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© Bob Mullins   

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It is with regret that I have to report the death of the Duke of Hamilton at the weekend. ‘Angus’ as he liked to be referred to by his motorcycling friends had been suffering from dementia and passed away peacefully on Saturday.

The Duke of Hamilton was a keen racing driver himself , breaking 47 land speed records and winning more than 60 British National and International land speed and racing titles.

Many of the top off road motorcyclists in East Lothian owe a debt of gratitude to ‘his grace’ as he sanctioned a practise motocross track in his Archerfield estate. The numbers had to be restricted eventually as there were vans arriving from as far as Dundee and Newcastle. There was a reduced number of top East Lothian off road riders who were granted permission to practise and hone their skills, the list includes riders who have gone on to perform at the highest levels around the world. To mention a few, Stuart and Neil Flockhart, Billy and Brian Mackenzie, Chris Hay, Fraser Flockhart and my own sons Paul and Neil Chatham.

It all began in 1985 when I was asked to teach all of Angus’s children to ride off road bikes as he thought it would give them a good understanding of machines before venturing out on the road when they were old enough. The youngest, Johnny showed real enthusiasm matched with a measure of talent has ridden and qualified in the British Motocross Championships. Johnny is now responsible for building some of the best motocross tracks around the world and Angus was very proud of his achievements. The track was closed in 2005 following the development of two new golf courses.