| November 24, 2024
Cycle News Archives
COLUMN
Better Than Works!
By Kent Taylor
In 1974, the world was on fire! At the movie theater, we were watching Paul Newman and a cast of thousands battle a major skyscraper blaze in The Towering Inferno. Gene Wilder and Cleavon Little made us burn with laughter in Blazing Saddles, and on the AM radio, the Ohio Players brought us “Fire” (“the way you swerve and curve really wrecks my nerves”).
Meanwhile, in the pages of its April 30, 1974, issue, a fiery red motorcycle was wowing the Cycle News staff. They called it the “best 250cc motocross bike you can buy” and even went on to claim that it was better than a “works” bike.
Russ Darnell offered Cycle News his opinion of the Montesa Cappra 250 VR in 1974. He was impressed.
Who made the best 250 MX bike? Hang on to your Jofa because, as Bachman-Turner Overdrive would sing that same year, “You Ain’t Seen Nuthin’ Yet.” That red motorcycle wasn’t a Honda, a Husky, a CZ or a Maico. The bike to beat in ’74 was the made-in-Spain Montesa Cappra VR 250.
The “VR” in the moniker represented Montesa factory rider Kalevi Vehkonen, a Finnish star, who was one of the top racers in the very competitive FIM 250cc Motocross World Championship. It could be argued that the 250cc class was even more competitive than the 500cc class during those years, so Vehkonen’s strong finishes against the likes of Joel Robert, Hakan Andersson, Sylvain Geboers, Guennady Moiseev, Jaroslav Falta, Jim Pomeroy and others were impressive. Montesa’s 250 was fittingly named the “Vehkonen Replica,” and the 250 VR indeed looked as if the Finn himself had just parked it.
“You sit there shaking your head as you go over the machine,” CN said. “It is a works bike: the same frame, the same black crinkle-finned engine and 34mm carb, the same seat, tank, forks, wheels, shocks and shock mounting of last GP season.”
Long-travel suspension had not yet trickled down to the local motocross racer, so the Montesa forks provided six inches of travel up front, with a pair of Telesco shocks good for four inches of travel bringing up the rear. The VR sported a chrome-moly steel frame to carry the powerplant that pumped out a nice even 30 horsepower on the racetrack. While many MX bikes of the early ‘70s required a wholesale parts swap out after leaving the dealership, the Montesa was already fitted with quality items like a TwinAir foam filter and Pirelli tires. Race ready?
“You roll it out the door,” CN said, “break it in with a tank or two of pre-mix, and you race it. That’s it.”
Cycle News had brought in a guest tester, motocross instructor Russ Darnell, to give the 250 VR a thorough examination on the racetrack. Before starting a series of moto schools, he had been a top American MX’er when the sport was still in diapers here in the states. Darnell and the test team found that the Montesa did what its rider wanted it to do. Railing the corners, sliding through them or squaring them off (Darnell’s preferred method) didn’t matter beans to the VR. It would “lead you through a turn effortlessly…you can flat out rule the corners on this machine.”
How did the Montesa swerve and curve? “Pretty nice,” according to Professor Darnell!
The Montesa rivaled the Honda CR250R Elsinore in performance at the time.
The earth-conscious folks at Montesa had even engineered the expansion chamber/muffler to emit a library-quiet exhaust note. Downpipes on dirt bikes may look mighty odd in 2024, but in 1974, they were as common as elephant bellbottoms, and the Montesa’s pipe tucked in nicely, right below the engine case. The extra-large silencer stands out like a swollen pinky, but it did its job, with the staff noting that “you actually had to listen hard for the exhaust note when kickstarting the bike to see if it had lit off.”
Like its sister Spanish manufacturers, Bultaco and Ossa, Montesa designed and built motorcycles that the magazines loved. However, motorcycle companies that lived primarily in the dirt often couldn’t dig up enough resources to compete with the deeper pockets of Japanese manufacturers. Vehkonen represented the brand well in Europe, while another Finn, Peter Lamppu, put in good rides aboard a Montesa here in the States. Other well-known riders in the U.S., like Tim Hart, Kenny Zahrt, Mike Runyard and Mickey Kessler, all spent time on the Montesa. Great riders, to be sure, yet there were no major victories for Montesa in AMA motocross.
Bigger, however, isn’t always better; what the Montesa 250 VR lacked in marketing power, it more than made up for with on-the-track performance.
The Spanish-made Montesa was an outstanding motocross bike but its moment in the spotlight didn’t last for long. As good as it was, the VR never won an AMA National.
“We haven’t ridden all of the new 1974 250 VR motocross machines yet, but so far, what the Montesa has going for it is the simple fact that in its stock form, it has the best handling for the most riders, the most power, and totally complete out-of-the-crate race preparation in every detail. The only thing it needs to be raced competitively in every skill class is gas and oil.”
The great Kalevi Vehkonen is no longer with us, but his namesake lives on. Rare spottings of 250 VRs have been reported at various vintage motocross races across America.
“The best way to describe the VR is that it felt similar to the ’74 Honda Elsinore,” says Nebraska racer Thom Portz, a longtime vintage MX competitor and former owner of a 250 VR. “It was long, low and fast. It turned better than the Honda but shifted worse. I had to adjust the mechanism almost every time I rode it.”
The reign of Spain might not have lasted long, but for one brief, shining moment, the 250 VR was king of the world, at least in the 250cc class. Who ruled the big dogs, the 500cc class? The surprising answer will be revealed in next week’s Archives. CN
