Carrying a Rabbit Foot -- too far?

I wonder if any of the current Bantam jockies carry a rabbit foot for luck -- or is that going too far with superstistition, and how many feel anxious before the start of a race??
I ask now because in 1968, standing on the grid at Snetterton I was asked that... and denied ever being so -- yet a couple of minutes earlier I had crossed my fingers.

I always wore a Saint Christopher medallion with my dog tags John, i'm not religious, far from it but that was my little habit. I used to go through agonies on the grid, heart pounding and visibly twitchy but as soon as the flag dropped i was fine.

Me too -- nervous as a kitten beforehand, and once the flag dropped I was like a canniball looking for the blood of an Englishman -- or whatever race the others happened to be -- Welsh perhaps...??

Trouble is my Bantams were too slow and until I´d tamed it the Alpha 250 too frisky tank-slapping as it used to do in frantic manner under braking....
Niffy Goebel told me not to ride the latter `cos he said it would kill me -- Poor Niff should have taken his own advice -- and certainly not competed in the Isalnd.

I always put my right glove on first. Don't know why. Didn't stop me collecting a cracked rib from my off at Barn in the first race at Cadwell. Nor did it stop complete ignition failure on both bikes during subsequent outings....

Need to locate another rabbit !

Chris

I recall having to empty my pockets in Forest Gate nick. When I put my rabbits foot on the desk the sarky duty officer said. "It didn't do the rabbit any good either did it"

I used to carry a silk scarf inside my leathers which had belonged to my father.

He used it during his test flying days.....if it worked for him that was good enough for me !

I still have that scarf which is now some seventy one years old !

I knew when I was going to have a good race -- I felt in need of confession.

I´d start off with the latter, realise it was far too long (like I´d need a week at least!), and get myself onto the juicy bits and forget I was at a race meeting and for sure I´d fall off....

Sorry! that is a lie -- well, let´s say it happened only once....

Like Mick said -- I´d be all nerve-screwed up inside, telling myself I had not forgetten anything -- then I´d make a real good race of it.

The worst thing is asking yourself if you have remembered everything -- `cos it´s too late when the starter´s holding up the flag to ask yourself -- was the battery fully-charged???.

And all these decades later I can still remember the start of a 125cc Bantam race at Brands where everything was perfect (to start with...) -- two steps, bump, she fired and the revs flew up on the rev-counter but as my right leg went backward the top boot-strap went into the chain and ripped off at the same time sending my leg straight out backwards to have me struggling to even get my left foot onto its rest... I can feel and see it now -- in slow motion -- wriggling on my stomach on the seat to get my legs forward and on the rests -- and the time flying by as the whole grid rushed towards Paddock Bend. It was a great race -- I finished 4th on the 14th*** slowest Bantam there.

***Practice timing...

Cheers!

Hi guys I never had any superstitions or good luck talismans in the old days of racing. But when I made my return I somehow developed a phobia of being lapped at Lydden Hill Devils Elbow by Mick Potter. This even developed into a fear of being stood on by Mike Powell. This has developed in a different direction and I now have a fear of not being able to afford to race. There was a good rider in the eighties that did not like anything green on his bike or him, this is not good for a 250cc rider. The green plates did not stop him winning though. See you all at Lydden.

Liked the silk scarf story. I have used a similar vintage (well, actually more like 90 yrs old) silk scarf when riding the velo - no rear view mirror means lots of head turning. They are brilliant for avoiding chafing. Anyway, mine is quite grubby now, how do you clean them?

My headached. There was dirt behind my teeth. Left shoulder hurt like hell -- collar-bone broke, of course -- left knee hurt like hell, something was clamped around it, and I could see nothing out of my right eye but my left eye told me it was ten `o´ clock and I thought bloody heck! I´m late. The clock was on a square column. So it was not that clock of Rest Ops (excuse me, Testing Operations) at Ford Dunton -- this was a hospital -- that´s it! a hospital with a bloody great clock -- feeling of relief was enormous -- of course I was not late for work -- Work? -- well not exactly, just had to be there...
Then it all came back: today is Monday and I am in Norwich hospital, so I have a good excuse for not being at the Ford office. Yesterday at about 2.15pm the race had started and bikes either side had crowded in on me in an unfriendly manner, well hostile then -- such that the fibreglass squeaked in protest.... It was my first time of wearing a fairing in a race and silly sod! I remember now! I had forgotten to cross my fingers. That was it! I´d forgotten...

A smooth sounding voice wished me Good Morning on my blind side. The Doctor´s big spectacles appeared & came closer and the voice asked, "How long were you out?" I knew I had to answer quickly otherwise I´d be in this place for years & years, so I said, "I´d reckpon about ten seconds -- like a boxer throwing a fight:" He liked that, chuckled and said, "I think you can go home. Your wife is here."

My whole body protested as we were travelling down the road, away from the hospital -- with me feeling every bump in my shoulder and knee, Judy asked, "What happened? I was told you crashed just after the bridge.?"
"Cheessuzz! That´s nearly 3/4s of a lap and I only remember the start."
"What went wrong?"
"I didn´t cross my fingers ---"
Her hands left the steering wheel as she threw them up with a, "Never! You!
You´ve never been supersticious in your Natch! You are an unwashed pagan!"
"No," I agreed, "Never have -- but I think its about time I started, with Snetters, I mean -- don´t you. There might be something in it -- ey?"

The worrying thing was that there was -- and still is -- no recall of the bit where I remember the fairings squeaking to the time I woke up in Norwich Dock.

Anybody else had that sort of long-term amnesia?

You never wash a lucky scarf Peter -- it washes out the luck...

Cheers!
Ahmen!

Hi all this is a pic of the departcher of my lucky peace of silk it will be 30 years ago next weekend was never found
Pic was taken at the bomb hole at snetterton on the 31/10/81
I am on a long stroke 125cc un faired bike which is the bike was steven frayne rides now
happy days but life goes on in the future [img][/img]

Was that a dirty gease smear -- or a reakl one, Rob?