Reminiscing on the 6 Hour

Just reading through some older posts regarding the 6 Hour. I'm not a
regular contributor. I was a regular at the 6 Hour until it folded. I
remember in the early or mid 70's Mike Hailwood on the SS750 Duc. I was
watching from the loop. And remember MH riding through there, looking
very clean but rather pedestrian in 6th place, a very upright and clean
style. But was blown away on one occassion, when he entered the loop
behind about 6 other bikes and promptly went under and over and through
the 6 bikes and still looked like he was riding down to the shop to get
a loaf of bread. Might not sound much, but was a moment I have never
forgotten. And have always considered it a privilige to have seen one of
motorcycling's greats in action.
Any other moments from the 6 Hour that anyone else recalls and would
like to share. Some awesome riders and races from that time.
Still miss the 6 Hour. And the Swann Series

Schroda

 

Some time in the mid 80's, watching John(?) Pace/Wayne Gardiner comming
onto the main strait at Oran Park on the VFR1000 with the back wheel
spinning and sliding. I think they were chasing Dowson/? on a FZ750.

David

 

on that or was that the year they were on the RZ500?

huge bike chasing tiny bike - that was a great race

ck

 

that idiot John Smales grilling Wayne Gardner when he was a team
manager about why his pit stop was 2 seconds slower than Holdens team
I think it was..

He kept asking the same thing, I thought Gardner was going to snot
him!

The other was Willing I think it was in the wet on the GPZ900 crashed
few laps from the end being caught big time by ??

 

another Rob Holden on the GSXR when Campbell VFR shod, came on to oran
straight, pulled over to the left side, holden went past about 40ks
faster with no slipstream.

As it was told to me, it came out in the end, that after the big crash
in practice, when they replaced the forks and frame, they replaced the
engine too!!
I have that on VHS, but the tape is nackered Anyone got a copy they
wanna copy for me

Campbell crashed few laps later, when asked, he said he was trying
that hard to catch Holdens "SUPERBIKE"...

 

My recollection is that it was Scott/Dowson on the RZ500, with Gardner/?
on a VF1000.

The next year it was Dowson/Magee on the FZ750 and Pace/Gardner on the
VFR1000R.

Something like that anyway. I'm sure someone else will correct the
inevitable memory errors.

BTW, not Castrol 6-hour related, but, the other great recollection from
that era was Wayne Garder on a NSR500 v's Mal Campbell on a NS500 in the
Swann Series. Particular at the Surfers Paradise round, with Gardner
going round the curve at the end of the straight at well over 200 km/h
with the back hanging out and smoke coming off the rear tyre.
After seeing that in person, and watching it later on TV, I was hooked
on 500cc GP racing for good.

David

 

X-No-archive: yes
Yep RZ500.
Dowson and Richard Scott had come together from different teams (and wearing
different-coloured leathers) when one team's bike shit itself.
That was the race that the ABC had stopped a few minutes early so they could
cross to the golf and it robbed the Honda of the victory as the Yam was
about to run out of petrol.
(Bloody good thing eh?!!)
Clem
~

 

X-No-archive: yes
Birdman wrote in message ...

~
Paul Feeney (with a gynormous booger crawling all over his face!)

No, I s'pose it would've been his team-mate on the Matich FZ750.... Wayne
Clark?
Clem

 

X-No-archive: yes

~
Holden got caught running an 7/11 at Surfers Paradise in a proddy race.
Hub 200 about 1985 I think it was...
Clem

 

David wrote:
I have that Swann Series on tape, one of the best races I've seen.
Campbell rode the wheels off the 3 cyl Honda and Gardener crashed
trying to catch him. Awesome race!
Schroda

 

Yes, I remember that. Not the six-hour, the 5 hr 57 minute.

Theo

 

I recall seeing Graeme Crosby qualifying the CBX 1000 six for one 6 hour. He
made pole. Unreal. Balls of STEEL played a part, i suspect.

Sprint.

 

I remember Graeme Crosby riding the Jim Scaysbrook Captain Snacks TZ350
at Oran Pk. Supposedly the first time he had raced a 2 stroke.
He won the 350 race, against a top class field. Then in the 500 race,
rode the wheels off the bike. On the last lap he was in second, and I
think Glen Middlemiss, RG500 (not sure of the spelling) was leading on
the last lap. He came from behind, probably about 30 metres. And tried
to go around the outside of the 500 coming through Energol onto the
straight, nearly made it. But crashed, 0ne of the most exiting last
corner tries I have ever seen. I think everybody there realised that
Crosby was something special.

schroda

 

Still miss the 6 Hour.

read about um...never seen um...dunno

saw Doohan ride once

 

I've got that whole Swann Series on tape, pretty awesome!
the tape also has a lap of the Isle of Man with an onboard camera on
Joey Dunlops Honda, must convert it over to DVD while its still good

Schroda

 

That Isle Of Mann lap must be the "V-Four Victory" video Honda made?
I used to have a copy many moons ago.

Awesome speed through narrow village streets with the cottages on each
side flashing past, and Joeys statement at one point "It's a bit quick
through here". Understatement of the century!

David

 

David said....

Was that the one where WG ended up in the ditch at the back of the
circuit at Surfers?

But yeah, I recall his powerslides. It was much the topic of awe..