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R.I.P.: Motorcycle Designer, Racer, Author, Ad Man Mick Ofield

By John Ulrich
By John Ulrich

R.I.P.: Motorcycle Designer, Racer, Author, Ad Man Mick Ofield

© 2025, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc. By John Ulrich.

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Motorcycle Industry NewsFeatureRacingAFM RacingInternational
Author Mick Ofield (170) accelerating out of Castletown Corner in 1976, in his debut ride at the Southern 100. 
Author Mick Ofield (170) accelerating out of Castletown Corner in 1976, in his debut ride at the Southern 100. 

Retired motorcycle racer, designer, and Roadracing World contributor and illustrator Mick Ofield died Sunday, February 23rd at home in McMinnville, Tennessee.

He raced in the U.K. and on the Isle of Man and did motorcycle design work for Norton before legally immigrating from the U.K. to the United States. After arriving in California, he club raced, worked designing leathers, and later ran his own advertising and design agency before retiring in 2007 and moving to Tennessee with his wife Peggy.

He produced the Historic Racebike Illustrations feature in Roadracing World for decades and turned in his latest installment in the series shortly before his sudden death from cancer. More information will be posted as it becomes available.

R.I.P. Mick Ofield, 2025.
Mick and Peggy Ofield in February, 2024. Photo courtesy Peggy Ofield.
Mick and Peggy Ofield at a Valentine’s Day party in February, 2024. Photo courtesy Peggy Ofield.

See Mick Ofield’s official obituary here:

https://www.mcminnvillefuneralhome.com/obituary/michael-mick-ofield

May he rest in peace.

The 1955 NSU Sportmax, seen above, as illustrated by Mick Ofield
The 1955 NSU Sportmax, seen above, as illustrated by Mick Ofield

 

A design sketch author Mick Ofield did of the P86 street version of the Challenge engine when he worked for Norton. A large SU carburetor that met EPA regulations replaced the usual two Amal carburetors.
1949 Norton Manx 30M, seen above, as illustrated by Mick Ofield.
1949 Norton Manx 30M, seen above, as illustrated by former Norton designer and racer Mick Ofield.

 

This just in, from Editor At Large Michael Gougis:

I met Mick Ofield when I started road racing motorcycles in 1995 with the Willow Springs Motorcycle Club (WSMC). He’d race in the Vintage class, where I got started. It was a good place to start, as most of the competitors were very experienced and just racing for the joy of the sport, and they were safe on the track and willing to share their experience with the new guy in the paddock.
 
I watched Ofield pull into the pits on the final lap of a race once, so I had finished ahead of him. I went to find him in the pits and asked if his bike had suffered a mechanical. He said, “No, I’m on slicks, and those tires are completely illegal for the class, so I pulled off before the finish.”
 
His commitment to sportsmanship and fair play made an impression on me, and I hope that I’ve conducted myself in the same manner throughout my racing career.
 
Godspeed, Mick.

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