The Southern was always the best and most enjoyable race of the year for me looks like nothings changed since I was last there twenty years ago.

You can't knock the old hands all of the time, look at the who's who photos on the S100 web site, looks like a bunch of old lags who have done thirty years in Strangeways, what a bloody crew.

Des Evans, Gordon Clague and the rest of them, all looking a bit iffy these days, but what great bunch of lads, Gordon used to be a scrutineer or chief scrutineer, because I was on my own he always used to let me take one bike through and get on with getting out to practice and would see that all my other bikes were done and ready for me when I came back to change over.

The old hands at the T.T. Colin Armes and his wife, Len Harfield, and Derek Jackson, Fred Hanks all spring to mind, were always helpful to riders and bent over backwards to see that riders were sorted out and okay. By the sounds of it the people and things have changed a lot

Seems to me it's the way all sport is going, we live in a changing world and not for the better, glad I was at it in the 60s/70s and early 80s so I aint got no bad memories apart from absent friends.

Defintitely going to try and get to the Southern in 85 for the Anniversary.