motorcycle. Stroud is perhaps synonymous with the
fabled Britten bike, a radical motorcycle that was
created in a small private workshop by insightful
Christchurch inventor John Britten in the late 1980s,
then developed and sculptured before being released
upon the international race scene with instant success.
The unique, ground-breaking machine turned heads
whenever and wherever it was on a race track and it
still does. The instantly-recognisable bike even looks
fast sitting idle in the pits. Put that together with one
of New Zealand’s greatest motorcycle racers and
you have a MotoFest spectacle that can’t be beaten.
Stroud first rode the New Zealand-built Britten
V1000 at Daytona in 1992. During the epic battle with
the leading factory Ducati Superbike Stroud came
within 0.1 sec of the outright lap record before an
electrical problem stopped the bike with a couple
of laps remaining. However, he won both races at
Daytona in 1994 on the Britten bike while setting
the fastest top speed recorded by any motorcycle
at Daytona (305 km/h). One of the few people to
have had the privilege of racing one of John Britten’s
world-renowned superbikes, Stroud won the Battle-
of-the-Twins at Daytona on Britten superbikes in
1994, 1995, 1996 and 1997. In 1995, Stroud won the
inaugural World B.E.A.R.S Series (British European
American Racing Series, now part of AHMRA) on
a Britten bike, three weeks before his friend, John
Britten, died. Also in 1995 and on a Britten, Stroud
won the European Pro-Twins at Assen. Soon after he
put a Kawasaki Superbike on pole position for the
World Endurance Championship round at the same
track. In 1997 he won the American AMA formula
Xtreme Championship. “It is always a thrill to get
out on the Britten,” Stroud said. “It brings back a lot
of good memories and I think the race fans always
appreciate seeing it in action. What John (Britten)
created really was an amazing achievement and I think
that is appreciated even more now as the years go
by.” Instigated by New Zealand motorcycling legend
Graeme Crosby, the Motul NZ Classic Grand Prix at
MotoFest will feature bikes of Pre 82 (72-82), Pre 89
(82-89) and Pre 95 (89-95) eras Crosby raced all around
the world in the 1980s and holds the distinction
of being the only person to have won the Daytona
200, the Imola 200, the Suzuka 8-Hour endurance
race and the Isle of Man TT. Of course this third
annual MotoFest extravaganza promises excellence
on all fronts, with well-respected identities from all
segments of the motorcycle sporting world coming
together for a spectacular two days of action that also
includes the Shoei Helmets-sponsored Classic Two
Stroke category, a class that will consist of only two-
stroke racing machines from the 70s’, 80s’ and 90s’.
MotoFest again has the support of Kawasaki, as it has
since day one, and the event now welcomes Suzuki
and Yamaha as exhibitors in 2020. Star Insurance will
again sponsor and bring to life the Legends Garage,
while manufacturer and trade displays will also have
fans possibly not knowing which way to look. MotoFest
will certainly tick all the boxes with bike enthusiasts if
the 2020 edition can match last season’s MotoFest.
ANDREW STROUD TAKES THE FABLED BRITTEN MOTORCYCLE
FOR A RIDE AROUND HAMPTON DOWNS
KIWI RIDER 15