Round Up
ROUND UP
JOE PARKHURST
SEPTEMBER each year has become time to visit Europe for me, ever since I became a fiend for the International Six Days Trial. I don’t know what I’ll do next year, because the ISDT will be in this country. This time I made a few visits on the side, to the Rickman Brothers in New Milton, England; the Trophee des Nations in Genk, Belgium; Race of the Year at Mallory Park; the Cologne Motorcycle Show; the Puch factory in Austria; and a lot of assorted business and pleasure stops along the way.
My old friends Don and Derek Rickman were busy preparing machines for the 1973 model showings and getting one of their new Zundapp-engined 125cc ISDT bikes ready for Geoff Chandler to ride in Czechoslovakia. Regardless, they took off enough time for me to have a ride on Chandler’s machine and showed me all of the new factory expansion that has taken place since my last visit a few years ago. Things are really looking up for these
two nice guys. The ISDT Rickman will be distributed by BSA/Triumph in this country, as will the other machines in the Rickman Metisse line-up. The bike sparkles with new features; and, as usual, whenever I get near the Rickmans, I bought a new Metisse.
My ride was at the motocross course, which is the scene of the Hants Scrambles. A rougher course I have never seen. The Rickmans are now building most of the machines themselves, even the fiberglass parts. Very little is purchased from outside suppliers. The Rickman operation exemplifies what a small manufacturer might be able to do in this country.
In Austria, I was warmly welcomed at the castle of one of the few of motorcycling’s royalty—Count Otto Herberstein. The Count still lives in that castle, but now has a lake and several restaurants. He also still has one of th^ finest collections of 500cc four-stroke scrambles and motocross bikes in the world. Otto’s long time friendship with the Puch factory produced one of the new 2 5 0cc, six-speed Puch motocrossers, which I promptly leaped on and did a few laps on his private course. The new Puch is fantastic.
Unlike previous Puchs, the powerband is much wider and the torque
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comes in at a very low rpm. The prototype I rode was extremely light but steered and handled like the professional machine it was designed to be. Production versions will weigh a little more, but the Puch people assured me it would be a very small increase. Horsepower was incredible for a 250. World Champion Joel Robert had a hand in its development, and as of this writing rumors are that he will ride for Puch in 1973. Production on the new bike will be in 1973, and a five-speed 400cc is in the works. Puch is indeed serious about the dirt bike market.
I visited the Puch factory in Graz, just down the road from Herberstein. After swearing me to the usual secrecy, they showed me several interesting projects. A kinder and more hospitable group cannot be found. It was hard to leave, but BMW had been kind enough to loan me a car again, as they had several ISDTs before, and we had to be off for the wilds of Chechoslovakia. It was only a few hundred miles, but it is easier to drive from New York to Los Angeles than to get there.
Back to Otto Herberstein. He turned my head inside out by wheeling out the wildest looking bike I have seen in a long time. He showed me a Clew Stroka.
A rotten pun, I thought, but that’s just what it’s called. It is built by a chap in England named Clews. He builds the lightest frame ever for the singlecylinder BSA 500, then fits his own head, barrel, piston, etc., and makes a 608cc BSA of it! I could not weigh it, but I’m told it weighed only 209 lb., dry. It is light. With the power and torque that wonderful engine develops, > and superb handling, I was in seventh heaven. I’m working on finding one right now.
The ISDT in Czechoslovakia was not a disappointment, though the bad luck that hit so many American riders was heartbreaking.
After the trials we headed for Cologne and that really marvelous motorcycle/bicycle show. Highlight of the show for me was the Munch, in all its gigantic proportions. We will have a road test shortly of the newest 1200TSS. The Munch factory’s new head is a young, energetic businessman. They plan on putting Munchs under quite a few well-heeled enthusiasts in the next few years. Though their plans are not complete, they hope to obtain several dealers across the country to stock spare parts and offer specially trained service.
It won’t be quite as convenient as owning a Honda, but for those few who want something that is really different, and are willing to pay for it, the Munch is in a class by itself. After all, there are people who own Ferraris and Lamborghinis who are far, far away from any dealer. Yet these fools put up with usually poor service, high priced and often unobtainable parts. Hand built, low quantity, but high style and performance vehicles are, of course, highly impractical these days. The Munch will be hard to pass up. If I were more of a road rider, hmmmmmmmm.
I saw two really fantastic days of racing, as well. Mallory Park’s Race of the Year was not new to me; I have been to several before. But with Cal Rayborn, Gary Nixon, Yvon du Hamel and Don Emde, it promised to be the most interesting ever for me. It is now all history. Personally I think Cal could have caught the Flying Finn, Jarno Saarinen. Before his Harley quit he was right on his tail. Next time, Cal.
The Trophée des Nations in Belgium was a treat. Roger de Coster slew them all. Joel had machine trouble. Before leaving, Joel promised to deliver the manuscript for his new book which we will publish. I hope to have it ready early next year. Joel’s story has to be one of the most intriguing in all of racing. His never before equalled sixtimes world championship qualifies Joel as the all-time star of motocross.
I was having a delicious lunch with Mr. Horst Spintler, director of the motorcycle division of BMW, in Munich. We were in the TV tower restaurant that overlooks Olympic Park the very moments the tension was highest in the Olympic extension of the Arab Isrealic war. The tragedy overshadowed the otherwise sparkling and gay Munich atmosphere.
I returned home as usual, exhausted from three weeks of heavy travel, but I’m ready to go again. 0
