Mike Hailwood

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Copyrighted Elizabeth McCarthy 2002 all rights reserved

Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood April 2, 1940 - March 23, 1981

We've heard the news, it's hard to bear,

He was the one respected by all,

We weren't expecting the final call.

Memories of the past come flooding back,

Dicing with Ago lap after lap.

78, the TT and he did it again,

The Island alive with the sound of his name.

Alas, no more will see his face.

Alas, no more will we see him race.

The end of an era, but a legend forever,

Perhaps God is getting a team together.

It matters not how a man dies,

But how he lives.

The act of dying is of no importance,

It lasts so short a time.

by J.M.K. of Hull

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The King

Hillberry was the place I chose, to sit in the hedgerow with a rose.

The countryside was strangely still,

We sat in silence til.....

A noise was heard up the hill from Kate's,

to cause in crowd debates.

Was it Gary? Was it is Mike? A noise I've never heard the like.

Down to Creg to the hands that wave.

Up four gears then down five, out of Brandish to the dive.

And down to Hillberry flat on the tank, the noise was like a wine you drank.

A Honda Six on full song, like an arrow through the throng.

Cronk ny mona no respite, keeping the throttle cable tight.

Skipping like a stone on pond, round to Signpost, Governors beyond

It was Hailwood, first on the road, an experience time will not erode!

Ambition is a funny thing, I'd been to Mecca and seen the KING.

And this is how I'll remember the man, fate had a wild unruly plan.

unknown Author

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It matters not how a man dies, But how he lives. The act of dying is of no importance, It lasts so short a time.

Samuel Johnson

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There are many tributes and anecdotes about Mike. One is from " Maurice Knight, Suzuki GB, who supplied the RG500 Mike set a new Isle of Man TT lap record on in 1979: "It's so hard to find the right words but what sums him up for me is when he saw me at the MCN Man of the Year the year he won and asked me,

" Can I have one of your Suzukis for the TT next year? " I said we could certainly do something and asked what his plans were for the bike and what sort of deal he wanted. His reply was " Oh, I only want to race it, I don't want any money". He simply wanted to race .

Maurice Knight, Suzuki GB

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Front page of Motor Cycle News, April 1, 1981