Mike (the Bike) Hailwood?

Question

While looking around for something to do with Racing.

I found this report

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/hailwoodtwenty.htm

I think the comments are very good and say alot about him.

It also shows how things have changed. whether for the good or not. If your a racing fan and dont know much about him. have a read. I found it interesting. any thoughts on the man ?

Answer 1

Mike Hailwood is one of my contenders for the greatest rider of all time and in all honesty I think that the only others who deserve to be mentioned in the same breath are Giacomo Agostini and Valentino Rossi and even as a huge Vale van he only just gets in there.

There is a book " A Man Called Mike" which is his life story. It is not that well written but an interesting and easy read none the less. One of the things that is very impressive about him was the he could go to a race meeting blast round and win on a small capacity two stroke bike. Hope off that and go staright back out in the next race on a large capacity four stroke and win again.

I could write so much about Mike The Bike - the TT come back, hid personality, humility and so on. He was just fantastic and the racing world is still a sadder place for his not being around.

Answer 2

One of my heroes when I went to bike meetings.

Didn`t realise it was 20 years.

Answer 3

he was also a good f1 driver who raced for john surtees in the early to mid 1970s, had a 2nd place at the italian gp in 1972, brilliant racer

Answer 4

Nice one proc a great man indeed, the thing i always found ironic was he won, 9 world championships.....76 gp win.....14 iom victories... and if i remember rightly he was killed by a lorry doing a u turn, while on a fish and chip run with his daughter michelle, who also got killed, i stand to be corrected, its great to remember great men like this and what they stood for RIP http://www.mikethebike.com/index.html

Answer 5

9 titles in 7 years was possible in Mike Hailwood's day because all the top riders rode bikes in all classes.

I only saw Hailwood race once that was at the "Race of the Year" at Silverstone sometime in the sixties, Hailwood rode the 500cc Honda four and the 250cc Honda six, also there was Agostini on the MV Agusta's and many famous and not so famous riders for that era, as a lunch time atracton Goerge Brown was doing sprint starts on his supercharged Vincent 1000cc Super Nero.

A great day out folowed by a long slow journey home in a Ford E93A Popular, great days.