British cyclists came to see time-trialling as the purest form of competition, free as it was of the tactics of massed racing.
According to time-trialling historian, Bernard Thompson: "It was probably the best thing that has ever happened to British time-trial sport, even to this day.
After his fourth consecutive win, 7,000 cyclists watched at the Royal Albert Hall in London as Southall signed the Golden Book of Cycling during the BBAR prize-giving concert.
Both the RTTC and Cycling had campaigned against the BLRC, still convinced massed racing threatened the sport as a whole.
But the editor of Cycling, H. H. "Harry" England was so upset that the RTTC had taken over the BBAR that he changed sides and began reporting BLRC races.
Twelve-hour races would also have been hard to organise because, said Bernard Thompson: "Signposts had been taken down during the war and it is doubtful that a sufficient number of marshals and feeders could have been mustered in those austere times.
The men's competition has been won eleven times by Kevin Dawson, two more than Ian Cammish (nine).