THE HISTORY
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The Revolutionary Legacy
of Don Noys and Ray Collins
The Revolutionary Legacy
of Don Noys and Ray Collins
The Don Noys Invitational Reliability Trial is a living tribute to two figures who transformed vintage scootering from a mode of transport into a platform for performance engineering: Don Noys and Ray Collins.
The Rebel Dealer and the Engineering Partnership
In 1950s–60s Britain, Don Noys stood out as a rebel in the conservative world of scooter retail. While official Lambretta retailers presented their machines as reliable, finished transport, Noys saw them as raw platforms for performance. He directly challenged the factory establishment by importing and selling aftermarket tuning parts, igniting a high-performance subculture among younger riders. This approach put him at odds with the Lambretta Concessionaires—the official Lambretta importers at the time in Great Britain—and eventually led to his losing his official dealer status. Being stripped of his official dealer status did not destroy him—it liberated him to fully embrace scooter tuning and performance.
In time, Noys brought on Ray Collins, a former Mobile Technical Advisor for Lambretta Concessionaires. Collins possessed deep, hands-on knowledge of Lambretta engines—their failure points and their true potential. When Noys recruited him, the result was a powerful engineering partnership that pushed past enthusiast tinkering toward a disciplined, professional, performance-driven culture.
From Mud Trials to the Speed Run
Collins first proved his skill for reliability when he specially prepared three Lambretta LI 150’s for the brutal Scottish Six Day Trial (SSDT). Despite their small wheels and low clearance—features normally considered unsuitable for such terrain—all three scooters successfully finished and earned awards, an astonishing feat at an event where purpose-built trials motorcycles failed to complete the course. This success demonstrated that a properly tuned and prepared scooter could be rugged, reliable, and survive where "real" bikes could not. That credibility laid the foundation for their move into outright speed.
The "Stingray" Project and Speed Records
One of the highlights of the Noys-Collins partnership was the "Stingray" project, a heavily reworked version of the Lambretta GT 200 (TV 200). Known as a "Low Line Special," the front end was lowered by 3.5 inches—a radical modification that improved both aerodynamics and stability.
The team's pursuit of speed records spanned multiple events with different riders pushing the limits of what the Stingray could achieve. In November 1964, they brought the Stingray to Chelveston Airfield and set four new records, including the flying kilometer at 78.76 mph (126.752 km/h).
The pinnacle came in October 1965 at Elvington Airfield in Yorkshire, where Don Noys piloted the Stingray to a top speed of 82.08 mph (131.328 km/h), setting the British Land Speed Record for the scooter class. This record established the benchmark for full-frame Lambretta performance during that era and demonstrated what properly tuned scooters could achieve with the right parts, preparation, and teamwork.
The Scrambler Stingrays: Built for the Dirt
Beyond the streamlined speed record machine, Noys and Collins also built scrambler versions of the Stingray specifically for off-road competition. These machines were designed to dominate the emerging "Scootacross" events—the scooter equivalent of motocross—that were gaining popularity on heathland and dirt tracks across Britain.
As Arthur Francis recalled, "Around the time Ray was poached by Don Noys, off-road was the only real competitive scooter sport, but it was pretty crude stuff, until Don and Ray turned up!" The scrambler Stingrays represented the professionalization of what had been amateur tinkering, bringing factory-level preparation and engineering rigor to the dirt. These machines proved that the Noys-Collins partnership could excel across every discipline—from endurance trials to land speed records to hard-charging motocross competition.
Tragedy and the Perpetual Legacy
Tragically, on July 18, 1965, Ray Collins died while racing at a "Scootacross" event at Elstead Common, ending the collaboration. He was 45 years old.
Don Noys continued to honor their partnership and remained a respected figure in the scooter community for decades. Don passed away on December 23, 2011, but his legacy in the scooter world had been cemented for nearly five decades.
The story of Noys and Collins endures because they succeeded in transforming scooter culture, demonstrating that tuning and performance could be achieved by anyone with the right parts, knowledge, and preparation. From the British speed records in 1964 and 1965 to establishing a culture of reliable, high-performance scootering, their influence shaped generations of enthusiasts.
Today, we honor the pioneering groundwork they laid through the Don Noys Invitational Reliability Trial, which serves as the modern platform for testing the high standards in preparation, planning, and teamwork set by Collins and Noys.
Every rider who earns a spot in the Stingray Society by successfully completing the 12-hour trial carries forward the uncompromising standard set by these two legends.
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