Ben Drinkwater

Who was Ben Drinkwater?

Reuben Thomas 'Ben' Drinkwater born in Rochdale, Lancashire, England a railway signalman and motor-cycle racer who competed in the Isle of Man TT Races and the Manx Grand Prix.

After competing in the 1946 Manx Grand Prix the first post-war event on the Snaefell Mountain Course, Ben Drinkwater returned to race in the 1947 Isle of Man TT races and finished in 3rd place in the controversial 1947 250cc Lightweight TT Race won by Manliff Barrington.

While racing in the 1949 350cc Junior TT Race, the first ever race of the new FIM World Championship, Drinkwater collided with a bank trying to avoid a fellow competitor near Cronk Bane farm near the 11th milestone marker post and was killed. The distinctive S-bend corner on the Isle of Man Mountain Course near to where the accident occurred was renamed "Drinkwater's Bend" or the 11th Milestone.