Norton International

Norton International

In the pantheon of Norton history, the International tends to be overshadowed by the Manx. Which is a shame, because this classic British motorcycle has a strong and enduring charm of its own. At the time of its launch, in the early 30s, the International was a race-bred machine; it was powered by an overhead cam single originally designed for Norton’s famous works racers. But by the time volume production finished in 1955, the International was thoroughly outclassed. It was a good, honest bike that Norton should have killed off at least five years earlier. But even after the production line shut down, Norton carried on building the
International to special order. This 1958 motorcycle is owned by Andy Watkins of Bristol, England—a few miles up the road from where I spent my childhood. It’s one of the very last Internationals made—going by the chrome trim on the sides of the tank and the Lucas headlamp—and unrestored but well looked after. Just as it should be. “This bike handles like it’s on rails,” Andy says. “It’s a simple big single and just thumps along. When you get it really wound up, it gets into the groove and it just goes.” The perfect bike for the winding country lanes of England’s west country. [Images by Liz Seabrook. Reproduced with kind permission from Influx Magazine.]

Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II | 1/800 sec | f/2 | ISO 100 | 50mm