Scrambling.
It started out as a bunch of blokes hanging out in the Mojave desert in California, or a muddy field in the Midlands, during the Fifties and Sixties. Guys who wanted to ride on trails and on scramble tracks took 650 twins and 500 singles, stripped them back and stuck on a set of knobbly tyres, an engine bash plate, and a set of high bars and taller shocks. Scramblers were invented.
What began in the Forties and Fifties with road bikes kitted up to take on the dirt, went on to bikes like Triumph’s 650 twins in the Sixties. There were Moto Guzzi twins and Ducati singles but by the mid-Seventies Scramblers had all but died out, as full-on trail and motocross bikes with incredibly tall suspension took over.
The Yamaha XT500 was perhaps being the perfect example and a massive success as a road bike. Bikes like the XT and the XL500 Honda meant that people no longer had to make their own scramblers at home, you could walk into a dealership and buy a pretend motocross bike with lights.
Scramblers have been ticking away nicely on the retro classic scene for a few years with some incredible bikes coming out of the UK from the likes of Spirit of the Seventies, Old Empire Motorcycles and BMW-based bikes from builders like Kevil’s Speed Shop. But in 2016 and 2017 the Scrambler is back in the mainstream in a big way. Anything that has a stripped-down look and a set of knobblies is now a global phenomenon.
Arguably, Triumph brought back the whole vibe in 2006 with the Triumph Bonneville-based Scrambler. Though heavy and compromised with an exhaust that burnt your right leg, it was a massive success for them and their accessory department.
But it was Ducati that made the breakthrough in 2015 with the simple, yet beautiful 804cc, 75bhp V-twin Scrambler and their really irritable Land of Joy concept that really got the world to take notice of their new range. It was, and still is a global sales success. We don’t have complete 2016 figures yet, but in 2015 the Ducati Scrambler was one of the top 10 of motorcycles sold worldwide, with some 16,000 Ducati Scramblers sold in 2015.
And this year we have the new pumped and fully armed Ducati Desert Sled, the Triumph Street Scrambler and BMW’s R nine T Urban G/S. Rumours are that Norton is also working on a production scrambler too.
Add in dedicated kit designed for the retro scrambler look, like the gorgeous new Bell Moto III helmet, and 2017 is set to be the year of the Scrambler.
The new bikes
Used Scramblers
The Ducati Scrambler has been around since 2015 so there are a few used ones creeping out on to the market with as little as 3000 miles on them and from as little as £5000 from a Ducati dealer. Another great option is a used Triumph Scrambler. There are plenty around as they’ve been on sale since 2006, and they seem to be holding their money from what we can see as they already have a bit of a cult following. Prices seem to start at around £4500 and go anything up to £10,000 for nearly new bikes with the most desirable accessories.
Scrambler events
Scram Africa
Think of it as a 2000km, 11-night long trail ride through Morocco, starting in Tangier then riding down to the Atlas Mountains and back up to Tangier ready for a ferry back to Barcelona, all on scramblers. You can enter old or new scramblers, but organisers, Fuel Motorcycles, purveyor of ultra-cool motorcycle kit say that they will scrutinize entries to keep the event in keeping with their scrambler ideology. Riding in period scrambler kit is to be encouraged. More details at: https://fuelmotorcycles.eu/pages/scram-africa-scram-africa
Dirt Quake
Okay, so not exactly a Scrambler event, but if you’re into getting muddy and riding weird bikes off-road then Dirt Quake is a fantastic event to go and have a laugh, take part or just watch Everything from choppers to sports bikes get fitted with a set of knobblies and raced around the Kings Lynn Arena. It’s run by our friends at Sideburn magazine and definitely isn’t an event to forget. http://www.sideburnmagazine.com/upcoming
Barbour International Wax jacket: £249
You cannot ride a Scrambler without a Barbour wax cotton jacket. It’s a law laid down by Steve McQueen when he rocked up at the International Six Day Trial (ISDT) in Germany on a Triumph in 1964 wearing Barbour. He'd bought some for the American team he was riding in during a stop off in London. That Scrambler law still stands today. The Barbour International Wax cotton jacket is the original and coolest. It’s made from 8oz Sylkoil waxed cotton with a bulky zip and a storm flap at the front. There’s a belt, and a corduroy lined collar that’s also adjustable and the original Barbour International logo on the chest.
