« Legendary, from Agostini to Quartararo, 40 trajectories at the heart of motorcycling » is one of the two books selected which helped us not to see winter pass by and, a few days before the resumption of the MotoGP championship, it is normal to pay tribute to him.
If you are reading these lines on Paddock-GP, you are undoubtedly a Grand Prix enthusiast, and as a result you cannot help but be interested in Yamaha. However, concerning the Iwata firm and without taking into account the pilots who vibrated much more than the three tuning forks, two names occupied and still occupy the foreground, Eric de Seynes et Lynn Jarvis.
But if the second cultivates the most absolute secrecy to the point of even hiding his date of birth, the first is driven by entirely other values, starting with sharing, the main driving force behind the creation of his work.
Indeed, we should not look for other motivations to Eric de Seynes, who is also very busy between his various positions of high responsibility at Yamaha and Hermès. The man, passionate about motorcycles to the depths of his body, and far from wanting to make the slightest profit from it (in fact all profits accruing to the author are donated to the Endowment fund for the Heritage of Motorcycling Sport), could not find another reason to take the time in a busy schedule (four months anyway, during the pandemic), to put part of his life on paper.
Because it is indeed about that, since we talk about sharing: we leave our modesty aside and we take up our pen to explain our journey, our encounters, our life, to thousands of people who only know you through a few statements reported by the media.
From the first pages of the book, a beautiful baby weighing 2,3 kilos in 300 pages of 255×315 mm, we are captivated by the history of the family ofEric de Seynes, and we quickly understand that his destiny was already sealed long before his birth...
The exercise is fascinating, because it only takes 28 lines for the author to move from the impersonal and cold “Pierre de Seynes” to the touching “papa”, thus revealing all the heart put into this unique creation.
You will have understood, even if “EDS” has a fabulous collection, with such an approach we are more interested in men than in machines, starting with its mentors, Pierre de Seynes, Jean Murit, Xavier Maugendre and Jean-Claude Olivier, those who nourished his passion, Saarinen, Pons, Jack Findlay, Steve Baker, the pilots who became his friends, Christian Sarron, Giacomo Agostini, Eric Offenstadt, Carlos Lavado, Takazumi Katayama, Freddie Spencer, Marc Fontan, those with whom he worked and created, such as Alain Chevallier, Claude Michy, Jacques Bolle, Christophe Guyot, Philippe Monneret, and the pilots he helped and became champions, like Sylvain Guintoli, Lucas Mahias, Johann Zarco, Toprak Razgatlioglu and Fabio Quartararo just to talk about speed.
As always, “the man of 1000 trades” demonstrates an exceptional memory, and this gives us a number of juicy anecdotes: in a captivating first chapter, for example, we particularly liked that of the “pig for motorcycle” barter. …
But we are not going to tell you everything, just as we will not tell the other equally interesting chapters, devoted to meetings, shared moments, even friendships, ofEric de Seynes with key figures in the history of motorcycle racing.
Actor and witness to the world of motorcycles for over forty years, Eric de Seynes, president of Yamaha Motor Europe, has never ceased throughout his life to combine his passion on a daily basis: by engaging in competition, then, professionally , as a partner (Mobil and Gauloises) and finally as a manufacturer. This passionate journey gave him unique access and close proximity to most of the teams and drivers who have distinguished themselves over the last decades. By integrating Yamaha-Sonauto alongside Jean-Claude Olivier, then succeeding him at the head of Yamaha Motor France, and finally by taking charge of operations at the international level, while being appointed Executive Officer of Yamaha in Japan, he strengthened its complicity with international motorcycle players and major figures in competition. A man in the field, close to practitioners and all enthusiasts, this work is an opportunity for Eric de Seynes to share 40 portraits of champions and major players in the motorcycle world, with whom he built his experience, in a very personal story of great value.
It's up to you to discover them, but also, if you have the opportunity, to go to the 2-wheel show in Lyon, where Éric de Seynes achieved the feat of bringing together the 42 motorcycles which illustrate the encounters described in detail in “Legendaires”.
This boss, as atypical as he is approachable, will also be there at the following times, of course to sign his book, but also, knowing him, to continue to share tirelessly, including with the first visitor who comes... Enjoy!
- Thursday March 7 – 16 p.m.: Visit to EDS alongside Christophe Guyot and of David Rinaldo
- Friday March 8 – 11 a.m.: Visit to EDS alongside Christophe Guyot and of Maurice & Bernard Maingret
- Friday March 8 – 16 a.m.: Visit to EDS with Maxime Desprey et Christophe Guyot
- Friday March 8 – Evening 20 p.m. with Yamaha dealers and VIPs present: Visit to EDS with Tom Pages et Giacomo Agostini
- Saturday March 9 – 11 a.m.: Visit to EDS alongside Christian Sarron, Giacomo Agostini et Kenny Foray
- Saturday March 9 – 13 a.m.: Visit to EDS alongside Tom Pagès and Lucas Mahias
Full list of legendary machines on display:
