My first accident was side swiping a Roll Royce. How many people can say that .......

After 3 years at Mosley Collage of Art, I entered the work force in a commercial art studio doing mostly line drawings for newspaper adds. After a few months the annual Christmas party provided free drinks, heading home after several Drambuie's on my old B20 with sidecar, I miss judged the clearance to the car alongside and annoyed it to the tune of several weeks wages. It was scrapper of a Rolls but carried status in the snobby lot I worked with.

My next accident came several years later employed “on the building” and working about 30 miles away from the yard, the owner paid me to take a bricklayer and a carpenter along to the job site with me. Tired out after a hard day mostly mixing concrete, and closer to home, we were taking a sweeping corner which comprised one leg of a “Y” junction. Not paying sufficient attention the traffic had stopped in front and my chair wheel centered on a Ford Prefect rose majestically to the top and down the side coming to rest on the running board. Amazingly there was not a mark on the car and no money changed hands. The driver rolled his window down to undo the hinged top half of the sidecar allowing the bricklayer to exit the “one wheeled coffin”.

Both of the above were my fault without question the 2 solo accidents in the UK I survived later were not. Perhaps some caution followed, since starting racing solo in 1959 and sidecar in 1963 I have never had an accident on the track. Running off without leaving the bike do not count. Paul.

Good story Paul. Why not forward it to John to use in the News. That way it will reach a much wider audience, many who would not normally go to the sidecar forum. 

I remember that wheel also. There is a good story in there somewhere waiting to get out. I do miss those races....