Malcolm Ernest Uphill (15 April 1935 – 15 August 1999) was a
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
professional
motorcycle racer
Motorcycle racing (also called moto racing and motorbike racing) is the motorcycle sport of racing motorcycles. Major varieties include motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Oth ...
. He competed in British national-level short-circuit and in
Grand Prix motorcycle racing.
Uphill was the first competitor in the
Isle of Man Tourist Trophy races to achieve a 100 mph average lap speed on a production motorcycle.
__TOC__
Motorcycle racing career
A native of
Caerphilly, Wales, Uphill later lived at
Heol,
Trecastle
Trecastle ( cy, Trecastell) ("the town of the castle") is a village in Powys, Wales, situated on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park
( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) and in the community of Llywel. The village has a populatio ...
and was educated at Twyn Secondary Modern School. Apprenticed at the
Rhymney former
railway
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
works near
Caerphilly, he worked as a fitter/turner/erector for
British Rail.
In 1965, Uphill achieved a double win in the 350 cc 'Junior' and 500 cc 'Senior' races at the
Manx Grand Prix.
His best season in world championship competition was in
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* Janu ...
when he finished in ninth place in the 250cc world championship.
In 1969, he teamed with
Percy Tait to win the
Thruxton 500 endurance race for production (road-based) machines and at the
1969 Isle of Man TT
The 1969 Isle of Man TT, the fourth round of the 1969 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, involved a number of races on the Mountain Course on the Isle of Man. For the second year running Giacomo Agostini won both the Junior and Senior races, ...
, Uphill won the 750 Production class on a
Triumph Bonneville
The Triumph Bonneville is a Types of motorcycles#Standard, standard motorcycle featuring a Straight-twin engine, parallel-twin four-stroke engine and manufactured in three generations over three separate production runs.
The first two generation ...
with a 100 mph lap, which prompted renaming of the Dunlop K81 motorcycle tyre as the
TT100.
[ Motorcycle Mechanics, June 1973, Dunlop full page advert, p.6 ''Every time they race you win. "Tyres like the K70, Ribbed and the fabulous K81, re-named the TT100 after lapping the TT course at over 100 mph on a production machine''". Accessed 23 March 2015] He also won the 750 Production class at the 1970
North West 200
The International North West 200 is a Northern Irish motorsport event established in 1929 for road racing motorcycles held on a street circuit known as ''the Triangle'' between the towns of Portstewart, Coleraine and Portrush in Causeway Coast ...
held in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
followed by the
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...
TT 750 production class on a
Triumph Trident
The Triumph Trident is a three-cylinder motorcycle of either 750 cc or 900 cc capacity. These bikes were produced from 1991 to 1998 at Hinckley, Leicestershire, England, by Triumph Motorcycles Ltd, the successor business to the def ...
.
Uphill died aged 64 in 1999 of
asbestosis
Asbestosis is long-term inflammation and scarring of the lungs due to asbestos fibers. Symptoms may include shortness of breath, cough, wheezing, and chest tightness. Complications may include lung cancer, mesothelioma, and pulmonary heart d ...
.
In 2011 a
pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
named ''The Malcolm Uphill'' was opened by
Wetherspoons
J D Wetherspoon plc (branded variously as Wetherspoon or Wetherspoons, and colloquially known as Spoons) is a pub company operating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company was founded in 1979 by Tim Martin and is based in Watford. It o ...
in Caerphilly town centre,
[''Caerphilly Observer''](_blank)
10 October 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2015 and in 2013, following local fundraising, a bronze plaque dedicated to Uphill's memory was installed on a wall close to the pub location at Station Terrace.
Motorcycle hero Malcolm Uphill honoured with plaque
''Caerphilly Observer'', 20 September 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2015
File:The Malcolm Uphill pub Caerphilly geograph 2925730.jpg, The Malcolm Uphill pub, opened in 2011 on the corner of Cardiff Road and Clive Street in the centre of Caerphilly
File:Malcolm Uphill plaque Caerphilly geograph 4190982.jpg, Commemorative plaque installed into a wall during 2013 at Station Terrace, Caerphilly
References
External links
Short videos with commentary, Uphill and Tait production race and Triumph Bonneville 1969 TT races
(text content from Wikipedia)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Uphill, Malcolm
1935 births
1999 deaths
Sportspeople from Caerphilly
Welsh motorcycle racers
250cc World Championship riders
350cc World Championship riders
500cc World Championship riders
Isle of Man TT riders