Bantam racing at 60!
has won more BSA Bantam championships than probably even he can remember. He has been racing Bantams for many years and still enjoys it so much that he would love other people to get involved.
Iknow a lot has been said about various single make/model race series, notably the Honda 125 Series and the Yamaha Proam 350LC races, which have both been very successfully running for approximately five years each. But the longest running single make/ model racing series is undoubtedly the BSA Bantam Race Series.
The Bantam Racing Club formed in 1960 but it didn’t have its first race meeting until 1961 at Snetterton. More meetings were arranged each year and, in 1964, a Championship was started. The first winner was
Roy Bacon of motorcycle book writing fame. That, of course, means that 2021 was the 60th consecutive season of Bantam racing which must make it one of the longest continuous race series ever.
Many a rider has cut his teeth racing a Bantam – notably Neil Tuxworth, Clive Horton, Steve Chambers, Bob Newby and many, many more. Of course, these were not road-going machines, but bikes built to a formula so things like frame loop, engine and 3-speed gearboxes were retained, but a free hand was given to other parts of the machine.
Fast forward to the present day and Bantam racing is still very much ‘alive and clucking’! It survived the demise of the Bantam Racing Club and moved on to race with British Historic Racing in
1996. 2020 was of course tricky, but, with the help of the Preston and District Club, we managed to run the race series over three days in September and October. A couple of races had to be cancelled this year, but an extra Championship round was added at Tonfanau with the Crewe & South Cheshire Club in August. In addition to a Bantam Champion, this year a trophy was also awarded to a Welsh Bantam Champion for the points scored at the Welsh Rounds.
Bantam racing is a great way to get involved in racing because it’s ideal for the home builder and tuner and it’s probably the most affordable route into motorcycle racing. (I’ve owned my Bantam since 1984 and it’s been quite successful during that time!)
Plus, it’s a huge amount of fun. There are rules which are strictly adhered to, but that still gives a lot of scope for making your Bantam just that tiny bit faster.
For more details please have a look at the BSA Bantam Racing Facebook page where you will soon be able to find out details of next year’s season – hopefully with no cancellations or changes this time – and I’d also like to thank all the racing clubs, our friends and sponsors who support the BSA Bantam Club.