John Player Norton

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By our guest contributor Nicholas Biebuck
1973 John Player Norton 750 Monocoque, the only bike to have won the Isle of Man TT ridden by it's design, Peter Williams, a very talented rider whose racing career was cut short by an accident that almost killed him. The bike also featured cast wheels, another Williams invention on bikes and is arguably the grandfather of all modern monocoque superbikes. Peter is a real gentleman and a very intelligent man who lectures from time to time and has also worked for Lotus, through who he has a number of patents relating to engine and chassis design. There are 4 original bikes in existence, two in the UK (one is at the National Motorcycle Museum), one in Europe and one in the US which was supposedly sold for the highest price paid for a motorcycle a few years ago (about £300,000 is the rumour).




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