1939 Isle of Man TT
The 1939 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy was the last races until 1947 due to the interruption by World War II. It was also the last of ten Isle of Man TT victories for the 34-year-old Stanley Woods[1] in which he won the Junior TT on a Velocette at 83.19 mph and also finished in 4th place in the Senior TT race. The 250cc Lightweight TT race was a first time winner for Ted Mellors and the Benelli marque. The Senior TT race was won by the German competitor Georg Meier on a supercharged 500cc BMW Type 255 motor-cycle.[2]
The Austrian competitor Karl Gall riding for the works BMW team crashes at Ballaugh Bridge during an evening practice session and later dies of his injuries and the effects of pneumonia in hospital.[3]
Junior TT (350 cc) Race final standings[edit]
Monday 12 June 1939 – 7 laps (264.133 miles) Isle of Man TT Mountain Course[4]
| Rank | No | Rider | Team | Speed | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Stanley Woods
|
Velocette | 83.19 mph | 3:10.30.0 | |
| 2 |  Harold Daniell
|
Norton | 83.13 mph | 3:10.38.0 | |
| 3 |  Heiner Fleischmann
|
DKW | 82.51 mph | 3:12.28.0 | |
| 4 | Ted Mellors
|
Velocette | 82.34 mph | 3:12.28.0 | |
| 5 | David Whitworth
|
Velocette | 79.58 mph | 3:19.09.0 | |
| 6 | Siegfried Wünsche
|
DKW | 78.87 mph | 3:20.57.0 | |
| 7 | Maurice Cann
|
Norton | 78.78 mph | 3:21.10.0 | |
| 8 | S. (Ginger) Wood
|
Velocette | 78.55 mph | 3:22.36.0 | |
| 9 | Ernie Thomas
|
Velocette | 48.69 mph | 3:26.18.0 | |
| 10 |  Frank Mussett
|
Velocette | 77.60 mph | 3:24.14.0 |
Fastest Lap: Harold Daniels – 85.05 mph (26’ 38.0) on lap 7.[5]
Lightweight TT (250 cc) Race final standings[edit]
Wednesday 14 June 1939 – 7 laps (264.133 miles) Isle of Man TT Mountain Course[6]
| Rank | No | Rider | Team | Speed | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | E.A. Ted Mellors
|
Benelli | 74.26 mph | 3:33.26.0 | |
| 2 | Ewald Kluge
|
DKW | 72.97 mph | 3:37.11.0 | |
| 3 | H. G. Tyrell Smith
|
Excelsior | 71.91 mph | 3:40.23.0 | |
| 4 | Les G. Martin
|
Excelsior | 68.87 mph | 3:50.08.0 | |
| 5 | Siegfried Wünsche
|
DKW | 68.78 mph | 3:50.25.0 | |
| 6 | Charlie Manders
|
Excelsior | 66.93 mph | 3:56.48.0 | |
| 7 | Harold Hartley
|
Excelsior | 66.19 mph | 3:59.27.0 | |
| 8 | Ernie Thomas
|
DKW | 65.81 mph | 4:00.48.0 | |
| 9 | S. (Ginger) Wood
|
Rudge | 65.04 mph | 4:03.41.0 | |
| 10 | Chris Tattersall
|
CTS | 63.95 mph | 4:07.50.0 |
Fastest Lap: Stanley Woods – 78.16 mph (28’ 58.0) [7]
Senior TT (500cc) Race final standings[edit]
Friday 16 June 1939 – 7 laps (264.133 miles)[8] Isle of Man TT Mountain Course[9]
| Rank | No | Rider | Team | Speed | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 49 | Georg Meier
|
494cc BMW | 89.38 mph | 2:57.19.0 |
| 2 | 35 | Jock West
|
494cc BMW | 88.22 mph | 2:59.39.0 |
| 3 | 17 | Freddie Frith
|
499cc Norton | 87.96 mph | 3:00.11.0 |
| 4 | 10 | Stanley Woods
|
499cc Velocette | 87.91 mph | 3:00.17.0 |
| 5 | 51 | John H. White
|
499cc Norton | 85.92 mph | 3:04.27.0 |
| 6 | 19 | Les Archer
|
495cc Velocette | 84.31 mph | 3:07.58.0 |
| 7 | 28 | Ted Mellors
|
495cc Velocette | 83.76 mph | 3:09.12.0 |
| 8 | 18 | S.Wood
|
499cc Norton | 48.69 mph | 3:26.18.0 |
| 9 | 20 | Maurice Cann
|
Moto Guzzi | 81.96 mph | 3:13.22.0 |
| 10 | 40 |  Jack Galway
|
499cc Norton | 81.37 mph | 3:15.00.0 |
Fastest Lap: Georg Meier – 90.75 mph (24’ 57.0) on lap 2.[10]
Notes[edit]
- Improvements to the course include road-widening and landscaping at the Water Works Corner.[11]
- At Sulby during practice, Georg Meier riding for BMW is timed at 111 mph.[12]
- A collision occurs on Bray Hill during lap 2 of the 1939 Junior TT Races when Sven A. Sorenson riding an Excelsior collides with H. B. Waddington and David Whitworth both riding Norton motor-cycles.[13]
- On lap 1 of the 1939 Junior TT Race, Bob Foster riding an AJS stops at the Quarterbridge to fix broken goggles. Also, Bill Beevers and H.B.Myers both riding Velocette motor-cycles crash at the Quarterbridge on the same lap.[14]
- During lap 3 of the Junior Race, Tyrell Smith slips of his Excelsior motor-cycle at Parliament Square in Ramsey and then continues after straightening the foot-rest. At the East Mountain Gate during lap 5, Marcel Simo collides with a post and crashes his Terrot motor-cycle. He suffers head and chest injuries and is taken to hospital. Also during lap 5, Freddie Frith retires at Ballaugh after holding 2nd place in the 1939 Junior TT Race.[15]
- The 1939 Lightweight Race is held in mixed weather conditions. On lap 2 of the Lightweight Race, Jock McCredie riding an Excelsior retires at Ballaugh with engine problems. Lap 3 and Omobono Tenni riding a Moto Guzzi stops at Ballaugh to change a spark-plug and retires and his team-mate Stanley Woods retires on lap 5 with engine problems at Crosby.[16]
Sources[edit]
- ^ "Isle of Man TT Circuit". Archived from the original on 16 November 2006. Retrieved 31 October 2006. MCB A Brief History of the TT Races (Retrieved 28 October 2006)
- ^ Daily Express page 15 Saturday 17 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Weekly Times page 8 T.T. RIDER DIES FROM INJURIES Saturday 17 June 1939 “Inquest of Karl Gall.”
- ^ Mona’s Herald page 6 STANLEY WOODS’ TENTH WIN Tuesday 13 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Examiner page 5 Friday 16 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Examiner page 9 MELLORS’ FIRST TT WIN Friday 16 June 1939
- ^ Ramsey Courier page 16 AXIS ACHIEVEMENT IN LIGHTWEIGHT TT Friday 16 June 1939
- ^ Programme of the Senior International Tourist Trophy Race Isle of Man 16 June 1939 pages 22-24 SCORE SHEET The Auto-Cycle Union (1939) F.I.C.M
- ^ Peel City Guardian page 1 SENIOR TT RACE Saturday 17 June 1939 “….Meier and J.W. West proved too hot for the British machines and they took the lead on the first lap….”
- ^ Isle of Man Examiner page 4 Friday 23 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Times page 20 Saturday 13 May 1939
- ^ TT Special 1939 edited by G.S.Davison TIMING ON THE SULBY STRAIGHT page 3 Friday 9 June 1939
- ^ Ramsey Courier page 11 Friday 11 June 1939
- ^ TT Special 1939 edited by G.S.Davison TODAY’S JUNIOR page 4 Monday 12 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Times page 3 STANLEY WOODS’ TENTH T.T. VICTORY Saturday 17 June 1939
- ^ Isle of Man Times page 5 TED MELLORS WINS FOR ITALY. Saturday 17 June 1939