Motorcycle extraordinaire, Gus Kuhn dies at 67.
Gus Kuhn rode or competed in road racing, scrambles, trials riding, sand racing, hill climbs, rodeo riding, sprint riding, Speedway riding, long distance reliability trials riding, Gold Medal winner in International Six Day Trials, five-time Isle of Man racer, rider in the motorcycle Wall of Death, and it seemed every other two-wheeled exploit a man can think of. But it was in Speedway that he attained his greatest fame.
Kuhn took part in some of the earliest Speedway meetings in the UK and was Captain of the Stamford Bridge team when they won the first Southern League Championship in 1929. After Stamford Bridge closed in 1932, he spent nearly five years racing for the Wimbledon Dons. Gus did a stint with the Wembley Lions before becoming Captain of the Lea Bridge team in 1938. A combination of age, his *motorcycle business and WWII led to him to retiring from Speedway in 1939 after a brief spell with the Southampton Saints.
“A wily master of track-craft, a brilliant mechanic, a darned hard man to get past (and not only because of his portly figure), and above all a thorough sportsman and a jolly good fellow.” - Speedway News, May 16, 1936
*In 1932 Kuhn founded Gus Kuhn Motors in Clapham Road, Stockwell, London. Dealing in Triumphs, BSA and Nortons.
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