Classic Racers: Jimmy Aird

What can be said about hard-as-nails Jim ‘Jimmy’ Aird, legendary off-roader, Scottish champion and proprietor of SCOTT Leathers?

We love these shots of Jim in action. Especially the splendid Nick Nicholls shot from 1974 which shows Jim riding a KTM 360 at a Newbury ‘scramble.’ How far both have come, eh?

KTM these days is a front-runner in MotoGP, probably second only to Ducati and ahead of Japanese firms that once dominated the sport, meanwhile Aird set up the very successful SCOTT Leathers company.

Jimmy – originally from Kirkcaldy, Scotland, would work with Len Thwaites at TT Leathers, based in Barnard Castle, near Darlington. TT Leathers were trailblazers themselves in many ways, producing colourful bike gear, some of which was used by none other than the Royal Signals Motorcycle Display Team, ‘The White Helmets.’

When TT Leathers closed, Aird founded SCOTT Leathers and they have kept some of the biggest names in British biking safe: including John McGuinness in the past… And it’s not just road-racing. SCOTT Leathers provide protection for enduro, motocross, speedway and supermoto racers and riders. They’ve even made jackets used by a number of police forces in the UK and the kick-back has also been that some mounted police have started to use their kit.

Best of all it’s still made in Barnard Castle: no out-sourcing to the Far East for Jim…They use local, talented people to make the best product.

For many years Aird has been out on the road at the various bike shows touting SCOTT Leathers and still scaring everyone silly with his silky off-road skills…