I was born in 1925, the youngest of three children whose father had suffered from the effects of gas on the retreat from Mons in the First World War and been captured there. After the Great War, he was a police officer in London but died a couple of years after my birth. I joined the Navy after having been an electrician - a reserved occupation - but volunteered for the RAF...!
After the war I went into the motorcycle industry, worked for and raced Norton motorbikes, and some others such as Velocette. I raced with Eric Oliver in 1953 and we became World Sidecar Champions. I then teamed up with the 1952 World Sidecar Champion Cyril Smith for a number of years, but we always seemed to lose to the Germans and their BMWs! Later I was involved in the Donald Campbell Land Speed Record attempts at Lake Eyre in 1964, and pioneered NGK Spark Plugs in the UK.
I am looking forward to going to Malta for the commemorations in September, and can be found at the occasional classic racing event both in the UK and on the Continent.
If you are interested in any of this, I am happy to 'talk' to you: standibben@onetel.com
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