R.I.P Peter Williams.

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Sad to read Peter Williams has passed away.


Peter_Williams_-_JPS_Norton_cropped.jpg


 
That is very sad news
He was a hero to me and I'm sure to many others
RIP
 
He was a gentleman. Extraordinarily modest, intelligent and a world class rider and engineer.
 
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I have the honour to spend four days with him at the classicbike show at Wieze here in Belgium;
I did the interviews also.
Days that I will never forget.
RIP Peter
Yves
 
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Sad...:( Met him at a Britt-Bike get-together during IOM Manx GP week a few years ago. We talked for some time over pints. He was very interesting , of course, and seemed like a great guy. I have often told folks about that day...and I literally HAVE the T-shirt - a Norton T - that he signed! He was easy to talk to and seemed interested in doing so, regardless of having been asked the same questions/having to tell the same stories innumerable times!
 
I talked with Peter on the phone and he gave me one of his books last year. Glad I had the chance to meet him. Very nice person. R.I.P our hero.
 
It is very sad to hear this and signifies a passing of time for me.

The first time I saw Peter ride was the 1972 Hutchinson 100 (Brands Hatch Backwards!) Where he did heroic things with the Arter Matchless and Agostini threw his MV up the hill into Druids! This was actually the first road race meeting I had been to, and it left its mark, which drove me to go racing in '75 on my Commando.

I met him in '78 at the Earls Court Motorcycle show of that year, where I exhibited my Rickman Norton on behalf of the RAF Motor Sports Association and Peter had a stand for his dealership in Southampton.

He gave me lots of useful input regarding the 850 motor which had a lot of Thruxton parts including a cam he designed, but Norman White later told me at one time there was around one new profile a week, such was Peter's output at the time! Peter was interested in the RAF aspect since his father-in-law was a retired RAF officer and had been instrumental in Peter recuperating from his '74 accident at RAF Headley Court, without which it is likely his post accident disability would have been even more restrictive than it was.

I was lucky enough to meet him again in 2015 at the UK CRMC annual dinner, an event at which one of his replicas was displayed in I think 2017.

Like others I had been enjoying the banter between Norman, Dave Croxford and Peter on social media recently, and had hoped it would continue, sadly no.
 
I went to the International Motorcycle Show in NYC some years ago - around 2007 IIRC . I went to the loo and helped a gentleman out who walked with some difficulty using two crutches . He thanked me as I held the door for him on his exit .
Later on in the evening I stopped by a booth that was promoting a new glossy high end motorcycle publication . Seated in the booth signing posters was the gent I met in the loo - we both laughed and then I realized I was in the company of Norton Royalty ! We talked at length about Nortons and he was genuinely interested in hearing about mine . I could have stayed there all evening badgering him about his career but I did not want to monopolize his time .
He signed a poster for me which I will always treasure.
Some years later when Superstorm Sandy hit us my Commando got a dunking . To ad insult to injury my Peter Williams poster got wet as well . I managed to restore both .
RIP Peter - a true gentleman and mechanical genius who also had the right stuff to ride his ideas and ride them well .
R.I.P Peter Williams.
 
Sad news indeed.
But he gave Norton fans many great memories to savor forever.
Rest in peace.
 
I don't feel sad about Peter Williams dying. He lived his life and he achieved. The people I feel sad about are those who live and never achieve much other than just scraping an existence out of the system.
 
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