The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Motorbike enthusiast Simon Linford
Classic motorbike fans are to form a convoy for the funeral of a Perthshire engineer who forged a legendary reputation among enthusiasts.
Tributes from around the country have already been paid to Simon Linford from Meigle, who died at the age of 59 following a four-year battle with lung cancer.
On Friday, his nephews will ride two special Matchless motorcycles in a cortege set to be joined by dozens of other vintage and classic machines.
Born in Hertfordshire, Mr Linford moved with his family to Scotland in 1976, having already set out on his career path after taking up an engineering apprenticeship.
He quickly lined up a job with Dundee firm JA Rodgers, before then becoming a mechanic at the city motorcycle dealership of renowned racer Jack Gow.
Following the move to Scotland, Simon met his wife- to- be Pamela. They were inseparable for more than 40 years and married in June 1987.
Much of their life revolved around a shared love of motorbikes and they were popular figures at numerous rallies and events which led to many long-standing friendships.
Simon owned numerous beautiful and awardwinning vintage and classic bikes, including Triumphs, BSAs, Panthers, Sunbeams, Vincents, a Coventry Eagle Flying Eight and Ducatis.
However, he always returned to his favourite Matchless bikes.
He started his own business in the 1980 s, working on motorcycles initially, before branching into other areas of engineering.
In 2004, he began trading a s SAS P rec i s ion Engineering and won contracts for wind turbine components and other specialised parts.
He was renowned for his engineering skills and vast knowledge, especially on Vincent motorbikes, for which he was regarded as a marque authority.
He and Pam were also seasoned travellers and visited countries including Thailand , Egypt and Mexico.
A non- smoker, Simon was diagnosed with a rare mutation of lung cancer in 2014 and faced the condition with bravery and stoicism, particularly in the latter stages of his illness.
His funeral is to take place in Meigle on Friday, when a convoy of vintage and classic machines will make the journey from Dundee to the village.
It will join the cortege at Camperdown roundabout at 9.50am, arriving at Meigle at around 10.20am.
In a poignant family tribute, Simon’s nephews Scott and Chris will ride Matchless motorcycles of special significance.
Scott will be on a trials Matchless Simon took great pride in owning after it belonged to his longstanding friend, the late Gordon Small.
It was the bike Simon used to escort Gordon on his final journey as part of his funeral cortege, a role he was honoured to fulfil.
Chris will be on Scott’s AFS Matchless, the last bike Simon restored