Some interesting thoughts from everyone.
I remember when the Elsinore'e first hit the scene. Before, everyone would laugh at you if you pulled up
to the line on a Japanese MXer. Not that there were a lot to choose from, basically the TMs or a modded
DT. Shortly after they started appearing, the Hondas started winning races and by the next season, the
starting line was littered with them. Sure, they had problems (just like all the other bikes), but parts
were cheaper and easier to get and I believe that was the big difference. Race bikes of that era broke
a lot and most of the people that raced them weren't rolling in money (like me). The $1000 cost of
admission was hard enough - that was a lot of mowed lawns. But the Euros cost quite a bit more and
the parts were expensive and never in stock, at least where I lived.
I had to put in a new top end once a month because of the sand rich environment I raced (FL). Instead
of ordering and waiting for pistons and rings that may or may not arrive before the next race, I wandered
down to my local Honda dealer and picked them up for half the price of the Husky parts I used the year
before. That was the game changer for me.
I had a lot of fun and won a bunch of races on my Elsinore. It fit me like a glove, had a great engine,
alloy rims on Mag hubs, a stout Chrome Moly frame, great brakes and decent suspension right out of
the box. It also made me a Honda fan for life.
The CR250M was the first bike I wanted to restore when I started doing that kind of work. Here is a
picture of my early "73" with a forged crankshaft:
The bike is OE except for metric sized tires. It is my most prized bike, and the restoration I put the
most "blood, sweat and tears" into.
dogger
