Speedtracktales has been aware for a while of an Italian team hoping to prepare a sequel book to the excellent pictorial History of the ISDT1970 by Javier Benito Aguado. The result is ISDT1968, by Roberto Biza and Marcello Grigorov which will go on sale to coincide with the ISDE 2013 in Sardinia.
Image – front cover of ISDT1968 book
Following the precedent and style of Javier Benito’s book “ISDT1970”, this book tells the story of the International Six-Days Trial of 1968, based at San Pellegrino Terme, Italy.
Held firstly in Carlisle, England, in 1913, the ISDT was dubbed the “Olympics of Motorcycling” as it was a true test of man and machine across a wide range of surfaces and gradients against a time schedule that could be truly punishing. The event was held in different countries, mainly around Europe until 1980, since when, renamed as the International Six-Days Enduro, it has gone world-wide.
1968 saw the East German Team, mounted on very special MZ machines looking for their sixth consecutive win in the 6-man Trophy Team contest. Circumstances and fate combined to deny them this win, initially when the local fuel was blamed for seizures, but ultimately when a crash destroyed a bike and very nearly it’s rider. The rocky route and the time schedules favoured the ultra-lightweight machines, and it was the West German Team on Zundapps of between 50cc to 125cc, that took the top honours, while most of the bigger machinery fell by the wayside. The severity of the route can be told in the first day results, where we see no less than 13 retirements from the British contingent alone.
This book contains results, maps, drawings and statistics, interviews and background information, the result of many years of research.
Image – book layout ISDT1968
The book, in Italian but complete with the full English translation, and it will be presented at the ISDE2013 in Sardinia where will be on sale during the event in the paddock at the Registro Hercules stand, and on the internet later on.
Image – rear cover of book ISDT1968
Book Specification and Details
ISDT1968
Roberto Biza and Marcello Grigorov
MG Publishing by Marcello Grigorov
ISBN 978-2-8399-1295-2
336 pages with more than 370 photographs, many not previously published.
See website www.isdt1968.eu for further details.
Further details on the ISDT1970 book can be found on its website http://www.isdt1970.es/
which is reviewed here http://www.motorsportretro.com/2011/02/isdt-1970/
Hopefully we will get to provide a fuller review on the new book shortly.
Speed Track Tales 
I have had to wait until this year for the name of the rider pictured in my back cover shot! He was one of the late entrants not in the Official Programme, so, until the results were published here on STT, he was anon.
all good to hear, just had the results for 1974 / 5 land so am preparing them
Can’t wait to have the book !
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