I went for a ride this weekend – follow along to see some of my favorite bikes from a trip that had to get redirected!
Restored – 1991 Yamaha YZ250
Yamaha’s YZ250 is one of the most important MX bikes in history – and it happens to be the longest-running production dirt bike in the world, as you can still buy a new one from Yamaha today. Here we’ve got a restored example of the 1991 model, in which Yamaha debuted all-new rear bodywork, “bold new graphics” (not in the …
Come Ride With Me – Buttonwillow with Volant Vivere on April 4th and 5th!
One of my favorite track day organizations (Volant Vivere) is putting on a track day at Buttonwillow next month – I’ll be going there with a few friends and clients and I’d love for you to join!
Race Bike in France – Nico Bakker Barracuda
3-4-26 Update: 18 months later, this bike is still up for sale (though it’s moved back to its home in the Netherlands and the asking price has gone up a surprising amount). I’m resharing it as Kickstart magazine did a story on it with a video since the last posting and I thought it was worth watching for those of …
1999 Confederate America GT
With an MSRP of $29,995 when new, the Confederate America GT was a semi-custom that was meant to be one of the more unique production bikes a discerning cruiser enthusiast could get his or her hands on.
Power-Dyne Vehicles – 1974 PDV Gringo 360
Power-Dyne Vehicles (also known as PDV) produced several motorcycles in the early 70s, nearly all of which were copies of something else on the market. The PDV Gringo was a knock-off of Yamaha motocross engines and Champion frames – the story is that PDV was put out of business because Champion sued for infringement.
Restomod – 1979 Suzuki GS1000
Suzuki’s GS1000S “Wes Cooley Replica” has always been a popular machine thanks to its rarity and connection to racing – over on Iconic we recently sold one on behalf of Nick Ienatsch that got a fair bit of attention, so it’s cool to me to see this non-S model that’s been done up as a restomodded tribute!
1:3 Scale Model – Royal Enfield Classic 500
I had no idea these existed but four years ago Royal Enfield apparently announced a limited run of 1:3 scale models of their venerable Classic 500, and it sure seems like the perfectly display piece if you’ve got one of the full size ones laying around as well…
In England – 1982 Moto Martin Honda CB1100
Created in France by Georges Martin in the 1970s, Moto Martin quickly made a name for themselves by developing high-spec frames to be used with production motors of the time – similar to what the folks at Bimota were doing in Italy. Most of his work was designed around Japanese motors, starting with a Honda CB750 and including other famous …
2006 BMW HP2 Enduro
The HP2 Enduro was the perfect bike for riders who thought the R1200GS was capable but too heavy. Thanks to a trellis frame and conventional telescopic forks, the HP2 saved 53 pounds of weight from the standard GS.
602 Miles – 1973 Honda CB750
As prices for the sandcast and other early CB’s start to get out of control, it’s starting to make more financial sense to look into later (but still pre-’75) models. Honda made approximately 38,000 examples of the K3, and this lovely example in Candy Bacchus Olive stands out as it’s only covered 602 miles in its long life.
1987 Yamaha FZ700
Over on the auction site we’ve got one of the nicest examples of Yamaha’s tariff-beating sportbike that I’ve seen in a while – the FZ700!
1989 Suzuki GSX-R250R
Let’s take a look at another rare Suzuki – this time a 250cc sportbike that was never officially sold in the US!
1,100 Miles – 1980 Suzuki GS450S
When Suzuki initially marketed the “S” variant of the GS450, they did so as a “cafe racer” even though the only real difference between the S and the standard was the addition of a headlight cowl. Regardless, it’s a fun mid-sized classic and this example has barely been ridden.
Mini MV – Paventa Mini Bike Designed by Massimo Tamburini
I have never heard of Paventa minibikes before but the company was supposedly working with Massimo Tamburini to build a small run of minibikes inspired by his legendary F4 design. Per a 2019 Artcurial auction, this is “apparently the only one of its kind” and “the death of the famous engineer in 2014 marked the end of this project.”