By blue2bikes
June 20 2005

Frankie Chilli reaches a milestone in his career - that has spanned decades in which he has thrilled fans young and old, of generations that have seen him race alongside such greats as Barry Sheene and many others during his enthralling career.

When Frankie lines up on the starting grid at Misano on 26th June 2005, in the next round of the World Superbike Championships, he will be participating in his 250th race. Prior to this he will indeed celebrate his 41st birthday on Monday 20th June 2005.

© Raceline Photography

Frankie has wowed the crowds on every continent for as long as I can remember. I first met Frankie many years ago when I was fortunate enough to get a chance to talk to him and Barry Sheene at Silverstone when they were competing alongside the likes of Kenny Roberts senior.

Always friendly and so generous to his fans, Frankie deserves every accolade that has been bestowed upon him, never snubbing his fans and always stopping to talk to you whether he is having a good or bad day - he is the world’s best ambassador of the motorcycling world.

When he was at Silverstone for the first round of the WSBK this year I asked him when he was going to retire from racing. His reply was one that you would expect from this very likeable man, “Retire?” he said, “I will retire when I don’t enjoy my racing and not until then. I love the sport and have no intention or thoughts of retiring.”

I for one would be sad to see him retire, as he can still win races and is still very competitive, as his rivals know. He also helps other like minded people to ride motorcycles more proficiently through his guidance during his time spent at the ESS Schools held throughout the UK.

Congratulations Frankie and thanks for the memories.

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To buy the photograph shown above, visit Raceline Photography