Few things are more fun than shredding on a small-displacement two-wheeler. Some of my most memorable rides were in fact with simple, small bikes, having a blast on backcountry roads.
Today’s motorcycle market is full of fun little bikes that serve as solid learning platforms, too. And suffice it to say that beginners of today are pretty damn lucky.
There are lots of bikes now that fit the bill as a perfect beginner-friendly machine, especially for riders who want to build their skills both on and off-road.
One of them is the AJS ‘71 Desert Scrambler, a simple, no-frills machine that just wants to have a good time both in the dirt and on the road.
AJS Motorcycles has been around for a really, really long time. The British company first opened its doors way back in 1909, and went through numerous sales and acquisitions throughout the years, never really achieving the global fame of its fellow British manufacturers like Triumph and Norton.
These days, AJS sells mostly retro-styled beginner-friendly motorcycles and commuter scooters sourced from China and rebadged as AJS machines. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as its bikes make the two-wheeled lifestyle accessible to a wider audience, all while carrying a sense of legacy and paying tribute to the history of motorcycling.
But the ‘71 Desert Scrambler is special, and AJS makes it clear that this thing has some racing inspirations. It’s based on the modern-day AJS Cadwell/Tempest platform, but its styling pays tribute to the AJS Stormer Mike Jackson used in the November 1971 Barstow to Vegas Mojave Desert Race. So yeah, kids who get this as their first bike will surely find its retro desert racer aesthetic very Instagrammable.
Beneath the surface, the ‘71 Desert Scrambler is as simple as it gets. It’s powered by a 125cc air-cooled thumper housed in a steel cradle frame. It gets non-adjustable suspension and rolls on knobby tires suggesting a degree of off-road capability. But this thing doesn’t get nearly as much suspension travel as a dual-sport, so expect it to be quite the riot when things get tricky on the dirt. But hey, it clearly doesn’t have enough power to get you into too much trouble.
Despite never having ridden this thing, I already know it’s going to be tons of fun for both beginners and seasoned riders alike. It’s a bike that doesn’t take itself too seriously, and is so basic that even a kid could take it apart and put it back together. Bikes like this are so charming precisely because they’re so simple, and quite frankly, I wish there were more of them.
What do you think of the AJS ‘71 Desert Scrambler? Would you rock this as your daily commuter and backcountry explorer, even if it’s lacking the firepower? Let me know in the comments below.
