YOU CAN’T KEEP A GOOD MAN DOWN

Raised in the goldfields of the wild west at a time when Kalgoorlie mineshafts were only outnumbered by the red lights of Hay Street and the pubs along Hannan Street, Bill Watson’s apprenticeship as a Fitter and Turner was a natural for the mechanically-minded youngster. And though he’d soon purchase a 1930 Velocette 350 KSS on the drip feed, Bill’s scrambling debut was on a mate’s BSA B31.

Less than a year later Bill had traded the Velo on a brand spanker, a 1947 Triumph Speed Twin and shortly after that he’d destroyed the gearbox in a local scramble. At the post race BBQ Bill was disconsolate, mentally comparing his apprentice’s pay slip against the probable cost of a new gear set. And no doubt wondering whether a new pair of football boots might not be a more affordable investment.

Ken Marshall, the local Triumph dealer, impressed by Bill’s progress, urged him to stick with scrambling, offering use of his workshop, access to spare parts and, later, becoming somewhat of a mentor to the aspiring racer. This made the situation so much more difficult when Bill decided the Triumph just wasn’t working for him. “The terrain was all ironstone around Kal,” he recalls “and it seemed there was no