Leslie Archer best known as Les Archer Jr. (27 February 1929 – 18 December 2019) was an
English former leading motorcycle
racer of the 1950s, competing in long-distance speed trials,
road racing
Road racing is a form of motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held either on a closed circuit or on a street circuit utilizing temporarily closed public roads. Originally, road races were held almost entirely on publ ...
and scrambles, now known as
motocross.
He was the son of
Les Archer
Leslie James Archer (20 June 1907 – 2001) was an English leading motorcycle racer of the 1920s, competing in long-distance speed trials, hill climbs and scrambles, now known as motocross.
Archer was the son of an Aldershot motorcycle dealer. R ...
, also a top motorcycle racer from the 1920s.
Archer is notable for winning the 1956
F.I.M. 500cc
European Motocross Championship on a highly modified
Manx Norton.
Biography
Archer rode for the
New Imperial
New Imperial was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded by Norman Downes in Birmingham, between 1887 and 1901, and became New Imperial Motors Ltd in 1912, when serious production commenced. New Imperial made innovative motorcycles that emplo ...
factory at the
1947 Isle of Man TT
The 1947 Isle of Man Tourist Trophy was the first race festival since 1939 due to the interruption of World War II. With the restart of racing, the ACU decided to add three Clubman-class races for production machines in Lightweight, Junior and Se ...
, and competed in the 1950
International Six Days Trial as a member of the
British Army team. He competed alongside his traveling companion
Eric Cheney
Eric Cheney (5 January 1924 – 30 December 2001) was an English motorcycle racer, designer and independent constructor. He was known as one of the best motorcycle frame designers of his era, concentrating mainly in the off-road competition afte ...
, who went on to become one of the top British motorcycle designers.
Archer was also a member of the victorious British teams at the 1952 and 1953
Motocross des Nations events. Archer competed in the FIM European motocross championship with a 10th-place finish in
1954
Events
January
* January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany.
* January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting.
* January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...
then, improving to a 5th place in the
1955
Events January
* January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.
* January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut.
* January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...
championship. In
1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...
, he succeeded in winning the 500cc European motocross championship over the defending champion and countryman
John Draper.
Archer further developed the Manx Norton into the 1960s with engine preparation by famed tuner Ray Petty.
. Motorcyclemuseum.org. Retrieved 26 August 2011.
He died aged 90 in Spain in December 2019 where he had been living since his retirement.
References
External links
Les Archer Jr. biography
1953 Archer Manx Norton Scrambler at National Motorcycle Museum, England
Les Archer Manx Norton at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame, United States
''Motocross racers: 30 years of legendary dirt bikes'', by Ray Ryan, 2003
{{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, Les Jr.
1929 births
2019 deaths
British motocross riders
Isle of Man TT riders
Enduro riders
Sportspeople from Aldershot
20th-century British Army personnel