Linsdell ‘It was second quickest’
Team Flitwick Motorcycles 1992 Yamaha GTS750 Rider Olie Linsdell Race position 20th
The bike Steve Linsdell, Flitwick Motorcycles
We used to race a Yamaha FZ750, which was getting old hat, so we changed to the new Yamaha YZF750 in 1993, but I couldn’t get the thing to go in a straight line. When I test rode a new hub-centre steered GTS1000 I couldn’t believe how stable it was so I thought: let’s put the two new Yamahas together! (There was a 750cc capacity limit so we couldn’t use the GTS’s engine.) It took a few years of development as we had to redesign the frame and the front end. The bodywork was done in chicken wire first: sculpted to what it is today. I wanted to be able to tuck my knees in.
We played around with the engine and its best was up to 135-140bhp. In 1995 I finished 6th in the F1 class. I raced it up to 2004 but was getting slower. My son Olie had a run out at Brands in 2007 and got a decent result but it hadn’t turned a wheel until this year’s Classic TT.
Racing it By Olie Linsdell
One of my first memories was Dad [Steve] building the GTS. I remember seeing all this chicken wire, he was making a bodywork mould. I rode the bike once at Brands, but this is first time I’ve raced it on the road. It behaves well and was second quickest through the trap at 172.6mph – I went 2mph quicker each lap to finish 20th. If I’d had a full week’s practice I’m sure we’d have put up a decent performance. The GTS is pretty different from the 50bhp Enfield which I’m used to. It was very stable and easy to turn. It might look big and long but there’s no conventional frame, no yokes, no headstock or big heavy forks – and all its weight is low down. There are a few oddities that take getting used to. The front suspension never bottoms out, no matter how hard you brake. You can feel it moving, which feels odd over bumpy sections, but in theory should be better than conventional forks.