THE PAST 30 YEARS
This is a quick introduction to how Apico became about, when the Vesterinens initially started out life in Guildford working from small industrial units. In 2002 the company moved to the North and into a brand new 25,000 sq ft warehouse and office facility, where it still resides today. The focus these days is away from clothing, as Vesty soon realised that trying to maintain high-quality products against the large manufacturers was less profitable than he initially expected. The hard-parts range is one of the largest available on the UK market, having an Apico catalogue crammed with some 144 pages of their company’s own products and a mighty brand catalogue that’s thicker than the yellow pages at some 470 pages!
This article takes a look at the birth, growth and future of a company which is certainly one of the largest off-road companies in the UK. After 10 years as a professional trials rider competing on the world and national circuits, winning three world championships on the bounce from 1976-78 on Bultaco, the first SSDT win for a foreign rider and also Montesa — being the first foreigner — the only foreigner — to win the British Trials Championship — what do you do next?
What is your take on how the offroad industry has developed over the past 30 years?
“Clothing is the easiest product to look at as a development in the industry. Quality became an important factor well into the 1990s when we were still producing clothing, though as time has gone on the end-user has wanted more and more. Clothing now appears to be design-lead, like what we started in the 1980s, and lighter and cheaper fabrics are used to keep the products competitive in this tough and competitive market.”
More recently, you’ve had a range of trials hard-parts added to the Apico range, how is this going for the company?
“We initially started making trials-forged levers some 14 years ago; forged clutch and brake levers were unique to the market, cold-forged aluminium, which made the levers more malleable than the competition’s products. This allowed the levers to bend rather than break if there was an impact or you dropped your machine. We paid for the tooling ourselves and had the advantage for some time before the competition came out with their own.”
What has helped trials in your opinion?
“Trick-looking products have definitely added value to the trials market, with more and more riders these days wanting their machines to look spectacular rather than just being functional. I think this has stemmed from the Motocross market as companies such as Apico, Jitsie and S3 have seen the potential in this kind of product. Machines have to be the biggest evolution. Michelin tyres have revolutionised trials riding and have the largest share in the UK of any tyre manufacturers who make trials tyres. Single-shock rear systems, lightweight clutches, aluminium frames have reduced the weight of the machines, helping riders to perform even more spectacular manoeuvres than in my day. One thing I have not understood with Trials and Motocross is whereas the Trials machines have evolved and become lighter, the Motocross machines have gone backwards, becoming heavier!
Looking at yourself and your time as a World Champion, British Champion – what would you say was the reaction of the people at the time?
“The reaction was very mixed! We lived in very different times; some people were happy though others were not so happy at a non-British rider coming to the UK and winning the British Trials Championship. I had some fantastic competition that year from Martin Lampkin and Malcolm Rathmell. It certainly was one of the best domestic championships at the time, which is why I wanted to come and try to win the British Championship, which I did!”
What about the hardest trials event in the world, the SSDT, what did it feel like to win that?
“It was a real achievement for me. The beauty of the Scottish Six Days is that it’s the only place where an everyday trials rider is able to compete against the best in the world on a somewhat equal footing. The trial itself hasn’t changed as much as other events still around today. Some of the sections are still the same, some harder. My personal favourite is Pipeline, which I recently cleared this year taking part in the Pre-65 SSDT.”
To summarise, what would you say about your 30 years with Diane in the off-road industry?
“I would like to thank all our customers, suppliers and staff over the years for helping to make Apico what it is today. I am somewhat humbled by what we have collectively been able to achieve and am confident the company will go from strength to strength with Dylan and Anna in the future.”