Vintage Thing No.17.1 - Bill Martin's dirt track Duggie

Following on from VT17, John Deacon was telling me of Bill Martin a legendary grasstrack racer and Douglas rider from Cornwall who rode his bike around the wall of Redruth railway station. Nothing very special in that - except that he was on top of the wall!

This triggered an old memory of mine. I'd seen an elderly and fairly rotund gentleman being helped onto a dirt track Duggie at the West of England Traction Engine Rally back in the eighties. I had a vague idea I had photographed his machine.

Searching for something else in the Anarchadia photo archives, I turned up a photo of a dirt track Douglas. And - very rare for me - I'd written down some details on the back. It was indeed Bill Martin's 1928 500cc dirt track Douglas.


I remember the knobbly rear tyre. I think the cover was very old. I doubt you can get that tread pattern any more.

To me, this bike looks fantastic. Even the hand change and rudimentary springing don't put me off.

Hossack double wishbone front ends don't look so much different from old-style girder forks and I have an idea for a sprung rear end along the lines of a Harley Soft tail but am not sure how the chain tension would work with a gearbox sprocket so far from the swing arm pivot point.

Of course, for real heroes like Bill Martin, nothing would put they off!