Features

  • Bazza’s first!

    Bazza’s first!

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    Words: Bertie SimmondsPic: Mortons Archive Some Fifty years ago Barry Sheene took his first 500cc Grand Prix race win. It was just months after his near-death crash at Daytona and his victory set the scene for his two world championships in 1976 and 1977. Suzuki’s iconic RG500 would eventually win 49 races, four riders’ titles…

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  • Dunlop Debut!

    Dunlop Debut!

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    Fifty years ago… the summer of โ€™76 โ€” the heatwave, petrol at 76 a gallon, Barry Sheene and James Hunt winning world championships on two and four wheels. Punk rock was on its way to shake up the establishment and one J. Dunlop was about to make his debut at the Isle of Man TT…

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  • The cult of LC!

    The cult of LC!

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    From the era that style forgot came a machine like no other: Yamahaโ€™s RD350LC. What made this bike (and little brother and subsequent models) so well-loved? Bertie Simmonds explains… At the start of the 1980s, we were under the shadow of The Cold War, Thatcherism had been unleashed upon us, and unemployment was hitting two…

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  • When HRC unleashed the RVF750 at the 1991 Isle of Man TT

    When HRC unleashed the RVF750 at the 1991 Isle of Man TT

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    Back in 1991 the most exotic prototype four-stroke racing motorcycles took part in the punishing Isle of Man TT races. Bertie Simmonds reports… Two very special RVF750s were given to then TT legends Steve Hislop and Carl Fogarty to race around the punishing 37.73 mile Mountain course. In some respects, the bikes were the four-stroke…

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  • Retro Ride: Honda CL500

    Retro Ride: Honda CL500

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    Steve reports back on a long-term relationship with Hondaโ€™s modern street scrambler. Tally-ho!

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  • Rocket Ron’s TT!

    Rocket Ron’s TT!

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    History shows that Ron Haslam โ€˜onlyโ€™ won one TT and competed there between 1978 and 1982, but he could have raced there more and won more… Bertie Simmonds reports. His first outing in 1978 saw a best placing of fourth in the Formula 2 race and he scored podiums in 1979 in the Formula 1…

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  • Yamahaโ€™s XS400: Why it’s better than you think

    Yamahaโ€™s XS400: Why it’s better than you think

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    Reviled, slandered and libelled then and now, Steve Cooper sets the record straight about a once much-maligned machine: Yamahaโ€™s XS400. It canโ€™t be that bad, eh?

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  • Yamaha’s Fazer 600 punches above its weight

    Yamaha’s Fazer 600 punches above its weight

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    If you want a practical and cheap machine that punches above its weight and also gives you the giggles โ€“ try a Fazer 600.

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  • Classic Ride: Suzuki GT500

    Classic Ride: Suzuki GT500

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    Steve Cooper rides a standard and special Suzuki triple two-stroke

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  • Top 10 reasons to attend Stafford this weekend

    Top 10 reasons to attend Stafford this weekend

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    With racing legends, jaw-dropping stunts, unmissable displays and legendary bikes up for auction โ€“ here are ten reasons youโ€™ll want to mark your calendar for The Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Show sponsored by Carole Nash thisย October 11โ€“12ย returning this weekend:

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