Remembering Those We Lost This Year

Dennis Chung
by Dennis Chung

2011 is just around the corner but we thought we’d take a moment to look back and remember some of the figures in the motorcycle industry we lost in 2010.

Danny “Magoo” Chandler

Motocross legend Danny “Magoo” Chandler was one of the most popular racers in the ’80s. Chandler was the first rider to win both the Motocross des Nations and the Trophee des Nations in the same year. Chandler was paralyzed after a crash in a race in 1985 but continued to make an impact by promoting mountain bike races and supporting the drug awareness program DARE. Chandler passed away from illness May 4 at the age of 50.

US Highland Executives

Mats Malmberg, President and Founder

Chase Bales, Chief Operating Officer

Damian Riddoch, Chief Financial Officer

Up-and-coming motorcycle manufacturer US Highland lost three of its key executives in a July 10 plane crash outside Tulsa, Okla. Malmberg (41), Bales (51) and Riddoch (37) were returning to Oklahoma on a private Cessna after a business meeting in Michigan. US Highland had just recently opened a new facility and announced plans to build electric motorcycles.

Peter Lenz

Peter Lenz was a promising young racer from Orlando, Fla. The youngest Expert licensed racer in American Federation of Motorcyclists history, Lenz died in the warmup lap for a USGPRU at the 2010 Indianapolis Grand Prix on Aug. 29 at the age of 13.

Matt Dieckmann

The founder of Electric Race Bikes, Matt Dieckmann will be remembered as one of the pioneers of electric motorcycles. Electric Race Bikes competed in the inaugural North American TTXGP championship. Dieckmann died Aug. 30 in a crash while testing a new electric motorcycle. He was 29.

Shoya Tomizawa

A popular figure in the MotoGP paddock for his sunny smile, Shoya Tomizawa was a successful racer in the All Japan Road Race Championship. After competing in the 250cc Grand Prix class in 2009, Tomizawa raced in the new Moto2 class in 2010, winning the first ever race for the new class at the Losail circuit in Qatar. Tomizawa died in a crash in a Moto2 race at the Sept. 5 San Marino Grand Prix. Eventual Moto2 Champion Toni Elias nominated Tomizawa for the 2010 Michel Métraux Trophy for best privateer racer in the Moto2 and 125cc class, a decision that was met with unanimous approval. Tomizawa was 19.

Eyvind Boyesen

Eyvind Boyesen’s dual-stage reeds are one of the most popular aftermarket parts on the market. The noted two-stroke engine tuner founded Boyesen Engineering and holds more than 40 different patents. Boyesen passed away Nov. 17 just days before he was to be inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame. He was 68.

Dennis Chung
Dennis Chung

Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.

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