Work in progress.
Two-stroke motorcycle history.
Motorcycle Racing.
Kim Newcombe and the Konig.
Kim Newcombe from Nelson, New Zealand was the creator of the Konig GP racing motorcycle, he adapted a Konig water-cooled, four-cylinder, two-stroke outboard motor for motorcycle racing and was the first to challenge the dominance of the MV Augusta, following Honda's departure from Grand Prix competition at the end of the 1967 season.
In contrast to his main competitors, Newcombe himself was responsible for developing, building, maintaining and racing the Konig, an incredible achievement, especially considering the West German outboard motor company Konig had no connection or involvement with motorcycles.
At a non-championship event at Silverstone in 1973 he took his customary walk of the track prior to the event. Newcombe had requested that hay bales be positioned before the race on the outside of Stowe Corner but race officials refused, stating they were "not required".
Guess what, Kim Newcombe tragically slid off the circuit at that very corner in the race and collided with the concrete barrier, he died from severe head injuries three days later at just 29 years of age.
An illustration of British officialdoms arrogance at it’s worst, words fail me!
A mark of his incredible achievement is his posthumous second place in the 1973 500cc World Championship.
It’s not just British ACU who are guilty of an outright pomposity, it’s the Italians as well.
Earlier on in the same year as Newcombe’s death a similar attitude prevailed, this time at the Italian GP at Monza and the 250cc GP race.
During the 250cc warm-up lap the riders noted that there were significant oil slicks on some of the corners, and John Dodds asked organizers to clean the circuit before allowing the event to proceed. Dodds was rebuffed and threatened with expulsion and the event went ahead.
At the first corner the starting pack hit one of the oil patches and a chain reaction began, resulting in the deaths of two truly legendary riders, Renzo Pasolini and Jarno Saarinen and the injury of several others.
Konig GP racing motorcycle. Konig adapted two-stroke engine.