Len Vale-Onslow

Leonard Leslie Hubert Vale-Onslow MBE (2 May 1900 – 23 April 2004) was a motorcycle builder known for inventing the SOS racing bike in 1926. Based in Birmingham, England, he operated multiple motorcycle repair shops and resided above one of them. Vale-Onslow was actively involved in repairing and test-riding motorcycles throughout his career.

Vale-Onslow lived in close proximity to his family, which included three children, six grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren.

In 1999, Vale-Onslow received the Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for being recognized as Britain's oldest worker. Additionally, during the same year, he became the oldest subject of the television program "This Is Your Life."

As a child, Vale-Onslow's six older brothers ran two garages in Birmingham and made him a small motorcycle. His brothers would take him to Sutton Park and teach him how to ride.

Vale-Onslow was too young to fight in the First World War, though he drove a munitions truck at age 14. Vale-Onslow lost one brother at the Somme and another was invalided out of the forces. Vale-Onslow would be later pronounced unfit to serve in the Second World War.

At the age of 26, Vale-Onslow designed and constructed a lightweight motorcycle boasting a frame weighing 19 pounds and costing only 19 shillings, which garnered him a world patent. Following the outbreak of World War II, Vale-Onslow divested his manufacturing business and ventured into motorcycle sales alongside his wife. Their initial encounter occurred when she, a 16-year-old country girl, stayed with the parents of his friend. Their early outings included visits to silent films, and after three years of courtship, he proposed to her.

The two worked as a team while living above their shop. They owned some land where they planned to build a house, but chose not to move away from their shop, even after becoming millionaires. The two bought more properties: three shops, a showroom, and two or three smaller companies.

When his wife died in 1982, Vale-Onslow's heart was broken. For two years he simply could not think straight, and that was when the business went through tough times. But eventually he returned to his work, laboring on his bikes even at night. Despite his commitment to motorbikes, Vale-Onslow was not quite so keen on the automobile age.

Vale-Onslow once said in an interview:

"'With the traffic and all the pollution, I keep saying cars ought to be abolished. With a car you can't feel the wind on your face or see the sky like you can on a bike. There was no stress in the days when cars were a luxury; you had to walk mainly, or ride a bicycle and it was much healthier. I can't see anything has changed for the better.'"

He continued to ride until the age of 102. He died in 2004, shortly before his 104th birthday.