These ain't my words they were cut-out of a local rag I printed just after Tom's untimely tragic death. Tom was a reporters delight in 1965 the race officials of Paris-Tours decided to ban the derailleur and restricted the riders to a single freewheel. Tom's response was " the bastards will have us riding without saddles next time!" One wonders how a tiny bleak British mining village came to produce a Continental cycling hero will always remain a mystery. Harworth lies in prime British time trialling country close to Doncaster. His mates were all testers but he always looked like an Italian roadman. Even as a kid he looked the part he must have been reading the French cycling journals. Tom's first tasted success on the track in winning an Olympic team bronze pursuit medal in 56. Three years later he headed for the continent and made an immediate impact, so much so that after just four months abroad he had secured a pro contract with Rapha-Gemiani and had gained a fourth place in the Worlds Professional Road Championship. Yeah not much of a start. I rest my case.
Thats all for now. Keep those wheels spinning, in your memories if not still on the road. Be lucky Mick Butler Huntingdon UK.