By 1981 Scarborough Gold Cup winner, 1978 500cc ACU Gold Star Championship winner, fifth within the 1977 500cc Moto GP World Championship, the racing legend that is Steve Parrish is the next racer to take part in Road Racing News, growing in popularity Oliver’s Mount Top 8 series.
A multiple British, European truck racing Champion, his answers to the Scarborough themed set of questions are as follows:
Q1: First memory of Oliver’s Mount?
“Following Barry Sheene around Mountside Hairpin and we still laugh about it, not Barry cause sadly he’s no longer with us.
One of the marshals had slid down the bank and took two big muddy foot prints on the track and he came around in front, I was second and he went over the mud and slid off and I remember seeing him looking back at me, couldn’t believe what was going on, we were giggling and laughing about it.
So that was one of my memorable moments, obviously winning the Gold Cup was also very memorable.”
Q2: Favourite part about racing at the mount?
“I think it’s what I call a friendly circuit, in the fact that the spectators are so close to you, you can see all the programs been waived, you can see the expressions on their faces.
It’s weird because I wasn’t what you would call a great road racer and Barry Sheene wasn’t but we both really
loved racing at that track, I think it was so different to anywhere else you want ever to and of course the Yorkshire hospitality.”
Q3: Favourite section of Scarborough course?
“Favourite section, to put a smile on your face coming down over the Jumps, cause it was that kind of a scary smile because you never really knew what was going to happen on a RG 500 or something like that.
But I think the best corners were the Esses, you felt you could attack those corners a bit more than anywwere else.”
Q4: Best moment thus far at Scarborough?
“As I said earlier, winning the Gold Cup, it’s a pretty special trophy, there’s lot of great names on there, proud to have done that. But I had a lot of really good races at Oliver’s Mount but winning the Gold Cup is something rather special.”
Q5: All time Scarborough racing hero?
“I’m going to go back, sorry to keep mentioning Barry Sheene but he was really special around there and just seemed to enjoy himself going around there and we even went back and raced around there on classic bikes after he retired.
So that would have been the last time I paraded around with him, before he passed away, so I’m going to say Mr BS.”
Q6: Is there one machine in particular that you would like to race at Scarborough?
“I have paraded quite a few machines around there, I don’t think I’d ever want to go around on a full on Superbike now cause they are way, way to fast, I guess probably something like Hailwood’s Honda Six or something like that.
I’m not likely to but that’s still the iconic machine and to hear that around Oliver’s Mount would be stunning, cause they would be listening to it down on the beach.”
Q7: One word to describe Oliver’s Mount?
“Lunacy”
Q8: Most respected racing rival at Scarborough?
“I’m going to go back to Barry Sheene, cause he was the man I wanted to beat all the time as did a lot of us.”
Words by Stevie Rial
