Charles Collier (motorcyclist)
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Charles Richard Collier (1885–1954) of
Plumstead Plumstead is an area in southeast London, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich, England. It is located east of Woolwich. History Until 1965, Plumstead was in the historic counties of England, historic county of Kent and the detail of mu ...
, London, was a British motorcycle racer famous for winning Isle of Man TT races twice in his career. After competing in the 1906 International Cup Races on the European continent, Charlie Collier became the first Isle of Man TT race winner in 1907. Along with his brother HarryCarrick, Peter ''Motor Cycle Racing'' Hamlyn Publishing, 1969, p.17, p.21 Accessed 2014-02-26 he raced Matchless motorcycles manufactured by his father's company, H.Collier & Sons. After setting a number of world motorcycle records on Matchless machines, Charlie Collier won another Isle of Man TT race in 1910 and later became the first competitor to be disqualified from a race for illegal refuelling. Charlie Collier later became a joint managing director of
AJS A. J. Stevens & Co. Ltd was a British automobile and motorcycle manufacturer in operation from 1909 to 1931. The company was founded by Joe Stevens in Wolverhampton, England. After the firm was sold, the name continued to be used by Matchless, A ...
and Matchless motorcycles and died in 1954.


Racing career

First race was in 1902 at the 3½ mile
Canning Town Canning Town is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London. The district is located to the north of the Royal Victoria Dock, and has been described as the "Child of the Victoria Docks" as the timing and nature of its urbanisation ...
cycling track riding a Matchless motorcycle with an MMC engine. After leading until the last lap, a burst tyre caused a crash and Charlie Collier suffered friction abrasions. In 1905, along with his brother Harry Collier participated in the eliminating trial for the International Motor Cycle Cup held in the Isle of Man. Held on a 25-mile section of the Gordon Bennett Trial course, the event was won by J.S.Campbell. Although Harry Collier managed to qualify, the Matchless motorcycle with a
JAP ''Jap'' is an English abbreviation of the word "Japanese". Today, it is generally regarded as an ethnic slur. In the United States, some Japanese Americans have come to find the term very offensive, even when used as an abbreviation. Prior to t ...
engine which Charlie Collier had specially built suffered a broken connecting-rod and was forced to retire. After racing in the 1906 International Cup, both Charlie Collier and his brother Harry were unhappy with the relatively low imposed weight limit of 110 lbs, causing sacrifices in frame and tyre strength to be made to compensate for the heavy engines. They entered a new motorcycle event in the Isle of Man in 1907 for road-touring motorcycles. The new race was to be held on the
St John's Short Course The St John's Short Course was a road-racing street circuit used for the Isle of Man TT held between 1907 and 1910. The races were run in a time-trial format on public roads closed for racing by an Act of Tynwald (the parliament of the Isle of ...
with two categories for single and twin-cylinder engines. The
1907 Isle of Man TT The 1907 Isle of Man TT races were the inaugural International Tourist Trophy for motor-cycles held on the Isle of Man. The event was held on Tuesday 28 May 1907 over the St John's Short Course consisting of a Single Cylinder and a Twin-Cylinde ...
race single cylinder-class was won by Charlie Collier riding a Matchless in 4 hours, 8 minutes and 8 seconds at an average race speed of 38.21 mph. His brother Harry Collier, also riding a Matchless, had problems with an engine seizure on lap 2 and eventually retired on lap 9.''The Motor Cycle'' dated 5 June 1907 p.446


TT race achievements


TT Single Cylinder race

Tuesday 28 May 1907 - 10 laps (158.00 miles) St John's Short Course.


TT Race Victories


TT career summary


Sources


External links


TT database rider profile
iomtt.com
TT database TT results
iomtt.com
Official TT Website Database
iomttraces.com 0 {{DEFAULTSORT:Collier, Charlie 1885 births 1954 deaths People from Plumstead English motorcycle racers Isle of Man TT riders