Kel Carruthers
Kelvin "Kel" Carruthers (born January 3, 1938 in Sydney ) is a former Australian motorcycle racer . Between 1966 and 1970 he contested a total of 54 races in the motorcycle world championship and in 1969 won the title in the 250 cc class on a Benelli four-cylinder .
Career
As the son of a motorcycle dealer, Carruthers came into contact with the technology of motorcycles at an early age and got into racing. In the early 1960s he won the Australian championships in the classes up to 125 cm³, 250 cm³, 350 cm³ and 500 cm³. After his national successes, he went to Europe to compete in the motorcycle world championship. In 1966 he drove there on Aermacchi in the 350 cc class in his first races. In 1969 he switched to the 250cc class with Benelli , won his first races and took the title.
After the 1970 season he accepted an offer from Yamaha for racing in the United States, where he also met the young Kenny Roberts, sr. promoted. In 1973 Carruthers became team manager of the American Yamaha racing team and won the Grand National Championship in 1973 and 1974 with Roberts as driver . After moving to the motorcycle world championship, Carruthers led Roberts as a technician and consultant to three consecutive world championships in the late 1970s. Even Eddie Lawson took a title under the management of Carruthers. Carruthers worked for various Grand Prix teams until 1995, then switched to jet ski racing and from 1998 headed a Yamaha motocross team.
Carruthers was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985 and the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999 .
statistics
title
- 1968 - Third place in the World Championship, 350 cm³ on Aermacchi
- 1969 - 250 cc world champion on Benelli
- 1970 - Vice World Champion 250 cm³ and 350 cm³ on Benelli and Yamaha
- 7 Grand Prix victories
- 2 Ulster Grand Prix wins
Isle of Man TT victories
| year | class | machine | Average speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Lightweight 250 (250 cm³) | Benelli | 95.95 mph (154.42 km / h ) |
| 1970 | Lightweight 250 (250 cm³) | Yamaha | 96.13 mph (154.71 km / h) |
In the motorcycle world championship
| Podiums | 22nd | |
| GP starts | 125 cc | 12 |
| 250 cc | 15th | |
| 350 cc | 21st | |
| 500 cc | 6th | |
References
literature
- Jürgen Gaßebner: The most beautiful racing machines - Grand Prix and Superbike motorcycles of the last 30 years . Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2000, ISBN 3-613-02037-8 . Pages 10-17
Web links
- "Kel Carruthers - From Sydney to California" ( Memento from December 4, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) at www.motorsportstatistik.com
- Motorcycle Hall of Fame: Kel Carruthers (English)
- Kel Carruthers on the official website of the Motorcycle World Championship (English).
- Kel Carruthers on the Isle of Man TT official website.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Carruthers, Kel |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Carruthers, Kelvin (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Australian motorcycle racer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 3, 1938 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Sydney |