MANX GRAND PRIX
DEAN HARRISON and hisManx Norton stunned the super-fast Paton twins by not only winning the Classic Senior by 52 seconds, but clocking a 111.4mph lap in the process – the fastest ever lap by a 500cc British single.
It was an astonishing performance by bike and rider, especially considering that the man chasing him on the Paton was a certain John McGuinness. “That was so much fun,” said Harrison after the race. “Winning the Manx on a Manx ticks all the boxes... I could have gone quicker on the last lap and maybe done 112mph, but I could see on my boards I had a good lead so knocked a bit of pace off.”
The singles were on fine form further down the field too, with Mike Browne coming third on another Manx and – perhaps most impressive of all – Adam McLean coming fifth on the FlitwickMotorcycles Royal Enfield Bullet.
“It’s making in excess of 50bhp,” says Flitwick boss Steve Linsdell, who’s developed the bike over the last 25 years. “This bike has the Enfield frame rather than the Seeley, and Adam prefers it – I think it’s because it pitches more on the brakes and under power, so you get more grip. Modern riders tend to prefer that.
“He was on for a 110mph lap on the last lap, but suffered a bit of fuel starvation. That’s phenomenal for a British single. For a while the people with the singles thought we could never beat the twins, but Ted Woof (who built Harrison’s Manx) has showed us that we can. And now the twin people are moaning because they have to ride so hard to go that fast.”
As you might imagine with such highly tuned singles, there was an equally high attrition rate – only 16 bikes finished, with seven going pop on the first lap.
