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It seems weird today that a minimum rider weight would be a barrier to entry...I can't for the life of me try to decipher how on the one hand they think racing is too dangerous for women, but only for women below a certain weight
Using minimum weight as an entry criterion was neither new when the
ACUFIM* introduced it nor uncommon today, although it is more often implemented as a minimum for rider+machine in motor-sport today. While the case referred to above was a pretty transparent subterfuge to ban women without being a blatant gender restriction, the general case is a competitive one - in the low power classes particularly, rider/driver weight has a significant impact on performance.*EDIT: 50cc races at the Isle of Man were GP World Championship events, so they would be under international regulation.
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gbj_tester
@user75204
Cross posted from the motorcycle thread:
Is anyone familiar with racing motor cycling regulations from ye olden days?
I've just been reading about trailblazing Beryl Swain, a Walthamstow resident who was the first woman to race solo at the Isle of Man TT in 1962. She suffered mechanical problems during the race, finishing 22nd out of 25 but was still within 3 secs of the lap record in the 50 cc class she was racing, and vowed to come back the following year to do better.
However her entry seems to have ruffled a few feathers and dented a few fragile male egos, as the governing body brought in a rule the following year which introduced a minimum rider weight, and as Beryl was a slight 7 stone it effectively meant she had no chance of making the start line, and despite trying to appeal and change the rule, she failed and it tragically effectively ended her racing career.
There was also some bullshit excuse that they were concerned that following the races' history with many injuries and fatalities to the male racers, they considered it too dangerous for women.
The last line of this Pathe news clip on Beryl sums up the attitude of the time, "slowly but surely women, the weaker sex, are muscling in on mans domain, practically no sport is sacred, thank goodness for dear old rugby league"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ocIH8rBdJ8
It seems weird today that a minimum rider weight would be a barrier to entry, with ever more of us being Fatty Mcfatfat. And I can't for the life of me try to decipher how on the one hand they think racing is too dangerous for women, but only for women below a certain weight, are fat women considered not womanly enough, or does nobody care about the fat lasses?
I've just been googling to try and find the exact wording of the rule, I'm curious to know what the actual weight limit was, but can't find exact info anywhere, does anyone know it or where to find it? Thanks.
EDIT: in your face Pathe News guy, women's rugby league is a thing now too.