This interview was with somebody who is a quiet, unassuming, reserved man, yet a rider who had great determination and skill in his chosen sport of scrambling/motocross through the years. Perhaps recognised more in the Pre’65 era, he had a riding style and reputation as a gutsy wild man and was instantly recognisable, a Triumph Metisse, throttle wide open, bike broad-siding but fully under control, the rider in a determined concentrated posture. Now retired from Motocross but keeping his hand in at local trials, that man is Roger Neale.

Mike Naish: Where are you from and how did you get into motorcycling?

Roger Neale: “I was born in Dittisham in 1949 and went to the local school until I was 15. My Dad used to do a bit of grass track and he also used to go and watch scrambles with a bloke in the village, and I went with them. There was a rider near the village that used to ride and I thought ‘I could do that’. In 1963 I was given the opportunity to have a ride at Plymouth speedway. I was fitted out in all the gear and then I went into the fence in the first race and that was that, Dad would not sign the contract.”

“I had an Enfield road bike and in 1964 I traded it in for an old 1961 Greeves MCS at ‘Crooks’ in Totnes, where Brian Trott used to work. In fact it was Brian who brought the bike down to me in a pick-up. My Dad didn’t want me to ride in scrambles so I kept it up at the farm where I worked at the top of Dittisham, so of course then I had to walk to work every day having sold the road bike. I used to ride the bike around the fields and my parents wondered where I was going every Sunday, so one day they followed me and saw me riding but in fact they were all right about it.  I had a BSA C15 road bike after a while to ride on the road.”

MN: What was your first event?

RN: “It was a South Molton scramble in 1964 on the MCS Greeves. I remember it was a course where we had to go up and down a valley with a river in the bottom. I did about five or six meetings on the MCS and then we found we were pushing it more than riding it so my Gran lent me the money to buy a Greeves Challenger. I rode Greeves from 1965 to 1969 finishing up with a Griffon. I started off in junior events and picked up a little bit of money and did additional work cutting grass which helped to pay my Gran back and then after a couple of seasons I got upgraded. We went up and rode at Tweseldown and did well on the two-fifty and Greeves started helping me with spares. Pat Trott had rang them up and asked them to sponsor me, and they did with 50% in the cost of spares. The Trott family were good to me. Pat could be a bit fiery at times but she has a heart of gold. My Dad and Cyril Tucker who owned the local shop used to do the maintenance on the bikes. When Arthur Browning and Dick Clayton had the Greeves Griffon they had very big frames, but because Vic Allan was quite short they made him a special low-line frame. They also gave me the same low-line rolling chassis that I could put my engine in because I was also quite short.”

MN: Who was your next sponsor?

RN: “I was sponsored by Bernard Taylor on Husqvarna on the understanding that Reg Squires looked after the bike. Of course in those days sponsorship was quite good they would give you the bike, all the spares, riding kit, the lot. That was followed with a BSA B50 from Pete Tizard and Weymouth Motorcycles and a succession of Japanese two-strokes from dealers in the South West which included Bernard Singleton, Fluff Brown, Torbay Motorcycles, Devon Motocross and Damerells of Cornwall. Probably my most successful partnership of that era was with Badger Goss and the Maico.”

MN: You have had a few bad accidents?

RN: “Yes unfortunately, I have some bad bangs in the head. I came off the Maico second time out. I was racing against Freddie Mayes somewhere up country in a TV scramble and I got pushed out on a corner and fell and a footrest split my helmet and cut my head open from front to rear. After that I was riding grass track on a BSA and I had it laid down when I hit a piece of steel that had come off in an earlier sidecar accident. Well I came off and Richard Heslick went over the top of me and a footrest hit my head and I was out for two days. The worst was down in Cornwall at Nancemellin near Camborne. I came off coming down after a jump and was hit in the back by a rider following me. I was badly injured and lost the feelings in my legs for some months. It was a very worrying time because I could not work. I had to give up work on the farm but the family and the local community helped me out when we needed it most, they were brilliant. Then I gave up scrambling for six years. When I was a bit better I got a job with the water board. I had started my own business on the side in 1978, breaking bikes and then I went full time in 1985.”

MN: When did you start Pre65 racing?

RN: “In 1986 at the Bonanza. I had this old Metisse, it was an old Rob Taylor machine in the bike breaking yard, so I did it up with the help of Pat French and entered the Bonanza. It was OK but it had a BSA gearbox which had a big gap between second and third; so I would overtake them going down the hill and then they would all pass me going up the other side. We soon sorted it out and I’ll tell you what, it was the most natural bike I ever rode, it was beautiful. So then Pat French persuaded me to do the British Championships.”

“Terry Hobbs of Plymouth used to set up the Triumphs. He used to take the engine and do it in the evenings. He would not even let his mechanics watch him working. He would have three sets of different timing wheels with additional splines machined on them so that you could get greater adjustment with them. He would time the bike depending on the course being ridden. He would also use modified manifolds on the six-fifty Triumph, they were very fast.“

MN: So when did you give up?

RN: “I had a bad smack up. I had a hell of an accident up at Yatton Kenall, all cow ruts. All I remember was kissing my little maid goodbye before the race and then waking up in Frenchay Hospital three days later. Apparently I had a bad start and was catching up. Going down the hill jumping off the top and landing, the backend started to twitch so I gave it a big handful and lost it in a big way. Well the bike missed me and so did four riders following, but Stuart Bowden hit me full on the helmet. It wasn’t his fault, bless him, and he was very cut up about it. The air ambulance had to take me to hospital. They didn’t think I would ever walk again and the neurosurgeon gave me some very strong advice.  I had to see him every month for a year because I got a lot of migraines, and he said to me that if I had another accident and get hit on the head again I would  probably be in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. Well Mike I can tell you, I don’t mind dying but I don’t want to spend my life like a cabbage in a wheelchair, so I gave it all up.”

MN: You now ride in twinshock trials, how does it compare?

RN: “I’ll tell you Mike, I thoroughly enjoy it.  It is a lot more comradely than Motocross. We just chat all the time going around the sections. I wish I had done it before, they are a great bunch of lads. It is a totally different technique for me and of course it is a different sort of throttle control. I have to admit that sometimes in the past the old red mist came down, but I am more settled now and accept that the old days are past. I hope to keep on riding in trials for as long as possible and when time constraints of the business allow. I have actually changed my closing day from Wednesday to Thursday to allow me to ride some Wednesday evening trials. I still have my Metisse and I look at it sometimes because I have fond memories of those good years.”

MN: Thanks Roger, I hope the following years are good to you.

Mike Naish writes: I have only grazed the surface when talking to Roger and so much else has been written about him and his successes elsewhere in the press and many books. He is reticent to talk about his successes so here is a list of just some of his achievements:

1972 Member of the South West Centre team when winning the inter CentreTeam Scramble together with Badger Goss, Guy Winsor, Rob Gapper, Ted Thompson and Ron Kallaway.

1974    Winner of the International Motocross in the Isle of Man.

1974    South West Scrambles Champion.

1978    Cornish Centre 250cc Scrambles Champion.

1988    Member of the England Team at the Pre65 Motocross des Nations together with Mick Andrews, Simon Cheney and Arthur Browning.

1988-1995 Winner of the Pre-Unit class at the Norman Scramble at Beauval.

1989    Winner of best pairs with John May.

1990    Won the World team championship in the England team together with Dave Bickers, Adrian Moss and Roy Abbot.

1991-1994 European Pre65 Motocross Champion.

A Chat with Roger Neale is copyright, Mike Naish and Trials Guru 2025

More Mike Naish interviews HERE

Apart from ‘Fair Dealing’ for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright, Design and Patents Act, 1988, no part of this article may be copied, reproduced, stored in any form of retrieval system, electronic or otherwise or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrical, mechanical, optical, chemical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the author as stated above. This article is not being published for any monetary reward or monetisation, be that online or in print.

Mike Naish: “I wish to introduce you to the ACU Southern Centre Rights of Way Officer and Grass Track Steward, Keith Lee”.

Mike Naish: Where do you originate from Keith ?

Keith Lee: “Well, I was born in Okehampton where my father was a Police Officer. It was a sporting family and I readily took to all sports but excelled in Boxing, Tennis and Squash to County level.”

“I had about one hundred fights at middleweight including contests in the RAF, and won the South West Championship in Devon and also for the RAF in the Inter Services contests. I played tennis to county level and on one memorable occasion I actually beat the Wimbledon champion, Virginia Wade. I had been picked to carry the Olympic Torch during the Olympics held in Britain in 1948. I ran from Kingskerswell to Torbay carrying the Olympic flame for the opening of the sailing. It was there that I met Virginia and we had a game of tennis in which I beat her. I have to say she thrashed me the next day on a return bout!

MN: What was your first Motorcycle and your first Trial ?

KL: “I was stationed in Plymouth during my time in the RAF, I was on the maintenance of Sunderland flying boats. I went to Greens of Plymouth and bought an ex-WD 350cc Royal Enfield side valve with a box sidecar. I paid £10 for it. With Eddy Haines and Bill Pemberton we went practising with it, in solo form, up on Dartmoor. At this time I was teaching in Okehampton. Of course in those days there was nothing to stop you riding over the moors.

My first Trials bike was a 1954 round frame, 197cc DOT with the heavy Earls front forks and swinging arm suspension. I bought it from Kings of Oxford. I took it from Okehampton on the outfit to an Exmouth Trial on Woodbury Common in the mid 50s. The trial started at the Half Way House as I remember. Everybody laughed at me for having a swinging arm and said I would never get any grip, so after the event I took off the back end and grafted on the rear end of a grass track bike to make it a rigid. Then I sold the DOT after putting the swinging arm back and moved to a 197 DMW. I won my first award on it at the Mortonhampsted Trial in April 1956.

Sometimes I did not use the outfit for transport and after one Otter Vale Trial at the Hare and Hounds I clipped on a pair of cycle lights to ride home in the dark.”

MN: What bikes did you have after that?

KL: “In the early sixties we had moved to Exmouth and I bought a twin cylinder Triumph which I put into a Cotton frame and trialled successfully. I had done an apprenticeship as an undertaker and had learnt about coffin making, following this I started up a building firm, it was then in 1965 that I bought a Triumph Tiger Cub. At that time Sammy Miller was riding a Bultaco and I quickly realised that the Bulto was the bike to have. I had three or four in the 1970s moving from the 250 up to the 325. I liked to buy them in a crate so that I could build them up myself. If you bought them unassembled you did not have to pay Purchase Tax.

I rode in all the nationals of the time and one day I saw Nick Jefferies with a Honda 250 based on the XL Model. I tried it out and knew I had to have one so I got a Honda XL and converted it for trials. I loved that bike it really suited me. I had an early glassfibre tank from an Ossa which saved a lot of weight compared with the steel tank. I nearly won the Greybeards from Sammy one Year. The ‘Devonshire Dumplings’ all rode as a team that year. That was Brian Trott, John Born and Ivan Pridham and myself. On that occasion Sam beat me by one mark but only because he rode a muddy slot section twice on the first lap when it was easier.”

MN: When did you become a Steward?

KL: “In the mid 1970’s I was asked by Walter Baker and Jim Courtney if I would like to become a steward at competition events. I followed them to all events, scrambles, grass track and trials, so that I could become proficient in all disciplines. They were good teachers. I still am a grass track steward at the age of nearly 75.”

MN: What do you consider to be your biggest achievement ?

KL: “I had joined the ACTT, the Association of Classic Trials Cars which ran classic Long distance Trials for both cand bikes mainly in North Devon. I had a Norton Wasp outfit. which I had bought as a Rhind Tutt manufactured scrambles outfit with a Norton Wasp 900cc plus engine. I converted it to trials, and with my passenger Paul Collins in the 1990s we won numerous awards and the ACTT Championship  three years running. We also did some enduros on it and of course the Exeter trial.”

MN: And what for the future?

KL: “I gave up competing when the ‘BSE’ crises was on us. I sit on both the Dartmoor and Exmoor national parks committee to represent all motor groups. The problem with the new rights of way legislation is not going to go away and as a consequence I can see ever increasing problems in using Green Lanes, RUPPS, BOATS, Rights of Way etc which nearly all are becoming reclassified as no-go areas for all vehicular traffic. Of course it has not helped when all the unauthorised practising went on. Take ‘Simms Hill’ for example. We used to use it years ago about three times a year. We informed the local parish council and residents of the dates and times and we gave donations to help the Ilsington Church Roof fund. That was fine, but nowadays you get trail bikes practising every Sunday up and down, up and down and of course the village has changed, with people coming in from outside the area to retire and they just do not want the noise and inconvenience every weekend.

I will carry on for the time being and keep everyone informed through the Gazette as and when there are any significant changes.”

Thank you Keith for your time and I hope all goes well for you in the future. Mike Naish

More Mike Naish interviews HERE

Apart from ‘Fair Dealing’ for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright, Design and Patents Act, 1988, no part of this article may be copied, reproduced, stored in any form of retrieval system, electronic or otherwise or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrical, mechanical, optical, chemical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the author as stated above. This article is not being published for any monetary reward or monetisation, be that online or in print.

Richie Collins from Corpach, Fort William has been a superfan of the annual Scottish Six Days Trial. He is also a keen runner with Lochaber AC, so he is a fit lad. Richie has had Cerebral Palsy since birth, but that doesn’t stop him going to see his favourite, local sections every year! His Dad, Alan usually helps to get him to the sections.

Richie is also a keen runner and has taken part in many races with Lochaber Athletics Club as a para-athlete, in fact an athletics career that has covered four decades. He has represented Great Britain at two Paralympic Games and two World Championships, winning five medals, and held the World Record in both the 800m and 1500m for his classification, so he is no slouch.

Keep an eye out for Richie at the Scottish Six Days as he is always in the crowd, keeping a watchful eye on the performances, but now he will be proudly wearing his Trials Guru VIP cap!

See you at the ‘Scottish’ Richie!

Words: Mike Naish & Bill Hewitt

Photos: Ken Haydon; Mike Naish

The South West Classic Trials Association (SWCTA) was set up in 1983 when Pre65 trials were in the ascendancy. Its aim was to promote and assist in providing an ‘umbrella’ of knowledge and support to lay out suitable sections for the older bikes in local club trials. As a result the Classic scene in the South West areas of Devon and Somerset flourished and entries for local trials increased. As reported in the press at the time, the organisation of the Exmoor Classic Trial was the closest thing to a holiday in the highlands available for the older bikes. Centred around the holiday resort of Minehead, it meant the Dad could disappear off to Exmoor with his trials bike whilst the family made the most of a seaside break in an area with plenty to offer. During the three days of the event, there was a full programme of social evenings where riders, friends and organisers could get together for a noggin and a natter. The first SWCTA secretary was Neil Arnold who campaigned on a 250 Royal Enfield with chairman Bob Davis, an AJS enthusiast. Bob owned a restaurant in Minehead and as chairman kept them all in order.  With Colin Stoneman and Mike Palfrey and many of the current Pre65 riders they established a flourishing club. Many clubs up and down the country noticed the interest and copied the format and some two or three years later the Dartmoor Classic Trial was born. One of the enthusiasts who also ran the Exmoor for many years was Bill Hewitt from Stoke Canon near Exeter.

Bill was born in Flintshire in 1931 and moved to Exeter when he was four years of age when his father secured a job as employment officer for Exeter City Council. He was educated at the Exeter Technical School and after leaving got a job with Autoparts down by the Haven Banks and the river in Exeter. Bill’s career started back shortly after the war when he rode a 350 MAC Velocette in his first trial late in the 1940s before he was called up in 1952 and served his time in the Airforce with 6^th Flight, Y squadron. He did his training at Melksham and then two years as a mechanic at Dunkerswell, in all doing three years in RAF Transport. Bill managed to ride in at least one event at Broadhembury, on a 2H Triumph loaned from Ron Edwards of Cullompton, when in the RAF. Upon his demob it was Bill Boyce, from nearby Rewe, who enthused Bill to take up trials. Bill Boyce scrambled his ‘Mabsa’ in the summer along with Maurie and Reg Squires and kept fit in the winter by riding trials. His enthusiasm rubbed off on the newly married Bill Hewitt and he acquired a 197 DOT, and after a year or two he graduated to a BSA Bantam, a marque that he rode most of his life.

Bill was ever the enthusiast and spent a lot of his spare time modifying and fettling his bikes during the evenings and weekends, and the logo on his bike reflected some of his thoughts as it read: ‘BSA – Made in England-Ruined in Stoke Canon’.

Bill also keeping fit with line dancing with his wife at the local village halls where he got quite a reputation.  In fact Bill, according to a photograph in Derek Wylde’s column in TMX News, was ‘A dab hand on the dance floor and a dab foot in the stream’. The dab in the stream was somewhat of a feature of Bill’s riding as he is the first to admit, although he reflects that many a time he finished up underneath his bike. Never deterred he would always get up and with a friendly curse to the bike and section and then would carry on.

Bill was one of those unsung heroes, the clubman who was never going to be a consistent winner but who enjoyed his trials, and importantly put effort back into the sport by marking out events for his club, the Crediton Motorcycle Club. Later on when the South West Classic Club was formed Bill took over as entries secretary of the Exmoor Classic Three Day Trial at Easter, an event now coming up to its thirtieth Year, whilst also setting out the final days sections at Oakford near Tiverton. Bill represented the South Western Centre in Pre65 trials when teams would be formed to ride against the Wessex Centre. Together with Brian Trott, Ivan Pridham, Paul and Steve Hodder, Mike Palfrey, Dougie Williams, Vic Burgoyne and others, a good weekend’s needle match was always held in the Mendips and Bill very often would shine with a good ride on the limestone outcrops.

I first met Bill early in the early 1960’s when he sold me an ex-Brian Slee 250 BSA. If I thought that Brian’s expertise was going to rub off on me I was to be disappointed, but it gave me a lifelong friendship with Bill that lasts to this day. Moving to Bristol where I worked at Rolls Royce, we would always call in to see him wherever he was working with Devon County Council. We might practice at the sewer works at Stoke Canon or call in to the council yard in Exmouth with the kids to renew times. One year on the way to Cornwall for a week the car expired just outside Exeter. I gave Bill a call and immediately he gave me his car to continue our journey and he repaired our car during the week for us to pick up on the way home. It was the nature of the man who would help you without a second thought.

After a few outings in the trail bike class, Bill finally gave up riding about ten years ago saying that ‘he had been cured’. Cured that is of the affliction that affects a great many of us, that is the affliction of being a trials rider. That patently is not true of Bill from the myriad of photos that adorn his walls to the piles of trials magazines that he reads and the avid way he wants to know all about the trials scene and the riders that still come down to ride and enjoy both the classic Exmoor and Dartmoor trials in the Westcountry. Today at 81 unfortunately Bill is mostly confined to his bed and is on oxygen to assist his breathing, but he still has a strong spark for life with a twinkle in his eye, and enjoys a good laugh. Pat his wife of fifty-one years with their three girls still dote on him and administer his every whim, isn’t that right Bill? Of course there are and have been many others that have administered the comings and goings of events within the SWCTA and Bill Hewitt has just been one of them.

Finally during the run up to the millennium, Bill was honoured to be asked to erect a plaque onto the millennium stone donated to the village of Stoke Canon, and that sits on the village green. The plaque marks the importance of the stone and the turn of the century and the millennium and its impact on the village.  This he did for his local community, but Bill has his own thoughts on the usefulness of the monument for the village which he expresses in graphic Anglo Saxon terms. Yes Bill had not mellowed through the years but to my mind he was the salt of the earth and I am glad to be able to have called him a friend. –  Mike Naish November 2012.

‘Bill Hewitt by Mike Naish’ is the copyright of Trials Guru and Mike Naish.

More interviews with Mike Naish HERE

Apart from ‘Fair Dealing’ for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright, Design and Patents Act, 1988, no part of this article may be copied, reproduced, stored in any form of retrieval system, electronic or otherwise or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrical, mechanical, optical, chemical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the author as stated above. This article is not being published for any monetary reward or monetisation, be that online or in print.

Trials Guru has worked hand in hand with the Spanish trials website ‘Todotrial’ for ten years. We have permission from Horacio San Martin the owner of Todotrial to bring you this article on one of Spain’s most famous trials machine restorer, preparer and modifier, Jose Luis Rodriguez Valcarcel, or as he is known in the trials world as – EL PUMA of PUMA RACING!

Words: Todotrial & Jose Luis Rodriguez Valcarcel.

Photos: Todotrial; Juan Luis Gaillard & Puma Racing.

On this occasion we interview someone with a long history in the world of trials, José Luís Rodríguez ‘El Puma’, dominator of the Spanish Cup and the Catalan Cup of Classic Trials in its beginnings and founder of ‘Puma Racing’, specialists in preparations and restorations of classic trial motorcycles.

“Racing was my best testbed for my creations, as well as a great showcase for my work” – El Puma

Unlike the vast majority of mechanics in other workshops or shops, José Luis Rodríguez also competed, and therefore knew first-hand what the problems were with the motorcycles he worked on.

We went to the Barcelona town of Llerona to visit Puma Racing, the workshop where José Luis Rodríguez repairs, restores and tunes up all kinds of classic trial bikes. Although, in all fairness, it must be said that there is nothing that ‘El Puma’, as he is affectionately known, cannot bring back to life.

This is one of those long and drawn-out conversations that we really wanted to share with all of you. And not only because of the undeniable charisma of its protagonist, but because we are before one of the great dream-makers of the dynamic balance sport in our country. From his beginnings with his uncle in A Coruña to his current workshop at Puma Racing, through his years as head mechanic in such emblematic and iconic places as ‘Motos Isern’ and ‘KM-2’.

A man who, for many, continues to change the history of our sport with his personal designs and revolutionary technological solutions.

Todotrial – You are from Sarria, Lugo. Was that where you discovered trial as a sport?

El Puma: “Yes, I am from there. But when I was 12, in 1960, my father sent me to La Coruña. And there I started working in my uncle’s workshop as a mechanic. Vespas, Lambrettas, BMWs, Derbis too. We touched all kinds of brands and motorcycles. But no mountain bikes. In fact, they didn’t exist as such. In fact, I didn’t discover them until I arrived in Catalonia; until I started working at Motos Isern. And well, at that time there weren’t Montesa Cota or Bultaco Sherpa either.

Todotrial – Come on, it would take you a while to get on a trial bike?

EP: “When I lived in Galicia I played football. I was a goalkeeper, and a good one at that! (Laughs). I played for Sporting Coruñés SD and was even an international player. Motorcycles? It never crossed my mind to get on one back then.”

Todotrial – You arrived in Catalonia when you were 17 and, as you recall, you soon started working as a mechanic at the iconic Motos Isern shop in Mollet del Vallès (Barcelona). How did you end up working for Josep Isern and his wife Montse Abril?

EP: “My father’s brothers lived in Barcelona, ​​on Passeig de Maragall. And taking advantage of the fact that my father had to undergo an operation, my brothers, who had also been here for some years, helped my father and mother to come here. The operation was a complete success and they stayed in Catalonia. My father was a construction worker and began to carry out works and constructions. After a year here he settled permanently in Mollet, a town near Barcelona, ​​and told me to come down to Catalonia. And so I did. Also, a cousin of mine had a Montesa Impala that he took to Motos Isern to repair or check every so often and he had a very good relationship with Josep and Montse. He told them about me and one day he took me to his shop and workshop. And that very day they wanted me to start working there.”

Todotrial – Oh really?

EP: “Yes, yes. But I told them that the way I was dressed I couldn’t start work, that maybe I had to go home to change. (Laughs) In the end, no that day, but the next day I did.”

Todotrial – Were you an all-terrain mechanic or did you specialize from the very beginning in fixing and preparing only trial bikes?

EP: “I will only tell you that I already knew more than the other mechanics who were working there. They were more salesmen than mechanics. (He smiles). I came from Galicia already well-seasoned, and with a very good knowledge and basics of mechanics. Just think that, as they say, I dismantled and assembled Vespas and Lambretas almost with my eyes closed. They had no secrets for me. I remember starting out with Impalas, where the crankshaft bearings broke easily. And in four days I became the lord and master of the workshop. (Laughs).”

Todotrial – Did you start riding a motorcycle around that time?

EP: “Yes, that’s right. Josep wanted me to compete in motocross, no matter what. As his brother-in-law is Pere Pi. For this, they brought me a butane-coloured Montesa Cappra from the factory. And the truth is that I took part in quite a few races with it. But when I was preparing for the following season, on a specialised circuit in Santiga, in Santa Perpètua de Mogoda, and with several of the official Montesa riders of the time, such as Francesc Lancho or Manolo Olivencia, another boy who was training there took my foot out with the footrest when he collided head-on. They used to be fixed, they didn’t fold back like they do now. They took me to the Mollet Hospital and from there to Barcelona, ​​to Vall d’Hebron, which at that time was called Francisco Franco. The cut was so deep that they told my father that if they left me with my foot intact I wouldn’t walk properly, they would rather amputate part of it.”

Todotrial – Did they want to cut off a piece of your foot?

EP: “My father told the doctor to do what he thought was best for my health and future. And that’s what he did. It wasn’t like it is now. After the operation and after half a year or so and I was back working at Motos Isern, Pere Pi himself, the late Joan Bordas, a gardener by profession and the architect of the ‘natural’ areas of the first editions of the Solo Moto Indoor Trial in Barcelona, ​​as well as other Montesa factory riders, were already doing trials. I followed them through the mountains on my Impala, but I soon told Josep that I also wanted my Montesa Cota. And without further ado I bought it.”

Todotrial – A Cota 247?

EP: “Correct! Josep sold it to me for 25,000 pesetas at the time. And four days later, as they say, the boss took me to run my first race in Mataró, to the Trial de Les Santes, an event held every year to mark the town’s main festival. The race visited the area around Can Bruguera and the agricultural area of ​​Valldeix, near the Sant Simó stream, and the foothills of the Serra del Corredor, between the Cirera neighbourhood and the neighbouring towns of Argentona and Dosrius. Basically, they were areas of forest, with uneven ground, large roots and rocks. And from then on, every Sunday Josep took me to a different race as if he were my father.”

Todotrial – Josep, you and your Cota 247?

EP: “My 247 was the one that still had the big tank and drums, from 69-70, if my memory serves me right. It was the only one I bought, as the next ones were changes. I remember that I paid my monthly installment religiously. Well, I deducted it from my salary. (He smiles). A year or so later I got the 247 with small drums. With it and its various evolutions MK1, MK2, MK3, it was manufactured between 1968 and 1981, I participated in all kinds of trials during those years. I even took part in the Sant Llorenç Trial when it was scoring points for the European Championship in the early 70s, which later became the World Championship. Organised by the Moto Club Terrassa between 1967 and 1994, it was held every year in the area around what is now the Sant Llorenç de Munt Natural Park, between the Barcelona regions of Vallès Occidental, Moianès and Bages.”

Todotrial – Did you participate in the Sant Llorenç Trial for many years?

EP: “Well, five or six more or less. But I went to many other places. I moved all over Catalonia. (He smiles.)”

Todotrial – We imagine you prepared it yourself. Is that so?

EP “Doubts are offensive!! (Laughs) I changed the air box, I cut the clutch to make it softer. Of course, I left it spotless and clean. When I got to the paddock I was the envy of everyone!! (More laughter). It shone like no other, like a jewel.”

Todotrial – More than Pere Pi’s?

EP: “I had a good relationship with him, but he never said anything to me. Thanks to him, I was able to get my first license to compete, since I was a minor and needed a kind of guardian. Well, Pere Pi and Joan Bordas were the ones who signed on my behalf. Since then and until 2020, I renewed it every year. I had a prosthesis fitted in my knee four years ago and I have not ridden a motorcycle again.”

Todotrial – You worked there from 1967 to 1982. We imagine you learned a lot from your time at Motos Isern?

EP: “Both Josep and Montse treated me like a son. They loved me very much, although it is also true that from time to time Josep and I had our little quarrels. (Smiles). But nothing serious. (Smiles again). I always felt very comfortable at Motos Isern. At that time, I was also in charge of setting up and marking the different races that we organised. Both motocross events and trials. We organised a lot of them.”

Todotrial – But as we were saying, in 1982 Albert Casanovas, current Export Manager/Trial Competition of Sherco, and you became ‘independent’ by creating KM-2, your own motorcycle shop. Casanovas explained to us that it was not a premeditated thing, but that it arose from the fact that Motos Sastre, a Montesa dealer in neighbouring Granollers, wanted you to run a second shop in Mollet and that, given your refusal to work for another company, they finally joined forces with you. Is that correct?

EP: “I was doing very well at Motos Isern and if it were up to them I would never have left, but I wanted to try the option of working on my own. And as they say: ‘the sun rises for everyone’. They couldn’t keep me. However, we remained on very good terms and as friends. In fact, they told me that if our adventure didn’t work out, I would always have a place in their workshop. They would always have the doors open for me.”

Todotrial – Who did they test out first: Albert or you?

EP: “The offer was made to me, and he accompanied me.”

Todotrial – How did you end up buying his share of KM-2 two years after opening it?

EP: “Motos Sastre was our partner for the first five or six years. But after that stage we decided to buy out their share and leave Albert and I alone to run the business.”

Todotrial – You also told us that it was initially going to be called AJS, taking the initial letters of the names of the three partners, Albert, José Luis and Salvador, but that at the last minute you saw a landmark with the inscription KM-2 and you liked it better. Who saw it and suggested it as a name for the store?

EP: “Look. At that time I lived in La Garriga, a town just 15 minutes from Mollet. I didn’t like the idea of ​​naming the shop after our initials because this formula already existed for naming a British motorcycle brand, AJS. But one day, driving along the old road that linked Barcelona with Vic, near Granollers, right where it joins the current C-17, I noticed a milestone that said ‘KM’, I don’t know what number. It really caught my attention. And taking advantage of the next meeting we had, the three of us, I suggested naming the shop that way. Now I don’t remember who proposed the final name. But I can tell you that we approved it because it sounded good in both Spanish and Catalan. And it really went down well with people, to be honest. Anyway, I will also tell you that in the first posters and advertisements we made, the name was in full. That is, Kilometre 2, with two milestones on either side. But it soon became KM-2.”

Todotrial – You focused on off-road and mainly on trial. Was it for convenience or out of unconditional love for our sport?

EP: “The truth is that we covered everything: enduro, motocross, road and, of course, trials too. And all the brands, although it is true that in those early days we were official Suzuki and Kawasaki stores. But we also worked with GasGas, Sherco, Scorpa, Beta, Montesa. We had two workshops. One where I worked and where all the trial bikes that we fixed or prepared came through, and another where we repaired and tuned up the cross and road bikes.”

Todotrial – By the way, green, yellow and white are your identity colours. Is there any particular reason for that?

EP: “Green and yellow were the colours we used to paint the shop, two pigments that I personally like a lot. Albert liked them too. And that’s why we decided to make the kits of our sponsored riders with both. You only have to take a look at the magazines of the time to see Marcelino Corchs, Gabino Renales, Salva Garcia, Andreu Codina or Lluís Gallach wearing them. (Smiles). Marc Colomer, who was also with KM-2, also wore them in his early days.”

Todotrial – When you were riding your first Montesas, right?

EP: “Yes. Marc competed in trials on a Derbi Rabassa, and since the factory is next door and he had a very good friend working in the bike department within the factory. I remember that he came to KM-2 telling us wonderful things about Marc and that he wanted to move into motorcycle trials. It didn’t take us long to bet on him. And that’s how we prepared a 125cc Montesa Cota for him. I had made a Cota 172 for Corchs, Renales and Garcia during my final stage at Motos Isern.”

Todotrial – By the way, from that time is the Derbi Trial 183 cc?

EP: “Yes, and I developed it. The bike was made under the direction of Andreu Rabasa, son of Simeó Rabasa, founder of the brand, at a time when Italian brands were beginning to fill the gap left by the defunct Bultaco and Ossa. But I was dealing with Francisco Amaya, a very decisive engineer and workshop manager, who, among other models of the time, created the Derbi Sport Coppa 74 and gave birth to this prototype. And he did it in his spare time, in his spare hours. I had a very good relationship with him. Since I was racing trials and was still a mechanic at Motos Isern, Amaya would call me when they finished a step in its development. For example, they would put an Amal carburettor on it, so I would go over and test it, and give him my opinion and advice. And so on until they delivered it finished and ready to compete to Marcelino Corchs.”

Todotrial – Unfortunately, that collaboration would last just over a year?

EP: “Yes, it didn’t last long, to be honest. But before the trial bikes I had already collaborated with them for many years.”

Todotrial – Would you have liked to work harder on that Derbi Trial to exploit its full potential?

EP: “Yes, yes. Mainly because the factory was very focused on the World Speed ​​Championship with Ángel Nieto and the Spanish Motocross Championship. The Trial was an anecdote for them. Once finished, the Derbi Trial was practically at KM-2 all the time. The only time it returned to the factory was to take the family photo with all the Derbi top brass in front of the factory and on the occasion of the Indoor Trial in Barcelona. I don’t remember if it was in the second or third edition of the event, but they did present it there. Only when Oriol Puig Bultó and César Rojo joined the company did the company show some interest in the specialty, and always on their own initiative.”

Todotrial – Corchs was not involved in that Derbi for long, as he would soon sign for Fantic. Was it his idea?

EP: “Obviously, that Derbi had many flaws from its youth. And on top of that, it had the handicap that the factory didn’t really believe in it or clearly back it. In addition, it was derived from an enduro model and the engine wasn’t easy, to be honest. It wasn’t very reliable either. Some part was always breaking. In short, the bike wasn’t competitive at all. That’s why Marcelino decided to buy a Fantic. The only thing we managed to do was that through Jaume Subirà, winner of the first Indoor Solo Moto and distributor of the Italian brand in our country, the spare part was free, and we, as KM-2, prepared it for him.”

Todotrial – You gave KM-2 gear to all customers who bought a trial bike from you. Whose idea was it? And why that and not a free annual bike check-up?

EP: “Because it was a fantastic marketing strategy, simple and very cheap. You only have to see how most amateur drivers of the time dressed. Almost all of them wore our clothing and colours. Imagine what a similar advertising campaign would cost today. A KM-2 kit did more advertising and much more for business than giving away a free service. The KM-2 shirt and trousers went to the races every Sunday, but the free service did not. (Smiles).”

Todotrial– Many other riders followed Corchs: Andreu Codina, Ronald Garcia, Salvador Garcia, Gabino Renales, Pere Antón Mill, Óscar and Gabriel Giró, Marc Colomer, Jordi Picola, Gabriel Reyes… and in the last period, you also had Lluís Gallach. Of whom do you have the most special memory?

EP: “I have very special memories of Marc. Also of Gabino, Salva and even Ronald. Most of them were friends and lived more or less in the same place. But Marc was very young when he joined us, 15 or 16 years old.”

Todotrial – Did any of them get involved with you when it came to building the bike? In other words: Who of them asked you the most questions about the setup or mechanics of their bike?

EP: “Everyone asked me for things at some point. But Marc, for example, I remember that when we made his first Cota, a 125cc 304, we changed the suspension and made it smaller. More than anything because he hadn’t had his growth spurt yet and that way he was able to adapt and work better with the bike.”

Todotrial – Little by little, the name KM-2 became a regular feature in Catalan and national competitions and even in the World Championship thanks to all these drivers and their sporting successes. This strategy is a bit reminiscent of what Don Paco Bultó used to say: “sales follow the checkered flag”. Do you agree with that?

EP: “Of course!! But I prefer the following slogan as my own: ‘Wherever you look, you will always see KM-2’.

Todotrial– KM-2 has always been characterized by supporting the base and growing with it little by little. Is this strategy still valid today?

EP: “Of course. But nowadays it doesn’t exist. Mainly because of all the problems we encounter when it comes to freely practising our sport in the mountains. Apart from that, nowadays, the main ‘leitmotiv’ of the shops is to sell and that’s it. KM-2, on the other hand, reinvested a large part of its profits in the races because we were lovers and passionate about trial as a sport. But at the time we also supported pilots from other specialties such as a certain Edgar Torronteras, for example.”

Todotrial – KM-2, as well as trial, were going full steam ahead. However, in 1995 a new, very restrictive environmental access law came into force in Catalonia and this had a huge impact on motorcycle sales. Your response was to join forces with Zona Cero and Motos Subirà and create the Open Trial Championship. Whose idea was this imaginative and innovative?

EP: “The truth is that the situation was not good at all and we thought, as the saying goes, that unity is strength. And that is why the three shops converged on the same project. I remember that Montesa lent us three motorcycles, Beta one or two, GasGas too, and after a championship with seven or eight races we held a gala dinner where the motorcycles lent were raffled off, as well as many other and very varied spare parts, accessories and gifts. Look how successful it was that in some races we had up to 250 and 300 participants. An outrage! But we were the only ones who were committed to Trial. Nobody organized anything. The championship started very strongly, but little by little the wear and tear made us gradually abandon the project until in the end only Zona Cero remained. It also had an influence that the town councils and administrations did not help us much. In fact, on many occasions they put obstacles in our way right up to the day of the race.”

Todotrial – What made him so special and loved by fans?

EP: “Fans were interested in participating in trials of this type. They had fun with their classic or modern bikes. And so did the organizers. (Laughs)”

Todotrial– By the way, did you also take part in it?

EP: “Whenever I could. And I did it with a classic Cota 247 when 99% of the participants were riding modern motorcycles. I suppose that by setting an example in those areas, my friends were encouraged to take out their classic motorcycles again and that is where the first vintage races and competitions arose here in Catalonia.”

Todotrial – Many fans of that era wonder if the Open Trial will ever return. Do you think it would be possible for it to return?

EP: “Phew! Nothing is impossible! But given the current situation, I see it as very difficult.”

Todotrial – Why do you think it came to an end?

EP: “Like every project in life, it had its end! Albert (Casanovas), Jaume (Subirá), Jose Manuel (Alcaraz), myself and everyone else slowed down. In my case, I could no longer devote so much time to organizing and marking trials, and the others also gave priority to other life projects.”

Todotrial – With the arrival of the new century, KM-2 closed its doors. Why?

EP: “In the end we were four partners and four, as they say, is a crowd. The first to leave was my good friend Albert Casanovas. And I ended up following in his footsteps two years later.”

Todotrial – Certainly, while Casanovas was leaving for GasGas, you created Puma Racing, your own firm specializing in classic motorcycle preparations. Why classic and not modern bikes?

EP: “Because the traditional customer is a better customer. He is usually older and well-positioned in life in terms of income. Modern motorcycles are usually ridden by young boys and girls, many of whom are not yet financially independent and are focused on their studies.”

Todotrial – Copying the KM-2 model, you started promoting Puma Racing by competing yourself on your own bikes, and with great success, by the way. Were racing your best test bench for your creations?

EP: “As I explained at the beginning, I started working with my uncle when I was 12 and here, at Motos Isern, I was in charge of fixing and fine-tuning all the trial bikes. And the same thing happened at KM-2. My strong point? Unlike the vast majority of mechanics in other workshops or shops, I also raced, and so I knew first-hand what the problems were with the bikes I worked with. That’s why, at the beginning, I prepared them to my liking and some clients, perhaps less experienced, told me that the bikes were going too fast.”

Todotrial – Really?

EP: “Yes, yes. But over time I learned and now I listen more to the client and I make it 100% with the instructions and specifications that they give me. If they want it slower, no problem. Softer suspensions, no problem either. With more chestnut, done! I make them for all tastes. (Smiles). And, of course, as you say, racing was my best test bench for my creations, as well as a great showcase for my work.”

Todotrial – Many of us remember your Montesa Cota 247 Mk 2, the bike with which you dominated the Catalan Classic Trial Cup in its early days in the Expert category, as well as the first two editions of the Spanish Cup. What is your best creation?

EP: “It was a perfect bike. With a big tank and small drums. This model was the same one I started competing with almost every weekend in 1969. As you will remember, I bought it for 25,000 pesetas and later sold it for 30,000. Years later, already in KM-2, I got it back for the same price I sold it for. Its owner used the money to buy a modern model. And I did it to compete in the races that were held in Catalonia before the regional classics competition existed.”

Todotrial – Recognized by some as “the queen of the classics” or “the ten girl”, what makes her so special?

EP: “Because I always took it to the races in perfect condition. I couldn’t leave it in the sun because it was so shiny and clean that it always looked. But not now, but always. Even when I was racing with Motos Isern, my bike was always perfect.”

Todotrial– As it should be, right?

EP: “Look. An anecdote came to my mind that I want to explain to you. One day, in a classics trial, I arrived at the start and the race director, Ramón Codina, from MC BSC, he didn’t know me yet, said to me: ‘Maybe it would be a good idea for you to take the bike and do the sections on the outside so that the bike doesn’t suffer and neither the mud nor the water gets it dirty’. Maybe he saw that I was a bit old to be riding it. (Laughs). Logically, I didn’t pay attention to him and I competed in the trial as it was, through the doors that were for my category. I finished with one or two points. When I gave him the card, he looked at me and asked if I had paid attention to him. When I told him no, he looked at the bike and me, amazed. (Smiles). And this is one of many anecdotes that I treasure. (Smiles again).”

Todotrial – I’m sure you invested countless hours making it, perfecting small details, trying out new components to make it more competitive and adapt it to your tastes. How much do you think this would be in euros?

EP: “Phew! A fortune! In the past, people used to say that it had a GasGas crankshaft or piston, that the engine was from here or there and, of course, it was modified, and some other nonsense. Well, nothing at all. Original parts, but worked on and perfected by me. To give you an idea. When I make a motorcycle engine, I might spend between 15 and 16 hours working on it. I’m sure there are mechanics who do it in less time. But I can assure you that they will not be anything like the ones I make. Two or three hours won’t work for me. What’s more, I don’t mind working on Saturdays and Sundays. Why? It’s when I can be alone, without visitors, and nobody touches anything, do you understand? (Laughs). Don’t get me wrong, I like people coming to the workshop and visiting me. You talk for a while and such. Sometimes, even hours. About ‘battles’ from the past, above all. But I prefer the solitude and tranquility of the weekend so I can focus 100% on the bikes.”

Todotrial – At Puma Racing do you work with all the classic brands or are you more specialized in some than others?

EP: “We do all the bikes that come through the workshop door. I don’t care what brand it is: an OSSA, a Fantic, a Bultaco, a Montesa, a SWM… It doesn’t matter to me. I do everything. Mechanics has no secrets for me. I have been a mechanic for 60 years now and throughout this time I have handled bikes of all types and brands.”

Todotrial – Which brands or models from before are easier to work with, whether mechanically or with spare parts?

EP: “They are all more or less the same. It’s just that some have one thing and others another. Now, for example, I work a lot with Bultaco after I made one. People think I’m a ‘Montesista’ and ‘anti-Bultaquista’. Nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve always ridden with Montesa, but not out of fanaticism. For me, all trial bikes are the same, and I really enjoy making them. Of course, I prefer classics to modern ones. I don’t enjoy a modern 4T, for example, as much. But I could make one for you just the same. More than anything because I made scooters and road bikes in my younger days at Motos Isern or KM-2.”

Todotrial– What do they ask you more for: restorations or preparations?

EP: “I do both jobs. But, to be honest, it would be easier for me to restore than to prepare. Anyone can make a production bike. Now, very few people are able to prepare a trial bike like we do at Puma Racing, with so much care and attention to detail. Our bikes are beautiful inside and out. You start them up and they purr. I have already told you that I dedicate many hours to my creations. Well, sometimes I don’t even sleep. I rack my brains looking for solutions and ideas so that that job, that bike, looks and runs perfect. And to this day I am still learning things. I don’t make bikes for you to look at in the dining room, I make bikes for you to enjoy riding.”

Todotrial – What has been the most unexpected assignment you have ever been asked to do?

EP: “Look, I’ve done all kinds of commissions. But what really ticks me off, with affection, is when a client comes to me and says: ‘make it the way you like it’. What do you mean, the way I like it? You’re going to take care of it, not me! And that also makes me set the bar even higher. (Laughs).”

Todotrial – Some people see the preparations as the natural evolution of the models of yesteryear. Do you agree with this or are we talking about something else?

EP: “Yes, I agree! What the client wants is to enjoy his classic bike, and for it to be reliable, so that it doesn’t let him down… (Laughs) This is, without a doubt, the aim of the preparations. It’s natural! (Smiles).”

Todotrial – Nowadays, a classic trial bike is considered to be one manufactured between 1965 and 1987. However, air-cooled bikes manufactured between 1985 and 1991 are also allowed in competition in the Post Classic categories. Do you agree with this time limit or, as a mechanic, do you think it should be extended or reduced?

EP: “I prefer not to comment on the matter, if you will allow me.”

Todotrial – By the way, is it possible to participate in classic races or championships with mounts in their authentic “original state” and be competitive?

EP: “Young people, for sure!! But those of us who are already greying… We can’t. We need a trial bike that goes well and brakes even better. A young rider doesn’t need brakes or anything!! (Laughs). They just need to give it gas!”

Todotrial – At the time, there were those who said that the prepared classics ‘adulterated’ the competitions. In other words, they had an advantage. Do you agree with them?

EP: “Everyone has their opinion. But I remember seeing people fall off the first classic races and the clutch starting to leak oil and the bike not starting. As well as getting dirty, it was dangerous because any spark could start a fire. If that happens, you don’t enjoy the race anymore. But if you have a bike with a well-built engine, that runs smoothly, and everything in its place, you’re sure to go back the following Sunday. You can’t forget that it’s still a hobby. You shouldn’t go around getting bitter about things. I think that everyone, within their means, can have a classic bike in good condition and ready to race. I don’t think it’s bad, to be honest. But we don’t all think the same. I admit that I was one of the first to make fine clutches, which everyone does now, or to use DellOrto carburettors. When I was racing in Madrid they criticised me beyond belief for fitting them. Well, now there’s no problem. Everyone equips their bikes with them. For some, more papist than the Pope, we would still have to go with Betor shock absorbers and Pirelli tires with herringbone tread.”

Todotrial – Trials such as the Ventoux or Robregordo show that the passion for classic motorcycles is not a passing fad. Or is it?

EP: “At the moment, they are getting by. There are still a lot of older people! (Laughs). But as I said before, these same people want to do well, not suffer.”

Todotrial– Has classic trials changed much since you started racing them until now?

EP: “Yes, it has changed. But for environmental reasons. Now, for example, we don’t touch the water. And in many places where we used to go, we don’t even go near it now. I remember races in Andorra, Mallorca, Ibiza, for example, in the middle of the village. Nothing happened. There were no problems. Now ask the club in question if they let you organise a race and where. The Environment Department doesn’t give out permits and you have to go 25 times and even then on the day of the race you’re scared that they’ll come and cancel it. Another issue is the licence. To do four or five races a year you pay a lot. Not only the Environment Department, the different federations are also killing off trials.”

Todotrial – Do you like the current level system or would you like a different one?

EP: “At first there was only one colour. But little by little, levels by colour were introduced. And I think that is good, because if your driving level is not very high, if you go home with all fives, you will hardly race another day.”

Todotrial – Recently, young drivers have successfully ventured into competing in the Catalan Cup or the Spanish Cup at the most difficult levels, and some people believe that they have an advantage due to their age and physique. Do you think so too?

EP: “I have never had any problems in that sense. Also, at the time, I was in my 40s and many of my classmates were older than me. But there came a time when I became one of the veterans. My luck is that my level was a bit high and theirs a bit lower. (Smiles)”

Todotrial – Do you think that more people should take part in classic races?

EP: “You know what they say: The more the merrier! (He smiles again).”

Todotrial – However, as far as women are concerned, why do you think there are no female drivers in classics?

EP: “I don’t know. But I can tell you that I have made bikes for girls. Right now, for example, I am preparing a Cota for my daughter, who wants to race trials. It is still in progress, because I have few free hours, but I am looking forward to seeing it finished. Maybe there are not many girls competing in classics because they don’t enjoy it as much, and I am sure that some of those who compete do so because they go with their father, not on their own initiative.”

Todotrial – Toni Bou has 36 world titles between Trial and XTrial. How do you think he would do in a classic?

EP: “Certainly as good or better than he does now with his current Montesa.”

Todotrial – Is there any other rider you would have liked or would like to see riding a classic Puma Racing trial bike?

EP: “Philippe Berlatier, three-time French champion who helped his country win five Trial des Nations titles, three of them consecutively, from 1984 to 1986, or Jordi Tarrés himself, have asked me when I am going to make them a bike. But they are ‘old youngsters’ and ex-riders. There are none of them now, so far. If anyone is interested… you know where I am! (He smiles).”

EL PUMA is the copyright of Todotrial/Horacio San Martin. This article first appeared on Todotrial website.

Trials Guru are indebted to Todotrial for the re-publishing this article in the English language.

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