September Magazine:

My name is Craig Montgomery and I am an expert racer in the CMRA (Central Motorcycle Road Racing). It was round 5 of the CMRA series (Hallett Raceway) and because I changed bikes at the beginning of the season I’m starting from the back with no class points. I’ve been on a 1000 for last 3 years but wanted a change so I just picked up a Triumph 675. I love the way the bike handles and although slow compared to a liter bike its got decent speed and I like the torque. The one drawback is because it’s a British bike “hard parts” are very expensive. No worries, just don’t crash it, right

I ended up taking 2nd in the sprint race and was frustrated with my result. It was a great dice for the win and I didn’t come out on top unfortunately. I was a little bit angry on the cool down lap and decided to pull a frustration stand-up wheelie. I knew I had problems as soon as I dropped the clutch. I was in 3rd instead of 2nd but instead of accepting defeat I pulled up even harder on the bars. The anger I felt (which dulled my senses and judgment a bit) coupled with a headwind did me in. I then proceeded to loop the bike over backwards.

Unlike my bike I was not hurt. My Komodo leathers and race gloves protected me amazingly well considering how long I slid down the pavement. Most crashes are in a turn and you slide off the track very quickly. This one however was a on straight away and I was sliding with the direction of the track. You’ll notice the smoke coming off of my leathers. Thanks to Rene Vivion and Barry Nichols for the photos.