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Australian Motocross Championships Mosman Park
26 june 1955, THE ROPE WORKS, MOSMAN PARK- WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Photo: [Left] Local rider Peter Nicol (B.S.A.) takes the chequered flag to win the All Powers, 350cc and Harley Scramble at the 1955 Australian Motocross Championships at the Rope Works circuit in WA; [centre] Nicol and Victorian Champion Les Sheehan (B.S.A.) dicing for the outright lead in the Championships; and [right] local Champion Les Clinton, a former Harley Scramble winner.
Nicol wins outright 1955 Australian Championship and Harley Scramble
Local rider Peter Nicol was the overall winner at the 1955 Australian Motocross (Scrambles) Championships held in Mosman Park on Sunday, 26 June 1955 – Western Australia’s first ever National Championships.
Nicol, the overall National Champion, also won the 350cc class and Harley Scramble in front of more than 20,000 people and collected the huge £130 pound prize money plus trophies – which was almost half a year’s salary for the average worker at the time (equivalent to $50,000 in 2023).
The Australian Championships at the Rope Works circuit covered identical ground to that first circuit constructed by Aub Melrose in 1927, when he established the famous Harley Scramble – which was combined with the National Championships in 1955.
Due to the tremendous appeal of the Harley Scramble format for 27 years, the Auto Council of Australia granted permission for the Australian Championships to follow this format.
Therefore, instead of classes being run separately over short distances, all groups were run concurrently and covered the same number of laps with the class winners determined by their finishing positions and the size of their machines.
The 2.5 mile cross-country course consisted of limestone quarries and sand tracks, with a number of steep ascents and descents.
Showing Aub Melrose’s TT background, riders were started in pairs at 10-second intervals, with each competitor allotted his own clock.
The total distance was approximately 60 miles with all competitors covering ten laps in the morning section and fourteen laps in the afternoon section.
Nicol’s sponsor Mortlocks ordered a new 500cc Gold Star B.S.A. for Nicol to ride in the ’55 Championships. But as it didn’t arrive in time, Nicol was given a new 350cc Gold Star B.S.A. off the showroom floor, which he rode to triple victory.
Image – 1955 Australian Scramble Championship Program Cover.
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Sheehan heads interstate challenge
Victorian Les Sheehan leads Peter Nicol at the Rope Works circuit in WA during the morning’s race at the 1955 Australian Championships
Only four interstate competitors made the long journey to the west.
They were the NSW champion and representative Charles Scaysbrook, the newly-returned overseas scramble campaigner from Victoria, Les Sheehan, and top South Aussies Les Jesser and Jim Silvy.
These championships were the first to establish the early supremacy of West Australian motocross riders – mainly due to the demanding nature of the WA courses and the gruelling distances over which they were held.
In the overall National Championship, Nicol faced stiff opposition from Les Sheehan (Victoria) who had ridden for the A.J.S. Works Team in Europe and returned with an ex-works 500cc A.J.S. machine for the event.
Sheehan was the best-performed of the visitors and won the first one-hour leg from 112 starters, with Nicol in second – 22 seconds behind.
But Sheehan’s luck ran out just after the restart when his frame broke, leaving Nicol and Ron Edwards to battle it out. Nicol won the race and was the outright winner ahead of WA riders Ron Edwards and Bill Watson, making it a clean sweep for B.S.A. machines.
South Australian Les Jesser (B.S.A.) finished second to Nicol in the 350s. While Les Jesser was the only visitor (and 350 rider) to finish on the podium, the abilities of Charlie Scaysbrook were not overlooked by the crowd. Riding a particularly unsuitable rigid-framed 350 Matchless, Scaysbrook held second place in the 350 class until the closing laps when he noticed a broken oil line.
One of the most impressive performances of the day was by the 250 class winner, Johnny Rock, who rode his 200cc Francis Barnett into eighth place outright some 14 minutes in arrears of Nicol. Manjimup rider Doug Cutts was awarded the Australian Over 500cc title aboard a Triumph 650cc machine.
Huge start and prizemoney for the top riders
Bill Watson, from Kalgoorlie, placed second in the 500cc class and third in the All Powers at the 1955 Australian Championships
If the nature of the course was a surprise for the visitors, so too was the incredible prize money.
On top of the race winnings, each visitor was presented with a cheque for £10 pounds to cover their travelling expenses from the eastern states, more than the basic wage.
Only 38 solo riders finished the event and the 125cc and sidecar classes were not held that year due to insufficient entries.
As the racing machines were street bikes, many entrants rode their machines to and from the course.
Bill Watson, who placed third overall on the day, regularly rode his B.S.A. Gold star from Kalgoorlie to Perth –370 miles (593 kms) one way.
Earlier in 1952, Bill rode this same bike across the Nullabor from Perth to Sydney to compete in scrambles on the east coast.
Amazingly Bill, who is now in his late nineties, still has a racing licence today and last competed at the National level in 2019 – at the VMX championships at Harrisville in Queensland.
1955 Australian Motocross Championship Results
Photo: Johnny Rock, rode his 200cc Francis Barnett into eighth place outright
Overall National Championship
1 Peter Nicol (WA, B.S.A.)
2 Ron Edwards (WA, B.S.A.)
3 Bill Watson (WA, B.S.A.)
250cc
1 John Rock (WA, Francis Barnett)
2 John Shaw (WA, James)
3 No other finishers
350cc
1 Peter Nicol (WA, B.S.A.)
2 Les Jesser (SA, B.S.A.)
3 No other finishers
500cc
1 Ron Edwards (WA, B.S.A.)
2 Bill Watson (WA, B.S.A.)
3 Eric Kosonen (WA, B.S.A.)
Over 500cc
1 Doug Cutts (WA, Triumph)
2 Alan Blakers (WA, Triumph)
3 John Hames (WA, Harley)
