1939)
Les Graham started racing at Liverpool's Stanley Speedway on dirt. In 1929 he entered a race on the Park Hall Oswestry circuit, riding a second hand Dot-JAP, and came second to Henry Pinnington on an AJS. For the next few years he raced a succession of Rudge hybrids with varying success.
In 1936 he managed to purchase a near new 250 cc OHC OK-Supreme cheaply, because it had dropped a valve. He rebuilt it, and entered it in the 1936 Ulster Grand Prix. After completing a lap of the Clady Circuit, the big end seized.
He rebuilt it for 1937, and entered Northern Ireland's North West 200, and lead the Lightweights for a while until he came off. He remounted, joined the field, and was running third behind a couple of Excelsiors, when the valve gear broke.
He rebuilt the engine again, and won his next race at Donington Park. He then entered the Ulster Grand Prix, and came fourth.
After this he was approached by John Humphries (the son of OK-Supreme's founder) to join the firm, and was given a job assembling the OHC engines. OK-Supreme produced short track racers with JAP engines.
Les Graham, Andy McKay, and John Humphries soon became known as the Midlands trio of OK-JAP riders.
In summer of 1938 they raced in the South Eastern Championships on Layhams Farm "mountain mile" grass track. Les took the 20 lap Matchless Trophy, setting a record in the process, despite never having competed on that track before.
He came 12th in the 1938 Isle of Man TT Lightweight on an OK-Supreme.
In 1939 he entered the IOM TT riding a Rudge engine Chris Tattersal St. Annes (CTS), and was running fourth on the second last lap, when the gearbox broke.
Jock West was watching the race, and signed Les up to ride a Velo in 1940, but the War intervened, and that did not happen.
Read more about this topic: Leslie Graham, Early Career (1929