One of the last bikes Barry Sheene ever raced is about to be auctioned off by Bonhams. Plus a look at one of the stars of the recent Glemseck 101 race fest, a Yamaha SR500 that’s still in the crate, and a Honda VFR inspired by Japanese anime.

Ex-Barry Sheene Manx Norton 500 If you’ve ever wanted to own a piece of motorcycling history, this is your chance. This Manx Norton 500 race bike was built by world-renowned Manx expert Fred Walmsley. If that?s not enough to convince you, it’s the last bike that Barry Sheene piloted to victory in 2002, before his death in 2003.
Sheene was crowned World Champion in 1976 and 1977, before retiring in 1984. The bike crashes he was involved in over the years led to him developing injury-induced arthritis. To help with this, he moved to Queensland, Australia, where the climate was much more conducive to his comfort.
In the late 1990s, Sheene became involved in historic motorcycle racing, which is how he met Fred Walmsley. Barry was riding a non-Walmsley Manx at the Goodwood Revival in 1999 when he had a rather large mechanical failure. Fred was able to fix the bike?and from then on, Sheene would only ride a bike if it was Fred who prepared it for him.
Fred was with his rider John Cronshaw in the Czech Republic in 2002, when he got the call for what would turn out to be Sheene?s last hurrah. Barry had been invited back to Goodwood and needed a bike.

Jumping on a plane that very night, Fred was able to get a Manx prep...