ONE man's life in the fast lane is the subject of an exhibition at a Flintshire library.

Through a series of photos, visitors to Buckley Library will get a glimpse of engineer David Thomas's days of racing motorbikes in the 1960s.

David, 82, from Alltami, first started racing bikes at 15-years-old.

At about 12-years-old, he had been with his father to watch the Wirral 100 Motor Racing Club, which used to hold meetings and race at a track in Rhydymwyn, just outside Mold.

David said: "This created the interest in motorcycle and speed."

David Thomas in action during practive at the Isle of Man, 1969.

David Thomas in action during practive at the Isle of Man, 1969.

He initially tried racing a go-kart belonging to a local contractor but it didn't suit him. David added: "I was better on two wheels."

David originally worked as a blacksmith in Buckley through to the 1970s, taken on as an apprentice, and then making parts for De Havilland's in Broughton, now Airbus.

He went to work on one of his first motorbikes, even modifying it to go quicker.

David's racing years spanned across from 1965 to 1970, before he and wife Jennifer, from Drury, started a family, going on to have two sons.

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He predominately raced Kawasaki bikes but had previously ridden Norton and AJS bikes. His career saw him compete several times at the legendary Isle of Man circuit, which was originally 226 miles over six laps. Despite the venue having a notorious reputation, David himself never had an accident racing.

These days David still keeps busy. He has a love of computers - he was one of the first in Dobshill to be on the internet - and photography but hasn't strayed far from metalwork, adding: "I'm in my workshop every morning doing something for somebody, always making something."

• The Shutter Speed exhibition, run by Aura Museums, is at Buckley Library until the end of the year.