OzVMX Forum
Clubroom => General Discussion => Topic started by: mx250 on December 18, 2009, 08:47:36 am
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For my benefit, my spiritual redeemion and my education, list the 'firsts' of MX history.
e.g. When and where was the first offroad/cross country race in the MX or Scrambles format? When and where was the first in the two stage MX format? Ditto for Australia.
Nothing particular, just anything that was considered a First and memorable of MX. The first Production MX'er available to the public, etc., etc. Even the first 125, the first 250 etct etc. The first World Champion, 125, 250. trials, sidecar etc etc. First Aussie Champions, first Aussie Championships etc etc. First American champ, first South African, First Professional racer, First AMA champ, etc etc.
Be controversial if you want. Be whimsical if you want ;D.
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I'll start:
*The first known scramble event took place in Camberley, Surrey in the UK in 1924. It was called the 'Camberley Scramble' and that became the name for the sport until the European 'Motocross' gained common usage after WW2. Early races were actually point to point events based on similar lines to a fox hunt.
*The European Championship began in 1952 with Belgian Victor Leloup winning on a Sarolea. It morphed into the World Title in 1957. It was won by Swedens Bill Nillson on an AJS.
*The European 250 Championship began in 1957 and it was won by Fritz Betzelbacher on a Maico. It became the World Championship in 1962 When Torsten Hallman (Husky) became the first 250 World Champion.
*The first 125 World Championship was in 1975, won by Gaston Rahier on a Suzuki.
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I'll have a go at the sidecar cross stuff, but may stand corrected.
First European champ was Haller/Haller on a Honda 4 beleive it or not but 1st world champ was Robert Grogg/Andy Graber on a Norton Wasp in 1974.
As to when the first sidecar cross was in Aust is a mystery to me though I have programs of grasstrack/scrambles from the late 60s with sidecar entries.
No doubt someone will have more onfo then we will all find out-I hope.
The only time I saw sidecarcross in NZ was at Tauranga/Mt Manganui in the early seventies with 2 or 3 outfits, but 1 guy broke his back and they've never been heard of again.
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This post is gonna grow legs!Bigtime! Bring it on! Jerry
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I hope so-the Alron thread has gone on long enough!
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*The first known scramble event took place in Camberley, Surrey in the UK in 1924. It was called the 'Camberley Scramble' and that became the name for the sport until the European 'Motocross' gained common usage after WW2. Early races were actually point to point events based on similar lines to a fox hunt.
<puts on flame suit before correcting Firko>
Camberley heath actually. It was properly called the southern Scott (it may still run) and it was an intepretation of the Scott trial but without the observed sections. The southerners decided they didn't like those pesky sections. But, yeah it was a point to point like the Scott trial.
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"Suzuki claimed the first world championship for a Japanese factory when it won the 1970 250 cc crown".
"The first stadium motocross event was held in 1972 at the Los Angeles Coliseum".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motocross
(Starting to answer my own questions :-[.)
Was the first Australian Stadium motocross the Granville speedway? What year, 75?
The Camberley event wasn't a closed loop with laps and thus more related to enduro's and reliability trials than motocross. When/what was the first closed loop/lap events?
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The first Ausie to win a world MX title was Jay Wilson of the Moree Motorcycle Club (my club) in 2009.
The first Ausie indoor supercross was in the Sydney Entertainment Centre in 1986. Aus Vs USA. Dame yanks won. Ausi riders were Gall, Leisk, Dack, Bell. Yanks were Ellis, Jo Jo Keller. Guy Cooper & UUUMMMM. Lost. Cant remember.
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For Sidecars look around in this site . Highly regarded as accurate. http://www.thejohndaveypages.org/ Some records go back to 1931...
EML find a copy of "TWO WHEELS" May 1974 There is a small report and photo on the Hallers winning the European title, of course on their SPP Honda 754 ;)
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<puts on flame suit before correcting Firko>
No need for that, I'm always open for improvement. My source only told part of the story obviously. I thought the Scott and Camberley events were different based on my 1964 copy of The MotorCycle but I was going from memory after misplacing it.....serves me right! :-[
I hope so-the Alron thread has gone on long enough!
You obviously don't own an anorak. :P)I'm possibly taking it a bit personally but the Alron thread has uncovered more previously unknown information than any other thread on this or many other forums. That thread shows what can be achieved when enthusiasts with a common interest dig deep to expose the bullshit that had previously been accepted as fact. There is more and more information coming in all the time which shows that the thread is still alive and contributing. If you don't like it, you don't have to read it.
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"The first stadium motocross event was held in 1972 at the Los Angeles Coliseum".
Not really. They ran stadium motocross events on the infield of Ascot Speedway dating back to the late sixties. Mike Goodwin, the Superbowl of Motocross promoter was inspired by those early Ascot meetings and combined that concept with the razzle dazzle spectacle of the annual Superbowl football game at the LA Colleseum to create the Superbowl of Motocross in '72.
Prior to the Ascot races, in sixties Czechoslovakia huge stadium motocross events were held in front of over 100000 spectators. Because of the Iron Curtain being firmly in place preventing much information heading to the west, we had little knowledge of these huge events.
(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/czech%20racing21.bmp.jpg)
(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/czech%20racing%2020.bmp.jpg)
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I wonder if our CZ/commy buddies can come up with some actual dates and places.
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Nice one Firko. Have a look at the size of the crowd!
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Firko, Anorak (= hairy mountain beast)??
I agree with you about the finding and proving of good info- I'm all for it and this forum does just that. so you can keep it going.
Two wheels writing a sidecar cross story-that'll be the day!!(it would have to have been an issue of three wheels stoopid)
Granville speedway 1975, I was there with Vern Grayson on the Norton Wasp. 1 yr after the rail bridge collapsed. Don't remember how we went.
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If we exclude European stuff for the moment would the first "works" bike available to the public be the YZ 250 / 360?
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"Spirit of Speed" examines various aspects of the evolution of the motorcycle and the inevitable pitting of these machines against each other in races. The film features the first velodromes and speed trials of pre World War 1, reliability trials, grass track, aerodrome meetings, speedway and scramble; and introduces the road and track meetings, which preceded the high-tech forms of racing we enjoy today. The efforts of Australians at the Isle of Mann are also covered.A main feature of the film is the quality and quantity of stunning archival film footage, which includes Ballarat Park (1946), Fisherman's Bend (1947), Phillip Island (1937), the Reliability Trial of 1936, Jack Booth's speed trials of 1920, and Sydney Speedway (1945), just to name a few. 8)
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ooooooooooooooooooo heres one for yas
from what i remember (old man syndrome here) i was the first in australia to ride an 80cc bike in a sanctioned ACU event in tassie in 1980 making way for younger riders today
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Jerry Maybe the tiny ACE 100 MX Hodaka (AKA The Super Rat) .. Readily available to public as raced by Hodaka factory... 1969.
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The first Ausie to win a world MX title was Jay Wilson of the Moree Motorcycle Club (my club) in 2009.
are you sure? i thought Jeff Leisk may have won one in late 70's
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Reckon you might be right. Saw my first one at Arthurs Creek in I think maybe 72??? Noisy little bastard (pre muffler days)
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OK now what about the Euro stuff. Husky Aberg replica? I guess we need to establish what constitutes a works replica!
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International Six Days Enduro (ISDE) is the oldest 'off road' motorcycle event on the FIM Calendar.
The ISDE was first held in 1913 at Carlisle, England. It has occurred annually, apart from interruptions due to World War I and World War II, at various locations throughout the world. The early events were a true test of machine, rider skill, and reliability. Held on the 'roads' of that era, today most of the routes are truly 'off road'. Originally titled the International Six Day Trial, since 1980 it has been called the 'ISD Enduro'.
Up until 1973 the contest was always held in Europe. In 1973 it travelled for its first overseas jaunt the United States. Since then it has been outside Europe more frequently: twice in Australia (1992 and 1998), once more in the USA (1994), Brazil (2003), New Zealand in 2006 and Chile in 2007.
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What have these 3 riders in common (easy peasy)?
(http://trialsusgp.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/img-3630.jpg)
(http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/photogallerys/kenny_roberts_port79.jpg)
(http://motorbikearchives.com/images/stories/features/1981%20Motocross%20and%20Trophee%20Des%20Nations/1982-MX-Trophee-Des-Nat-P3.jpg)
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What have these 3 riders in common (easy peasy)?
They all have sons who have been world champs.
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The first Ausie to win a world MX title was Jay Wilson of the Moree Motorcycle Club (my club) in 2009.
are you sure? i thought Jeff Leisk may have won one in late 70's
Liesk won a world junior championship on Minibikes
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world champions in 1975.
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Tossa where did he win a world minibike title? Wasn't every minibike meeting a world title?
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I think Leisk won a world mini bike title in the USA in 78 or 79.
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I think Leisk won a world mini bike title in the USA in 78 or 79.
Yeah right but i don't think they were FIM sanctioned events back then.
I think Jay Wilson is our first real FIM world junior champ.
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world champions in 1975.
Almost (now you mention it). Both Lampkin & Everts were champs in 75 but Kenny won first in '78.
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And in doing so, destroyed Barry Sheene's dual supremacy and reduced him to a whining, excuse-making also-ran. Nice work Kenny ! Then went on to make it a three-peat to prove it was no fluke. Hard as nails, he'd have destroyed the psyche of today's poster boys in a bout a week.... ;)
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Read an interview with Kenny where he reckoned that Sheene psyched out himself. He also said that had Sheene just concentrated on his riding he would have kept winning.
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2 world titles isn't a bad thing amongst all the injuries he had.
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Tossa where did he win a world minibike title? Wasn't every minibike meeting a world title?
I believe it was in the USA 70=71
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was Leisks win at a FIM sanctioned event ?, if it was just an american event where they pronounced him world champion it doesn't count - after all the american CLUB baseball competition is called the world series and the winning club team views themselves as world champions !!!!!!
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Jay Wilson is our first MX world champ recignised by FIM. Even if it is junior world champ. Leisk won GPs but not the crown. His early junior wins were non FIM sanctioned. Just the yanks claim.
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Pretty much what i said on the previous page.
I think Leisk won a world mini bike title in the USA in 78 or 79.
Yeah right but i don't think they were FIM sanctioned events back then.
I think Jay Wilson is our first real FIM world junior champ.
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Sorry. I will crawl back under my rock now :-X
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Sorry. I will crawl back under my rock now :-X
Ha.. i have to agree with you that the yanks events were not real world titles just like the World Vets Championship they have now and only Americans ride it and the occasional Aussie.
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If we are counting the Yanks own self proclaimed World Titles then I believe that Derrem Porter won our first, Followed by Leiskie. (not 100 % sure )
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If we are counting the Yanks own self proclaimed World Titles then I believe that Derrem Porter won our first, Followed by Leiskie. (not 100 % sure )
I think you're right there. I remember Derim Porter winning one in the US in the 70's.
What ever happened to him? Don't remember hearing of him riding in seniors.
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there was a lot of Mini Bike stars who never progressed beyond that phase and had the sane success in seniors, and i think Derrim was one as was Ross Holden.
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But claiming it to be a world championship doesnt make it one. I am not taking anything away from any of the riders that have won any of these types of "world championships". Leisk was a big heroe when I was a kid. But FIM makes it a world championship. If its not FIM sanctioned it is in that country. Thats my thought ;).
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But claiming it to be a world championship doesnt make it one. I am not taking anything away from any of the riders that have won any of these types of "world championships". Leisk was a big heroe when I was a kid. But FIM makes it a world championship. If its not FIM sanctioned it is in that country. Thats my thought ;).
100% correct, no argument from me !
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OK I clarify my statement a bit, and that was a s a jumnior back in the early 70's I believe Jeff liesk won a mini bike world championship. The event I believe was held in the states, but I could be wrong. it doesn't mean:
It was a US sactioned championship or an FIM event. just adding to the thread, lets not lambast the career of Jeff Liesk!!
Q. is the ISDE a world championship, which i don't think we could call it that, but we did win the Youth camiponship in that i think in 1985
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world champions in 1975.
Almost (now you mention it). Both Lampkin & Everts were champs in 75 but Kenny won first in '78.
So Johnny O was right first off.
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If we are counting the Yanks own self proclaimed World Titles then I believe that Derrem Porter won our first, Followed by Leiskie. (not 100 % sure )
I think you're right there. I remember Derim Porter winning one in the US in the 70's.
What ever happened to him? Don't remember hearing of him riding in seniors.
Yes he came back to OZ and was riding fully DG kitted Yamaha's (his Father was oz importer) in 79 .He was upgraded quickly and lost momentum once he hit the big boys. Quite and became a pretty good tennis player (I heard)
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All of this minibike World Championship stuff is bullshit. It's as meaningful in the real scheme of things as the Rick Doughty promoted World Vintage Motocross Championships held earlier in the decade. A few Aussies won titles at that extravaganza including Geoff Ballard and Andy Caldecott but I doubt an FIM medal came with the complimentary t shirt and $10 open order at Vintage Iron. ;D
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Found an old sports book with a bit of info,while cleaning out the bookcase . ;D
MX Des Nations
Winning Country
1950,1952,1953,54,56,57,59,60 Great Britain
1951 Belguim
1955,1958 Sweden
Bill Nilsson won 3 titles in 500cc Swedish MX 1954,1957 and 1959
Belgain GP 1952 Sidecars
1st ES Oliver Norton
2nd A Milani Gilera
3rd C smith Norton
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So Johnny O was right first off.
Yup
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first rider to do the triples at broadford
stephen gall ;) ;D
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First rider to jump a low loader semi truck upside down at the Colac showgrounds on a Husqvarna Mag 250 in 1974 and lived to tell the tail. The ramp was a solid door.
Was David Alsop. :o
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Q. is the ISDE a world championship, which i don't think we could call it that
Yes, but for teams. Individual wins aren't but they do carry a lot of prestige.
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First rider to jump a low loader semi truck upside down at the Colac showgrounds on a Husqvarna Mag 250 in 1974 and lived to tell the tail.
Was David Alsop. :o
hahaha .I would have liked to see that . Ahead of your time Dave .Carey Hart was over 20 years later
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OK I clarify my statement a bit, and that was a s a jumnior back in the early 70's I believe Jeff liesk won a mini bike world championship. The event I believe was held in the states, but I could be wrong. it doesn't mean:
It was a US sactioned championship or an FIM event. just adding to the thread, lets not lambast the career of Jeff Liesk!!
Q. is the ISDE a world championship, which i don't think we could call it that, but we did win the Youth camiponship in that i think in 1985
Its like the Baseball World Series, the Yanks like to hold unofficial world championships. Leiskie was second in 500MX champs and may have been first but for running out of gas. The Americans could be forgiven for thinking they own the World given the ease even their B team can win the MXdNations.
Wasn't the old six days not an FIM championship but the new six days counts toward the world enduro series which is FIM championship event. In which case Shane Watts first actual FIM Enduro champ for Aussie.
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Wasn't the old six days not an FIM championship but the new six days counts toward the world enduro series which is FIM championship event. In which case Shane Watts first actual FIM Enduro champ for Aussie.
The ISDE does not count towards the WEC but is a stand-alone event which produces two world champions: vase and trophy.
Wattsie won the ISDE overall which does not award a world championship title but, as I mentioned, does carry a lot of prestige. Wattsie also won a WEC. Think of the ISDE as the enduro equivalent of the MX des nations.
The ISDE was previously the ISDT and changed it's name in about '83. It was just a name change. Enduros and trials fall under the same FIM sub committee called (appropriately) the trials and enduros sub committee. This sub committee is chaired by Dave Willoughby. Essentially trials and enduros are the same sport but with different scoring criterea, observation for trials and time for enduros. The aims are the same, to travel from point to point whist incurring the least penalties.
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And in doing so, destroyed Barry Sheene's dual supremacy and reduced him to a whining, excuse-making also-ran. Nice work Kenny ! Then went on to make it a three-peat to prove it was no fluke. Hard as nails, he'd have destroyed the psyche of today's poster boys in a bout a week.... ;)
Thats a bit harsh GD66 sure Roberts could ride a motorcycle but as a person hes not worth the steam off the late Barry Sheenes shit >:(
I will keep my opinion of roberts to myself but Barry was and always will be an absolute hero to me and an entire generation of fans . Barry was a real bloke with a real natural talent and a born enterupenur :)No 7 cruley taken from us but will always live on in our hearts .
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Bill was barry Sheen a pom by chance...........lol Merry xmas to you and Val
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And in doing so, destroyed Barry Sheene's dual supremacy and reduced him to a whining, excuse-making also-ran. Nice work Kenny ! Then went on to make it a three-peat to prove it was no fluke. Hard as nails, he'd have destroyed the psyche of today's poster boys in a bout a week.... ;)
Thats a bit harsh GD66 sure Roberts could ride a motorcycle but as a person hes not worth the steam off the late Barry Sheenes shit >:(
I will keep my opinion of roberts to myself but Barry was and always will be an absolute hero to me and an entire generation of fans . Barry was a real bloke with a real natural talent and a born enterupenur :)No 7 cruley taken from us but will always live on in our hearts .
Too true Bill. I got to know Barry here on the coast and he was a top guy, always friendly approachable and willing to talk anytime. He was definately taken too soon.
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Bill was barry Sheen a pom by chance...........lol Merry xmas to you and Val
on ya Bazza :D
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Bazza was a top bloke, no doubt about it but he did psych himself into a hole over Roberts.
I never met Sheeney and I would love to have met him. I reckon we could have chewed some fat for many a beer. (I suppose I'd better give Ballington a shout 'cause his number's in the white pages)
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Yeah, good on ya Bill. Fanboy or not, you can't deny that Roberts handed Baz his butt on a plate. And don't worry, I met Sheeney a few times and in fact shared a garage with him for a classic weekend at Eastern Creek, where to his credit he mucked in and changed his own tyres on the Walmsley Manx. But I also saw him withdraw from an 8-lap race that weekend on the fourth lap, when running in 4th spot, because he had to hurry off to the airport to catch a flight....rather doubt he'd have done so if he was LEADING !
And just ask his long-suffering mechanic Ken Fletcher how much time he spent mending fences in the GP paddock after Bazza's tantrums with officials and other riders. Yes, he was a good guy, but not without his flaws. Try to look outside the MCN viewpoint.
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Thats a bit harsh GD66 sure Roberts could ride a motorcycle but as a person hes not worth the steam off the late Barry Sheenes shit >:(
I will keep my opinion of roberts to myself but Barry was and always will be an absolute hero to me and an entire generation of fans . Barry was a real bloke with a real natural talent and a born enterupenur :)No 7 cruley taken from us but will always live on in our hearts .
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Thats a bit harsh (and a strange way of keeping your opinion of KR to yourself) . I never meet either of them but I sure miss Sheeneys commentary - a great character for sure . I don't know that much about Roberts but Im sure that he was a very focused guy.He might have a few more fans if he had a bit of Sheenes character in him but the again Sheene might have beat Roberts if he had a bit of Roberts focus and disipline.Both great in my view for the persons and racers they were.Also Kel Carruthers wouldn't have stuck with Roberts if he was an Arsehole of a bloke or if he had messed around like Sceeney used too.
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KR was a bit of a character, one such instance was when 125 rider Stefan Prein(sp I'm sure it was him) was sponsored by a German porno mag OKM(back when that meant something), at the GP at Salzburg they dispached one 'Dolly Buster' who was described as having 'infesibly large bussoms'. Word has it that KR was very taken with Ms Dolly's charms especialy after seeing her many 'hidden talents' in his, by now autographed OKM magazine. Something you don't see top team owners doing everyday. Very hard to judge someone by a public persona, sportmen like Allan Moffat loved the 'bad bloke' image.
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Back on the subject; The 'Firsts' of MX History. ;D.
I don't accept Camberley as the first scrambles or MX. First enduro or the first special test maybe. But Camberley wasn't doing laps and there is a clear and dramatic difference between the two. Camberley was a step towards MX but not MX. So are there any other contenders?
What about in Oz. Any contenders? In Oz there were probably some blurred lines between rough short circuits and MX. I think the Cross Roads would meet that description. It would have been rated as either a rough Short Circuit or a smooth MX track. Anyone know what was on the programme or the GCR's?
I have read somewhere over the years that MX originated with the Army in WW2, with Dispatch Riders learning and finessing their skills on training circuits filled with likely onstacles. True, false or was that just the popularising and spreading of an already existing branch of the sport?
(http://i323.photobucket.com/albums/nn458/mx250syd/Military/Bordon1542.jpg)
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My guess is that you're on to something there, Were any "circuit" (off road) events held before the wars or were they all point to point time trials or 'obseved" sections.
My old boss from Mayfairs ( Qld SUzuki importers) Eddie Bailey, told me of the days when they held road type trials around Brisbane with observers on street corners to make sure you didn't cut lanes etc... and timed them to the second back in the fifties.
I like your idea that the war probably used obstacle courses to train riders though and moto cross came on from there as the time scale fits.
In NZ we used to have what was called mini TT, which was held on a flat or slightly rolling grass paddock-as you say a rough flat track or easy scramble-much like pre 68 VMX .
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The first ever scramble meeting at Farleigh Castle was held on Monday 6th of June 1938. That's the earliest closed circuit scramble I can find after a very short Google. Who can find an earlier event?
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Where are our Pommy forum members, and Pommy ex-pats, when ya need them ;D. The first closed circuit MX most probably was in Pommyland ;) :). They whinge like a Pommy with a hangover when you bag them out about their warm beer and sporting prowess. Here's their chance and stony silence :D.
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I don't accept Camberley as the first scrambles or MX. First enduro or the first special test maybe. But Camberley wasn't doing laps and there is a clear and dramatic difference between the two. Camberley was a step towards MX but not MX. So are there any other contenders?
Depends on your definition of MX. Strictly speaking the Southern Scott wasn't MX as we know it, but more in line with what we would now call hare scrambles.
I'd never heard about the Farleigh Castle event and it is possible that this is the first case of a MX event as we now know them. Popular legend has it that the French watched the Brits scrambling around a field and added some French flair and, voila, MX was born.
Point is that MX and enduros are descended from trials and the Scott trial in particular.
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I think that motocross as opposed to point to point scrambles would have become its own entity after WW2 when clubs like the Salop club started running scrambles events at Hawkestone Park and West Wilts Club reformed and it ran its first post war event on April 28th 1946 at Farleigh Castle. The FIM accepted motocross as a sport in 1947 so I think that the sports post war emergence as it's own entity, seperate from trials and grass track and club derived combinations of the two emerged in the imediate post WW2 period. According to what I can find, scrambles/motocross developed pretty quickly after the war with various areas or 'centres' challenged each other to scrambles. As Tim aluded, the Froggies came over and competed at a couple of these meetings and took the concept back to France and christened it Motocross.
Other pointers to the immediate post WW2 birth of MX is the abundant availability of ex military motorcycles and the large amount of bomb damaged land that had become unusable for farming in the short term. One of Hawkstones most famous sections, even today, is the Bomb Hole, named for obvious reasons. If you add to that the large number of returned servicemen looking for some fun after the horrors of war, it seems pretty obvious that motocross/scrambles would succeed.
Below...The Bomb Hole..then and now
(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/ShrublandPark_1963_byDavidKindred.jpg)
(http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2005-8/1062154/a_mathawkdo.jpg)
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One of Hawkstones most famous sections, even today, is the Bomb Hole, named for obvious reasons.
So too did Brands Hatch have a bomb hole. This was before the metalled surface. At that time BH was a scrambles/MX circuit. My late dad rode there and at Hawkstone.
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Must have been a bloody big bomb.
I have raced at Reims(Rheims?? Frence champange region with chalk caves) in northern France that is built in a ww1 trench/fort area. Some of the trenches are 20-30 feet deep or more.
and Where are all the Yanks in this mix or don't we have any on this forum? they must have had a similar experience over there.
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I went to a motocross meeting in Rheims in either '77 or '78 where by pure accident I ran into Terry (brother of Anthony) Gunter and Per Klitland who were racing. There were sidecars on the program so were you there too? I seem to remember a lot of Poms and Belgians on the program chasing the lucrative prize money that was around in the B level Euro international meetings in those days. Even more coincidentally my American missus ran into one of her old high school mates at the same event. We naturally drank a lot of cheap bubbly during that particular night!
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We naturally drank a lot of cheap bubbly during that particular night!
Bet that hurt the following morning.
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I found this while looking for something else. It reinforces the Camberley connection and adds to the thought that the immediate post WW2 era saw the beginning of modern motocross. Hopefully it answers a few questions.
When did Motocross first start?
Answer
Motocross is usually said to have begun after World War II, but the sport actually originated in cross-country races known as scrambles in England and North America during the 1920s. It just wasn't called motocross back then.
The first was the so-called Southern Scott Scramble, held on March 29, 1924, over a 2-5-mile cross-country course on Camberly Heath, England. The winner of the 50-mile race was Arthur Sparks with a time of 2 hours, 1 minute, 51 seconds.
In 1926, the Crotona, New York, Motorcycle Club started a similar type of race, but it was called a Tourist Trophy, undoubtedly after the famous Isle of Man road race. It doesn't appear that the Crotona members knew anything about the scrambles that were becoming very popular among motorcyclists in England. However, within a few years cross-country races were being called scrambles in both the United States and Canada.
And sometime between 1924 and 1934, depending on which account you believe, the scramble crossed the English Channel into France. The French came up with the name "motocross," from "motorcycle" and "cross-country," and developed a new, shorter course with man-made obstacles such as jumps.
One of the first major sports events in Europe after World War II was an international team motocross competition hosted by the Netherlands in 1947. Only two other countries, Belgium and Great Britain, took part. The race comprised two heats of eight laps each over a 2-mile course, with team scores based on the times of the three fastest riders. The British team won by just nine seconds over Belgium.
As it turned out, that was the first Motocross des Nations, which has been conducted by the Federation Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) since 1949.
Bill Nilsson of Sweden won the first world motocross championship in 1957.
The FIM inaugurated a European individual championship for 500cc displacement in 1952. That became a world championship event in 1957. The 250cc class was added in 1962.
Scrambles were staged in North America throughout the 1930s and immediately after World War II, but the first race referred to as motocross was held in Grafton, Vermont, in 1959. The promoter was a dealer for the German-made Maico, then one of the world's best motocross bikes.
But it was a California dealer for the Husqvarna of Sweden who really made motocross a popular sport in the United States. Edison Dye was an aeronautical engineer and motorcyclist who began organizing motorcycle tours of Europe durin the early 1960s. During one of those tours, Dye saw and fell in love with the Husqvarna. He agreed to become the make's first U. S. distributor and decided that the best way to publicize the bike was to demonstrate it in motocross races.
In the fall of 1966, Dye hired Sweden's Torsten Hallman, the reigning 250cc world champion, to race a Husqvarna in American events. Hallman scored easy victories in several races, including the Canadian Northwest Motocross Championship.
But there wasn't enough motocross racing in the U. S. to get the "Husky" the kind of publicity Dye was looking for, so in 1967 he organized his own series, the Inter-America, better known as the Inter-Am. He brought over several more Europeans to race against Hallman and U. S. scramble riders. The series not only proved popular with existing fans, it created new fans for this kind of motorcycle racing.
At the time, the American Motorcyclist Association wasn't involved in international racing. A very small organization, Motorcycle International Clubs of the United States (MICUS), represented the U. S. in the FIM. Dye's series was sanctioned by MICUS.
In 1970, the AMA joined the FIM. The association's first major move into international competition was the establishment of the Trans-AMA motocross series to compete against Dye's Inter-Am. The Inter-Am was forced out of business in 1971 but Dye continued promoting races within the Trans-Am series until 1974.
Great Britain had dominated the sport for the first two decades, winning 15 of 20 Motocross des Nations championships. Then Belgium took over, winning seven championships from 1969 through 1980. In 1981, a young United States team won the Motocross des Nations by just one point over Great Britain. That victory was generally considered a fluke at the time, but it was just the first in a string of 13 consecutive championships for the U. S.
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The first was the so-called Southern Scott Scramble, held on March 29, 1924, over a 2-5-mile cross-country course on Camberly Heath, England. The winner of the 50-mile race was Arthur Sparks with a time of 2 hours, 1 minute, 51 seconds.
<sits back wearing smug smile ;D>
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No Firko, I wasn't at Rheims until 1987, ten years later.
Isn't this forum great, by way of chance we now have at east one version of how the sport formed.
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Attended SummerCross last night up at Coastal Motorcycle Club,Henderson Park the club was Incorporated in 1919 and first main mx event was in 1920. 8)
Whilst browsing through the perpetual trophies I came across the club Champion/High Points and read the names of P Hopwood 76/77 and Rod Gilchrist in 2000 and 2002 .
These are two of VMXWA A Grade riders. ;D
Leisk was on the same trophy.
cheers