More brotherhood, this time Ariel-based, with the Butterworth boys
Ben and Jack Butterworth shun modern bikes in favour of classic British trials irons
High up overlooking Rochdale from an old quarry on the outskirts of the city, brothers Ben (27) and Jack Butterworth (25) are giving me a glimpse of their impressive capabilities and talents onboard their Ariel trials irons. They’re accompanied on the sidelines by their grandad, Harold Isherwood (81), ready to tinker and tweak if need be. Ben kicked his over straight out of the van, immediately ready to roll; Jack’s took a little fettling – but grandad was in there straight away, adjusting the new carburettor. He soon had the Ariel thumping away tunefully and the brothers headed off into the depths of the quarry.
Earlier in the day, after grabbing a much needed bacon butty and mug of tea at Harold’s house, I’d been led through the garage as the trials bikes were loaded into the van. It’s spotless – I could eat my bacon roll off the garage floor, nothing’s out of place or untidy. A gorgeous BSA B50 Cheney Aberg 580cc motocross bike leans against a wall; I immediately recognise it as a bike I’ve seen Ben compete on at the Red Marley hillclimb, covered in mud and thrashed to within an inch of its life up the hill. It now sits looking immaculate, its chrome tank gleaming in the light. There’s a real sense of pride in these bikes, the finish is meticulous. Although Jack and Ben have been well acquainted with modern trials in the past, the appeal of riding pre65 machines has become so strong that the most modern bikes they swing their legs over these days are pair of twinshock Fantics they’ve recently invested in. So what is it about riding old bikes that makes them shun modern trials, what keeps them going back for more?
“It’s just everything about them, the characteristics... but it’s the noise that really makes it for me,” says Ben. Jack agrees: “It’s just more enjoyable being on an older bike – the sound of ’em and the way they look, they’re just so much better than modern bikes. It’s a massive difference – it’s just more fun. You get comments like: ‘Bloody hell, how the hell do you ride that!?’ and it just gives you an enthusiasm to do it.”
At first the brothers came across a few, shall we say, ‘disgruntled’ veterans of the pre-65 scene who were
miffed that these two youngsters were soon dominating a lot of the competitions. “The older blokes didn’t like it at first; they’d pull a face when we’d turn up,” explains Ben. “But they all seem to have warmed to us, after I said to them: ‘What happens when you can’t ride any more? The sport stops and there’s no need for it to stop.’
Thankfully the brothers are now a little more welcome in the scene and hopefully their exploits will encourage more lads and girls in their teens and twenties to follow suit. Ben adds that they don’t limit their Ariels to classic competition: “I’ve gone and done modern trials on my bike, got some good results on it. They must pull a face when they’ve got a brand new 2019 Gas Gas and you’re on a 1958 Ariel and you beat ’em!”
Without having to ask the Butterworths, I can tell the lads hold their grandad in high esteem; he clearly has a strong influence on them. In their youth, Harold noticed that the lads would be mesmerised by the sight of him working away on his bikes “They would stand there watching me for hours, just watching me. So eventually I said: ‘I’ll build you one’. That meant I had to build all my grandsons one – five of em!” Soon enough, and with his wife’s permission, Harold had built five Yamaha TY80S in the spare front bedroom of their house.
The Butterworths’ cousin Jake Isherwood also has plenty of riding talent, particularly in grasstrack and speedway. Oil and fuel appear to run through the Butterworth/isherwood veins. Harold confirms: