The 1921

Isle of Man Tourist Trophy The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world ...

Junior 350 cc race took place on Tuesday 14 June and the Senior 500 cc was on Thursday 16 June. In this year AJS redeemed themselves by completing a hat trick, taking the first four places for a total of six of the top ten places in the Junior 350 cc race. Works teams boosted the entries to 133 riders and machines and amongst the thousands of spectators was

Stanley Woods Stanley Woods (1903 – 28 July 1993) was an Irish motorcycle racer famous for 29 motorcycle Grand Prix wins in the 1920s and 1930s, winning the Isle of Man TT races ten times in his career, plus wins at Assen and elsewhere. He was also a skill ...

, making his first visit to the island as a young man, who would later return to make TT history by winning 10 times. IOM TT ''The Mountain Circuit'' (retrieved 20 August 2006) The Junior race speeds also rose considerably over the previous year with a lap speed of more than . It had been suggested that

sidecar A sidecar is a one-wheeled device attached to the side of a motorcycle, scooter, or bicycle, making the whole a three-wheeled vehicle. A motorcycle with a sidecar is sometimes called a ''combination'', an ''outfit'', a ''rig'' or a ''hack''. ...

racing could start in 1921 but this idea was not well received and not implemented until 1923. It was announced there was a possibility of moving the TT races to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

for 1922 but the

Auto-Cycle Union The Auto-Cycle Union (ACU) is the governing body of motorcycle sport in Great Britain, including the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, but excluding Northern Ireland.

never made the switch. Despite AJS motorcycles filling the first five places of the Junior race, it was punctures that decided the race outcome. The eventual winner of the 1921 Junior TT Race was

Eric Williams Eric Eustace Williams (25 September 1911 – 29 March 1981) was a Trinidad and Tobago politician who is regarded by some as the " Father of the Nation", having led the then British Colony of Trinidad and Tobago to majority rule on 28 October ...

riding an AJS in 3 hours, 37 minutes and 23 seconds, an average race speed of . The race was initially led by

Howard R Davies Howard R. Davies (27 June 1895 – 3 January 1973), was an English motorcycle racing champion, motorcycle designer and originator of the 'HRD' marque which later became Vincent-HRD motorcycles. He died in January 1973. Early life Howard R ...

also riding for AJS who set a new lap record for the Junior race of 41 minutes and 4 seconds, an average speed of . Time lost by Howard Davies mending a puncture at Windy Corner gave the lead to Jim Whalley riding a Massey-Arran motorcycle. On the last lap Whalley also punctured at Windy Corner and finished the Junior race in fifth place.

New Imperial New Imperial was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded by Norman Downes in Birmingham, between 1887 and 1901, and became New Imperial Motors Ltd in 1912, when serious production commenced. New Imperial made innovative motorcycles that emplo ...

made sales-boosting news with a win in the Lightweight 250 cc class by rider Doug Prentice, coming tenth overall in the 350 cc Junior race. New Imperial Owners Association History (retrieved 16 October 2006) More drama was to follow in the Senior event as the race-lead changed every lap between Alec Bennett riding a Sunbeam, Freddie W.Dixon riding an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

, and Freddie Edmond riding a

Triumph The Roman triumph (Latin triumphus) was a celebration for a victorious military commander in ancient Rome. For later imitations, in life or in art, see Trionfo. Numerous later uses of the term, up to the present, are derived directly or indirectl ...

who set a new lap record of 40 minutes and 8 seconds, an average speed of . The Senior race was eventually won by Howard Davies riding a 350 cc Junior race motorcycle, by a margin of 2 minutes and 3 seconds from Freddie Dixon and Bert Le Vack in 4 hours, 9 minutes and 22 seconds, at an average race speed of .

Race results

Junior TT 350cc

Held on Tuesday, June 14th, at 9:30 am over a distance of 188.75 miles (5 laps of 37.75 miles each), limited to machines of cylinder capacity not exceeding 350cc., with a class for 250 cc. engines run concurrently for

The Motor Cycle ''The Motor Cycle'' was one of the first British magazines about motorcycles. Launched by Iliffe and Sons Ltd in 1903, its blue cover led to it being called "The Blue 'un" to help distinguish it from its rival publication ''Motor Cycling (maga ...

cup. All 65 entries started the race (43 in 350cc class, 22 in 250cc class), comprising 33 four-stroke singles, 22 two-stroke singles, 7 Flat Twins and 3

V Twin A V-twin engine, also called a V2 engine, is a two-cylinder piston engine where the cylinders share a common crankshaft and are arranged in a V configuration. Although widely associated with motorcycles (installed either transversely or longi ...

, thirty-eight finished (25 in 350cc class, 13 in 250cc class).

Senior TT

Held on Thursday, June 16th, at 9:30 am over a distance of 226.50 miles (6 laps of 37.75 miles each), limited to machines of cylinder capacity not exceeding 500cc.''The Motor Cycle'' page 803, 23 June 1921Out of 68 entries, comprising 52 four-stroke singles, 9 four-stroke twins, 6 two-stroke twins and 1 two-stroke single, sixty-four started the race and twenty-four finished.

References

External links

Detailed race results
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isle of Man Tt 1921 in British motorsport #1921 Isle

Isle of Man TT The Isle of Man TT or Tourist Trophy races are an annual motorcycle racing event run on the Isle of Man in May/June of most years since its inaugural race in 1907. The event is often called one of the most dangerous racing events in the world ...