Alan North (born 15 August 1953), is a South African former professional

Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural ''Grands Prix'') most commonly refers to: * Grand Prix motor racing, a form of motorsport competition ** List of Formula One Grands Prix, an auto-racing championship *** Monaco Grand Prix, the most prestigious ...

motorcycle

road racer Road racing is a North American term to describe motorsport racing held on a paved road surface. The races can be held on a closed circuit—generally, a purpose-built racing facility—or on a street circuit that uses temporarily closed public ...

. His best year was in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

when he finished the season in sixth place in the 350 cc world championship. He won his only Grand Prix race in

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

, claiming the 350 cc 1977 Nations Grand Prix at

Imola Imola (; or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical region Romagna ...

. North was born in

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

, South Africa. His parents were heavily involved in Natal motorsport in the early days of

Roy Hesketh Circuit The Roy Hesketh Circuit was a racing circuit located on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal. It was named after South African racing driver Roy Hesketh, who died in the World War II, Second World War. Doug Aldridge, Colin Dove, O ...

. His father was chairman of NMCC, and before that his grandfather also. When North turned 16, he began his racing career on 50 cc bikes on the karting tracks, and at club meetings at the

. North raced at the Roy Hesketh Circuit from 1969 through to the end of 1974, moving up the ranks from 50 cc to 750 cc during those years.

References

External links

Roy Hesketh Circuit Heritage
1953 births Sportspeople from Durban South African motorcycle racers 250cc World Championship riders 350cc World Championship riders 500cc World Championship riders Living people {{motorcycle-racing-bio-stub