HOME-MADE MAICO
Pete Griffith created his bike from one built when he started off-road racing – in 1954
Pete Griffith is 82 and still racing motocross on the 1954 Maico he built from an old road bike
OCTOGENERIAN PETE GRIFFITH is proof that people don’t stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams. Pete, 82 this year, stays youthful by racing – and he can’t wait to get cracking on another classic motocross season racing his 1954 250 Maico.
This German stroker is surely the world’s oldest Maico currently in active competition. And Pete is the oldest competitor in the Pre-65 MX Club – and possibly on the whole current classic MX scene in the UK.
‘Griff’ first raced off-road 65 years ago, in the year his Maico was built, and has missed only three seasons since then – due to national service and getting married.
Ten years ago, he decided his 500cc BSA Gold Star was becoming too heavy to handle for the several rides in one day that classic events lay on for riders, and started looking for a lighter two-stroke for the Pre-60 class. A Maico was foremost in his mind, and as the German factory’s off-road models of the 1950s were mainly road-based, he was after a road bike to modify as a budget project. Maicos from the ’50s are thin on the ground in the UK, so he looked to Germany via ebay. In 2011 he spotted a rough-looking 1954 250B Blizzard that had been left outdoors for 20 years.
Pete’s partner Marje has a daughter, Jo, who lives in Germany, so she was asked to take a look. The seller was asking 450 euros. Jo, obviously a canny negotiator, bought it for 350.
“That was about £310 at the time,” says Griff . It sounds cheap, but plenty of work was needed to make it a viable competition mount, including replacement wheels, forks and tank. It was stripped down, the road parts discarded, the frame strengthened, and the cylinder head filled and re-machined to convert from side plug to central plug with squish band to cope with higher 13:1 compression. The standard four-speed gearbox was retained, a full set of gears being donated by period Maico spares specialist Gekra Motors of Holland, from whom Pete bought most of his other parts.
To fit a rear 4.00 x 18 knobbly, the swingarm had to be lengthened an inch to get the tyre in. This and frame strengthening work were entrusted to friend and fellow scrambler Roy Abbott. The bike was no concours winner, but it was fit for battle for the 2012 season.
Since then, Griff has ridden his Blizzard special more times than any of his other motocross bikes. In 2017 he celebrated his 80th birthday by winning the Pre-65 Club’s Pre-60 class championship on his mature Maico.
“I enjoyed doing the conversion, and I like the Maico because it’s light and nimble and easy to pick up when you fall off,” says Griff, who gave everyone a laugh at the start of the 2019 season. He fell off at the Pre-65 opening round at Malinsea, Essex, and was briefly concussed. When he regained consciousness, the doctor, trying to assess his mental state, asked him a few questions, including: “Who is the prime minister?” Griff looked up: “Margaret Thatcher,” he said. That response caused mirth through the paddock – which spread throughout classic MX ranks across countrywide, because Pete is an institution and well loved for his selfless devotion to the sport over the decades. He’s currently chairman of the Northampton Classic Club (which he founded seven years ago) and president of the modern Northampton Club.
“At least I got the right sex,” says Griff, referring to his dazed response at Malinsea (Theresa May was prime minister at the time). “They took me to Cheltenham hospital,” he adds. “I was a bit shaken up, but thankfully no broken bones. They gave me a head scan. ‘Can you find anything?’ I asked them.”
He took six weeks off after the accident, missing the second round of the Pre-65 club series. But he still managed nine events in 2019, scoring a win and several top three places. He finished the season third in the Pre65 Club’s Pre-60 championship class and second in the Pre-60 two-stroke class. Griff specialises in excellent starts... and he usually stays on. “Anyone can go fast and fall off,” he says.
Those nine meetings included the British Bike Bonanza in which Griff gives his beloved 500 BSA Gold Star its annual outing. He’s had countless offers to buy it, some very generous, but he turns them all down.
As soon as he finished his last race in 2019 he stripped his Maico down to check the frame and the engine, ready for 2020. He doesn’t like to leave preparation to the start of the season. So he’s all set for 2020 and raring to go, both as rider and organiser of Classic Club events and helper at modern club events.
While his partner Marje isn’t a bike lover she helps at Griff organised events by lap scoring and carrying out general duties. She knows how much motocross means to him. “If he stopped I’d have to shoot him,” she says.
‘THE MAICO’S LIGHT AND NIMBLE AND EASY TO PICK UP WHEN YOU FALL OFF’