1976 Bultaco Alpina 250. Photos by the author.
Señor Bulto had a simple plan when he started up the Bultaco brand in 1958: build great competition motorcycles. And he did. In the 1960s his two-stroke singles took the checkered flag in everything from motocross to trials to roadracing. The bikes were strong, light and dependable, and this was when most of the racing was done by individuals, rather than factory-supported riders.
He also liked evocative names. The first Bultaco was the Tralla, or Whip. Then there was the Metralla, or Shrapnel, and the Pursang?Pure Blood. The Matador was self-explanatory, denoting bull-fighting glory. The Sherpa celebrated the conquering of Mount Everest. And then the Alpina, honoring Europe?s largest mountain range, and the model we will talk about here. Over the 25 years of Bultaco?s existence, 1958 to 1983, probably a hundred models appeared, ranging in size from the 50cc Chispa (Spark) to the 370cc Frontera (Frontier). Bulto loved racing, having been a successful competitor in his younger years, and what he liked to do was build a bike that could win races, and then turn out detuned versions for civilian use.
His engineers were also skillful at having one part fit several models, decreasing the costs of production. Bultacos were not inexpensive, and while they had a great racing background, they were competing with other European manufacturers and the coming onslaught of the Japanese.
Reliable production numbers are hard to come by, but on...