VOL. 50 ISSUE 23 JUNE 11, 2013
P27
A WILLIAMS REPLICA
F
orty Years ago Peter Williams
won the Isle of Man TT on a
motorcycle of his own design.
Now he's taking orders for limited edition replicas of that motorcycle.
Just 25 of the replicas of his
1973 F750 TT-winning John Player Norton monocoque-framed
Commandos will be built, with
Williams currently taking orders
for the new bikes.
A stainless-steel chassis that
formed the fuel tank as well as the
frame led to the bike getting its
"monocoque" name and the replicas will follow the design of the
1973 bikes. There's one key difference, however: While the original
monocoque frame took 12 weeks
to construct, this time CAD design
and CNC laser cutters will improve
accuracy and quicken the process. The engines, meanwhile,
will be built by renowned Norton
specialist Mick Hemmings - using
all new parts, including Williams'
own cam design.
Just four originals were built
and are now valued in excess of
$380,000 apiece. Williams has
placed a $100,000 price tag on
the replicas.
Peter Williams at the 1973 Isle of Man TT.
The replica of the John Player Norton that Williams is hoping to sell.
SARDINIA RALLY TO COMA
A
lthough the talk of the rally
world last week was Cyril
Despres moving to the factory
Yamaha team, the reality of the
rally world is that Marc Coma is
still king.
Coma, who missed this year's
Dakar Rally with an injury and
was forced to watch as his rival
Despres scored his fifth Dakar
victory, won the Sardinia Rally
on June 6 to complete a hat trick
of wins in this year's FIM World
Cross Country Rally Championship.
With this win, Coma has laid
the foundation to retain his title in
the 2013 World Championships.
continued on page 30
