Bickersreigns supreme
East Anglian ace dominates his home round to close in on retaining the European 250cc motocross championship crown.
Though the big news in the UK during July 1961 was the appearance in Manchester and London of Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space earlier that year, Suffolk boy Dave Bickers was high-flying in another way, as he powered his Greeves towins in both races (and so overall victory) at Shrubland Park in Bickers’ home county. Indeed, the track was literally a few hundred yards fromwhere Dave lived!
Our picture shows the start of race two and with Bickers, sporting the number one plate (he was the European champion too) already in the ascendency. Earlier in the day, and despite a badly blistered palm, he’dwon the first rubber, though that time out his fellow Greeves rider Bryan Sharp had led off the line. Soon, determinedBickers thrashedpast him, bringingBSA worksmen Arthur Lampkin (who came into the race as championship leader) and Jeff Smithwithhim. And though Lampkin pushedhis four-stroke BSA past the two-stroke Greeves of Bickers, it was short lived– Dave went back in front and (said Motor Cycling) displayed ‘dashing, almost maniacal pace’ and was soonpulling away fromYorkshireman Lampkin. The three British riders were away at the front, before Smith was stopped by mechanical issues (his pinking BSA holed a piston...), allowing Torsten Hallman (Sweden, Husqvarna) into third, with DonRickman – guesting on a worksGreeves– moving through the field impressively and claiming fourth, in front of Aarno Erola (Finland, Husqvarna) and Jaromir Cizek (Czechoslovakia, CZ), with ex-BSA veteran JohnnyDraper seventh on aworks Cotton. Sharp was eighth, Swede
Sivert Eriksson (Husky) ninth and 10th was Bryan ‘Badger’ Goss, Cotton. After the 12 laps of the race Bickers (“… when forceddisplays a dervish-like ferocity” observedTheMotor Cycle) had lapped all but the top six andwas overaminute in front of Lampkin.
And so to race two, as pictured. Smithwas ruledout – his C15 unrepairable – and it looked like Bickers wouldbasically just cruise to victory.
Lampkin led early onbut after four circuits Bickers took the lead and despite his painful hand, it all looked reasonably easy, as he pulled away steadily. But then on lap six, things went awry. Charging up the almost sheer face ofThe Snake Pit, he collidedwith a backmarker, going the other way! This bent his rear brake pedal then, just after, the damaged lever dug into the ground on a corner, twisting it completely round. Bickers, still leading handsomely, called at the pits where frantic work with a steel tube had the job straightened out. He rejoined just in front of Lampkin, and – said Motor Cycling – continued to the finish at an ‘economical pace’ taking the flag by 30 seconds from the BSAman. Erola claimed third in front of Hallman, Norwegian Tore Lundby (Husqvarna) was fifth with sixthCizek, ahead of Draper. It all meant Lampkin had a one point leadover Bickers; come season’s end, the table was the other way round,
Bickers becoming a two-time champion.
As we’ve already established, in the picture front and centre is number one ‘The Coddenham Flyer’, 23-year-old Bickers. Behind Dave’s left elbow is Jeff Smith (riding number 15, with the ’one’ obscured), then behind Jeff’s elbow most likely Aarno Erola. The number 26 is Sweden’s Stig Rickardsson, Husqvarna, with others easily identifiable as 4Hallman, 5 Eriksson, 8 Oriol Bulto (from Spain and nephew of Francisco Bulto, so naturally on a Bultaco, though of only 203cc), 27 Goss, 11Draper and 29 Lundby. The programme lists 31 riders (numbered 1 to
32, with no number 13) made up of 14 Brits, four Swedes, three each fromCzechoslovakia (as it thenwas) and Belgium, a pair apiece from Norway, Denmark and Finland, then Spaniard Senor Bulto.
The next year, the European championship was upgraded toworld status, putting it in line with the 500cc class. Inaugural world champion was Torsten Hallman on the Husqvarna who, like-mounted, defended his crown in 1963, lost it for two years, thenwas back-to-back champ in 1966 and 1967. Bickers’ best finish in the championship was third in 1965, riding a CZ. Only one Brit, Neil Hudson in 1981, has ever been 250cc (now calledMX2) motocross world champion, while Bickers was the only British 250cc European champion. That summer day in Suffolk – watched on by 20,000 plus spectators – Bickers was supreme.