Memories of Scooter Scrambling in the south of England in the 1960s
"A good day's motorsport for a fiver" — that was how Scooter Scrambling was described just over 40 years ago. Mind you, that was a 1960s fiver... and a month's take-home pay in those days for even a reasonable job could be under £70. But it was still a good opportunity (particularly for a young rider) to take his or her road bike, tape up the glass, and compete in off road races — the fiver would cover petrol, entry fees, and the cost of sharing a hired van to get the bike (if you weren't riding it there) to Elstead Royal Common in Surrey.
But most riders would soon realise that a road-going bike with its legshields would always be at a disadvantage, and so specials began to be built — mostly based on Lambretta D and LD bikes, but including some Vespas, Dianas and others. The rules of what consituted 'a scooter' were rather lax in order to encourage competitors on small budgets, but this ultimately led to the collapse of the sport.
The more senior riders, who often had dealership facilities behind them, started to build special machines that were highly competitive. These ranged from a mini Greeves Challenger with a highly-tuned go-kart engine, to a rider who sawed long Lambretta GT200 engines in half and welded them together again at 90 degrees in order to get them into a managable frame. These bikes were still within the rules, but far beyond the dreams of the juniors, and getting too expensive for the seniors. After about 8 years the sport fizzled out.
But 40 years later, the main venue at Elstead can still be traced in what is now a Country Park. In this DVD, three of the original organisers of the sport from the SE London Scooter Club ('The Bats') explore the course, and remember the bikes, the races and the riders. There's also archive film footage from the early 60s, that recreates the days when a young scooter rider could have "A good day's motorsport for a fiver".
This is a must for scooter enthusiasts everywhere. It includes 2 'extras' about the location of Elstead, and the scramble course, and the making of the 'Still Batty' DVD.
You can buy online via the button on the left. If you want to be kept informed of any future news about Scooter Scrambling and the 'Still Batty' DVD, you can register for an occasional email newsletter. This newsletter will also welcome memories and photos of Scooter Scrambling at Elstead and other venues, and details of the surviving bikes.
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