POMEROYS RACE WINNING BULTACO

[JC]

Moving onto to JPs bike mid-season 73.  These are from Superbowl 2  73:










And the 73 USGP:








And from Nov 73 MXA:





Note carefully the rear frame loop & seat (in all those pics) - both somewhat diff to std pursang, being somewhat squared off at the rear, consistent w B100248 frame loop above, & the seat extends right back to the rear frame loop.  At the very least, the seat is diff to 73 Spanish GP bike - the frame may or may not be the same.

It seems to me that B100248 (or one from the same batch) could well have been the one JP used at Superbowl 2 & USGP in mid-season 73 & perhaps even from the start of the season.  JP rode in Superbowl 1 in 72, won the jump for the furtherest distance (158ft  IIRC) but didn't feature in the results, so probably DNF'd as he was riding in the fast lane by then. So could it be that for Superbowl 2 he wanted a reinforced frame? And maybe for the whole 73 GP season?

[JC]

So who built the frame for JP's Spanish Gp bike?  We've established a definite connection between Schwerma & Bul in MX (not just short track) circa 71. We have what appears to be a factory built cro-mo frame from early 73 w boxed-in pivot area long before CMS's evidence for it. We DON'T see CMS splashing the claim they made JPs frame thro all their ads when it would have foolish business sense NOT to milk it for all its worth (like Bultaco did) if it were true. But we do have JP claiming his frame was US made.

The US journo (& amateur MXer), John Huetter who travelled the whole 73 season w JP reported:

"Pomeroy's pursang was painfully stock. The only change had been a cro-mo frame w stock geometry & some one-off betor shocks that had been built for this race".  (He should have noticed that the rear hub was very trick for the time too.) He doesn't mention the frame being US made. Nor does Vic Allen when he said (VMX #7 p67, 2000) :  "I ended up doing the 250s (ie GP circuit in 73) on a standard production pursang w the barrel tuned by Tony Dowe, now director of racing at Arrows F1 team. When JP broke one of the lightweight cro-mo frames I was given it & had it welde up". (He is in the pic of Spanish GP start in VMX3 p26)

Since Huetter also reports that JP got some special factory parts (cyl & crank) later in the season, obviously the factory was producing special parts. And much of it seeking lighter weight.  eg the lightweight rear hub (pre-prod'n Mk7) & special lightweight shocks (JP said they were each over 1lb lighter per shock). There seems no attempt to portray JP's bike as a std pursang.

But lets backtrack to circa 1970 & the Joe Bolger connection. This is his 205lb M48 from 1970. He got it down from 232lb by ditching the bulky f'glass, using much smaller l'wt hubs & cr0-mo s'arm.



Here is Snr Bulto visiting Bolger in his shop:



Cycle World reported (Feb 70) "Judging by Bulto's interest, it seems likely that the company could incorporate some of Joe's ideas in future pursangs".   Guess what got progressively got ditched in following Mk5&6 pursangs? - the boxy f'glass, the heavy hubs &... its likely the cro-mo frame was next to be persued by the factory itself, not via aftermarket frames. They had to be working on their own by then, cos it reached prod'n in the Mk7  which appeared in ??  late 73??

I don't think there's any doubt JP used a cr-mo frame in Spain 73, but where was it made? Were JPs claims (that it was US made) a case of trumped-up patriotic hubris about US expertise/involvement thats typical of the yanks?

I'm inclined to think that neither Schwerma nor CMS made his 73GP frame(s), but rather, the Barcelona factory did.

I hope it all makes sense. There's a bit more to come later.

[mx250]

Were JPs claims (that it was US made) a case of trumped-up patriotic hubris about US expertise/involvement thats typical of the yanks?

I would guess it was more likely to be an assumption or misunderstanding  .

But the intriguing issue is that CMS claimed the win (albeit for one ad). Maybe some misunderstanding on the behalf of an over enthusiastic CMS employee. The deals done, "no more such claims and nothing further will be said".

Someone somewhere will know - keep rattling those American cages Firko  .

[JC]

Were JPs claims (that it was US made) a case of trumped-up patriotic hubris about US expertise/involvement thats typical of the yanks?

I would guess it was more likely to be an assumption or misunderstanding  .

Yes possibly, Grame

But the intriguing issue is that CMS claimed the win (albeit for one ad).

No they didn't claim that in their ads Graeme.  If you go back & read the DR article Geoff posted its not clear who claimed it, but its definitely NOT in any of their ads I've seen.

Maybe some misunderstanding on the behalf of an over enthusiastic CMS employee.

Yes, perhaps

[firko]

But we have JP claiming his frame was US made.

There were about six people sitting around bench racing with Bimbo in our quickshade at CD4 and all of us understood Pomeroys statement to mean that the bike had either been built in the USA or that it featured parts supplied by his Washington based Bultaco dealer sponsor. His answer to the question..."How trick was the bike on which you won the Spanish GP?" being very interesting..."It depends on if you want the official answer or the real story" points to me the perhaps Bultaco (understandably) didn't want it known that the frame and tuneup weren't out of Barcelona but out of Seattle. I'd assume that he'd been told by his Bultaco factory bosses to keep schtum about the bike not being as stock as they'd like the world to know. Unfortunately the CD4 conversation got sidetracked and we never got any deeper into the story.

My theory is that Bultaco had no inkling that Pomeroy would actually win his first ever start in a GP so they weren't as worried about the origin of the frame being used. At the time Bultaco was tied into a Spanish Government controlled European Common Market deal to buy steel from Russia and other eastern block coutries in exchange for supplying tooling and expertise for supersceded Fiat cars to be made in Russia. The Pursangs up to the Mk 6 were made with a Russian low grade almost mild steel and the suposed ''Chro-mo" for the Mk7 while being appreciably lighter, isn't much better in quality. Because of that I threorise that when presented with the option to use the CMS frame, they went for it because they probably figured that nobody would notice or care. Pomeroys win changed all of that and would have put the spin doctors into damage control,  hence the CMS frame almost being obliterated from history and Pomeroys "two stories" statement thirty + years later.

[JC]

Mark, I'm not doubting what yr friends at CD4 heard, but there's no hard evidence at all connecting CMS w that frame & only one dubious line about 18mths after the event suggesting it: "When JP won the spanish GP in 73 he rode a CMS frame which is news to us".  That DR article also claims "the frame also has long travel rear, the product of 2 years testing".  Also dubious at best. That was Nov/Dec 74. Taking into account publishing time lags of the day, LTR wouldn't have existed even in Europe 2yrs before that claim would have been made. It would have been a little over 12mths at best.

What I'm looking for is objective verifiable evidence.

There's more hard evidence linking Schwerma & his frames to Bul riders as early as 71. I personally have not even found any hard evidence proving CMS existed that early (& I've searched hi & low), only hearsay. Geoff doesn't seem to remember accurately exactly when the 1st CMS ads he found were.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll post up an article from Dec74 Modern Cycle for the CMS CZ frame stating:  "A new entry in the race for the ultimate rear suspension setup"

Its not as tho the Bul factory had no experience building lightweight frames. They had being doing it for years for the factory trials riders w tubing smuggled back in from england.

The other story about JPs bike being a std bike only appears to my knowledge in the "Pursang Story", published in recent years. (Probably about the time of CD4) None of the accounts I've seen from back in the day attempt to portray it as a standard pursang w a std frame.

[vmx42]

As I said before why don't you ask Ron Pomeroy?

The search seems have become more speculation and assumption than factual. Ron is probably the closest link you have, unless you can track down his old US sponsor…

[firko]

I found Ron Pomeroys phone # so I'll give him a ring in the morning. I agree with your assumption of the assumption Jeff. I'm betting it's a stocker, despite the hypothetical scenario in my previous post. 

[huskibul]

  Maybe a purpose built cro-mo frame built by cms to stocker spec at jp's request ? as vmx42 say's "someone will know" whether or not they divulge is another question

[vmx42]

…whether or not they divulge is another question

After all this time I don't reckon Bultaco would be calling in the lawyers if somebody did spill the beans… 

[jerry]

OK here's my theory for what it's worth. It can be seen from available photos that whilst the bike was obstensibly a MK6 it had what looks like MK7 guards, rear hub and shoulderless front rim. It it possible that it also had a MK 7 chrome moly (pre production) frame which and please correct me if I'm wrong is identical to the MK6 except for the obvious lighter metal. As best I remember this introduction of next years "trick" parts was part and parcel of the scene back then. I just can't believe that Jim had a USA built frame in his carry on luggage wnen he hopped on the plane to Spain. Cheers Jerry

[firko]

I tried the Ron Pomeroy # this morning but got no answer. I'll try again over the weekend if I get a chance.

[JC]

The search seems have become more speculation and assumption than factual. Ron is probably the closest link you have, unless you can track down his old US sponsor…

I'd have tho't there's a fair bit of conclusive evidence (& some circumstancial evidence) in the pics/links provided especially for those who are familiar w pursangs.

But... what we don't have is any evidence at all specific to JPs 73 Spanish GP bike. Short of that bike surfacing somewhere (& it hasn't in 38yrs) I doubt we'll ever know for certain who built that frame. We will only ever have claims.

It wouldn't surprise me either way - whether it was built in the Bul factory or the US, but it would surprise me if CMS built it. I just can't see any evidence pointing that way - only one dubious claim.

My guess tho is similar to Jerry's; for all intents & purposes it was (or became) a pre-prod'n/prototype Mk7.

[JC]

Here's a few more pics:

Jimmy Odom's 71 Schwerma framed M68 pursang:
(Note how similar the frame is to the later Astros, tho they have a more refined rear loop & tail section)



Pomeroy's 74 GP bike:




Close up of that 74GP bike:
(Jerry, note Mk1 Amal carb still being used.)

[vmx42]

Hey JC,
Please don't get me wrong, I have really enjoyed watching you guys search for info on Jims GP bike. OzVMX at its best!!

But from what I have read there has been a lot of informed guess work and a fair bit of speculation to join the missing dots. Now there is nothing wrong with that if it is the best information available, but I just thought you had missed the obvious in not talking to Ron, or trying to track down Jims old sponsor.

Now I only met Jim once, but he wasn't a shy wallflower [by any stretch of the imagination] and he was more than happy to discuss his career in great detail with anybody who was interested. So I will assume [just as guilty as anybody  ] that with his outgoing personality he would have discussed this subject with others, and Ron is by far the most likely.

Remember they weren't just brothers but also Bultaco teammates so speaking to him can only give you more leads… if he doesn't actually know the answers himself. Hell, he might even know how to contact Jim's old spanish mechanic?

I look forward to more intrigue and I hope you get the answers to your question so your replica can be as accurate as possible.
Good luck, I am looking forward to the next installment…

VMX42