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For the media-obsessed bike racing fan, the dark ages ended about five years ago when the arrival of satellite television brought world class motorcycle racing into our living rooms. The mid-eighties had shown tantalising glimpses of emergent stars battling against overweight machines and each other in the annual Transatlantic races, but otherwise the UK was rationed to one televised bike grand prix per year, accompanied by presenters more familiar with foot faults than footpegs. Sattelite television, hungry for any share of the market it could find, changed all that. Hidden away in a dark corner of this minority medium was the most competitive motorsport ever televised. Riders fought elbow to elbow for a lead that could change with every corner, and the commentary double act came from an ex-racer and a motorcycle journalist who not only understood what was happening on-screen, but actually seemed to enjoy it. World Superbikes has now become, in Britain at least, more popular than the grand prix championship, and the journalist half of the commentary team has put pen to paper (or rather, fingers to keyboard) to bring us a potted history of the race series. Julian Rider’s ‘World Superbikes - The First Ten Years’ provides a useful starting point for those who have only just discovered WSB racing, and fills the knowledge gaps of enthusiasts who remember Fred Merkel from his Transatlantic Trophy battles with Kevin Scwhantz and Ron Haslam. The book also manages to strike a comfortable balance between facts and narrative. The lists of statistics are there at the back for those who want them, and reveal some interesting names scattered amongst the old favourites, but this is a volume more worthy of an armchair than a coffee table. The author manages to tell the story, and hold the reader’s interest, without lapsing into a confusing blur of race by race minutia. The focus is as much on why a race was lost as on how it was won, and by concentrating more on the people than the lap charts that story becomes more compelling. Kel Edge’s photography illustrates the book, and offers an interesting insight into the changes that have taken place over the last decade; the number of sponsor’s logos carried on machines seems to have risen in inverse proportion to the number of riders and mechanics sporting curly perms. The illustrations also show how much motorcycle technology has evolved over the last decade; my only criticism of the book is that this area was not covered in more detail. However, it was a pleasant surprise to pick up a Haynes publication and not find that poor chap in the black and yellow overalls still struggling to fit an Avon Roadrunner tyre to a spoked wheel. Reading this book will give you an insight into what makes the sport so compelling, and will have you itching to see the next race. Definitely recommended. Back to the index... |
© 1998 Martin Gelder