BIG D
DEREK MASON
If
you have never attended an Irish Road Race, the name ‘Derek Mason’ may not
mean a lot to you, but for those of you that have, Derek or Big D to the public,
is an institution.
Ireland’s answer to
Murray Walker, might not look or sound like the most articulate person around,
but he can tell you anything you want to know about each and every rider at the
meeting. His enthusiasm reaches
everyone who hears him and he makes the dullest of races sound exciting.
We spoke to Derek from his home in Northern Ireland.
How
long have you been commentating and how did you get into commentating?
I have been commentating and
rigging P.A. systems for twenty-six plus years, my first paid job was done the
day after my first son Alan was born. Originally I started off by rigging P.A.
systems to supplement an ‘overpaid!’ technician’s salary. On one occasion
the commentator had a bad throat and as he sang with a Country & Western
Group at night I took the mike to help out and I was bitten, so to speak.
Most of the events I commentate
on are events where I have rigged the P.A. system and this is the reason most
people at road races see me in my usual baggy trousers, wet with the morning
dew, most others are still in bed when I rise and start on the circuit rigging.
I normally need to start about three hours before road closing.
You will probably have heard
the banter with the timekeepers at Skerries about their carpeted luxury in the
Timekeepers hut, the explanation is that originally there was a commentators hut
which sat above the timekeepers palace I have an old black and white video as
proof. Despite the normally good weather there is always a breeze at Skerries,
which combined with the sun, really burns up my skin so on most days I wear the
anorak as protection from the elements. If you have ever climbed the commentary
tower at Skerries you would know that it is builders hire scaffolding covered in
cement so Armani suits are not the normal code of dress.
I often wish that I could be more articulate in my commentary but when you are the course commentator you are also involved in service announcements of varying importance and when you seem to be getting into a nice flow something comes up from the Clerk of Course which requires instant action and the flow disappears and next thing you know you are trying to pick up the race pattern.
Is
commentating more or less a full-time job or do you have a “day-job” so to
speak?
I have a daytime job in a large college in Belfast where I am employed as a technician and this is my prime source of income. Perhaps if I had got into commentary when I was younger I might have been able to make a full-time career of the commentating and rigging P.A. systems.
Do
you just cover motorcycle racing or other sports as well?
Motorcycling was the first sport, which I commentated on, but I also cover Karting, Car Hillclimbing & Sprints, Rowing, Belfast Marathon, Lisburn Half-Marathon and latterly Canoe Slalom and Rodeos but at the end of the day I prefer motorcycling. I had the pleasure on my second trip to the Isle of Man of commentating at the first Peel Kart Road Race, unfortunately relationships between the Ulster Karting Club and the Kart Club in Peel soured and I found myself with a booking in Ireland the following year.
Which
is your favourite road racing circuit to commentate at and why?
It is hard to nominate a
favourite circuit as most commentary points are normally in the most
disinteresting parts of the circuit and you don’t get to see the interesting
places which tax a rider’s skill. How about Gilly’s Jump at Skerries – my
brother who works with me describes crawling along the ditch trying to find a
broken loudspeaker cable and the bikes flying past!!! Fore circuit, sadly never
to be raced again, and spectating at the original start and finish line with
riders negotiating the jump down into the right-hander over the stone bridge and
the approach swervery into the village. Leitrim circuit and again a double jump
downhill into a right-hander swiftly followed by a lefthander.
However Fore stands out supreme for the Seven Wonders and the superstitions of the area, it is steeped in history and somehow it is a sleepy village which came awake once a year for the annual Road Race a little like Brigadoon for those who know the film.
Who
do you consider to be the top five Irish Road Racers of all time and who is your
personal favourite?
There have been many Road
Racers who have brought great credit upon themselves but I will select from
those I have been lucky enough to meet personally.
Firstly I nominate Stanley
Woods, several years ago I wrote a feature column for a local motorcycling
magazine and I was lucky to get an interview with this remarkable man. Despite
his years Stanley had the heart of a young man and the twinkle in his eyes were
a joy to behold. I had previously posed a question to Stanley at a chat show –
“What did he think was the best combination of man and machine and he
immediately replied “Woods and a Norton”. Needless to say this was the first
question I posed in my interview to receive a different answer “Woods and a
Velocette”. Stanley went on to explain how he devised the first reliable
signalling method in the T.T. (long before Manx radio’s coverage) and how he
bribed the telephone operators to keep the line open between two convenient
telephone kiosks one in Douglas the other in Ramsey. Stanley was one of the first people to break the all black
uniform and I was interested to know why this Southern Irishman wore an orange
helmet, the twinkle got stronger in his eyes as he replied that he rode so fast
that he needed an easily identified marker so that his signaller could get the
signal out on time. I suppose his forte must have been the addresses of his
referees who provided references for his first works T.T. ride. The Woods family
business in Dublin sat in a triangle of three streets and no-one but a Dublin
man would have known this and you don’t need any telling who wrote the three
references, the rest is history.
My next nomination would be Sam
McClements described by another journalist, in his Skerries appraisal of him as
“a folk hero in this North Dublin Area”. Sam campaigned the black beauty
officially known as The Supporters Club Suzuki and I described the noise of this
machine as akin to the trumpet corps of The Brigade of Guards as it charged up
the start and finish straight at Skerries. Sam also rode the famous Ryan Norton,
which was without any doubt one of the great Nortons on a par with the Potts
Norton campaigned by that great Scot Bob McIntyre. It was only after Sam’s
untimely fatal accident at Carrowdore that I discovered Joe Ryan the man behind
the Norton had also been tinkering with the Suzuki. Whilst Honda had provided a
bike for Sam at the T.T. to bolster their team they did not seem fit to offer
any further support and perhaps the big man did not get the support he deserved.
Tom Herron was a near neighbour
of mine for a short period of time and he was a great globetrotter chasing world
championship honours mostly in the 250 and 350 classes. Our friendship was a bit
unique that his wife Andrea gave birth to her twins Kim & Zoë one week
before my wife who found herself in the same bed waiting for our twins. Back to
racing and I remember we all were amazed by Tom’s ability to get the Yamahas
to start so easily, in those days many a race was determined by the rider who
could get the better of the push start. Tom’s early short circuit races were
at the Maghaberry (ex Airfield) circuit (now a prison) and he will be remembered
for accidentally riding over his uncle Wilfie who highsided immediately in
front, fortunately suffering no more than bruising. Finally I met Tom one day
when his van would not start and he asked me for a tow, that day I learned that
the sheepshank, a knot that we had been taught in the Scouts was used to shorten
ropes, was the knot that could be used in a towing situation and would not
tighten-up.
Look back in the Skerries
programme and you will come upon Ray McCullough, a brilliant motorcycle rider
who was rather shy and to use an old cliché he let his motorcycle do the
talking. Ray rode for a great sponsor Mick Mooney under the Irish Racing
Motorcycles banner mostly on Yamaha’s but for one ill-fated year the team
decided to go Harley Davison after they won the World Championship. This is the
one year the team would like to forget the bikes did not live up to their
previous year’s promise. Ray was also instrumental in working with Dr Gordon
Blair in the Mechanical Engineering Department of Queens University, where he
was a technician and they developed the Q.U.B. Seeley single cylinder 500 two
stroke. Ray was very quiet and he never ventured across to England as other
riders of his time did, some people said that he suffered from travel sickness
and hence his reluctance to travel. Some of Ray’s lap records on treaded tyres
took a long time to better despite the great advances in tyre technology.
I suppose some readers will
have expected the name of William James Dunlop to come top of my list but I have
decided to keep the good wine to the last. I met Joey in the early days in the
company of his friends Paul Robinson and Frank Kennedy and subsequently named
this trio the Armoy Armada and at the same time the Dromara destroyers were
christened namely Ray McCullough, Brian Reid and Trevor Steele. Joey has the
most piercing eyes I have ever come upon, most racing photographs of Joey bear
witness to this fact, I keep wondering if this is the clue to his success did he
have this ability to concentrate to the n’th degree? Joey’s successes are
well catalogued as are his mercy missions and I believe that it is this
combination which have endeared him to so many people. I look upon Joey as a
hero and a friend but I realised early on in our friendship that he did not bear
fools, I might now be a little controversial when I state that Joey did not
appreciate interference when he was preparing his equipment, this is contrary to
statements made from other sources.
Like many other people I first heard a second-hand report on 2nd July of a tragic accident and I searched the airwaves hoping that this was a false report, sadly this was not to be. I find solace in my belief that this wonderful person could bring fifty thousand people together in Ireland and not one word of animosity.
You
job as a commentator invariably brings you into close contact with all the
riders. Do you have any particularly funny memories that you would like to share
with us?
One of my classic memories
involves Mervyn Robinson, father of Paul who contested last year and this year
in the British Supercup 125cc class. Tandragee Road Race was the event and it
was one of those days when the rain absolutely lashed down. The organising North
Armagh club had hastily organised a water tank and one of those old-fashioned
pump action water pumps to wash the riders tyres down as they exited from the
damp muddy Paddock. All the riders had exited bar the Robo and he proudly
marched out with his helpers carrying the machine shoulder high and saying to me
“Who says the Robo is stupid?”.
How about a very young Robert
Dunlop, when he started racing in the 50 cc class riding Joey’s reserve 1000
Honda in a 250 Non-qualifiers’ race, at the traditional end of season closed
to club race.
Philip McCallen playing five a
side football at a Christmas charity fund raising event – hence the nickname
Whitelegs.
Danny Shimmin ,or Padraig
O’Shimmen as we called him, turning his large van into a narrow laneway at
Fore I regret to report that the dry stone wall came off second best.
Finally a well known sponsor, legs crossed waiting outside a Portaloo, eventually he marched up to the door to request the occupant to exit to discover that it was unoccupied.
Do
you, or have you ever ridden a motorcycle and have you ever felt the urge to
race?
Sadly despite my love of motorcycles I could never afford to buy one for road use never mind to race. However as late teenagers we used to go down to the Liverpool Ferry in Belfast, equipped with the infamous Mk VII goggles, on the Wednesday morning of Ulster Grand Prix week and meet riders coming off - no vans in those days, the riders strapped their tool box and suit case on the tank of the racing machine and rode the machines to Chambers Garage in Belfast. Machines were ridden from the garage to Dundrod and back for practice and racing. There was always a number of riders who had two machines and we willing volunteers were only too glad to assist and be pit attendants for the race period. There was nothing to beat riding open-exhaust up to Dundrod on the nominated route with the kids cheering you up the road – we were the real bee’s knees.
Road
racing has just endured its darkest season in memory. What do you think the
future holds for Road Racing in Ireland?
The future of Road Racing in
Ireland lies firmly in the hands of the riders, a couple who I know made late
season statements that they did not wish to road race next year, 2001. Adrian
Archibald has been signed up by Honda so I imagine he may be the flag bearer for
the pure Road Racing brigade, will the up and coming riders follow his example?
Most Road Races have had strong Support Class entries which has provided some
very good racing but when I look at lap times these riders do not compare with
the established stars, is this a fair comparison? – how good is their
equipment – what would they do with better equipment if this is the case.?
Most of the motorcycle clubs
have applied for Road Race dates with the exception of The Temple club who this
year 2000 were unable to find a new circuit to replace the original circuit, I
don’t know whether the club have been thwarted in their attempts to find a new
circuit for 2001.
For the past number of years the biggest sponsor in Ulster motorcycling has been the Imperial Tobacco Company under the Regal, Superkings and Lambert & Butler brand names, these valuable championships were competed over a mixture of Road Races and Short Circuits – to date I have not heard what are next year’s arrangements, these may truly have a big effect on the future of pure Road racing.
Does
it frustrate you that there are certain elements in Northern Ireland (including
many top motorcyclists) who seem hell-bent on ensuring Road racing is banned?
This question appears to point
to one person in particular who specialises in closed circuit racing – would
you ask a vegetarian what a succulent fillet steak tastes like?
I believe that riders at closed circuit racing ride with the belief that it is relatively safe to fall off, in fact at a recent race meeting the television commentator suggested that this rider had fallen-off more times than he had finished. The other main anti road-racing lobbyist was a politician and I believe that he believed that he was leading what would be the popular public opinion – especially if an election was forthcoming.
Do
you have any views on any measure (in particular with relation to safety) that
could be taken to improve safety at the Road Racing circuits?
I wish that I could provide the answer to this question but I am not qualified to do so. All life is precious and I believe that the relevant officials in the M.C.U.I. are trying everything in their power and knowledge to improve the safety levels. Unfortunately the riders on a couple of occasions have argued that the proposed safety regulations would negate the difference between Road Racing and closed circuit racing.
Motorcycle
racing was this year robbed of its greatest ever exponent with the untimely
demise of Joey Dunlop. Can the sport survive such a loss?
A one-word answer – YES. The
sport of motorcycle road racing should continue in the rich memory of Joey, he
set the records just as Mike Hailwood and Stanley Woods did in past years. Joey
surpassed the totals of Stanley and Mike and surely some young man will aim to
surpass Joey’s record.
There is, I believe, a proposal from the sidecar brigade, that the number ‘3’ should be withdrawn from the T.T. number list – may I add a proviso that if anyone beats Joey’s number of wins he could, if he wishes, claim the number ‘3’.
You
often referred to Joey as “The World’s Greatest Living Sportsman. Tell us
about your relationship with him.
My reference to Joey was
occasioned by the fact that this man was not only a wonderful sportsman but also
he was also a humanitarian and I felt humbled in his company. I really only
spent three or four notable occasions with him which I outlined in my article in
Motor Cycle Racer and I hope that I will be excused for repeating.
The
prestigious short circuit championship in Ulster was the Embassy Championship
and the night prior to one of these championship final races found me in
Ballymoney’s Manor Hotel hosting a fund raising event for the Armada and
somehow I ended up in the far corner with Joey apologising that he was ‘on the
wagon’ because he was racing the next day. Joey had been to Macau and he was
telling me about the thousand-year-old eggs - a local delicacy. Apparently eggs
are buried for a long time and when they are well blackened they are dug up and
eaten, suddenly a badly prepared greasy fish supper would be more appetising.
A Thursday night at Fore was
the setting for another surprise and pleasant evening. I can’t explain how I
came to be up at the paddock but surprise surprise there was Yer Maun at the
back of the van working on the generator – the ripcord had broken. This
year Fore fell after the Ulster Grand Prix and Joey explained that after
the Ulster he had taken off with his family for a short holiday in Donegal at a
close friends residence which lay on a quiet bay
- a secret location which he would not disclose to anybody and then
journeyed to Fore. There was a lot of discussion that evening in the cool still
evening but it was all forgotten when after completing the rebuild he discovered
that he had wound on the ripcord in the wrong direction
- my hero was fallible.
Motorcycle
racing in Ireland in general finds itself at a crossroads at the present time
many people are calling for road racing to be banned and facilities at many of
the short circuits are inadequate. Do you think it is possible to build on what
the scene has at present, or should we go back and start from scratch?
If motorcycle Road racing
should be banned as your question suggests the short circuits would have to
seriously look at their facilities. I believe that Mondello Park, the only short
circuit venue in Southern Ireland is undergoing a multi million face lift over
the winter involving the building of garages, a new timekeeping/commentary tower
(with loo) and a large hospitality suite.
All four short circuit tracks
in Northern Ireland would need a large amount of money spent to improve the
facilities.
Bishopscourt has the most
potential track wise with a large area available and of course a good solid
base. Unfortunately the feeder roads to this circuit leave a lot to be desired
and I understand that there are still some local objections.
Aghadowey is rented from the
local farmers and is certainly too short at just a few yards over one mile long,
The approach roads are just a little bit better than Bishopscourt but the
question is “How much land can be locally purchased”. Davy Gordon was one of
the early negotiators involved in bringing motorcycling to this venue and he
tells me that the land could be bought – however I suspect if big plans were
announced the buying price would rise steeply.
Kirkistown has similar approach
road facility to Aghadowey and measures in at just over 1.5 miles, it is owned
by the 500 Motor Racing club and at present they are finding difficulty making
ends meet.
Finally Nutts Corner – for a
long time now I have campaigned for the development of this circuit, I believe
that no circuit in the United Kingdom has better feeder roads – six roads feed
the Nutts Corner roundabout, it is a forty minute leisurely drive from Larne or
Belfast port and ten minutes from the International Airport. I would envisage
the circuit being enlarged on the side of the Moira Road which it now occupies
with the paddock being moved to a position feeding directly on to the main road,
as I believe current international rules state that the paddock must be
accessible at all times. The other side of the Moira Road has a lot of hard
standing, which could be developed into a car park. There was a recent
announcement about the development of Nutts Corner but I am afraid I missed the
report on TV.
Over the years the riders have expressed the desire to race on different circuits and to develop one circuit to the detriment of others may be a backward step.
Do
you think the Irish media is generally pro- or anti- Road racing? Do they have a
significant role to play in the future of our sport?
This is a thorny question; both of the local Northern Ireland Television sports departments cover a lot of motorcycling. There is a rumour that UTV who cover the NW200 use this as an their showpiece Outside Broadcast production when the revue of the local ITV franchise comes around, somehow I don’t think they would want to add to the anti Road Racing lobby. This is of course a sports production, unfortunately the general media lives on sensationalism and if they think that knocking Road Racing will increase viewing/reading numbers they will go in that direction. I feel that the sports departments won’t want to lose these popular events and the presence of television at races helps to attract sponsorship into our sport and for this we must be thankful.
A
final few questions D on the T.T. Races. Do you think the I.O.M. Government
should accept the offer of outside sponsorship?
I imagine that the T.T. must move with the times and providing sponsorship is properly controlled to the joint benefit of the event and the sponsors then so be it
What
improvements could be made to the T.T. Festival in general?
As I have only spent a few days
at the T.T. on a low budget I didn’t take in the Festival as such. However
some of my friends have tried unsuccessfully to get accommodation for the T.T.
and I believe that to attract more people to the Island this problem will need
to be addressed. Most probably the problem is more deep rooted in that these
islands, upon which we live, are losing out the holiday war to the continent and
possibly the boarding house/hotel industry is suffering I don’t think some of
these businesses can survive on a handful of sporting events.
Perhaps we could import a medicine man to control the weather on a big salary with one proviso – Rain interference no pay!
What
are your views on the clash of dates with the T.T. Races and the British
Superbike Championship rounds next season?
Unfortunately we have to accept the dates and make the best of them. I wonder how many T.T. fans are really interested in British Superbike races especially when you hear remarks that many spectating areas need binoculars to see the riders. I have just opened up year 2000 T.T. Rider Biographies and there is still a lot of star riders who might give us even closer racing.
Thanks
for taking the time to talk to us Derek. Is there anyone you would like to
thank?
I must thank the many
riders from beginners to the experts who have provided me with many happy
days’ motorcycle racing. I look upon myself as a sort of midwife, it is there
but someone has to be there to help it come out.
Interview
by Stuart Christian