Torsten Hallman was a major catalyst to the growth of motocross. In his career he had 37 Grand Prix victories, five Trophée des Nations victories (1963, 1964, 1966, 1967 and 1968), four 250cc Motocross World titles and four 250cc Swedish National Motocross championships (1961, 1962, 1963 and 1965)
Torsten had a unique style which was smooth, and used his entire body to be very efficient while using his legs to help suck up the jumps. This kept him lower, faster and back to the ground quicker than his competition. Five-time World Champion, Roger DeCoster believed that Hallman’s riding style as having influenced his own riding habits.
His career at Husqvarna started in 1960 with a full sponsorship to race the European Motocross Championships. Greeves mounted Dave Bickers won, while Torsten finished 7th after missing events from a broken collarbone. He improved to fourth in the 1961 250cc European Motocross Championship, with Bickers repeating as champion. Hallman was the top points scorer at 1961 Trophée des Nations, helping the Swedish team place second behind the British team. Husqvarna just about stopped motorcycle production when business waned. They informed Torsten that their motorcycle development would stop and that he should seek employment elsewhere. He nearly signed with Greeves but at the last minute Husqvarna management found the funding to invest in an all-new 4-speed 250 2-stroke.
Torsten Hallman remained at Husqvarna and helped development of the new motorcycle while competing in the World Championships. Husqvarna became one of the first motorcycle manufacturers to adopt two-stroke engine technology.
Here’s DeCoster using the jumping style of Torsten Hallman. Roger believed that absorbing jumps with your legs kept the bike lower and allowed for quicker power to the ground.
some weeks later…
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STEW ON THIS!
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I’ve ridden a lot of trail with this maniac- Mark “Mental” Mangold. I took this shot of him back in 2015, playing in the frosting on his dual sport bike. He and I go back to 1974 when I met him when I working for O’Neal as a road rep and he worked at the Kawasaki Dealership in Lancaster, CA.
Back in 2012 I spent a lot of time on the Husaberg 300. Naturally the machine was a redressed KTM, and this particular unit I had worked with Bones at Pro Circuit and fit it with a Showa fork and shock. My buddy Mr. Kramer snapped the pic.
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