This is the compelling story of how one of Japan's biggest motorcycle manufacturers stole a Nazi rocket scientist's engine secrets from behind the Iron Curtain to conquer the world. In 1961, with the Cold War at its height, East German motorcycle manufacturer MZ was using World War II rocket technology to win Grands Prix, only for rider Ernst Degner to defect and sell the secrets to Suzuki, while his wife and children were drugged and smuggled through the Berlin Wall. The following year Suzuki and Degner made history by winning the world title. Branded a traitor by the communists, Degner suffered horrific injuries in a fiery racing accident and died in mysterious circumstances.
About the Author
A former motorcycle racer and Isle of Man TT winner, Mat Oxley has been writing about bike racing for more than two decades and is the author of Haynes' acclaimed biographies of Valentino Rossi and Mick Doohan.
Product details
Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: J H Haynes & Co Ltd (Mar 2009)
Language English
ISBN-10: 1844256898
ISBN-13: 978-1844256891
It's again the season of ice and snow, what better things to do then riding a motorbike, with no brakes, on ice?
No brakes? Yes! With 200 razor sharp spikes on each tyre, more then 120km/u in the freezing cold.
Welcome to the world of ice racing or ice speedway.
A motorsport not for the faint of heart.
During three years, documentary filmmaker Bengt Löfgren, followed drivers, mechanics and audience in the glorious world of Ice Speedway. The result became a warm and humoristic roadmovie that takes us from rural Sweden to a freezing cold Siberia.
"ICY RIDERS" is an unusual documentary / Ice road movie carefully made by Bengt Löfgren about the Swedish ice racer, Per Olof Serenius on his trips through Northern and Eastern Europe for ice races. As a documentary it gives a nice insight of this ice cold sport and as a movie it's very enjoyable to see.