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A Norton café racer once owned by former Top Gear/The Grand Tour host Richard Hammond is heading to auction in the UK. The bike, blending the pedigree of Britain's storied Norton marque with a celebrity provenance, is drawing significant attention.
The cafe racer is, to me, close to the origin point of custom culture itself. If a celebrity had a Norton built and rode it, there's a genuine story there. A bike that's passed through someone's hands moving on to the next owner - it reminds me all over again that a motorcycle isn't just transportation, it's culture. I can't help being curious, from experience, where this auction ends up.
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The Top Gear/Grand Tour crew always seems to know their way around motorcycles too, from my impression.
I always had Richard Hammond pegged as a car guy, didn't know he rides bikes too.
They did a motorcycle segment on The Grand Tour too, so Hammond's actually a bit of a dual-vehicle enthusiast.
Curious the article doesn't mention the estimated hammer price or the exact model year.
Detailed specs will probably come out as the auction gets closer, waiting on follow-up.
Celebrity ownership tends to attract a premium and pushes the final price above market value.
There's probably a celebrity-ownership premium, but with Norton's own rarity factored in, the pure appraisal value seems high too.
Just hearing 'a bike owned by Hammond' does spark a bit of a fanboy pull in me, I'll admit.
A Norton café racer is basically the brand's own history in physical form, so having provenance attached should raise the value even more.
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