Twin peaks?

Both AJS and Matchless enjoyed racing success from the pioneer days of motorcycling onwards. Brothers Charlie and Harry Collier, of the founding family of H Collier & Sons Ltd, 44/45 Plumstead Road, Plumstead, London, makers of the Matchless motorcycle, raced to many wins and places on London’s cycle tracks, at Brooklands and in the IoM, before the First World War.

While both brothers won races at Brooklands, arguably Charlie had the better run, breaking the 1000cc one hour record in 1908 and he exceeded 80mph for a lap in 1910, raising this to 90mph the following year. Harry was no slouch at Brooklands either and in the IoM, he won the 1909 TT, while Charlie raced to victory in the first TT race in 1907 and again in 1910, with Harry second.

AJS, then manufactured by the Stevens family in Wolverhampton also enjoyed many pre-First World War race victories. Eric Williams won the 1914 Junior TT, chased by fellow factory entry Cyril Williams (as every report states, no relation) who won the year’s 56 lap, 152 mile Brooklands’ Junior TT at 53.99mph. While Matchless largely dropped racing after the First World War, AJS continued, with Cyril Williams winning the 1920 IoM Junior TT, Eric Williams the 1921 Junior TT and famously Howard Davies (later the manufacturer of HRD motorcycles) the year’s Senior TT, racing his Junior (350cc) model, the only occasion a Junior machine has won the Senior event.

Other AJS victories included Manxman Tommy Sheard winning