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Seen at Mallory Park today, at the first Classic Racing Motorcycle Club meeting of the season, Mike Bastable's very splendid race bike, now fitted with a 500 engine.

The question was.. could he beat his friend Stephen Jones on number 151, a 500 Ducati Pantah?.. The answer.. Yes!

Mike will be racing at Mallory again tomorrow. The weather should be dry. Feel free to pop along and say hello. He's parked up by the lake.

Cool but why the drum? Is e restricted on the bike's age?

The drum brake is there simply because it came with the bike. Mike could use a disc brake, or two, if he wanted to for the class he races in. He bought the bike from our dear departed friend Pete Morgan who obtained the bike from the original builder who was a very talented gentleman in Italy. Mike told me his name but I've forgotten it.

The brake itself is a Laverda item. The forks are Marzocchi but have a shallower offset, if that is the word, i.e. the fork legs are closer to the steering stem (see attached photo).

It is a very interesting bike with lots of interesting details. There is a box section swing arm with eccentric adjusters and the exhaust is a copy of a set (Mike has the originals) made by Figaroli of Bergamo. As you can hopefully see, the exhaust from the front cylinder runs over to the left hand side and the rear cylinder exhaust goes underneath to the right hand side. I believe the lengths are equal, but either way, it sounded divine.

Observe, also, the oil cooler, which may stay or may be removed.

Work in progress, that sort of thing...

Well, Mike had a successful weekend at Mallory Park. Four starts and four finishes and second in class in each race. Best lap time an impressive 1:01.752

So, can a Morini 500 get around Mallory quicker than a Yamaha TZ350D, a Harris Suzuki XR69 and a Yamaha FZ600? The answer is - Yes, it's official..

https://www.apex-timing.com/goracing/re ... 5/&group=9

Well done, Mike!