IF YOU WERE THINKING OF BUYING A NEW motorcycle in the early 1930s, then it was a good chance that a Rudge would have been at the top of your wishlist. These were race-bred machines. In July 1929, Ernie Nott won Brooklands’ greatest race, the 200-mile solo, at 100.70mph – the only time the event would be won at over the ton. Later that year he went to Montlhéry and broke the one-hour world record when he covered 106.49 miles. Five days later, Nott and Tyrell Smith claimed the 200-mile record with a speed of 102.9mph.
Between 1930 and 1934, Rudge won the Senior, Junior and Lightweight TT races. Five times they made the fastest lap, while they finished 1-2-3 in the 1930 Junior and the 1934 Lightweight. And it wasn’t only in the Isle of Man that Rudge riders were top dogs – they won the German, Swedish, Australian and Ulster Grand Prix along with the Austrian, Spanish, Italian and Dutch
