Kaye Don
Encyclopedia
Kaye Don was a world record breaking car and speedboat racer who became a motorcycle dealer on his retirement from road racing
and set up Ambassador Motorcycles
.
, Tourist Trophy
with a Lea-Francis
. In 1928 he had three ex-works Sunbeam cars which he named "Cub", "Tiger" and "Tigress". Don regularly raced at Brooklands
and driving a Sunbeam on 22 September 1928 he set an outer circuit lap flying start record of 131.76 miles per hour (212 km/h) and increased this to 134.24 miles per hour (216 km/h) on 5 August 1929. Driving a Wolseley Viper
at Brooklands Don achieved many class records between 1928 and 1930. Driving the V-12 Sunbeam Tigress at Brooklands on 9 June 1930, Kaye set a new Outer Circuit lap record of 137.58 miles per hour (221.4 km/h).
Kaye Don died in Chobham
Surrey
in 1981 aged 90. In memory of his heroic achievements at Brooklands
race track the area has a street named after Kaye Don in the borough of Elmbridge
District. Perhaps the best memorial to him was made by Kaye Don in a victory speech to the Empire Club of Canada in 1931, when he was the holder of land and water world speed records and said "One or two experiences that I have had have been somewhat thrilling".
The Sunbeam Silver Bullet was the last attempt on the land speed record
by Sunbeam of Wolverhampton
. It was built in 1929 for Kaye Don. Powered by two Sunbeam supercharged aero-engines of 24 litres each, it looked impressive but failed to achieve any records.
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In 1931 Don was selected to compete in the Harmsworth Trophy Race on the Detroit River
. Billed as a match between the Wood brothers, Gar (in the new Miss America IX) and George (in last year's Miss America VIII), and the "Englishman" Kaye Don, driving Lord Wakefield's powerboat Miss England II
. While preparing for the race, Gar Wood
became the first man to exceed 100 mi/h limit on water but three days later, Kaye Don became a new water speed
world record holder by beating Wood by just 1.25 mi/h. Before an estimated crowd of over a million spectators, Don also won the first heat of the race. Miss America IX had suffered hull damage from pounding through Miss Englands wake. Despite working overnight, she was barely ready the next day and Wood requested a delay to allow repairs to be completed, something he'd previously been known to concede to. Don stuck to the rules though, a matter which still rankles with some today. Miss America IX made it to the second heat, but only by Wood racing flat-out to the start line, a mistake that cost him dearly later on. During another close race, Wood was leading Don when Miss England II suddenly flipped over rounding one of the turns, fortunately without injury to Don and his co-driver. Gar Wood finished the race first, but both he and Don were disqualified because they had jumped the starter's gun by seven seconds. George Wood completed the final race to win the trophy.
By a majority of seven to four, the Coroner's Court found that Tayler's death was due to negligence on the part of Kaye Don who was, then, sent for trial on a charge of manslaughter. The trial opened on the 14th July, in the traditional Isle Of Man Tynwald court. The evidence was presented and Don was found guilty and sentenced to four months in prison. He appealed on the grounds that, before he died, Francis Tayler might have said something to his - Kaye Don's - detriment. Don claimed that this statement had become public and had prejudiced his trial. In fact, there were sixteen grounds for appeal, but all were rejected and, on September the 29th, the appeal was dismissed. Kaye Don was admitted to prison, where he was treated as a priviledged prisoner and continued to receive medical treatment. He was released on 10th of December on medical grounds.
Francis Tayler's grave (http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2571768) can be found in St Sepulchre's Cemetery, Jericho, Oxford. His widow Phyllis died aged 93, nearly 66 years later, in 2000.
. The company produced many different models until it was taken over by DMW in 1962 and Kaye Don retired.
Road racing
Road racing is a general term for most forms of motor racing held on paved, purpose-built race tracks , as opposed to oval tracks and off-road racing...
and set up Ambassador Motorcycles
Ambassador Motorcycles
Ambassador Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer. Founded by racer Kaye Don after the Second World War, the company produced lightweight motorcycles with Villiers and JAP engines and imported Zundapps from Germany. Production started in 1947 with a 197 cc Villiers-engined bikes...
.
Biography
Kaye Earnest Donsky, known as Kaye Don, was born in Dublin on 10 April 1891. Kaye Don began his career as a motorcycle racer but soon switched to cars and won the inaugural 1928 Ards-Belfast circuit, Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Tourist Trophy
RAC Tourist Trophy
The International Tourist Trophy is an award given by the Royal Automobile Club and awarded semi-annually to the winners of a selected motor racing event each year in the United Kingdom. It was first awarded in 1905 and continues to be awarded to this day, making it the longest lasting trophy in...
with a Lea-Francis
Lea-Francis
Lea-Francis was a motor manufacturing company that began life building bicycles.- History :Richard Henry Lea and Graham Inglesby Francis started the business in Coventry in 1895. They branched out into car manufacture in 1903 and motor cycles in 1911. Lea-Francis built cars, under licence, for the...
. In 1928 he had three ex-works Sunbeam cars which he named "Cub", "Tiger" and "Tigress". Don regularly raced at Brooklands
Brooklands
Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields...
and driving a Sunbeam on 22 September 1928 he set an outer circuit lap flying start record of 131.76 miles per hour (212 km/h) and increased this to 134.24 miles per hour (216 km/h) on 5 August 1929. Driving a Wolseley Viper
Wolseley Viper
|-See also:-Bibliography:* Lumsden, Alec. British Piston Engines and their Aircraft. Marlborough, Wiltshire: Airlife Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-85310-294-6....
at Brooklands Don achieved many class records between 1928 and 1930. Driving the V-12 Sunbeam Tigress at Brooklands on 9 June 1930, Kaye set a new Outer Circuit lap record of 137.58 miles per hour (221.4 km/h).
Kaye Don died in Chobham
Chobham, Surrey
Chobham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Surrey Heath in Surrey, England, about 15 minutes drive from the London railway line stations at Woking to the south and Sunningdale to the north...
Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
in 1981 aged 90. In memory of his heroic achievements at Brooklands
Brooklands
Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields...
race track the area has a street named after Kaye Don in the borough of Elmbridge
Elmbridge
Elmbridge is a local government district and borough in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Esher. The district has only one civil parish, which is Claygate...
District. Perhaps the best memorial to him was made by Kaye Don in a victory speech to the Empire Club of Canada in 1931, when he was the holder of land and water world speed records and said "One or two experiences that I have had have been somewhat thrilling".
Silver Bullet
Land speed record
The land speed record is the highest speed achieved by a wheeled vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C flying start regulations are used, officiated by regional or national organizations under the auspices of the Fédération...
by Sunbeam of Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
. It was built in 1929 for Kaye Don. Powered by two Sunbeam supercharged aero-engines of 24 litres each, it looked impressive but failed to achieve any records.
Speedboat World Record
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
. Billed as a match between the Wood brothers, Gar (in the new Miss America IX) and George (in last year's Miss America VIII), and the "Englishman" Kaye Don, driving Lord Wakefield's powerboat Miss England II
Miss England II
Miss England II was the name of the second of a series of speedboats used by Henry Segrave and Kaye Don to contest world water speed records in the 1920s and 1930s.- Design and construction :...
. While preparing for the race, Gar Wood
Garfield Wood
Garfield ‘Gar’ Arthur Wood was an American inventor, entrepreneur, motorboat builder and racer who held the world water speed record on several occasions. He was the first man to travel over 100 miles per hour on water....
became the first man to exceed 100 mi/h limit on water but three days later, Kaye Don became a new water speed
Water speed record
The World Unlimited water speed record is the officially recognised fastest speed achieved by a water-borne vehicle. The current record of 511 km/h was achieved in 1978....
world record holder by beating Wood by just 1.25 mi/h. Before an estimated crowd of over a million spectators, Don also won the first heat of the race. Miss America IX had suffered hull damage from pounding through Miss Englands wake. Despite working overnight, she was barely ready the next day and Wood requested a delay to allow repairs to be completed, something he'd previously been known to concede to. Don stuck to the rules though, a matter which still rankles with some today. Miss America IX made it to the second heat, but only by Wood racing flat-out to the start line, a mistake that cost him dearly later on. During another close race, Wood was leading Don when Miss England II suddenly flipped over rounding one of the turns, fortunately without injury to Don and his co-driver. Gar Wood finished the race first, but both he and Don were disqualified because they had jumped the starter's gun by seven seconds. George Wood completed the final race to win the trophy.
Isle of Man Accident
On Monday 28th May, 1934, Don was preparing to race an MG Magnette on public roads on the Isle Of Man. He was involved in an incident which caused the death of Francis Tayler, an MG employee. After testing in the morning, Don had complained of poor steering, though this was disputed by MG. Late in the evening, as Don prepared to play Bridge with his wife and race driver H.C. Hamilton, Tayler informed him that the car had been worked on and tested. Kaye Don took the car out for a further test, with Francis Tayler as passenger. This took place at 10pm. The car had no lights, number plates or insurance, yet it was driven on open public roads. Don claimed that the light was adequate, indeed, lighting-up time was 10:25 pm. As he rounded a bend, the MG was in glancing collision with a hackney carriage driven by Mr Ralph Cain, who had five passengers. Fortunately, no-one was hurt in the cab, but the MG lost a wheel and overturned. Both occupants were injured, being admitted to hospital at 10:45 pm. Tayler died at 5:15 am the following morning.By a majority of seven to four, the Coroner's Court found that Tayler's death was due to negligence on the part of Kaye Don who was, then, sent for trial on a charge of manslaughter. The trial opened on the 14th July, in the traditional Isle Of Man Tynwald court. The evidence was presented and Don was found guilty and sentenced to four months in prison. He appealed on the grounds that, before he died, Francis Tayler might have said something to his - Kaye Don's - detriment. Don claimed that this statement had become public and had prejudiced his trial. In fact, there were sixteen grounds for appeal, but all were rejected and, on September the 29th, the appeal was dismissed. Kaye Don was admitted to prison, where he was treated as a priviledged prisoner and continued to receive medical treatment. He was released on 10th of December on medical grounds.
Francis Tayler's grave (http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2571768) can be found in St Sepulchre's Cemetery, Jericho, Oxford. His widow Phyllis died aged 93, nearly 66 years later, in 2000.
Ambassador Motorcycles
In the 1940s Don established and developed Ambassador MotorcyclesAmbassador Motorcycles
Ambassador Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer. Founded by racer Kaye Don after the Second World War, the company produced lightweight motorcycles with Villiers and JAP engines and imported Zundapps from Germany. Production started in 1947 with a 197 cc Villiers-engined bikes...
. The company produced many different models until it was taken over by DMW in 1962 and Kaye Don retired.
See also
- Ambassador MotorcyclesAmbassador MotorcyclesAmbassador Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer. Founded by racer Kaye Don after the Second World War, the company produced lightweight motorcycles with Villiers and JAP engines and imported Zundapps from Germany. Production started in 1947 with a 197 cc Villiers-engined bikes...
- Harmsworth Trophy
- Miss England II
- Silver Bullet land speed record carSilver Bullet (Sunbeam land speed record car)- Unsuccessful record attempts :Competition for the land speed record in between Segrave's Golden Arrow and Malcolm Campbell's new Blue Bird was fierce, so the car was built quickly, working around the clock in shifts...