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Partners in Viper Racing UK are Ian Harrison and son Mark.
Ian was racing mad almost since the moment he could walk.
He has an HND in Automobile Engineering from Bolton Institute of Technology, and has worked with the likes of Ford, Vauxhall and Aston Martin.
His competition career started by racing Special Saloon Mini’s in the early 70’s and culminated in him winning his class in the BARC Northern Special Saloon Car Championship, racing at circuits such as Croft and Oulton Park.
Ian says his best memories from this era were that “Entries were £6:00 and I could set off to Croft with a fiver in my pocket, and still come back with change!!!”

With marriage and thoughts of starting a family, Ian’s own racing plans were put on the back burner, and his first serious entry into the world of 2-strokes came about from preparing and running a Yamaha TZ350 in circuit racing for a long time friend Bren Roantree. As you can see this was in the days before the “knee down” style became popular. Bren as they say was a useful rider.

During the seventies Ian raced a number of cars, mainly Mini’s but also a Fiat 850 Coupe, which was actually a Formula 2 car with a fibreglass body, and a Formula 2 engined Hillman Imp!! He even tried his hand at Formula Ford. Ian always carried out his own racing preparation, at that time under the banner of “Birdsedge Racing Developments”.

The 2-stroke theme continued into the 80’s with son Mark taking up Motocross, starting in the Automatic class and working his way up to British Championship level at schoolboy 125’s and on into the adult ranks.

Ian even took up Motocross until the recovery period from each race meeting became longer than the gap between the meetings. However he did achieve a 5th place at the Dragons Adult 125 Championship in 1996, he admits more by luck and persistence than by skill.

In 1997 Ian entered the World of 250 National Gearbox Karting via the famous (Infamous??) “Fatbellies Karting Team”. Mark Rigby’s son Bradley went to school with Ian’s son Mark, and whilst Bradley was bitten with the Motocross bug, Ian’s friendship with Mark Rigby and other Fatbellies notables, Martin Hodgson and Steve Acroyd, grew, and the rest is history.

The picture above left shows Ian with Mark and Steve at the GP meeting at Silverstone in 1997, (Ian’s first ever Long Circuit meeting). Above right, son Mark making his short circuit debut in Ian’s Anderson “Maverick”

 

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