Ron Killey, O.B.E.

Ron leading the Commonwealth Games 120 mile road race in Perth, Australia – December 1962.
Personal information
Full name	Ronald Edward Killey
Born	(1985-05-21) 11 March 1930 Douglas, Isle of Man
Died	17 May 2014 (aged 84)
Cycling information
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider, Coach, Manager and Organizer

Ronald "Ron" Edward Killey, OBE (born 11 March 1930) was a Manx road racing cyclist and cycling coach who went on to officially participate in 12 consecutive Commonwealth Games from 1958 through 2002 ^[1][2], more than any other Manxman. He rode in the Games in 1958 and 1962, and was individual sport and team manager for the Isle of Man team from 1966 through 1978. From 1982 through his final Games in 2002 Ron held a number of positions in the Games' Island and Federation organizations, including Honorary Secretary of the Isle of Man Commonwealth Games Association^[2], Vice President of the Commonwealth Games Federation London Sports Committee^[3], and Vice President of the European Region of the Commonwealth Games Federation^[3]. Ron managed the British Teams in the Milk Race in 1972^[2], the Scottish Milk Race in 1982^[2], and was attache to the United States team in the 1989 Milk Race^[4]. He was also a Life Member and Honorary President of the Manx Road Club^[5]. He received an OBE from the Queen of England in 1998 for services to the Commonwealth Games Federation and to young people on the Isle of Man^[6].
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Early life and cycling

Ron was born on the 11th of March, 1930, at home in Hatfield Grove in Douglas, Isle of Man, the son of Walter and Florence also from the Isle, middle child of three boys, Herbert being the older brother and Derek the younger. The family moved to Castle Street in Douglas where his mother ran a boarding house which in those days enjoyed a booming tourist season in the summer months. During the summer Ron would be sent to a farm to live where he would spend time with his Grandfather ferreting rabbits in the hills around the farm. His first job, at 16 years old, was that of a Government Messenger, a job which was conducted on bicycle, and hence Ron's passion for cycling began to evolve. At 18 he did his National Service as a mechanic in the Royal Air Force (RAF), and was assigned to post-war Germany to service the Lancaster Bombers. After two years with the RAF he returned to the Island and resumed work for the Isle of Man Government. Upon his return he started to focus on competitive cycling, and began finding success in many local events.

From 1950 through 1962 Ron won 48 open road races, and finished in the top six 17 times out of 25 events in which he competed off the Isle of Man in the United Kingdom^[7]. In the 1956 Manx International, a race that was won by world road race champion Ercole Baldini, Ron finished 10th overall^[7].

By 1956 Ron's success in cycling enabled him to enter the eight-day, 1000 mile Tour of Britain (Daily-Express Tour). In the opening 222 km that finished in Manchester he took 6th place. He won the 196 km stage 4 that finished in Aberystwyth (Dyfed), finishing in 6h 37m and just 1s ahead of the eventual winner of the tour, Richard McNeil. Ron also finished 3rd in the 212 km stage 6 that finished in Weston-super-Mare (North Somerset). Overall Ron finished the tour in 3rd place, just 6m 39s behind McNeil.

Cycling magazine contributor, Michael Daniell described Ron's stage win on 23 August 1956^[8]:

"On the following stage of 122 miles, from Rhyl to Aberystwyth, further upheavals were witnessed early in the proceedings, Ward punctured early on, got back with a chasing group, only to fall on descending Penmachno (30 miles) and receive concussion to finish eventually at Aberystwyth in 34th position, 12 minutes down on stage-winner Manxman Ron Killey, riding for the Merseyside team. Rae, Manchester's Mather, and, of course, Ward, all missed the vital break. And McNeil jumped into race leadership with a clear working margin of five minutes, after figuring prominently in the break that proved the key point of the whole race. Ryan, Mather, Taylor, P. Ellison (Yorks and Eastern Counties) and F. Clements were away before ancient Harlech (53 miles) and reached Bar-mouth two min. up on the main bunch. There the race stopped for half an hour. Competitors were, after resting for that prescribed time, dispatched at the exact intervals at which they had arrived. Regrouping occurred after the resumption, with, notably, T. Bristow (S. Eastern Counties), Army man Doug Collins, Killey and McNeil joining the five leaders, Collins and Ryan (who had been brought back after--a solo break) were dropped almost simultaneously on a sharp rise shortly before the finish. Bristow was the next to go with only yards left, and McNeil was content to see Killey take the stage by 1 sec., with Bristow third. Rae, Mather and a dismal-looking Ward all missed that most vital break, and the yellow jersey passed to McNeil, by far the most consistent rider in the race with, at that time, two second places, a fourth and an eighth. He enjoyed a clear 5-minute lead over Rae, by his efforts on the stage. Ward, seriously concussed, was unable to start the following day."

Additional achievments for Ron included winning the title of best Manx All-Rounder four times^[7], and winning the 1962 Birkenhead North End C.C. 75-mile road race in Wales which included a top-class field^[9]. Ron also finished fifth in the 300 mile Tour of the North in Northern Ireland in 1962^[10].

Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games in 1958 in Cardiff, Wales were the first games that were attended by an Isle of Man team. It was also Ron's first Games as a member of the Isle of Man cycling team. He crashed during the event^[11], ending up in hospital.

The following Games, in 1962 in Perth, Ron again competed as a member of the Isle of Man cycling team in the road race. He finished in 6th place^[12], losing out on a medal in the final sprint of seven riders after 120 miles and 31 laps of the Kings Park circuit.

The 1966 Games in Kingston, Jamaica saw Ron move into a officiating role, when he joined the team as assistant to the general team manager, Curwen Clague, and by virtue of his cycling background, the de facto cycling team manager. He subsequently held a variety of officiating roles for the Isle of Man Commonwealth Games Association (CGA) at each of the next nine Games.

Year	Host Country	Host City	Isle of Man CGA Role	Other Notable Roles
1958	Wales	Cardiff	Cycling competitor
1962	Australia	Perth	Cycling competitor
1966	Jamaica	Kingston	Assistant team manager and cycling team manager
1970	Scotland	Edinburgh	Assistant team manager and cycling team manager
1974	New Zealand	Christchurch	Assistant team manager and cycling team manager
1978	Canada	Edmonton	Cycling team manager
1982	Australia	Brisbane	Cycling team manager	Vice President of the Commonwealth Games Federation London Sports Committee
1986	Scotland	Edinburgh	Assistant team manager	Vice President of the Commonwealth Games Federation London Sports Committee
1990	New Zealand	Auckland	General team manager	Vice President of the Commonwealth Games Federation London Sports Committee and Vice President of the European Region of the Commonwealth Games Federation
1994	Canada	Victoria	Secretary of the Isle of Man Commonwealth Games Association	Vice President of the European Region of the Commonwealth Games Federation
1998	Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur	General team manager
2002	England	Manchester	Secretary general

Other Cycling Involvement

In 1965 Ron became a qualified British Cycle Federation coach in 1965^[2], achieving the level of Senior Coach in 1973^[13], and was appointed as the Isle of Man National Cycling Team Manager and Coach^[2]. As a coach with the Manx Road Club he was influential in developing the riding styles of several riders that went on to become professional cyclists, including Nigel Dean, Mike Doyle, and two-time British Professional road race champion Steve "Pocket Rocket" Joughin^[2].

Ron was chosen to manage British Teams in the Milk Race in 1972, the Scottish Milk Race 1982, and events in France and Norway in the intervening years^[2]. He was also driver and official attache to the United States cycling team in the 1989 Milk Race^[4].

On 18th November 2005, Ron was bestowed the title of Life President of the Isle of Man Cycling Association.

Personal_life

Ron married Diana Valerie Killey in September 1957 and had two children, Janette Alexander Killey (b. 1958) who became a professional ballerina, and John Neil Killey (b. 1963) who enjoys some success in amateur car racing with the Sports Car Club of America in the U.S.A.^[14]

Ron was a career civil servant with the Isle of Man Government, having resumed after his national service with the RAF. He started as a temporary clerk at the General Registry and then moved to the Revenue Office - the former income tax payments section. An appointment as assistant clerk at the Water Board followed in 1952. He remained there until 1971 when he transferred to the Assessment Board as executive officer grade 2. The next move came five years later, this time to the Highway Board as executive officer grade one. He stayed in the department acting as assistance secretary to the Board, Clerk to the Road Traffic Commissioners; secretary to the Road Safety Committee; and Registrar of the Driving Instructors Register, as well as dealing, latterly, with airport leases. He retired from the Department of Highways, Ports and Properties in 1989.^[4]

Ron died on 27th May 2014 in the Springfield Grange Care Center on the Isle of Man after a long battle with Alzheimer's. His is buried at the Braddan Cemetery just outside of Douglas on the Island.

In The News

References