There’s no point in trying to conduct a normal, structured interview with Guy Martin; his brain just doesn’t work that way. Renowned for his riding and engineering abilities, the hugely entertaining Lincolnshire man has also thrilled millions with his TV shows and world record attempts, but sticking to a script is not his way.
Any conversation with Guy Martin tends to veer off on tangents, but they’re always tangents worth listening to, and he always remembers to come back to where he started. So, the most interesting way to speak to him is to get a brew on, mention a couple of subjects, then sit back and enjoy the ride.
“Classic British bikes were where it all first started for me,” Guy says as he settles down with his first mug of tea, and his three dogs clambering all over him.”The first race bike I ever rode was my dad’s 1972 BSA Rocket 3. That was at a track day at Cadwell Park in about 1997 or 1998, and I was just obsessed from then on, really. I was always obsessed with motorbikes but, from that point on, I just wanted to go racing. I worked my arse off to get enough money to buy a race bike and I did club level stuff, then British Championship stuff, then started on the Irish roads. The roads allowed me to ride modern bikes and classic bikes at the same meetings.”
Riding such radically different machines would prove to be crucial in
