Isle of Man

by Ellie Honeybone from https://www.abc.net.au You may be forgiven for assuming the world’s leading manufacturer of Ducati bevel drive engine parts would live in a bustling city, perhaps in Italy or the United States, somewhere central and close to consumers. But in fact, this talented engineer and self-described “petrol head” lives in a tiny historic town, deep in the forests of south-west WA. Even though shipping his handmade engine parts around the world from Nannup is a logistical nightmare, Brook Henry wouldn’t have it any other way. A family business Mr Henry grew up surrounded by Ducatis. His older brothers imported and distributed the high-performance motorcycle brand in New Zealand from the late 1960s through to the 1980s. “I spent pretty well all my time at the workshop, fixing, racing and working on Ducati bevel drive twins and singles,” Mr Henry said. “I also did an apprenticeship outside that business as a toolmaker, but I never liked doing toolmaking and I always wanted to go back to motorcycles.” That love of motorcycles grew and continued for the next 40 years with Mr Henry now a household name and ‘master’ in the Ducati world. He has travelled extensively, inspected designs inside Ducati’s Bologna factory and even appeared on bike lover Jay Leno’s US television show. After settling down first in Perth and then further south in Nannup, Mr Henry developed a business building, designing and shipping bevel drive parts, engines and complete motorcycles across the world. Pandemic revives restoration projects There are only so many original bevel drive Ducatis in existence, making Brook Henry’s business incredibly niche. These bikes were built during the 1970s and 80s and made famous after legendary British champion Mike Hailwood won the Isle of Man race in 1978. When the world went into COVID-19 lockdown during […]