Rob Hollister, South Africa

Firstly,  thanks for taking the time to put together a very informative site on the Ossa.

I live close to Johannesburg in SA near a large dam which is surrounded bythe Magaliesburg mountains.  These are the same mountains for anyone with archaeological interests where the various bits have been found which have been carbon dated way back to the birth of man.  So much for the tourguide role;  more importantly they make excellent mountains for practising trials
and are very challenging because of the rock types and formations.

I ride two trials bikes regularly;  the one being a '74 MAR250,  or Plonker as you call it in the US.  This machine has served me very well for many years and although far from being in concours condition is still capable of taking me most places with the minimal amounts of dabs.  Recently however I picked up a problem with the bike in that the kick-start mechanism seems to
have stripped inside the casing,  and as anyone will know bump starting a 250 2 stroke with the sort of sprocket size that we tend to run,  is not easy.  So at some point I will need to strip it down and take a look at the problem.  I don't know if anybody else has had this problem,  but maybe somebody out there has some ideas!  At the same time as doing this repair I am going to be cleaning the Ossa up a bit;  powder coat the frame,  spray the tank etc.  so that she is ready for the next 26years of service.

The second trials bike that I use is a classic bike that I have just obtained for the purposes of competing in classic trials. Our rules here state that the engine in the frame must be pre 1965 and of a British make. The rest of the bits you attach seem to be pretty much unrestricted so long as they are in keeping with the classic theme. I suppose they may frown upon a pre65 engine built into a 2000 Beta frame.  Anyway I have a c15 BSA motor and I must say that it is a learning curve to make the transition from 2 stroke peppiness to 4 stroke low end when you have learnt to ride trials on a two stroke.  I'll keep you posted on the developments of my classic campaign.

Aside from these two bikes I have a collection of other machines;  but unlike some collectors who collect a make or and era;  I collect what I like the look of. Here's the list:

• 1972 Montesa King Scorpion 250 automix  restored to concours.  I ride it as a Sunday bike.
• 1956 Bianchi 76cc motorbike,  this is the next project;  looks like it can do 300kph,  classic café racer look with a small engine.
• 1950 CZ 150  what they call the grandfather of the CZ motocrosser;  if you ask me those riders from that era had far bigger balls than us today! Condition partially restored and looking for parts - you know the story!
• 1971 Husquavarna 250CR;  this one if form your neck of the woods, Husky's are still the most evil off-road machines available for their time. The power-band on this one is only about a deep breath away;  and then all hell breaks loose.  I have a friend that rides a Maico 490 Alpha1 and the hit of the power-band is ore relaxed.  I use this on the odd week end to terrorise the youngsters on their new dirt bikes.
• 1979 Ducati Hailwood Replica which is my only real road bike and which like any Ducati I have ridden is more suited to the track than any road; short of some long sweeps and even longer straights.  If you want to preserve your back tyre for any length of time you use a 5 point turn technique to turn around on a double lane road.

Cheers for now

Rob Hollister
email: RobH@mxgroup.co.za

"I have 150kms of the best trail riding country side about 15 mins from me, and I live close to the largest city in SA.  There is always something to do if you enjoy the outdoors and from a motorcycling P.O.V.  it is awesome, from thesnow covered mountains of Lesotho through to the twisty backroads of the Eastern Transvaal.
This is God's Country when it comes to our sport and hobby.
Check out the pics of the Lesotho mountains and my old trusty Montesa 250VR as a taste. "