Malcolm Ernest Uphill (15 April 1935–15 August 1999) was a Welsh professional motorcycle racer. He competed in British national-level short-circuit and in Grand Prix motorcycle racing. Uphill was the first competitor in the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy races to achieve a 100 mph average lap speed on a production motorcycle.
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Motorcycle racing career A native of Caerphilly, Wales, Uphill later lived at Heol, Trecastle and was educated at Twyn Secondary Modern School. Apprenticed at the Rhymney former railway works near Caerphilly, he worked as a fitter/turner/erector for British Rail. In 1965, Uphill achieved a double win in the 350 cc 'Junior' and 500 cc 'Senior' races at the Manx Grand Prix. His best season in world championship competition was in 1968 when he finished in ninth place in the 250cc world championship.
In 1969, Uphill teamed with Percy Tait to win the Thruxton 500 endurance race for production (road-based) machines and at the 1969 Isle of Man TT, Uphill won the 750 Production class on a Triumph Bonneville with a 100 mph lap, which prompted renaming of the Dunlop K81 motorcycle tyre as the TT100.Motorcycle Mechanics, June 1973, Dunlop full page advert, p.6 Every time they race you win. "Tyres like the K70, Ribbed and the fabulous K81, re-named the TT100 after lapping the TT course at over 100 mph on a production machine". Accessed 23 March 2015Dunlop tyres K81 TT100 Retrieved 1 March 2015 He also won the 750 Production class at the 1970 North West 200 held in Northern Ireland. Uphill rode a Triumph Trident to win the massed-start 1970 TT 750 production class, after Peter Williams (Norton) ran out of petrol while leading the race, allowing Uphill to pass him mere yards from the finish line.
Uphill died aged 64 in 1999 of asbestosis. In 2011 a pub named The Malcolm Uphill was opened by Wetherspoons in Caerphilly town centre,Caerphilly Observer, 10 October 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2015 and in 2013, following local fundraising, a bronze plaque dedicated to Uphill's memory was installed on a wall close to the pub location at Station Terrace.Motorcycle hero Malcolm Uphill honoured with plaque Caerphilly Observer, 20 September 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2015
References
External links Short videos with commentary, Uphill and Tait production race and Triumph Bonneville 1969 TT races (text content from Wikipedia) Malcolm Uphill at Gus Kuhn Uphill 100mph TT lap