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The Isle of Man TT event has made history ever since the first person looked at the lump of rock in the Irish sea and said to his friend: "You know what would be a great idea here? A motorcycle race against the clock!"
The Isle of Man TT has given us fans moments of pure joy, total admiration and sheer exhilaration. It has also given us moments of absolute horror and terrific sadness that, at the time, never felt as though it would ever leave our world.
If you want the ultimate sporting example of courage then here it is. Wrapped up in an island, in THE Island, of people and places who for two specific weeks of the year embrace every second and give up every inch of their home so that those greats can come and do things on two wheels that you never get to see anywhere else.
Get your 2013 TT off to a cracking start with your copy of Island Racer 2013
The Settle & Carlisle railway runs across the roof of England, reaching the highest point on any main line railway in the country. Today it carries a frequent and well-patronised passenger service and considerable heavy long-distance freight traffic.
But we are lucky that the line has survived two attempts to close it and in fact should probably never have been built at all.
There could now be a 72 mile abandoned trackbed passing through such places as Blea Moor, over Dent Head and Arten Gill viaducts and the legendary Ais Gill summit, but fortunately, sufficient people felt strongly enough to campaign successfully to stop this happening and keep one of Britain’s favourite railway lines open.
Since the line was reprieved from closure for the second time in 1989 after an eight-year battle, train services have been expanded. In fact they were expanding even while it was still the intention to close the line, but saving the line was not the end of the story, it was just the beginning.
This is the story of the revival in the fortunes of the Settle & Carlisle.
Many closed stations have reopened and are being restored to their former glory, freight traffic has returned and steam-hauled excursions over the line have gone from strength to strength.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel. Three names.Three people in one.
Born in Portsmouth on 9 April 1806, there was Brunel the great engineer, who would habitually throw out the rulebook of tradition and established practice, and start again with a blank sheet of paper, taking the technology of the day to its limits - and then going another mile.
Then there was Brunel the visionary, who knew that transport technology had the power to change the world, and that he had the ability to deliver those changes. Finally, there was Brunel the artist - who rarely saw technology as just functional, and strove to entwine the fruits of the Industrial Revolution with the elegance and grace of the neo-classical painter.
His bridges, tunnels and railway infrastructure have entered a third century of regular use, and the beauty of their design and structure has rarely been equalled. The three decades, from the 1830s to the 1850s, saw an explosion of technical excellence, and it was Brunel who in so many cases lit the blue touchpaper. He did not always get it right first time, and it was left to others to reap the fruits of his many labours. Nevertheless, his actions fast-forwarded the march of progress by several decades. In 2006, Britain is celebrating the 200th anniversary of Brunel’s birth, with a multitude of events large and small, for the family, the steam buff and the academic alike. It will be a wonderful year, in which Isambard’s many legacies will be re-examined - and revisited.
The landmarks will take centre stage, of course: the spectacular Royal Albert Bridge at Saltash, the magnificent glass-roofed terminus of Paddington, Maidenhead bridge with its elliptical arches that many said would never stand up, the stupendous Clifton Suspension Bridge, completed shortly after his death, to his design by a team of admirers, Bristol’s original Temple Meads station, the Dawlish sea wall railway route - everyone’s favourite section of the national network, and many more.
Perhaps the most famous single mission in the RAF's illustrious history, the Dams Raid, took place 70 years ago in May 1943.
To commemorate the landmark mission, Squadron Leader Clive Rowley (Retd) a former Officer Commanding the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, takes a fresh look at an old story with the benefit of some modern research to aid the process.
This special bookazine, which includes some previously unpublished pictures and some stunning artwork, commemorates the men of No.617 Squadron plus the engineering brilliance of Barnes Wallis and his colleagues at Vickers and Avro.
It's a story which does not need embellishment, but which famously received the Hollywood treatment; a fabulous tale of ingenuity, daring and raw courage. All military actions are made up of mistakes, myths and a few miracles – the Dams Raid contained them all.
The publication tells the story of the real people with human traits, complex and contradictory personalities and flaws. This is also a story of inspired leadership under conditions of almost unbelievable strain.
For decades the results and effects of the Dams Raid have been 'down-played' or even condemned by a series of commentators, journalists and academics. Here the author sets the record straight, opining that those views denigrate the sacrifice of those involved quite wrongly, especially those 53 who willingly gave their lives in the belief that they were making a difference.
But there's more, as although 617 was originally formed to carry out one specific operation, it subsequently evolved into a specialist, precision bombing squadron. The brilliant post-Dams Raid work done by the squadron is also covered.
In 1943 Operation Chastise, as the Dams Raid was officially named, established a legend that still resonates today.
Sample look inside...
The Settle & Carlisle railway runs across the roof of England, reaching the highest point on any main line railway in the country. Today it carries a frequent and well-patronised passenger service and considerable heavy long-distance freight traffic.
But we are lucky that the line has survived two attempts to close it and in fact should probably never have been built at all.
There could now be a 72 mile abandoned trackbed passing through such places as Blea Moor, over Dent Head and Arten Gill viaducts and the legendary Ais Gill summit, but fortunately, sufficient people felt strongly enough to campaign successfully to stop this happening and keep one of Britain’s favourite railway lines open.
Since the line was reprieved from closure for the second time in 1989 after an eight-year battle, train services have been expanded. In fact they were expanding even while it was still the intention to close the line, but saving the line was not the end of the story, it was just the beginning.
This is the story of the revival in the fortunes of the Settle & Carlisle.
Many closed stations have reopened and are being restored to their former glory, freight traffic has returned and steam-hauled excursions over the line have gone from strength to strength.
Recapture those once in a lifetime moments of motorcycling history with images from Mortons' extensive archive of preserved photos - all professionally reproduced in stunning quality and delivered to your door.
The Garage Wall Poster Collection is a series of exclusive motorcycle-related images printed in large format to enable the enthusiast to either frame them or simply enjoy them by sticking them on bare garage walls. The images are but a snapshot from the Mortons Archive collection which proudly boasts having some four million motorcycle images dating back to the pioneering days of two-wheeled transport.
Printed on 70gsm wood-free paper, the images will enjoy a long ‘shelf life’ and the broadsheet format will enable the enthusiast to enjoy iconic images in poster format. Each image has an expanded caption explaining a little of the scene, location and those included in the picture.
The publisher has endeavoured to produce an eclectic mix of both colour and monochrome pictures, but essentially they are all. of classic motorcycling scenes.
Mortons Archive is one of the largest of its type in the world. As welt as prints, there is in excess of one-and-a-half tons of glass plates. The images encapsulate the Edwardian days of motorcycling from the turn of the century right through until the early Sixties when film and transparency was more widely used.
Selecting the images caused much scratching of heads.
We have tried to give you an insight into the variety of images available. To browse thousands more motorcycling images, many of which paint a unique picture of not only motorcycling but the many changes in social history over 70 years, visit the website at: www.mortonsarchive.com .
Printed by Mortons Print Ltd. Mortons Way, Horncastle, LN9 6JR.
Tel: 0044 (0) 1507 529423 Email: jskayman@mortons.co.uk or visit the website at www.mortonsarchive.com
The 1920s and 30s were decades of massive change following the 'war to end all wars'. Those years saw Britain's railways take on the rest of the planet in the race for the world steam speed record - and win. Railwaymen were hailed as heroes.
The steam railway was one of the greatest gifts of all to mankind... yet it could be argued and demonstrated that just across the sea it made the world's darkest days possible.
"...the personification of the devil as the symbol of all evil assumes the living shape of the Jew".
Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf.
Picture YOUR life today... then imagine being told you may no longer go to school, you must surrender your driving licence, you are sacked from your job, you may no longer use public transport...your bank account is closed, your savings confiscated, pension no longer paid... you are to be 'resettled'... AND THE WAY YOU WILL BE MOVED IS BY TRAIN.
But you are not just transported, you are uprooted, traumatised, humiliated and tortured, and that is before you are even pushed into a closed, windowless goods wagons.
More than 11 million innocent people were murdered, including six million Jews, along with Poles, Soviet prisoners of war, Roma, Sinti, homosexuals and anyone else who did not 'fit'.
In this publication, Robin Jones, editor of Heritage Railway magazine, looks at the way the fantastic legacy of Richard Trevithick was perverted to become integral to an evil regime.
This is the story of the Holocaust... as viewed from track level.
The Road Locomotive Society was formed in 1937 when traction engines were rapidly disappearing. The early recognition that details should be recorded enabled many sources of information, some later lost during the war, to be secured for the future. The resulting records provide a unique historical insight into the use of road steam vehicles.
The Society’s aim continues to be recording the history of road steam engines, including portables, produced and used within the United Kingdom. The records are arranged under manufacturers, and owners listings. The primary sources of information have been makers records and the County registration books. information from these sources has been regarded as irrefutable and has only been supplemented from elsewhere when corroborated by two sources.
The Society also owns a large Library of books and catalogues and an unrivalled collection of original photographs. It publishes books using its resources and a quarterly Journal for its members. Access to the collection is normally restricted to members. For further details please refer to the Society website www.roadlocosociety.org.uk
The Road Locomotive Society. Registered Charity No. 1102574
The publishers of The Traction Engine Register acknowledge the assistance of the Road Locomotive Society in confirming many historical details from their records.
The only comprehensive list of road steam vehicles, from Advance to Zettelmyer, other than cars to survive in preservation in the UK. The 11th Edition 2012 compiled and edited by Brian Johnson was published on April 2012.
Pages : 102
Format : Paperback
Content : Approximately 3000 engines and wagons listed and complimented with colour illustrations and photography.
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