Legendary British motorcycle designer/engineer, Eric Cheney, dies at 76.
After ten successful years on the European motocross circuit Eric Cheney was forced to retire from racing himself due to an infection contracted while racing in Algeria. Not one to sit around and do cross-stitch, he began to design motorcycle chassis' and suspensions.
Having had no formal training as a motorcycle designer he was able to create original and high performance chassis designs working with an approach that had been described as "like a medieval engineer" because he worked entirely by intuition. Eric relied on his long personal experience of international off-road competition riding and would prepare his initial designs for a new motorcycle frame in chalk on the wall of his workshop. Experimenting with different lines until he was satisfied, Eric would then form the steel tubing using his chalk drawings as a guide. Only when he had built a working prototype motorcycle would he start work on a final jig for mass production. He quoted as saying "I know when it's right and it screams at me when it's wrong."
In 1968, the British motorcycle industry was unable to support a national team to compete in the International Six Day Trial so, Cheney hand built a limited number of ISDT Cheney-Triumphs using his own design of twin down-tube frame with a specially tuned Triumph 5TA engine. Fitted with tapered conical hubs, special motocross forks and large alloy fuel tanks. In 1970 and 1971 three 504cc Cheney Triumphs were used by the British team in the ISDT (Cheney would win the manufacturer's prize). Replicas were built, but production was short-lived due to a shortage of engines.
Cheney's most noted successes were in the Grand Prix championships, with Phil Read using his chassis in tandem with a Yamaha engine to win the 1971 250cc World Championship. His designs were the last British ones to win a Grand Prix. He never worked for any of the major manufacturers but maintained a productive relationship with BSA in its heyday. After the demise of BSA in 1972, Cheney joined with former BSA factory rider John Banks to develop and campaign a highly successful BSA powered motocross bike.
Some of Cheney's motorcycle designs are now famous in their own right, such as the competition BSA Gold Stars of Jerry Scott, Keith Hickman and Steve McQueen.
