CCM FT35S: the flat tracker of the Clews comeback

The CCM FT35 is the flat tracker that CCM of Bolton launched in 2005, in the same year as the R35 supermoto. It was one of the first two models of the company after its founder, Alan Clews, bought the business back in 2004, and a works example appeared on the CCM stand at the EICMA show in Milan in 2007 badged as the FT35s.

CCM FT35S at a glance

There is no separate Wikipedia article on the FT35, and the English article on CCM records only its launch in 2005; published specifications of the model are not available in the sources, so this page is based on one source.

History of the CCM FT35S

A firm rebuilt by its founder

CCM, Clews Competition Machines, was founded in Bolton in 1971 by Alan Clews, who had bought the parts left when the BSA competition department was disbanded and built four-stroke motocross bikes around the BSA B50 500 cc engine. The firm used Rotax engines through the 1980s and 1990s, licensed over 4,000 machines to Can-Am between 1983 and 1985, and built the Armstrong MT500 for the British Army from 1984.

The company was acquired by the Robson family in 1998, and that period brought Suzuki DR-Z400 engines into the works. CCM ceased operations in 2004 and its assets were bought back by Alan Clews, who relaunched the marque in 2005 with two new models: the R35 supermoto and the FT35 flat tracker.

The flat-track line

The FT35 took its place in the range as the flat-track machine, the branch of motorcycling built around dirt-track racing in the American style. It was one of only two models of the 2005 relaunch, so the flat tracker carried the hopes of the revived firm alongside the R35 supermoto.

The example photographed on the CCM stand at EICMA in 2007 was labelled FT35s, the form of the name used for the model in period material. CCM has always bought its engines rather than building its own, and the company history names Rotax, Suzuki and Kymco as suppliers across the marque’s different periods.

Racing and military work after the relaunch

The revived company went racing again: in 2009 it fielded a team in the FIM Motocross World Championship with riders Tom Church, Jason Dougan and Ray Rowson. In 2010 CCM won a military contract for 1,500 motorcycles and took its first ACU British Indoor Motocross Championship with Tom Church riding a CCM.

Design and features

• One of two models of the 2005 relaunch: the FT35 was launched with the R35 supermoto when Alan Clews bought the firm back.
• Flat-track design: a machine in the flat-track tradition rather than an enduro or a road bike.
• Bought-in engines: CCM’s policy across the decades was to use engines from Rotax, Suzuki and Kymco.
• Small Bolton works: the FT35 came from a British maker that built in small numbers and raced what it sold.

CCM FT35S versions

• FT35 (2005): the flat tracker of the relaunch year.
• FT35s (2007): the form of the model shown on the CCM stand at EICMA in Milan.
• R35 supermoto (2005): the sister model launched in the same year.
• GP450 (2014–2017): the adventure single that came later in the range.
• Spitfire (2016): the hand-welded machine that followed the GP450.

The FT35 was joined in the 2005 range by the R35 supermoto, and the model that followed it in the CCM line was the GP450 adventure bike. More machines are on the CCM page.

Sources

• Clews Competition Motorcycles, English Wikipedia: founding, engine suppliers, 2005 FT35 and R35, racing, 2010 military contract
• CCM FT35s at EICMA 2007, Wikimedia Commons: the FT35s name and the 2007 show appearance