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Competitor Profile: C W [Paddy] Johnston

TT Career Summary

Position12589161722DNF
No of times1323111119

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Biography

Now here’s a little story…

In 1921 two young Irish lads went to see the T.T. for the first time. They agreed that they could do as well as any of the riders that they could see.

One of them was Stanley Woods the other was Paddy Johnston. They both wangled rides for the next year.

Paddy’s first success was in 1925 when he was second riding Cottons in both the light-weight and ultra light-weight T.T.s.

In 1926 he won a thrilling light-weight T.T. race by 20 seconds from Pietro Ghersi, who was disqualified from second place - NOT first as has been inaccurately reported in some motorcycling books. Both riders set out with just a minute interval so it was very much a real race. The win was achieved despite losing all but top gear for the last lap.

He was again second in the lightweight in 1930. His last T.T. was in 1951, when he kept praying that his Villiers-engined Sun would break down as, "I could have got off and walked faster than the gutless heap!" He came 16th.

An all rounder, Paddy was one of the few T.T. winners to also win a Scottish International Six Days Trail. He also had an entry for the 1927 Grand National, but was stopped from riding in it due to contract problems; "You’re paid to break your neck racing motorcycles, not horses", said Bill Cotton.

Kindly supplied by Doug Johnston.

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