Peter Williams RIP
Discussion
crofty1984 said:
Did he build that Monocoque Norton? Am I thinking of the right person?
Yep. He was at Lotus for several years, where I had the privilege to work with him on a couple of projects.I first met him when I was an apprentice and he was working on a very small project, designing a 'glass' engine to investigate combustion in chambers using lasers. I was a bit star-struck having always been an old bike fan, and he was really patient and kind, talking to me about bikes most of the time! He'd even bring in some of the models he had of various bikes he hoped to design.
More recently I was contacted by him as he wanted some help to scan a CBR600 engine to design a (fairly revolutionary) Moto2 bike around. We arranged for an engine to be collected by my brother from HRC and brought to my work on a Saturday morning and I scanned it for him. Sadly, the project never got off the ground due to funding issues I heard later.
He really was a lovely bloke. Really humble, massively clever (in the way some people are just 'clever' and can also explain things really well!) and always kind.
I remember seeing him at a classic bike show years after I'd finished my apprenticeship and he'd left Lotus. He was the star guest, but he remembered me and came to speak to me, which I've always thought was amazing as I'd last seen him as a spotty teenager years before. That sums him up though, I don't think he always realised how much some people respected and admired him!
srob said:
Yep. He was at Lotus for several years, where I had the privilege to work with him on a couple of projects.
I first met him when I was an apprentice and he was working on a very small project, designing a 'glass' engine to investigate combustion in chambers using lasers. I was a bit star-struck having always been an old bike fan, and he was really patient and kind, talking to me about bikes most of the time! He'd even bring in some of the models he had of various bikes he hoped to design.
More recently I was contacted by him as he wanted some help to scan a CBR600 engine to design a (fairly revolutionary) Moto2 bike around. We arranged for an engine to be collected by my brother from HRC and brought to my work on a Saturday morning and I scanned it for him. Sadly, the project never got off the ground due to funding issues I heard later.
He really was a lovely bloke. Really humble, massively clever (in the way some people are just 'clever' and can also explain things really well!) and always kind.
I remember seeing him at a classic bike show years after I'd finished my apprenticeship and he'd left Lotus. He was the star guest, but he remembered me and came to speak to me, which I've always thought was amazing as I'd last seen him as a spotty teenager years before. That sums him up though, I don't think he always realised how much some people respected and admired him!
I didn't know he was ex-lotus - I remember the optical engine (or maybe a descendant of it) from my days there.I first met him when I was an apprentice and he was working on a very small project, designing a 'glass' engine to investigate combustion in chambers using lasers. I was a bit star-struck having always been an old bike fan, and he was really patient and kind, talking to me about bikes most of the time! He'd even bring in some of the models he had of various bikes he hoped to design.
More recently I was contacted by him as he wanted some help to scan a CBR600 engine to design a (fairly revolutionary) Moto2 bike around. We arranged for an engine to be collected by my brother from HRC and brought to my work on a Saturday morning and I scanned it for him. Sadly, the project never got off the ground due to funding issues I heard later.
He really was a lovely bloke. Really humble, massively clever (in the way some people are just 'clever' and can also explain things really well!) and always kind.
I remember seeing him at a classic bike show years after I'd finished my apprenticeship and he'd left Lotus. He was the star guest, but he remembered me and came to speak to me, which I've always thought was amazing as I'd last seen him as a spotty teenager years before. That sums him up though, I don't think he always realised how much some people respected and admired him!
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