MY MEMORIES
Honda Trials History
In 2015 Honda is the only Japanese manufacturer that is still involved in the trials market. A little strange, you might say, at least in the eyes of the motorcycle manufacturers, who like to produce and sell their products in large numbers;
especially the Japanese brands. Honda trials machines have been prestigious motorcycles now for over forty-odd years, which is a credit to them. Yes, some models were Montesa machines powered by Honda motors, but it still kept the Honda brand involved in trials. And what’s more interesting is the fact that they are still at the cutting edge of the sport, winning World titles. Toni Bou now sets the standard in the sport and is an absolute master of his trade. Laia Sanz is the ultimate queen of trials with her many World titles achieved on Montesa-Honda machines, and we cannot forget the great Eddy Lejeune from Belgium in the eighties. Great Britain’s Dougie Lampkin won World titles from 2000–2003, who along with Marc Colomer in 1996 and Takahisa Fujinami in 2004 took the two-strokes to victory.
In my career as a motorsport journalist many Honda trials machines came my way, to both test and own. I ran a trials school using Honda trials machines and still own some special Honda trials motorcycles – four-strokes only, mind! My first choice is still ‘the thumbs-up’ Bultaco Sherpa which I still ride, although not often enough. I rode these machines for most of my riding career and it gave me the nickname ‘Bultoonco’ in my native Holland. In the collection I have a HVM framed (Hans van Marwijk) five-speed Bultaco engined machine. A Puma Bultaco and one of the Escuyer 199B six-speed models, a Comerfords Bultaco, an ex-Nick Shield 199A, yes Nick Shield who tests machines for Trial Magazine. But I have always been fascinated by the Honda four-stroke machines. The sound of the first Sammy Miller Honda in the mid-seventies and later the Eddy Lejeune RTL360; I still can remember it like sweet music. And nowadays I love the sharp sound of the Montesa Honda with the new 260cc engine.
As an author of a book that gave me another nickname, ‘The Trialprofessor’ with the cover picture of me on a Honda RS250T(F) that made Honda my Second Love next to my Bultacos: This is my confession!
THE START OF THE LEGENDARY FOUR-STROKES
When the Godfather of Trials, Sammy Miller, started his contact with Honda Japan in 1973 an invasion of Japanese four-strokes was anticipated. Sammy Miller still commands respect to the present day, having won over 1,100 trials and was, in the opinion of Honda engineers, ‘The’ development man to make a good job of developing a winning Honda trials machine. Sammy did a fantastic job on his Ariel GOV132 and the Bultaco Sherpa T, and as a business man made a good living from selling his trials ‘goodies’ including the famous Hi-Boy frame kits from his base at Lymington in the New Forest area of Hampshire. He soon realised that the way forward with the Honda project was to put the 250cc XL Honda motor into the Hi-Boy frame. He also carried out this process with the 125cc Honda motor. He was deadly serious and wanted to give Honda a machine capable of challenging for world championship honours.
In 1974 Sammy, at the age of 40, put together a team of younger riders with Great Britain’s Rob Shepherd, his number-one rider. Shepherd won the first World round for Honda in Finland, followed by the British title in 1977. However, it was then followed by the shock announcement that Sammy Miller