TMX SAYS: A bit of a Britshock

THE Classic off-road scene, I hopefully record(!),THE Classic off-road scene, I hopefully record(!), has at long last moved on from its stick-in-the-mud Pre-65 past, as good as it was for some, to the lasting benefit of the enthusiastic majority, over the last few years. 

Classic motocross has been particularly progressive and sports a variety of Twin-shock classes and has even moved along to the early mono Evo and SuperEvo classes. 

The POINT of it all, as indeed was the case with the pioneering Pre-65 movement, is to allow riders of a certain age to prolong their youth! Simples.

Even the traditional British Pre-65 trials scene has finally moved on, after decades in denial, to the point where it has created its own spin-off which has at last been acknowledged as a class of its own – at least it has by progressive organisers – enter the Britshock!

Britshock is effectively a newbuild replica Classic, perhaps employing only the crankcases from a genuine Pre-65 (or even later) British bike, the resulting engine built into a modern, lightweight twin-shock frame and assembled using brand new updated and upspecced ancillaries manufactured from modern materials often using state of the art CNC machinery. 

Cranks, cylinders, clutches, forks etc, are all borrowed from much later machines, and electronic ignition, Japanese carburettors, brand new rear shocks, spanking new wheels with billet machined aluminium hubs topped-off with an exotic snake charmer exhausts or whatever floats your acoustic and/or visual boat.

You get the idea, what we are talking about is effectively a brand new, British Twin-shock. 

Not in a million years can such a machine, work of art though it may be, be classed as Pre-65. 

Although, to the increasing annoyance of many, this has been exactly the case. 

Now, I'm not knocking such machines, I think there are some amazing newbuilds out there and if that is what an increasing number of people want then that is great. 

I'm just glad that at long, long, last common sense has prevailed and they are seen for what they are – Britshocks!

There are still plenty of lovely old original spec bikes out there, thumping and pop-popping around and hopefully they will now remain like that and have more of their own events or at least genuine Pre-65 section routes provided instead of having to compete against Britshocks masquerading as Pre-65... has at long last moved on from its stick-in-the-mud Pre-65 past, as good as it was for some, to the lasting benefit of the enthusiastic majority, over the last few years. 

A state which, some of you longstanding sages and stalwarts may point out, is more than its modern counterpart has achieved.

In both trials and motocross the term Classic has, after much pain, effort and experiment, burst out of its Pre-65 straitjacket and expanded into the fast-paced 1970s, 80s and 90s. 

Classic motocross has been particularly progressive and sports a variety of Twin-shock classes and has even moved along to the early mono Evo and SuperEvo classes. 

The POINT of it all, as indeed was the case with the pioneering Pre-65 movement, is to allow riders of a certain age to prolong their youth! Simples.

Even the traditional British Pre-65 trials scene has finally moved on, after decades in denial, to the point where it has created its own spin-off which has at last been acknowledged as a class of its own – at least it has by progressive organisers – enter the Britshock!

Britshock is effectively a newbuild replica Classic, perhaps employing only the crankcases from a genuine Pre-65 (or even later) British bike, the resulting engine built into a modern, lightweight twin-shock frame and assembled using brand new updated and upspecced ancillaries manufactured from modern materials often using state of the art CNC machinery. 

Borrowed

Cranks, cylinders, clutches, forks etc, are all borrowed from much later machines, and electronic ignition, Japanese carburettors, brand new rear shocks, spanking new wheels with billet machined aluminium hubs topped-off with an exotic snake charmer exhausts or whatever floats your acoustic and/or visual boat.

You get the idea, what we are talking about is effectively a brand new, British Twin-shock. 

Not in a million years can such a machine, work of art though it may be, be classed as Pre-65. 

Although, to the increasing annoyance of many, this has been exactly the case. 

Now, I'm not knocking such machines, I think there are some amazing newbuilds out there and if that is what an increasing number of people want then that is great. 

I'm just glad that at long, long, last common sense has prevailed and they are seen for what they are – Britshocks!

There are still plenty of lovely old original spec bikes out there, thumping and pop-popping around and hopefully they will now remain like that and have more of their own events or at least genuine Pre-65 section routes provided instead of having to compete against Britshocks masquerading as Pre-65...