BOISE, Idaho — Mert Lawwill, one of the most influential and respected figures in the history of the AMA Grand National Championship, died recently at the age of 85.
Lawwill, the 1969 AMA Grand National Champion and a 1998 inductee into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, was among the defining riders of American professional motorcycle racing’s golden era. A factory Harley-Davidson rider for the majority of his career, Lawwill combined rare mechanical understanding with a smooth, determined riding style that made him one of the sport’s most admired competitors.
Born September 25, 1940, in Boise, Idaho, Lawwill began racing on local TT tracks and in scrambles events across the Northwest before moving to California to pursue the sport at its highest level. After turning professional in 1963, he joined the Harley-Davidson factory team in 1964 and remained with the manufacturer throughout his professional racing career.
Lawwill earned his first AMA National victory at the famed Sacramento Mile in 1965. Four years later, he captured the 1969 AMA Grand National Championship, a season that placed him among the elite riders in one of the most demanding eras of the sport. He was also voted AMA’s Most Popular Rider of the Year in 1969.
Over the course of his 15-year professional racing career, Lawwill amassed 161 AMA Grand National finishes and 15 AMA Grand National victories. His resume included wins across the diverse disciplines that defined the Grand National era, from TT and half-mile competition to the sport’s iconic mile events.
Lawwill’s fame reached well beyond the race track through Bruce Brown’s landmark 1971 film On Any Sunday. The film helped introduce millions of viewers to the discipline, skill and humanity of motorcycle racers, while inspiring generations of riders and fans.
After retiring from professional racing in 1977 due to an inner-ear disorder that affected his balance, Lawwill continued to shape two-wheel competition through design and engineering. He became a respected motorcycle frame builder and later applied his knowledge of suspension, chassis dynamics and handling to mountain bikes. His work contributed to major advances in off-road bicycle design, and he was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in 1997.
Lawwill also devoted his ingenuity to helping others ride. Through his adaptive and prosthetic hand designs, he helped amputees and injured riders return to motorcycles and bicycles, extending his influence from championship racing to life-changing mobility.
