PEOPLE
Even after he started to hit the headlines, the late great Bill Ivy would, when commitments allowed, go down to Brands Hatch to spectate even at club-level race meetings, just for the enjoyment of the race atmosphere, and simply ‘being there.’
In his super 1972 biography of Ivy, ‘No Time to Lose’, Alan Peck relates the story of one such afternoon in 1966, where Ivy: “…spotted a young lad on a battered old bike running rings around other riders with far more expensive up-to-date machinery. He wasn’t winning, but he caught Bill’s eye with his obvious style and natural ability, so much so that Bill contacted ‘Uncle Tom’ and a trial was arranged for the promising youngster. The result was encouraging and the lad was given a regular place in the Kirby team.”
‘Uncle Tom’ was Tom Kirby, the sponsor/dealer from Hornchurch, Essex, who oversaw one of the most professional private teams of the 1960s including at various times Hailwood, Read, Hartle, Ivy and Driver. The
