True Heroes Racing pay tribute to the Queen with bespoke livery

True Heroes Racing Team have honoured Queen Elizabeth II with a bespoke tribute livery on one of their Suzuki GSX-R1000s that was unveiled at Snetterton.

Founded by Royal Navy Warrant Officer Phil Spencer in 2012, the race team is made up of and supports wounded and injured service personnel and veterans.

A tribute bike to the late Queen was therefore an obvious show of respect as Mr Spencer explains: “The Queen was our boss and she served in the Armed Forces, so when the news broke of her passing, we felt it was right for us as fellow UK service personnel and veterans to do something to honour her.

“As the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship only had a single race at Snetterton BSB on the Sunday afternoon, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to run the fairings having unveiled them to the public on Sunday for them to be admired prior to the race itself.”

The design features the Queen’s portrait, the EIIR, the Union Flag and the dates of her birth and death. It was hastily designed by Bury St Edmonds based motorcycle wrap specialists Sublime Designs.

Mr Spencer said: “Fortuitously our fairing vinyl design and wrap provider, Del Dowds at Sublime Designs, has his HQ only 20 minutes from the circuit and was actually parked up in the paddock next door to us. 

“So, on Thursday night, we sat with him and his laptop in our awning and created the fairing design, we then set about removing our own livery from a spare set of fairings and he then went away on the Friday afternoon to print and apply the vinyl wrap to that set.”

The Suzuki, one of two race bike loaned to True Heroes Racing Team by OMG Racing superbike team owner and military veteran Alan Gardner, was raced by British Army Veteran Dave “Scrawn” Mackay in the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship.

The team and the bike will be in Anglesey from September 16-18 2022 as they take part in the NG Road Racing series, although the tribute bike will not be in competition.

Mr Spencer added: “We are planning to get some additional photos of the bike in this tribute livery this weekend to include some sunset images to fall in line with the military tradition of ‘At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them’.” 

A video of the bike’s launch can be viewed here.