Church Of MO – 2000 Bultaco Sherco
If there’s a motorcycle equivalent to rock crawling in the 4×4 and Jeep world, trials riding would have to be it. These minimal motorcycles barely have any air in the tires, weigh next to nothing, and like to bounce around all day thanks to their super soft suspension. And when it comes to trials riding, one name that’s almost synonymous with the sport is Bultaco. In this edition of Church of MO, we visit the year 2000 and the Bultaco Sherco. What’s it like to ride a trials bike? Read on to find out.
2000 Bultaco Sherco
We’ll Take Ours “On the Rocks”
By Motorcycle Online Staff Mar. 19, 2000
“What’s that you say? It’s supposed to be like that? Well, OK. But the tires are flat, too. Really? They’re supposed to be that low? Well, the seat fell off, anyhow. Oh, wait, don’t tell us…”
What the bike does have, however, is super sticky and soft tires that feel like a pack of chewing gum that’s been sitting on the beach for a few hours – set at what seems like two pounds of air pressure – so that the tire mushrooms when it slams into a rock wall and provides more contact area to paw up the ledge. And as for the suspension with no semblance of rebound damping, the forks and rear shock are like that so that you can pre-jump on to or over an obstacle with relative ease.
Confused yet? Join the club.
Having never thrown a leg over anything like this Bultaco before, we never knew what to expect. The 250 cc two-stroke motor gets its displacement through a traditionally-sized 72.8 x 60 mm bore and stroke and is fed by a single 26 mm Del ‘lorto carburetor. To get extra grunt and to avoid stalling a two-stroke motor that runs at comparatively low RPMs, a balanced magnetic Flywheel larger than most Waffle House pancakes is attached within the cases.
The taller fourth and fifth gears are good for getting from one section to the next on a road, but for getting down to the actual trials work there was no need for more than third gear. The Hydraulic clutch with six spring-loaded discs offered good feel and we were able to start from a complete stop without an inordinate amount of clutch slipping and proceed towards the obstacles presented to us. Clutch feel was good when slipping it to modulate traction on slick silt-covered rock walls in a vein attempt to reach the top after an approach shorter than the attention span of a two year-old kid after a couple espressos.
When you sit atop this Bultaco, things feel awkward. The handlebars are high and forward and, if you try to sit down, it’s a long way before your butt hits anything. There’s a lot of room beneath your bum for mobility. When you try to start the bike, searching for the choke lever on the carb has a very Sherlock Holmes-esque feel to it since it’s tucked up under the left frame spar so tightly that, even with a naked hand, getting the choke lever to stay upright is a bit of a trick to learn. The kickstart is easy enough since the ample flywheel weight is already helping to get things lit and keep them spinning.
As for us riding the bike? We are so not worthy of being in its presence. Trials Champions like Geoff Aaron and Ryan Young can do things on bikes like this that, should you ever be lucky enough to witness firsthand, boggle the mind.
While we only had limited time on the bike, our eyes have now been opened and shall never close on the world of trials machines or the riders that pilot them. Not only did we have disproportionally large amount of fun compared to the size of the area we rode in, we now understand why almost every top racer – dirt or street – has owned and played on a trials bike. This Sherco taught us throttle control, clutch control, body positioning and how to widen our smile at the sight of nothing more than a rock. We’re simple people underneath it all, it seems, and this Sherco is simple all the way to the surface – in a good way. No frills and no accouterments that might detract from its ultimate performance.
Troy's been riding motorcycles and writing about them since 2006, getting his start at Rider Magazine. From there, he moved to Sport Rider Magazine before finally landing at Motorcycle.com in 2011. A lifelong gearhead who didn't fully immerse himself in motorcycles until his teenage years, Troy's interests have always been in technology, performance, and going fast. Naturally, racing was the perfect avenue to combine all three. Troy has been racing nearly as long as he's been riding and has competed at the AMA national level. He's also won multiple club races throughout the country, culminating in a Utah Sport Bike Association championship in 2011. He has been invited as a guest instructor for the Yamaha Champions Riding School, and when he's not out riding, he's either wrenching on bikes or watching MotoGP.
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