This was the year of the megabike.

No one even bothered to run a Kawasaki 900 or 1000 as the ZIB was past its allowable four year life span. In its place came the six-cylinder Honda CBX, the Suzuki GS1000 and the Yamaha shaft-drive XS1100.

BMW fielded two teams but split their star riders, Ken Blake and Barry Smith pairing them with Dave Burgess and Mick Hone respectively. The ferocious megabikes caused the promoters to drop the 500 class in the interests of safety and a 750 class was created.

The mega machinery also created another problem: tyre wear. An extra 50k and 20 bhp brought tyre wear well within the six hours, which brought the Ducati and BMW camps right into the picture.

Briefly, Graeme Crosby led the first few laps before his CBX began giving problems. Crosby qualified fastest with 58.1 seconds. Greg Pretty (XS1100) took up the running from Crosby before Alan Hales (GS1000) fought past the 30-minute mark. Jeff Miller, Pretty’s co-rider, crashed whilst in the top runners at the two-hour mark. Team Avon changed tyres at the two-and-a-half hour mark. Hales crashed whilst looking set for a runaway win.

Dennis Neill took up the lead but the rear tyre on his CBX was almost out of tread. Neill pitted at 2.45 and a disasterous four-minute lyre change saw Team Avon take the lead. Mick Cole, angry at the time lost in the lyre change, replaced Neill and scorched from seventh place to third in just over an hour in one of the most startling, heart-stirring rides ever seen in the Six-Hour.

John Warrian got to be bridesmaid once more in a fast, smooth ride with Terry Kelly on a Ducati900SS. A Six-Hour win had eluded the Duke as

1978 was the last year it was eligible. Another Duke, that of Andrew Johnson/Owen Hughes placed fifth. Yet another Ducati, a 750 piloted by Jim Scaysbrook and Mike Hailwood, was leading the 750 class when Scaysbrook crashed.

The 750 class was a two-way war between the Z650 of Rob Phillis/Rick Perry and the GS750 of Dave Hiscock/Peter Fleming. Phillis finally took the flag several seconds ahead of Hiscock.

Mr Motocross Stephen Gall, an unlikely Six-Hour contender, rode in the 1978 race. Gall retired his XS750 Yamaha alter only 41 laps with transmission failure.

Triumph re-appeared in 1978 with a token keep- the-flag-flying entry which finished last but proved a point and kept sections of the crowd happy.

Team Avon won the race with incredible professionalism. The shaft-drive Yamaha lends itself to quick lyre changes. Avon banked on a lyre change and won. Honda didn’t, had to, and lost. The lyre change and no pressure on the leaders during the last hour meant that Blake and Eastmure’s record number of laps, 356, stayed intact.