Triss Sharp shown here Training with the Teams in Yorkshire for the 1964 event, he plus brother Bryan really were highly spectacular & efficient.

Pat Slinn fettling his Prototype 350 BSA military machine in Erfurt East Germany, thanks for the pic Pat.

Contents placed online by courtesy of Arthur Williams.    Start & Finish was on edges of the town & HQ was inside ERFURT itself. 3 courses loopsout into the countryside led south to near Arnstadt, using all 3 in differnt directions the 6 Days had it's tasking course.   Hilly Thurlinger Wald was the region's general term & the Summer had seen less rain than is normal in Europe.   Johnny Giles was keeping in front in the 750 Class over Ken Heanes on the big 650 Triumphs, followed by USA men Cliff Coleman & actor Steve Mcqueen.   500 Class was being dominated by Moto Cross man East German Fred Williamowski 352 MZ, Sammy Miller 500 Aril & Dave Nicoll 500 AJS followed him & became second & 3rd in class after the Saturday speed test.

1964 ISDT, here is Lino Cornago, pic by courtersy of Dave Martin at New Orleans: We shall eventually have far more daily progress stories added to this 1964 page.  Bravo Britain hailed press writers, however for the second year East Germany had beaten Britain's best.  Special Test riders from the Eastern Bloc had excelled & their machinery suited their well trained & qualified riders.  Silver Vase  for the East Germans with their other 4 man team clinching runner up spot.   Britain Vase teams even less lucky than that 6 man Trophy Team.   Arthur Bates as a late B team inclusion on his 500 AJS had immediate rear suspension problems on first (Monday) day causing a one mark penalty from outset, he lost only this for the entire event. VASE A team had a no penalty score until Thursday when BSA mainshaft of Scott Ellis's BSA snapped & a 100 marks penatly was incurred..  sad to say it but the machinery seemed less quality than the teamsters.

Johnny Giles 650 Triumph at Dosdorf, he was placed 8th & had 650,060 bonus Points.  Trophy as always seemed the main aim for all, 5 teams remained 'clean' after the first day & special test by Tuesday close Showed East Germany leading Czechoslovakia with Britain's A team 3rd.

Calamities mounted!, for Austria a retirement plus 3 entrants of theirs having penalties, Polish rider E. Kurowski on a 348 Junak had trouble with penalties incurred. East Germany's lead increase Sweden's Bo Sjosvard could not get his Husqvarna running after finishing bravely on Monday with a broken ankle!!!, another Swede B. Ekeberg 174 Husqvarna lost time & Sweden dropped to 6th Place! overall. 

Rob Boom DKW of Holland leads Spanish Bultaco rider Jose Costr.   The Vase 250 class was ruled convincingly by MZ trio of Werner Salevsky, Hans Weber, & Karl Heinz Wagner, after the Monday lead of Czechs Arnost Zemen, Draboslav Miarks on CZ 250s had placed 2nd & 4th.

Stylish effort by Finland's P. Ovaskainen on his MZ.   It soon became obvious that Eastern Teams on smaller JAWA & MZs were outperforming all the larger British Classes using Machiner in the case of Class winner EG Trophy Man Bernd Uhlmann on a 292 MZ!.   British in the 2 Vase A teams were well 'seen off' on British ISDT bikes , Triss & Bryan Sharp on Greeves Challengers gave a heckuva show of grit against their competing machinery, both getting into the top 6 in their Class against faster performing machinery.

Steve McQueen of  USA Vase A Team on that surviving machine you can see many times elsewhere in this web.

A great pic from Dave Martin showing tuypical pre start activities, the sort of pic not expected, that Steve McQueen again!.

Dave Nicoll AJS gets his carb sorted.

Famous World Moto Cross Champ. Belgian Joel Robert presses on carrying his CZ Silencer.  Highly fancied Czechs had struck trouble by Wednesday eveningTrophy man Petr Valek was lost with g/box problems near SUHL Draboslav Miarka 250 CZ had the same trouble, both using new 5 speed boxes.   East Germany now led Britain in that Trophy tussle by 2,132,659 to 2,063,363 Bonus Points.

By the end of the day USSR teams had Edwin Kisis 360 ISCH retired, East Germany extended their lead.  in the Vase Finland's Penti Karha had his Jawa 350 frame part and even got it welded to continue but with 55 points going against him but they were to improve into second spot by a single bnus point, Karha was later, by Friday morn excluded for 'Outside Assistance & East Gernay B led with their A team second.

Czech Trophy rider the well known S. Klimt on his Jawa

Sammy Miller suspects something happened with the gearchange on his Ariel.

A slight increase in East Germany's lead, just 8 bonus points by the close, 113 ahead was to prove too much for reversing in Saturday's Speed test.

British Trophy team man Jim Sandiford (BSA).

Sweden's Bo Sjosvard Husqvarna leads Soviet Union Rider Z. Cespva on his JAWA.

Ken Heanes  of Britain on his big Triumph gets his Gold Medal with the second best British Rider performance.

Greeves mounted Brit Triss Sharp of the Vase Team.

Soviet Trophy rider W Samin on a ISCH, whilst Soviet Vase A rider B. Dresswjannikow on a similar make machine follows him.

Saturday' doom gremlins pounced upon John Lewis British Vase B rider's BSA 343, ignition trouble at the start then 20 points for failing to cross the finish line robbed him of a Gold & probably gave Japanese manufacturers a market they could dominate ever after.

Best Individuals performances were those of Siegfried Rahut on the tiny Simson 49cc, Pter Uhlig 173 MZ, Werner salevsky 242 MZ, Bernd Uhlmann 292 MZ, G. Pohlan 73cc Simson, F. Williamowski 352 MZ, all of East Germany, seventh,Polish veteran rider Zdenek Polanka on a 175 CZ.   USA with 10 riders had a not too lucky ISDT, Bud Ekins on the 500 Triumph whilst Steve McQueen parted company several times with his 650 Triumph.    226 Starters 62 Retirements, 164 finishers, 121 received Gold Medals, 31 Silver & 12 Bronze.