

Pit area at the Noris Ring, Nurnburg, 1953.

Riders and wives at the Noris Ring, 1953.

Keith at the German GP, Schotten, 19.07.1953, 9th in the 350 race and 11th in the 500 race.

Banking at the Avus ring, Berlin, 1953.

Another view of the banking at the Avus Ring, 1953.

Exit from the banking of the Avus Ring, Berlin, Keith came 6th in the 350 race.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

It's back to 1957 with Keith Bryen, Aussie privateer who secured a works Moto Guzzi ride.....

0 comments Posted by car 2011 at 4:02 AM

I've still quite a few photos stored from Keith Bryen's archive, kindly loaned by him and as you'll remember I've done quite a few blogs on him so far....
Type in "Keith Bryen" in the search facility over on the right of this blog to bring up all I've done on him.
Keith as you'll remember left Australia in 1953 with wife Gwen to join the "Continental Circus", made up of a happy go lucky group of racing motorcyclists, mostly from the Commonwealth countries, who followed the GP circuit across Europe each year, riding for start and hopefully finishing money to fund their adventure.
Keith was asked by Moto Guzzi to ride for them in the last few races of the 1957 season.
"The bubble burst" in January 1958, when back in Australia and readying for the forthcoming 1958 season in Europe with Moto Guzzi, he received a letter from the factory informing him that as Moto Guzzi in concert with two other Italian factories had withdrawn from racing, there would be no machines for him to use....
Rather gut wrenching...
Left Click on the images to enlarge...

Keith on a factory AJS 7R during practice in IOM TT.

Practicing on his G45 Matchless in 1957 IOM TT.

13th in IOM Senior TT in 1957.

Now on a works Moto Guzzi, Keith won 350cc race at the Norisring circuit at Nurnberg West Germany, Vally Lundberg on the left and Eric Hinton on the right.

Harry Hinton jnr, Keith Bryen and Eric Hinton and Vally Lundberg at Norisring circuit July 1957.

2nd in 350cc class of Ulster GP, 15.08.1957.

Another Ulster GP photo.

5th in 500cc class of 1957 Ulster GP.

Keith Bryen, Keith Campbell and Liberati after Ulster GP 1957.

Warming up for the 350cc Italian GP at Monza 1st September 1957.

During practice for the Italian GP in 1957.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

More racing photographs from Keith Bryen's album...Early times again

0 comments Posted by car 2011 at 5:43 PM

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.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Back with more of Keith Bryen's photographs.... Aussie privateer and Moto Guzzi works rider and part of the "Continental Circus" in 1950's....

0 comments Posted by car 2011 at 8:29 PM

I've posted quite a few blogs featuring photographs kindly loaned me by Keith Bryen, Aussie privateer and then Moto Guzzi works rider in 1957. For earlier ones check over to the RHS "subject listings" and click on "Keith Bryen racing photographs"....

This blog has more of Keith's brief time on the Moto Guzzi factory racing team....you may recall, elated at his elevation to the team, on his return to Australia in the off season he received a "Dear John" letter from Moto Guzzi informing him of their decision to withdraw from racing in concert with Gilera and Mondial and as a result there were no further bikes available.....kinda' gut wrenching I would say.....

Left click on the images to enlarge.....

Norisring at Nurnberg, 27.07.1957.

Keith Bryen and Keith Campbell with Guzzi personnel and the 500cc V8.

The 500cc V8 Moto Guzzi that Keith Bryen tried out at Monza in August 1957.

Testing at Monza, 350cc Moto Guzzi for the Italian GP.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

More racing photographs from the 1950's from former Continental Circus rider and Moto Guzzi factory rider, Australian Keith Bryen.....

0 comments Posted by car 2011 at 1:35 PM

This is the eighth blog so far of Australian Keith Bryen's racing career and am currently in 1957, however Keith also included a folder with his own racing photos titled "Photos of other riders and bikes of the past".... so we are having a further peek into it and continue running these in this and future blogs....

Left click on the images to enlarge....