Wayne Adams and Bill Larue
Along with many, I was shocked to hear about the passing of Wayne Adams. I first met Wayne rallying at Goulburn years ago. My son Jack, wife Belinda and I rallied there a few years later. When Jack first got his learners to ride Wayne took an interest in him and loved to see at the time a young 17 year old on his AJS. Since then Jack started to race a WLA Harley and if we were at Wakefield Park Wayne would always encourage him. Wayne was stoked to see him front up on the 7R AJS we brought to Wakefield the next year, Wayne was an AMC guy. We will miss your grin Wayne.
On another subject I was lucky to come by a set of racing leathers, a board full of medals and information signs Number 58 Bill le Rue, Manx 350 Norton, Triumph GP500 and a 650 Triton. The guy I got them from is his grandson Wayne Routledge. He told me his grandfather’s real name was Bill Routledge and he raced for a long time on speedway scrambles and on the road tracks. There are even medals from London and South London. An article on VMX forum puts you the editor riding one of his old bikes an AJS 18cs. His leathers have a Parramatta Club bib, does anybody have pictures or history of his racing? If so, could you contact me
Mick Petith on 0418 261 676.
One last thing, in OBA 99 a picture of sidecar 728 with Jack Petith and Scarlet Poucher racing was really her dad Eddie and Scarlet (Scoobie). Jack was to ride it but Covid struck me, so he and I had to isolate. He will be on it again soon, along with the Harley and 7R. It was great to see a story on Bianca Bonner, a story on the Handshifter racers would be great! Mick Petith Glenorie, NSW Mobile: 0418 261 776 Email: mbpetith@hotmail.com
Bill Larue (Routledge) was an excellent and very spectacular rider on Short Circuit (dirt track) and road racing, a winner at Bathurst in the Senior B Clubmen’s TT 1958 and a member of Parramatta club. In the mid ‘fifties there was a notorious police sergeant, Routledge, (no relation to Bill) attached to Parramatta (or it may have been Liverpool) who had a pathologic hatred of motorcyclists and persecuted them mercilessly. Bill felt he could not compete using his surname so used Larue, which was his middle name.
My 18CS AJS was not ex-Larue, it came from Peter Groucott in WA. To my knowledge Bill always rode BSAs – he won the Senior Clubman at Bathurst on a Gold Star. He usually rode with number 76.