Close call

Re the letter “Balls & all” ( OBA 78 ‘ Blow your own’), in 1960 I was riding at Morris Park Dubbo with Trevor Martin on his 350 Ariel; I was on my 250 DKW road bike. Trevor was coming behind me (just practicing) when I high-sided the bike on the speedway bend and landed on my face with an open face fibreglass helmet and was badly concussed. As I went over the handle bars the straight clutch or brake lever went through my trousers and tore the fork out of them. If it had been higher I could have been disembowelled or ended up as a steer and needing rubber or alloy balls. Trevor had taken 1 of the plugs out his father’s old Ford custom ute to check it after our ride. Along with my brother they put me in the ute and raced into hospital, about 7 miles with only 7 plugs in the old V8. Apart from about 3 days in hospital everything was intact. As always, another great magazine.

Bruce Snodgrass Dubbo, NSW