MAX BMW and the 1973 ISDT BMW
In September 1973 the ISDT welcomed its first BMW competitor at Dalton, MA.
50 Years later we competed again.
ON THE SAME BIKE.
In June 2022, MAX BMW received a very special BMW motorcycle: Herbert Scheck's 1973 BMW ISDT /5. By all rights, this bike should have been retired in a climate-controlled environment where wistful old riders could admire it with a cup of coffee in one hand and a cruller in another:
That's not what this bike wanted.
While it's made a few show appearances and brought home some ribbons (looking at you Larz Anderson), "Herbie" as it's become known, has not been put out to pasture. In fact, it's spent a lot of time over the last 18 months burning through said pasture, getting acquainted with the guy in the helmet we all know as Doug Mo:
With the 50th anniversary of the 1973 Dalton, MA ISDT on the horizon, Doug thought that there might be a chance of an unprecedented reunion of riders this fall, and he was right. As this group of ISDT veterans from all over the world started talking about getting together, it was clear that nobody intended this gathering to be a beer-fueled bench race. Next weekend in the Berkshires will be an actual, honest-to-goodness, multi-day vintage enduro motorcycle competition in the style of the ISDT. And Doug will be there, riding Herbie.
I know we have plenty of readers who have fond personal memories of this ISDT in 1973. There are also many of you out there whose diapers were too loose to even know the event was happening at the time. Either way, here's your chance to live or re-live some BMW and vintage enduro history.
Speaking of history, maybe you could use a little refresher? Lucky for you, the internet was invented. Here's some required reading:
THIS IS THE ISDT / By Al Eames / Cycle World, September 1973
Click on the image or use this link for the article on the Cycle World website
Fun Fact: The Cycle World article was written with authority. Al Eames was the organizer of the 1973 ISDT and worked tirelessly to pull off the event for the first time in the USA. Cycle World ran a subsequent feature on the event, which included a peek behind the curtain to reveal many of the things that Al had to contend with in pulling off the event:
"Forty-five years old, crew-cut, and with a kindly, wise and weather-beaten face, Eames left 23 years of seniority with a government-contracted paper manufacturing firm to see his dream come true: to see the ISDT come to America." – Cycle World, January 1974
Read the Full January 1974 Article at the Cycle World Website
In recognition of Al's dedicated effort, BMW presented him with a special edition /5 enduro at the opening ceremony for the ISDT. The ceremony took place at the Dalton, MA high school football field:
The reason we have this photo is that coincidentally, Al's blue BMW enduro also made its way to MAX BMW, along with some historical artifacts. Though not in the pristine condition that Al received it, the bike still retains much of the spirit of the 1973 ISDT. We will be bringing the "Eames Bike" along with us to display at the event on Saturday.
THE 1973 ISDT EVENT RECAP / Speed Track Tales
If you love the Kodak tones of early 70's photos, you'll really love the event history page of the 1973 ISDT over at Speed Track Tales. For example, these pictures of Herbert Scheck and the BMW Team:
ABOUT THE 2023 REUNION EVENT:
The event used as many of the actual 1973 trails as possible and followed the 6-Day Qualifier format. The race bulletin laid out the plan for the weekend and we had a lot of BMW friends come out and cheer for Doug and Herbie.
2023 EVENT REPORT:
Herbie and Doug Relive History
Here in the northeast, we don't get many chances to go to a vintage dirt bike race, let alone participate in a historic event. That's what made the ISDT 50th Reunion so special - nearly 100 riders showed up to scramble through the countryside for two entire days and relive the glory of the famous Dalton ISDT back in 1973.
Both elements of the lone BMW entry had seen this show once before: Doug, the rider, skipped "a day or two" of high school to come watch the '73 Trials where BMW team rider Herbert Scheck piloted this exact bike that Doug would ride 50 years later.
The action was intense. Thanks to some soaking rains, the trails were soft and muddy and the rocks were slick. Spectators found their way out onto the route to cheer on the riders and were treated to a good show, with some bar to bar battles between trees and puddles deep enough to submerge air intakes and exhausts if you weren't smart about your line.
A big part of the International Six Days Trial is keeping your machine running for days on end, and while this event was only two days, Herbie was up to the challenge. Doug had promised that as long as Herbie was running, he'd be riding and it was an impressive performance by this duo whose combined age is 105 years!
The weekend was also a time for riders and bikes to be reunited. We heard all sorts of stories from people who had worked the event, ridden it, or spectated. One of the special moments for us was getting to chat with Dave Eames, a Six-Day vet and Grand Marshal of the event. Dave's Dad, Al, was the organizer of the 1973 ISDT and was given a special /5 by BMW to honor all of his work. This bike had made its way to us and we brought it along to celebrate and share with Dave.
A ton of time and effort went into putting together this special event, and it was so much fun to be able to run the actual BMW that had been here 50 years ago. We truly believe that vintage bikes were made to be ridden and to see how well Herbie handled everything with Doug behind the bars is a testament to the durability of these BMWs (and their New England rider). There may never be another event quite like this one, but you can be sure we'll be looking for opportunities to get Herbie and his friends out in the woods anytime we can.
