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Battle Royal was pending, with George Brown prepared as always to live on the limit to gain success on the 499 Vincent HRD factory machine. Yet Dale turned out on that same 350 Norton he had used earlier, puddles formed, Dale’s works 500 Norton left Eppynt sparkling clean, ready for the Isle of Man. Sandford too used his 350 mount again, perhaps saving his 500 Velocette from a pre IoM. thrashing, Dale easily pulled away in a rainstorm whilst Brown on the Vincent HRD ‘ran out of road’ in a fierce chase of the speeding 348 Norton letting the ever brave Syd Barnett battle through driving rain into second spot. Isle of Man conditions were too much for many. Retirements with spills galore to tired men and machines. Dickie Dale relentlessly pressed on lapping back markers simply weary of conditions to well deserved victory. J Simister determinedly held fourth on his 498 Triumph twin fitted with an AJS tank accepting nature’s pounding of his eyes, with long raised goggles. Roland Pike 348 AJS, now fresh from his 250 victory remained steady and sensible, guarding against mistakes brought on by weariness with lost concentration drove on to clinch fifth ahead of R H King’s 348 Norton. Hammering rain, puddles, brought lap times down and that mountain seemed to have tired of being entertained. Norton marketing men must have resembled cats with a cream surplus, after Dale’s professionally efficient annihilation of opposition to Bracebridge St. products. Senior 500cc Race 10 laps
The old mountain had tested and taunted man yet again and was to retreat from view once more behind a cloud portcullis, settling further from sight as light and temperatures lowered, timeless expanse would brood for a year to once again encounter and entertain us briefly with its whims. |
1951 pt7. The Senior race