Wal Handley

Walter Leslie Handley (5 April 1902 – 15 November 1941) born in Aston, Birmingham, known as Wal Handley, was a champion British inter-war motorcycle racer with four wins at the Isle of Man TT Races in his career.

Walter Leslie Handley was born on 5 April 1902, son of John Thomas Handley and his wife Clara.

He had a hard childhood.

His father died of cancer when he was only nine and he soon had to help by working.

He was just over 12 years old when he left school early and tried a variety of jobs before joining the OK motorcycle firm.

He became a Junior Tester and general helper.

His motorcycle career began with reliability trials, hill climbs and speed trials.

In 1922, aged 20, he took his opportunity to ride an OK in the first Lightweight TT race in the Isle of Man.

The story of his setting off in the wrong direction of the course in practice is well known but the ridicule in the Press stung him into action and on race day he gained a fastest lap from a standing start but his lead ended on the second lap with a broken inlet valve.

His ill luck continued into 1923 but in the Lightweight Race after leading for the first three laps he managed to finish in eighth place with an average speed of 47.8 mph. He was awarded the Nisbet Shield by the ACU Stewards for pluck and endurance after suffering a 'packet of troubles'.

By 1924 he had joined the Rex Acme Company but with his ill luck continuing he was beginning to earn the unwelcome tag of 'Unlucky Handley'.

This was after suffering mechanical failures in all his TT races when in the lead.

Then in 1925 his luck changed dramatically, he became the first rider to win two TT races in one week and three fastest laps.

His first TT victory was the Junior TT.

He won at the record speed of 65.02 mph with a fastest lap of 65.89 mph.

After nearly three and a half hours in the saddle; it was over 35 minutes faster than the previous year's winner.

Of the 50 starters, only 14 managed to finish and only four gained replicas because of the high speed set by the winner.

The following year he finished second in his first Senior TT.

He had been delayed by over seven minutes with plug trouble.

Earlier, at Brooklands in 1926, he broke the 200-mile world records for all classes up to and including 1000cc on his 350cc Rex Acme.

On the same day he took the prestigious classic hour record for solo 500cc machines at 91.20 mph on a 350cc machine (Rex Acme-Blackburne).

The only time this has been done.

On three occasions in the inter-war period he became European champion, twice in the 350cc class (1928 and 1935) and once in the 500cc class (1928).

In 1929 he gained a second place with his AJS in the Junior TT; then later in the week the Senior TT got off to a wet start and several riders slid off their bikes in the opening lap at Greeba Bridge including Wal.

He was unhurt and quickly moved fallen riders and their machines off the road preventing further calamities before going to get help.

On 21 June 1929 the ACU Secretary, Tom Loughborough sent Wal a letter thanking him for thinking of others by giving up his own chances.

In 1929 he raced up Switzerland's Klausen Hill Climb to win the 350cc class at record speed, riding the Marchant designed Motosacoche.

On the European mainland and in Northern Ireland he had many Grand Prix victories.

Later he also raced cars in the 1930s and died in a World War II aircraft accident while serving as pilot with the Air Transport Auxiliary.

His fourth win was the rain soaked Senior TT of 1930.

Handley won on his works-assisted Rudge at the record speed of 74.24 mph.

He became the first rider to lap the mountain course under 30 mins, the first to do two laps under the hour and the first to do four laps under two hours.

It was also the last time a push rod machine won a TT race; and it was the last time that a TT winner's bike could have been bought over the counter by an enthusiast as a near standard production machine.

In this race of records it was also the first TT race to be broadcast live by the BBC.

He became successful on track as well as road.

At Brooklands he won both the solo and the sidecar 200-mile events on the notoriously rugged outer circuit.

He also became the holder of numerous motorcycle world records taken in 1930 at Arpajon and Montlhéry aboard the Belgian FN designed by Dougal Marchant.

In 1933 he also added a couple of 250cc continental Grand Prix wins riding Moto Guzzi machines, and in the same year he broke the run of Norton dominance by winning the 350 class of the Ulster Grand Prix.

He piloted his 60-degree Rex Acme V-twin through the field from 22nd to finish runner up to Stanley Woods who had won the first seven lap Senior TT by 4 mins 21 secs.

In the following year in the Lightweight TT he beat the Italian challengers by over eight minutes.