The Alec Bennett story
Five times winner Alec Bennett - calculated in racing and business - was the first superstar of the Isle of Man races, taking his historically significant victories on three makes of machines in the 1920s.
s TT winners go, Alec Bennett isn't one of the most famous or most revered, neither does he any longer feature highly on the list of all time winners. For a long ·period though, in the late 1920s,he held the record for the most wins in the races. He also scored some landmark wins in TT history, including the last sidevalve machine when he rode a Sunbeam to victory in 1922,the first overhead camshaft victory, for Velocette in 1926,and the first TT win for an overhead camshaft Norton, triumphing on the Walter Moore-designed CS1in 1927.For these feats alone, Bennett warrants a place in the history of the TT.
Alec Bennett was born in Craigogantlet (normally misspelled as Craigantlet, even on roads signs ... ), County Down, in what is now Northern Ireland, in 1897,though the Bennett family emigrated to Alberta, Canada, before moving onto Vancouver, British Colombia, where he enjoyed his first taste of motorcycling, racing on dirt tracks. He came to Europe during the First World War, initially serving as a dispatch rider before gaining a commission and serving in the Royal Flying Corps, piloting Bristol fighters.
After being demobbed and remaining in the UK, he approached motorcycle factories to and secure a job as a works rider. Although BSApromised an opportunity, it came to nothing, so he went to Sunbeamland at Marston, Wolverhampton, in early 1920 and enquired about the possibility of joining the firm. Already a keen and experienced rider, his skills honed on the half-mile rough tracks back home in western Canada, the story goes that Bennett was sent out on a machine in the company of a factory tester, whose job it was to report on (and probably expose the shortcomings in) the prospective newcomer's abilities. So impressed was this anonymous tester that on their return to the
Sunbeam works, he prophesied that one day the Irish-Canadian would win a TT, such was Bennett's natural ability.
Bennett's riding style throughout his career differed from that of many other riders. He concentrated on maintaining a neat, ' easy' style, positioning himself correctly on the road for the exit of the corner, so he could accelerate early, rather than cornering on the limit, as many others riders did (and do!).
Explaining himself in 1927,he said that he 'cannot afford to take risks and consequently never corners fast: This was from the man who could possibly make a successful claim to being the best, fastest motorcycle racer in the world at the time! Throughout his career, Bennett was also renowned as being mechanically sympathetic to his machinery.
Slight of figure and weighing under 10
stone, apparently of a modest and retiring disposition and quietly spoken, Bennett nevertheless possessed steely determination. This came to the fore in his first ride as a Sunbeam works rider. Not only the first time Bennett had raced a motorcycle in Europe, this was also the first time in seven years he had ridden competitively.
The destination for this, surely low-key, acclimatisation meeting? None other than the 1921Isle of Man Senior
TT, then probably the highest profile race in the world, particularly for the British firms which dominated it. And Sunbeam's Tommy de la Hay had won the 1920race too.
Bennett led for four laps, before a fluffed gear change cost him his advantage. He went on to finish a praiseworthy fourth, made even more creditable when the circumstances of his ride came to light. After a bad crash during practice, when high winds blew him into a wall, he was suffering from severe concussion. The medical staff were not keen to let him race, but Bennett persisted. Eventually they relented, on the condition he wore special bandages under his crash helmet. Having been suffering from constant, severe headache, and not having slept in four nights prior to the event, come the race Bennett found his eyelids shutting involuntarily and, despite being awake, he was unable to open his eyes. He often found himself riding blind, until his eyelids chose to reopen. He battled onto the finish and in the circumstances, fourth was highly impressive - or foolhardy - indeed.
His ability now without question, Bennett then went to the French GP,which he duly won, beating fellow Sunbeam teamster de la Hay into second. Bennett's racewinning speed was nearly 60mph. This was still only his second race since coming to Europe.
The 1922Senior TT was his next outing, once again riding the long-stroke, side-valve Sunbeam. Riding a supremely impressive race, he went on to victory, his average speed for the duration beating all previous fastest lap times.
After the event, Bennett was full of apologies to the Sunbeam management for running the machine low on oil. They didn't seem too perturbed, indeed, on the contrary, they were so impressed with his ride they presented him with his winning machine. At the Douglas Palace prizegiving ceremony, Bennett was reported as looking so uncomfortable in the public gaze that one commentator suggested that he looked like he would gladly give up his trophy to escape the limelight.
Alec Bennett's only other race outing of the season came once again at the French Grand Prix and again he rode to victory. This meant that in all the races Bennett had entered in a 12month period he had a 100 percent success ratio. He still had only ridden in four road races though - his record was nothing short of phenomenal, although his successes was becoming tainted by the developing friction in the Sunbeam camp.
Not unreasonably, Bennett believed he should have undisputed lead rider status in the Sunbeam team for the coming year. This led to a falling out with de la Hay, the other primary contender for the number one rider berth. Sunbeam managing director Sid Bowers was faced with the unenviable task of choosing between the two superbly talented riders - and he came down on the side of de la Hay, who he had known for many years. This meant Bennett, having lost face and status, felt he was left with no option than to leave Sunbeam.
For a man of his unquestioned talent and proven race winning ability, employment was never going to be hard to come by and he duly accepted an offer from Bristol-based manufacturer Douglas. Bennett packed up his belongings, and, with his wife and two children, left Wolverhampton and headed west. Famous for their 0 fore-and-aft twins, Douglas employed Bennett to try
and develop its machines into consistent winners, but, despite his best efforts, the machinery seemed to always let him down. Endless dedicated preparation ensured the Douglas stayed together long enough to win the Welsh Championship meeting on Pendine Sands, but the TT was a different story. In torrential rain, Bennett eventually nursed his Douglas home in 10th place (incidentally in a race won by his team-mate Tom Sheard) although by the time Bennett finished, everyone in the grandstand, the pits and at the scoreboard had disappeared. Alec made his way to the refreshment tent - no one there either. In desperate need of a drink, he was about to help himself to a suitably large Scotch when a bedraggled barman emerged from under the furniture, where he had taken refuge from the rain that was leaking through the tent. It took some convincing by Bennett that he was the winner of the previous year's event, not the thieving, mudencrusted vagrant his appearance suggested! By now, Bennett was looking to the future. Having saved most of the money earned from his racing, in 1923 he bought premises in Southampton and began his successful motorcycle garage business, Alec Bennett Limited, which went from strength to strength. Despite his business interests, Bennett was still keen to race and in 1924he dissolved his largely unsuccessful relationship with Douglas and switched to Norton. The old magic soon shone through and on the 490cc pushrod machine he won the three main events in the European road racing calendar - the Isle of Man Senior TT, and the 500cc French and Belgian Grands Prix. His victory in the Isle of Man was with a race average of over 60mph, the first time such a speed had been achieved. It was also Norton's first solo class win since 1907.There was also an outing in the inaugural 175ccUltra-lightweight TT, finishing ninth on a Villiers two-stroke Diamond. His achievements were without precedent and confirmed Bennett, at 27 and the peak of his game, as the top racer of his era. Diamond even offered an 'Alec Bennett Model' in its next year's catalogue. Despite offers to race cars, Bennett stayed with
Norton and motorcycles for 1925.He couldn't repeat his whitewash success of the previous year, finishing third in the Senior TT after a rare fall snapped off a footrest, retiring in the French GP but taking some consolation with another win in Belgium. He kicked off the 1926 season with another French GP win for Norton on the overhead valve model. Until now, Bennett had never regularly competed on any motorcycle of smaller engine size than 500cc and Norton currently had no suitable mount on which to compete in the Junior (350cc) class. But a new machine which had appeared in his shop had impressed him.
As a Velocette dealer - Velocette hitherto being a company known for small capacity two-strokes - Bennett was one of the first to have the Birmingham company's 348cc overhead camshaft model in his showroom. So taken with the advanced new machine was Bennett, he told Velocette's Percy Goodman that with it, he could win the Junior TT.And so convinced was Bennett of his plan, the deal he struck with Goodman and co was that, unless he won, he was to be paid no fee.
Riding sympathetically in deference to the new, relatively untried design, and despite a collision with a bank near Governor's Bridge on the last lap, Bennett and the elegant, sophisticated Velo still won by over 10 minutes. After his victory, Bennett rounded off his day by indulging in his favourite form of relaxation, by going to the Villa Marina in Douglas for a spot of ballroom dancing, which he believed was good for his body after enduring the strained, crouched position from his time in the saddle.
Unfortunately, his good run didn't extend to the 1926 Senior TT,where he retired his Norton.
Come the next year and Bennett had reduced his race outings even more, spending ever more time working at his own business, to the extent that he only ever ventured out to race for the Isle of Man classics. Defending his Junior title he was out ofluck, the engine of his Velocette blowing up. In another diversification, he was in the Lightweight 250cc race too, aboard an OK Supreme-JAP, running second and setting a new lap record, before retiring on the fifth lap.
So to the showpiece Senior race. Norton had introduced a new overhead camshaft machine, the CS1. The model, designed by Walter Moore, was provided to
the star riders, including Bennett and Stanley Woods, the Dubliner who confessed to modelling his own riding style on that ofBennett. Woods set off at a frantic pace and established a lead of four minutes when he was forced to retire on lap five. Bennett gratefully and gloriously swept through to record a milestone victory for the Brace bridge Street, Birmingham, company.
By 1928,Bennett had completely given up all racing, save for his annual jaunt to the Island. This lack of practice didn't seem to dull his effectiveness, as on his 350cc Velocette he once again rode to victory, breaking the lap record three times in the process. It was his fifth TT victory. By his standards his winning margin was a bit close - he had just five minutes over second place man Harold Willis ( also Velocette) at the end. In the Senior, he retired his Norton on the first lap, and a Lightweight outing on an OK Supreme, featuring a cylinder head on its JAP engine which he had designed himself, ended on the second lap when the magneto packed in.
For the 1929TT races Bennett ended his association with Norton and went back to the company where it all began, signing for Sunbeam. This also meant giving up the overhead camshaft engine design ofthe Nortons, but the pushrod Sunbeams were of a proven pedigree, with Charlie Dodson having used one to win the 1928Senior.
Warming up for the Senior with a third place in the Junior race on a Velocette, Bennett finished second to like-mounted Dodson. After some unkind comments in the press that he was now an 'old man' because he didn't win - remember in all the previous years if he'd had a trouble free race he'd generally won - and his business demanding evermore time, Bennett called it a day, retiring as the most successful rider in TT history.
He was lured out of retirement once more, in 1932,for a final foray to the Isle of Man. Given the time he'd had out of the saddle, his eighth place was highly creditable. He then returned to his garage business full time, which was a burgeoning and successful enterprise, by the early 1950s employing over 100 people and including a bicycle shop, car sales showrooms and service station. Having cast of the shyness and reluctance and discomfort in the limelight of his early years, Bennett's chosen method of transport was a midnight blue RollsRoyce, which matched the colour of the suits he preferred. He died in 1973.
Looking back over his career, Bennett's success ratio was nothing short of remarkable, winning 13of the competitive races he entered in the period 1921to 1929inclusive. His record stood at five TT wins (from 10 races), four French GPs and two Belgian GPs. He also won gold in the International Six Days Trial.
Little did that Sunbeam tester in 1920realise just how astute his observation that Bennett 'would win a TT' would prove to be; though one imagines said tester regaled many a listener with story of how he'd talent spotted the best • rider of his generation.