Supporting Member texscottyd Posted May 30, 2020 Supporting Member Share Posted May 30, 2020 I’m really enjoying this thread, and seeing some interesting patterns emerge. The Honda CB series is heavily represented, the Suzuki GS and Kawasaki GPz seem to have been gateway drugs, and almost all of us owned a supersport bike (or five) at some point along the way. Plus, of course, some odd outliers thrown in for good measure... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gv550 Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 Here’s me with my 1953 R25/2. Since sold the bike, wore out the Bristol gloves , lost the classy leather coat but still have the beard although it changed colour somehow. 😀 2 3 2019 Tracer GT, Ontario, Canada Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wintersdark Posted May 30, 2020 Share Posted May 30, 2020 Oooh, this thread is an awesome read! I wish I had pics of my older bikes - this has prompted me to reach out to others to see if I can get any old photos scanned and sent my way. I'd love to get some. But, the bikes I've owned: 1982 KZ440LTD (I actually have a photo of this somewhere, but can't find it unfortunately) I loved this machine, and while I know there's a lot of Rose Colored Glasses going on, it was an excellent starter bike. I mean, it struggled to get past 140kph, but it was very light, comfortable, got great mileage and handled really well. 1982 Honda CB900C (Pretty sure no photos of mine exist, so I reach for the internet again sadly) As a second bike, this thing was crazy. Incredibly heavy, handled like wrestling a bear in comparison to the 440, but the power! Put a huge number of miles on it, got a couple thousand dollars in speeding tickets. Beast of a machine, and the 10 speed transmission was unique and awesome. 1982 Harley Ironhead Sportster XLH1000 (Photos start here: This was the advent of digital cameras, though sadly a very low resolution one) I bought this in boxes of parts, and spent two years building it in my (highrise!) apartment kitchen. Best wife ever, BTW, who supported me through the process, with nary a complaint. Painstakingly cleaning up and polishing every single part before assembly, and a HUGE amount of learning in getting the old ironhead engine working. Pro tip: Starting up your Ironhead Sportster inside a 6th floor apartment with 2" open drag pipes is NOT something that makes your neighbors happy. Loved the bike to bits, but only got to ride it for two months before it was stolen. 1982 Yamaha XJ750J Maxim My introduction to Yamaha, and my last 80's machine - just a handful of years ago, now, too. Bought cheap, and functionally restored as it was an utter disaster (rear wheel/swingarm had a full inch of side to side play when I bought it, crazy internal engine damage where someone had tried and failed to weld a helicoil into an aluminum cam cap, etc) - sold it in 2018 to a guy who at least bought a functionally solid if somewhat rough looking machine. This bike marked the end of 80's machines for me. I loved working on bikes, but I realized at this point that I was getting too old for it on a primary means of transportation. I just wasn't interested in being up all night in the winter, kneeling on pavement, wrenching on a bike to ensure it would run for the trip to work in the morning. I needed reliability, and it'd be nice to check out some of these new fangled modern motorcycle features. 2018 Yamaha MT07 Easily the most fun bike I've ever ridden. Really fantastic machine, and I can't gush enough about it. Just a blast to ride. And, of course: 2019 Tracer 900 GT 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huck Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 Wow, What fun looking at all these bikes. This is great! Well hell, This July I'll be 76 years old and I have beeen riding since my first machine which was a converted bicycle thing with something called a Whizzer motor, when I was about 14. I don't have any pictures unfortunately. I have never been particularly good of keeping a record of all the scooters and bikes I have owned, but I enjoyed them all. So here is a random bunch of my favorites, or at least those I actually have pictures of. Being a life long rider, racer, daily rider, and most of the time in the business it is a fairly random bunch. There are a couple of electric there from a couple of my start up involvements, and a few of my race machines. 3 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member fr8dog Posted May 31, 2020 Premium Member Share Posted May 31, 2020 On 5/29/2020 at 9:56 AM, texscottyd said: Every time I hear some one complain about the abrupt on/off throttle response of the FJ, I think back to my H1 and chuckle... You’re being very generous in your summary of the handling. To me, it was almost diabolical. And for added entertainment value, the brakes were occasional, at best. But it didn’t kill me, so the memories are good. I miss the smell, the sound and the crazy powerband. Brakes have come a long way. Looked for an H2, but never had the cash back then. Spent some time at Laguna Seca in the 80's. Wanted a RG500 Gamma. Cannery Row in Pacific Grove Shut down the street at night for bikes only parking during Superbike Races. Saw a row of 10 Gammas. Most people had moved on to the 4 strokes by then. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member texscottyd Posted May 31, 2020 Supporting Member Share Posted May 31, 2020 1 hour ago, fr8dog said: Wanted a RG500 Gamma. Cannery Row in Pacific Grove Shut down the street at night for bikes only parking during Superbike Races. Saw a row of 10 Gammas. Most people had moved on to the 4 strokes by then. Square-four two-stroke... ultra cool motorcycle. A few trickled into the US from Canada, but they’ve always been rare. 35 years on, and they’re still exotic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdavis Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 11 hours ago, Wintersdark said: And, of course: 2019 Tracer 900 GT What tyres are you running? Grip good on dirt as well as tar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wintersdark Posted May 31, 2020 Share Posted May 31, 2020 2 hours ago, jdavis said: What tyres are you running? Grip good on dirt as well as tar? Those are my winter tires; Anlas Wintergrip Plus. They're actually pretty decent on dirt, but they're wholly street tires. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdavis Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 15 hours ago, jdavis said: What tyres are you running? Grip good on dirt as well as tar? Not sold in Australia unfortunately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vincep Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 (edited) No photos, still stuck at work since 23 Feb, but a list (starting about 1978): 1973/74 Honda XL175 1979 Honda XL500 1980 Yamaha YZ250G 1983 Honda CB750F2C 1985 Honda XR600 1981 Yamaha YZ250H 1986? Honda CB900F2C 1988 Honda CBR1000F 1978 Ducati SS900 (Bevel) 1987 Honda VFR750 1995 BMW R1100GS (first year - 94/95?) 1998 BMW R1100S 2003 Ducati ST3 1978 Ducati SD900 1982 Suzuki Katana 1000S (the original air cooled, not modern) 1978 Ducati GTS900 1977 Ducati GTS860 1979 Yamaha RD400 1978 Ducati SD900 (still have it in pieces) 1963 Ducati Bronco 125 (still have it) 1985 Ducati 1000 S2 (last of the bevels - still have it) 2011 Ducati Multistrada 1200S 2013 Ducati Hyperstrada (still have it) 1992 Bimota DB2 (still have it) 2010 KTM XCW 450 (still have it) 2019 Yamaha Tracer GT (still have it) Edited June 2, 2020 by vincep 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member keithu Posted June 1, 2020 Author Premium Member Share Posted June 1, 2020 On 5/30/2020 at 5:46 PM, huck said: I know where that is! I found an old photo of you with Becky and Butch in the archives. I believe this was the 2003 Oregon 250. Sorry, it's pretty low res. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member keithu Posted June 1, 2020 Author Premium Member Share Posted June 1, 2020 3 hours ago, vincep said: No photos, still stuck at work since 23 Feb, but a list (starting about 1978): Nice list! We definitely need a photo of the DB2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huck Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 Yo Keith, Yep, the first one is Rachel, NV, Also known as Area 51. A long way from anywhere out in the middle of Nevada, and one of the most bazaar places I have ever been to. There were four of us on that particular trip, all on St1100s. I may be confusing this trip with another, but I think this was actually a side trip on the way home from Las Vegas, where we went to visit the wonderful Art of the Motorcycle show at the (No longer there) LV outpost of the Guggenheim Museum that was located in depths of one of the giant hotels. I think you are right about the timing of the second one, but I don't remember that exact location of this picture? And of course that is Butch on his ST1100, and Becky on her Triumph Sprint ST. Here are a few more from Racheal during that trip. A better shot of the "Flying Saucer" on the tow truck which clearly proves... something. the other is complete ST1100 Wild Bunch in attendance. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member texscottyd Posted June 1, 2020 Supporting Member Share Posted June 1, 2020 On 5/30/2020 at 7:46 PM, huck said: Cool... that’s me! There were a ton of us racing GSXRs back in the 1990s, chasing Suzuki contingency money (along with Michelin ‘BibBucks’, EBC brake money, etc). This would have been my 1992 GSXR 750, the last of the oil-air cooled bikes, just before the big pig 1993 water-cooled GSXR appeared. Fond memories of this motorcycle, and the overall era for the sport. It really was the golden age of road racing in the US. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huck Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 Cool! I could not find a picture of mine, actually I don't think I ever had one, so I used this one. Did not know who it was (Sorry!) Also, I did not get EBC money. But, I did then and still do use Shoei helmets. and well, I really wasn't all that fast then or now... But I loved it. That is one of the bikes I wish I could have kept. But I trashed mine too badly... I feel the same way regarding that time in US racing and miss it. If I have learned anything from this thread it is that I need to take more pictures. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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