Bob Berry

Whatever you might think of Bob Berry you have to admit that he was most certainly a maverick: ‘an unorthodox or independent-minded person’ according to our dictionary. At the age of 28 he acquired a JAP-engined Brough Superior owned by JH ‘Jack’ Carr, winner of a Manx Grand Prix but, more importantly, a 50 and 100 mile champion at Pendine sands. And more than anything else Bob Berry wanted to emulate his hero especially because, post-war, the world land speed record on a motorbike was held by a German, Ernst Henne.

From 1949 on, with a potential reward of £500 from The Motor Cycle Bob Berry made innumerable attempts at Pendine to reclaim that record. Bizarrely, he initially stuck with his pre-war Brough Superior. By1959 he was using a streamlined body on an OEC-Temple-Reynolds frame reaching speeds of over 160 mph. He was convinced that he could get that record back and take the world record speed to over 200 mph. By 1959 it was either 211 or 214 mph depending on whether you believed NSU or Triumph.

But Bob Berry never did achieve his aim despite spending every penny he owned (and quite a lot of other people’s pennies)  with his most famous attempts made on what became known as ‘The Projectile’. It can now be seen in The Museum of Speed in Pendine.

This film was kindly loaned to Cameron Engineering & Motorsport Ltd who can supply parts for and restore & rebuild JAP engines for Brough Superiors exactly as Bob Berry would have known them and whether its two wheels, three or four, can race prepare your bike or car to the highest international standards possible ready for competition.

Bob Berry would approve.