Mark Purdy

Interview with Mark Purdy

Interview by Matt Compton
18th September 2019

Matt

Great to catch up again Mark. How ya going?

Mark

Yeah, good! I’ve been loving what you’ve been doing with the Facebook page. You’re getting people from all over the world!

Matt

Have ya? Cool, thanks! I’ve been wanting to do more posts but I can’t keep up with the amount of people sending me private messages and questions. I’m a bit overwhelmed to be honest.

Mark

Yeah, especially when they text you in Italian. [Laughing] Can you read Italian, or do you get it translated?

Matt

[Laughing] I get heaps of Italian messages because I called it Magni-Guzzi, but unfortunately I only speak English. I just put messages into Google Translate and I write back to them and say, “Sorry, I only speak English, my name isn’t Magni Guzzi it’s Matthew Compton, from Perth, Western Australia”. Usually they say, “No worries, I speak English, I’ll text you in English”, but for a few we need to go back and forth using Google Translate. I’m sure we get a bit ‘Lost in Translation’ sometimes…

So I was hoping to talk to you about your time with Ted and his prototypes.

Mark

Sure, no worries. Well, Ted, being ‘Mr Moto Guzzi Australia’, got the first Daytona to arrive here. That was the bike you would’ve known when Jon Iles was racing it. Well that was the original Guzzi Daytona that Ted raced along with his Magnis. I was very lucky to be shown around Bathurst by a guy called Graeme Morris. He actually rode for the Ducati team, he was their #2 rider. At that time Morris was employed by Ted to ride the Moto Guzzi Daytona and I was going to ride the prototype Magni-Guzzi. Graeme said, “Look, just follow me around the mountain and I’ll show you the best lines around”. Which was really just absolutely fantastic.

The funny thing about that Daytona, at first it was a teammate’s bike. Then that same bike was sold to Jon Iles, and it became a competitor’s bike, as at that point I was on a Triumph. Later on, the Daytona became the Raceco Australia Guzzi and I ended up piloting it at Bathurst, back where I first encountered it. By then it was 1288cc and I was clocked at 288km down Conrod Straight! It was one of the fastest bikes when I rode it there at the 2000 Australian TT and I ended up 7th on that bike. That Raceco Australia Guzzi actually hurt a lot of people, it would just snap. It used to tear out diff mounts, break diffs and snap tail shafts. Back when I was riding it I think it was putting out 155bhp. So, the interesting thing about that particular bike, is that originally I raced alongside it as a teammate when I was on Ted’s prototype, then I raced against it as a foe, then I raced on it; it’s a good bike story, that one!

Matt

It’s a great story, amazing turn of events!

Mark

Anyway, back to my time on Ted’s prototype at Bathurst. So I went out in the last practice session trying to get a good qualifying time. I remember going down the mountain, there’s three corners before the dipper and I got the first corner wrong. The second corner was even worse and by the time I got to the right at the dipper I was really too close to the wall at the apex. I lost the front end but luckily I went into an air-fence.

It was the first time they’d ever had air-fences in Australia. That saved my life really, cos I think I went into that wall at about 80kmh. The bike laid down on its cylinder head and just took off, as Guzzis do. I was sliding towards what I thought was a huge VB commercial stuck to a concrete wall but when I hit it I realised it was a big VB Beer banner and behind the banner was an air-fence.

I hadn’t seen air-fences before, I didn’t really know they existed, so at that moment, as I was heading toward the VB sign, I thought I was gonna die. The bike laid down and when I arrived my head was on the fairing and my chest hit the fuel tank, which is lucky cos the foot-pegs didn’t fold in and the engine is hard, as you know. Yeah, so luckily I hit the softest parts of the bike. I remember Ted made me go out with a full tank of fuel cos he wanted to refill the fuel cans, so I dented the tank a little bit, but ended up with 3 broken ribs, a punctured lung and a dislocated shoulder.

Matt

Not good …

Mark

I spent the next couple of days in Bathurst hospital. Russell Aylward, Spike as we called him back then, jumped on the bike but I’m not sure where he finished. Ted and Dulcie gave me a lift into Sydney and I had to get a Greyhound bus home as I couldn’t fly, so Russell got my air ticket. I had to come home on the bus with broken ribs.

Matt

That must have been uncomfortable with those injuries.

Mark

[Laughing] Yeah, that was a hell trip coming back, I was a couple of days on the bus. You raced Bathurst didn’t you Matt?

Matt

No, I only ever raced at Wanneroo. I did a lot of private practice time in 1994. Back then as long as you had an MCRC [Motorcycle Racing Club] license you could hire the track for something like $50, it was cheap anyway. Ted would come out and spend time with me whenever he could. I’m just sorry Ted didn’t overcome his illness, I think he would have enjoyed the 1995 season and been happy with the results of his bikes. That year I raced in the Thunderbike series as a teammate with Jon Iles, him on the Guzzi Daytona and me on Prototype #2. I believe you won the series on the Triumph 900 Super 3, Jon Iles was 2nd and I was 3rd.

Mark

That’s right, earlier we’d won both of the Thunderbikes series on Ted’s Magni-Guzzi prototype in 1992. The MCRC and the Historic Club Thunderbike championships. It was a great year! We also rode it at Merredin and Collie Round-the-Houses meetings.

So, some interesting stories about Ted. Ted used to race with second-hand wheel bearings. [Laughing]

Matt

What? [Laughing] He was the funniest guy!

Mark

[Laughing] Yep, second-hand bearings. We used to have porridge every morning, and Ted never wanted you to have a wee before the race because you lose all your heat! [Laughing]

Matt

He didn’t want you to what…? [Laughing]

Mark

Yep! He’d won some marathon run in the snow cos he didn’t go to the toilet and that kept him warm while he was running around. [Laughing] Also, I had a front tyre on the prototype that would never wear out, it was that hard! I had that same old front tyre for ages!

Matt

[Laughing]

Mark

Before I rode Ted’s prototypes, I rode Clive Brannan’s 900SS Ducati when he’d bought Webrook Ducati from Brook Henry. I rode against Simon Turner on Ted’s first prototype, around the streets in Kambalda. I couldn’t believe how fast the Guzzi was in a straight line, it just blew my mind how fast it was! Simon couldn’t slow it down on the bumpy circuit, whereas the Ducati could, so I was diving under brakes and making up time on him. You know, around the streets it’s like, square it off, get on the gas.

About a couple of laps before the end, I ran off into a drain, went along in the drain, spectators were running everywhere. Then I put the power back on and flew on to the track again in a big cloud of dust and headed off the straight after Simon. I caught him up and then on the last lap I did a big dive bomb on him. I went up the inside and cut him off and then went right out wide and touched the outside dirt. I still tried to get on the gas as there was only one more corner to go to the start-finish line. It slid out and I tried to hang on to it really badly, cos it was a brand-new bike, but I ended up doing a big highside. Later on, one of the spectators sent me a picture. I had almost taken Simon out, he was right behind me. He will remember it, cos I know he was definitely right there! I’ll send you a picture of it.

Matt

That’ll be great.

Mark

Another story with Russell Aylward; one day after I crashed prototype one, Peter Smith, Louise Hayden and I were repainting the bike and making a Magni banner. Pete’s a sign writer who used to work next door to Ted. Pete used to ride a Ducati with Redheads signage on it, those two are fairly high up in Motorcycling Australia now.

Matt

Yes, I remember Pete and Louise, nice couple, always friendly and up for a chat in the pits. They’re in the background of one of my photos chatting to Paul Lampo.

Mark

We couldn’t get any Magni stuff at all, but we had this little Magni sticker so we put it on a transparency and blew it up as a shadow on the wall to make ourselves a Magni banner. We copied the Magni stickers and put them on the bikes.

Spike decided during the repaint that he would trim two inches off the back of Proto #1. You know how their tails go, like the cowling droops right over the rear wheel. He took about two or three inches off it and then had it all painted up. When Ted saw it he lost it, absolutely lost it! It was only a couple of inches, and it actually made the bike look heaps better. But Ted wouldn’t have it, he said, “Arturo would be just so upset!”, so he made him put it back to how it was and then paint it again.

Matt

[Laughing] Interesting …

Mark

Yeah, I nearly got killed a few times on the Guzzis. When Prototype #2 came along, that was going to be my bike. I’d already done really well on #1 and I was going to step onto #2. However, Russell worked in Ted’s shop at the time for nothing, he just loved his job and he convinced Ted to run two bikes, so he got to ride Prototype #2. I was a bit dark about that cos I wanted to go faster, but I got over it. Prototype #1 never had the right front end on it, the wheel used to rub on the fairing. Look at the photograph of me sitting on it, you can see the mark where the wheel rubs. The front would deflect so much that the wheel would come back and rub on the fairing and flex the fork.

I started the race meeting on Prototype #1, but with Russell hurting his hand Ted said, “Have a go on Prototype #2”. It had 320mm rotors on the front, Prototype #1 had 280mm. I took off from the third row in the Formula 1 race, ended up 4th by the first turn, along with Rick Gill, Trevor Adams, Stuart Adams and Scott Tulk, all those guys. I thought, “I’ll just go easy”, and I ended up braking way earlier than I would normally do. I braked on the crest of that little left hander just as you come over the flick, lost the front end there and speared through the left hander on the inside. Ended up with my head on the kerb in front of the pack like a race-cam. [Laughing]

Matt

[Laughing]

Mark

Yeah, I did a good job of it, the result of cold tires and lack of practice, my first race on it.

The rear tire also got speared by the frame. You know, you would never want to run in to the back of a Magni, with those big daggers that hang out that hold the seat. They’re just ‘Vlad the Impaler’ type things, driving down the road. If you ran in the back of it you wouldn’t survive. [Laughing] That’s the photo I want to show you I just can’t find it at the moment.

Matt

[Laughing] Yeah, that would be awesome. Any photos you have of you on the bikes and with Ted are much appreciated.

Mark

Definitely, I’m happy to, this is a great way to honour Ted. You can put all my stories in.

Matt

Great, thanks mate. So, had you heard much of the origin story from Ted about his prototypes?

Mark

No, the first I knew of them was one of those mid-week private practice days you were talking about. I was out there on my RG500 and Ted was out there with Owen Coles. That’s how I knew about the photograph you were asking questions about on the Facebook page. They were getting a bit of track time in on the first prototype as they were about to head off to Daytona.

Then Simon Turner rode it for that year. I think Simon only did a couple of races in Australia and then Ted decided to go back to New Zealand for a holiday and go around with the bike with Simon on a few street circuits. Simon came over pretty much just before the Kambalda race. I raced against him in Kambalda, but I finished out that year on Ted’s Magni.

After the Kambalda race there was Owen Coles on Brook’s Vee Two Alchemy, and he went to Daytona on that as well. Simon Turner was on Prototype #1 and I was on Clive’s 900SS. Midway through the year Clive had to sell the shop and the bike and all the expensive racer toys. Clive was very good friends with Ted so he just went over to Ted’s shop and said, “Look, Mark’s been riding my Ducati, but I have to sell it, can he ride your Guzzi?”. Ted goes, “Yeah, yeah, no worries, bring him over”. I also rode the Magni at Collie, I’ve got photographs of me doing wheel stands on it there.

Matt

So what was your impression of the Magni when you first jumped on it? I know before I’d had any experience with Moto Guzzis, I very wrongly perceived them as a bit tractor-like.

Mark

Ted was always saying, “Not bad for a tourer!”. Surely you heard him say that? [Laughing] Even his advertisements were, “Not bad for a tourer!”.

Matt

Yes, that’s right. [Laughing]

Mark

I’d ridden a few Guzzis before, only road stuff. One of my friends lent me an 850 Le Mans, but to be fair I was a total Jappa man. My friends had some beautiful bikes, like the Le Mans and Mike Hailwood replicas. I didn’t really appreciate them back then, cos I’d just blow them off in a 1/4 mile drag. The Guzzi’s differential really did my head in, but the parallelogram was pretty amazing. The engine inertia made it so that you could hook into the left hander so well on the Guzzi!

Matt

Yes. Agreed!

Mark

It was just lovely! Back ‘em off, chuck ‘em in, and they’re on! But Wanneroo unfortunately has only got one of them.

Matt

Yes, I know! That was my favourite corner.

Mark

So I adapted and I learnt how to ride them; with that big first gear they’re amazing off the line once you know how to launch them! The only thing you have to be careful of is not letting the front wheel leave the ground too early. If you launch too hard the frame will twist from the torque. It happened to me once on the Magni, that was a bad twist. When I let the clutch out too hard without any forward motion, the front wheel jumped in the air as the engine revs come on, twisting the bike on its back wheel, so I came down on an angle. Luckily, I didn’t crash in front of everyone.

Matt

My wheel stands were never more than a couple of inches, so thankfully I didn’t experience that.

Mark

Yeah I got some really good starts at Bathurst on the Raceco Guzzi, but I got some great starts on Prototype #2, like where I was third row but 4th into the first turn.

Matt

Yes, it was brilliant!

Mark

If you’re not worried about wheel stands, and I loved wheel stands, I’d launch it and just carry the front wheel a few inches, but you gotta make sure you’ve got a bit of motion before the wheel left the deck.

Matt

That’s what I loved with it. I loved that I could always jump a couple of rows on the start with that machine. It was incredible!

Mark

Yeah! First gear is often useless with a fast 6-speed gearbox bike. With the Guzzi though, you just use the tall first gear and its torque and get a good start. I found that they were heavy though, a heavy bike, pretty front heavy.

Matt

My memory could be fuzzy after all this time, but I seem to remember Ted telling me he’d got my bike [Prototype #2] down into the 160kg sort of range. I’ve never weighed it though.

Mark

Actually it could be, cos I think the Raceco Guzzi they had that down to about 165kg. I know the fuel injected one was about 15kg heavier than the normally aspirated one. The Raceco Guzzi with carbs was lighter than the fuel injected one by a long way. What size carbies are on yours?

Matt

40mm Dell’Orto’s

Mark

Right. I think the Raceco Guzzi was running 53’s. Actually, that could be someone else good to talk to, Frank Wright I think his name is, he owned the two Raceco Guzzis at the time.

I had a go with the Magni, admittedly it was in the rain, with these super wet slicks on. Someone gave me a photo of it, pouring rain, big puddles in the town. Just as the flag dropped, there’s Proto #1, it’s got the front wheel high off the ground in the rain. We did about three or four laps but then it stopped, it got water in the electrics. I remember going up against one of the GSXR1000’s that McFadden was riding at the time. The Proto #1 was as quick in a straight line as a GSXR1000 of its day. It was amazing, it was a powerful bike.

Matt

They were incredible. Ted’s Magni-Guzzis really did shock a lot of people in a number of countries. It’s been very interesting talking to people about that.

Mark

Yeah, agreed. The 900SS I rode was fairly stock at first, but we did as much as we could do to it. We drilled out the jets as far as they’d go, but once we’d hotted it up with a pipe and other mods, it still needed more fuel. So then we had to go to Fiat to get bigger car jets to put in a motorbike carburettor. [Laughing] Ours was a first generation of the Cagiva Ducati 900SS, it ran the Webber carb. Had a beautiful sound that bike, the induction sound was as good as the exhaust note. But even with all that work, the Magni prototype used to just leave it for dead in a straight line; it really sort of shocked me when I raced against the Proto #1.

Matt

Yeah, they had huge amounts of torque, gobs of torque.

Mark

Absolutely, they were awesome! Well, I’ll keep looking and dig up some of the other photos I have.

Matt

Thanks so much Mark, I really appreciate the chat.

Mark

Yeah, me too, talk soon.