Photo ou archives : F-M. Dumas
6609
EXCELSIOR
250 "Brooklands" / Record-Breaker - 1933
Battle for supremacy
Until the mid-1930s, Brooklands was the only permanent track for racing and record-breaking in Great Britain. Created in 1907 by wealthy landowner Hugh Locke-King to give the British motor industry a testing ground for its products, this monumental concrete oval in Surrey (southwest of London) was the world's first purpose-built race circuit.
The Magic "Ton"
Most prestigious of all the Brooklands records was the magic "ton" – 100 mph – and in the early 1930s, the battle was on to be first to break the record on a 250cc machine.
Hot Favorites
The two favorites were Les Archer (New Imperial) and Monty Saunders (Excelsior JAP). Archer, an ace tuner whose son – also Les – would win the European 500cc Motocross Championship in 1956 on a Norton, was first to top the ton, lapping at just over 100 mph in 1932. Saunders refused to admit defeat and asked panel-beater Leslie Anstead to make an aerodynamic fairing for his Excelsior, whose engine had been prepared by JAP tuning wizard Tony Worters. Even the front fork was faired, with an airfoil section over the fork tubes. A hand-beaten aluminium shell clad the frame and engine – its rear section removable to give access to the wheel. The absence of a head fairing seems odd, but Saunders nevertheless vindicated his theories on August 26, 1933, by shattering Archer's record with an average of 102.48 mph. He also won a five-lap 250cc race at similar speed. His record still stands, since WWII brought racing at Brooklands to an end.
SPECIFICATIONS
Engine: 248c (65x76mm) air-cooled JAP single-cylinder four-stroke; magneto ignition
Power Rating: 22-24 hp @ 6500 rpm (running on alcohol)
Valves: overhead
Fuel System: Amal "track" carburetor
Transmission: 4-speed, chain final drive
Suspension: Webb girder forks (front); rigid (rear)
Brakes: drum (rear)
Wheels: 19 inch (front & rear)
Weight: 212 lb
Maximum Speed: 105 mph
The streamlining on this amazing Excelsior may have been a matter of inspired guesswork, but this was the fastest prewar 250 in Britain!