San Fairy Ann?: Motorcycles and British Victory 1914-1918

The unsung heroes of many a military endeavor—particularly before the rise of mobile technology—messengers were often the deciding factor of who wins a battle and who loses. There are no finer examples of these crucial players than the Despatch Rider Corps of World War I. Essential to successful communication between soldiers during the war, these motorcycling rascals raced around the country delivering messages and occasionally wreaking mayhem on the enemy.
 
In San Fairy Ann?, Michael Carragher tells the story of these underappreciated riders who played a pivotal role in preventing German victory. He tracks the adventures of one despatch messenger in particular, Roger West, an amateur rider in the British Expeditionary Force. At one point in his career, West—one of his feet was so injured he couldn’t wear a boot—thought it “seemed a pity” that a bridge along the Great Retreat of August 1914 was open to the German armies, so he rode back to blow it up.
 
San Fairy Ann? gives life to the incredible forgotten stories of the motorcycle men who rode day and night to hold a desperate army together through a combination of grit, bravery, and a dash of roguery.