Classic Dirt Bike

Usually the subject of this column is specific to a certain section of the world's population, the section which enjoys riding older off-road motorcycles in the variety of events which have arisen since clever people devised propulsion units to fit i

There is a lot of uncertainty in the sporting world and until the pandemic is under control or its effects reduce then organisers of events are unable to commit to definite answers as to when their event is on. Obviously the later the event the more

With a date set in August, when it is hoped restrictions will have been eased, the Westmorland Revival Scramble at the showground venue they've used for a few years could be a two-day event. If it is, then the scrambles and MX world will be more than

Introducing the first Classic & Custom Motorcycle Beach Sprint-race in Great Britain. An array of wild motorcycles will race head-to-head in a unique beach race in beautiful Margate on September 26, 2020. An inappropriate motorcycle race like no othe

On a brighter front, the fundraising for Teenage Cancer Trust has been amazing, the website gives you a full breakdown of the donations, including money from various clubs and £1000 from Cumberland County when their event was cancelled and most rider

As the effects of the pandemic hit motorcycle sport and events are cancelled, postponed or just 'off, there is a timely warning from MSM Insurance about another equally virulent pandemic - thievery. While us ordinary, honest, law-abiding people try t

A little something for interaction on our Classic Dirt Bike website is the Iconic Bikes series. A little bit of fun for us in this time of uncertainty, it's not a competition, there's no prizes, just a bit of chat about what you think is an iconic di

A glimmer of hope in this trying and troublesome time, Westmorland MC are hoping their popular Bultaco Revival event - which was pushed back to July 25 from its regular June date - may well be able to go ahead. If the current restrictions are eased a

■ Paul Jackson frame (oil-in-frame) ■ Bultaco Betor/Norton Roadholder forks ■ Max Heys hubs ■ Stainless spokes ■ Alloy axles ■ Rockshocks ■ Holtworks alloy tank with aircraft fuel filler ■ Titanium Apico footpegs ■ Max Heys CNC yokes ■ Renthal FAT Ba

Although not his given name, 'Billy; as he is known in the trials community, may be down to one of two possibilities. "Bill Westward, Bishop of Peterborough at the time was apparently called Billy and that's why I gave him the name;' claims well know

Though on the face of it, BSA had seemed reluctant to produce a replica of their works scramblers for public consumption once the 1964 world championship had been won, there was a change of heart. No factory could produce an exact replica of a champi

Though a relatively short production run there were still over 12,000 of the endure machines made in the early Seventies. The breakdown is as follows: 1971 Endure 250 = 4250 units 1972-1973 Endure= 5400 units 1973-1974 Endure 250 = 3000 units I'm ind

Gary Warr was helped along with his MX ambitions by his parents providing him with a 125cc OSSA Phantom in 1975. It led to a lifelong passion for the Spanish marque. "I've had other makes in 45 years of racing but always the OSSA has drawn me back, t

... OSSA stands for Orpheo Sincronic S.A and their original and main business activity was producing cinematic movie projectors and other film equipment. The Giro family who formed the company were also motorcycle enthusiasts and from this interest c

The dealer decal on the rear fender pronounced the OSSA was originally supplied by Fairview Cycle Ltd of Calgary, Alberta in Canada but who were they and what's their story? Well, a bit of detective work put me in touch with Douglas MacRae, president

It is interesting to note for 1960 the 500cc four-stroke engine in single cylinder form was dominant in even international MX, but the end was near for this configuration's supremacy. BSA's Gold Star was at the peak of its development. In the UK it w

The YZ which Jim Shand rebuilt into his ideal race bike was part of Yamaha's five-bike range, which the company introduced to the public with an all-action launch at a MX track in Belgium at the beginning of October in 1980. They invited the press an

The KDX45was the last of the big-single two-stroke Kawasaki Enduro machinesa line which made its debut in 1979 with the twin-shock80x78mm 392cc KDX400. By 1981 they had gained the single-shock Uni-trak rear suspension and another 3mm of bore (83x78to

I blame editor Britton totally, this is all his fault. Although I have been playing with the idea of a fast, light, (and potentially road legal) two-stroke for some years, I have always managed to resist the temptation. Then Tim rocks up with project

If you can't live without a KDXbuy a complete running one and restore from there. It's false economy to save a few quid by buying an even slightly incomplete one. If you can live with one ofthe smaller capacity models they are a real consideration as

The reason why you should have a KDX450, namely its rarity, is also the reason why you perhaps shouldn't. These were never imported in period and few have come in since. Although a couple have been broken up for the UK spares market, inevitably we al

...can be smoothed by a decent set of forks. Once the idea of putting a couple of different diameter tubes together came about, controlled by a spring and oil to give a wider range of movement at the front of a motorcycle, life got a lot easier for u

I touched on the suspension thing in the feature and have amusingly titled this box as 'boinggggg!' but the last thing a racer needs is suspension which reacts in this way as it will likely pitch said racer over the handlebars. Unless you're a suspen

Competing in motorcycle sport is addictive, there is no known cure for it. Once a rider has tasted the track, the need to feed the habit is always there ... It may lie dormant for a long time but nevertheless it is there, just waiting to resurface. S

Editor: Tim Britton cdbeditor@mortons.co.uk 07739 615605 Columnists: Ian Berry, John Dickinson Contributors: Jerry Thurston, Billy Bishop Photographers: Fiona Watson, Gary Chapman, Nick Nicholls Collection at Mortons Archive Production editor: Sa

Velocette suffered from not being a truly major manufacturer with resources to compete in all aspects of sport, and being unable to throw money at every project they wanted to. That said, Carlisle's Billy Tiffen managed to do a substantial amount of

... Huddersfield Falcons MCC for sorting the use of their regular venue at Horn Hill and Paul Jackson for the chance to try not only the bike he'd prepped for Richard Allen to use in last year's Pre-65 Scottish but his 250 too. The day was a 'Falcons

There is an excellent website devoted to the Victor and it is www.gpvictor.com administered by Mike Wadsworth. Even if you have just a passing interest in the Victor GP, this site is worth the time to look at. On the site is information showing the V