NICK JEFFERIES

A life on dirt & track

RIDING WITH DAD

Nick passengers for his dad Allan on a Scott in the Veteran Reunion Trial in 1964. Scotts meant a lot to the Jefferies – they were made near their home, and Allan was a factory rider. This shot was taken by the film-maker David Wood.

FIRST MANX

Nick, complete with safety bobble hat, does battle with Manx mud in the 1968 Two-day Trial. He was 16 and it was his first Manx – and only his 10th ever trial. He managed to finish, though, and came 75th out of 250. He went on to win it in 1976.

RIDING FOR HONDA

In 1975 the great Sammy Miller, who was managing Honda’s trials squad, offered Nick a works ride (he’s on his factory Honda above). Nick eventually got himself sacked by sneaking off and racing at the Manx Grand Prix.

MANX GP WIN

Nick sits proudly on the Suzuki RG500 he rode to victory in the 1983 Manx GP. The Allan Jefferies dealership played a pivotal role in Nick’s TT career – several race bikes were on the showroom floor just days before the TT...

THE RIVALS

After getting dropped by Honda in 1994, Nick was back in 1996 riding an RC45. Here he’s sitting with Joey Dunlop (left) and Phillip Mccallen (centre) after trio got a 1-2-3 in the Senior TT. Mccallen won, Joey was second, Nick third.

RIDING THE BRITTEN

The wildy innovative Britten V1000 was built in a shed by John Britten (standing behind Nick in a sweatshirt). It was fast – it won the 1994 Battle of the Twins at Daytona – but reliability problems stopped Nick from showing its potential.

BACK IN THE SADDLE

After the death of his nephew David at the 2003 TT, Nick lost all enthusiasm for racing and took up golf instead. But a decade later, the Classic TT festival lured him back to the Island, first on an RC30 (above) and then on a Kawasaki ER-6.