Share your fondest memory of motorcycling

This is my brothers ‘72 H2. It was an absolute rocket ship. It had a Rickman fairing, JR chambers and a beautiful custom candy apple red paint job. When I was 15 my brother was writing an exam and I knew he wasn’t going to be home for 2-3 hours and decided to take it for a spin. I was barely 110 pounds and could barely touch the ground. I took it out on one wild no holds barred ride for a good hour. It was the first real performance bike I had ever ridden. The adrenaline rush was unbelievable and I’ve been chasing that same high ever since. That probably was my most memorable motorcycle experience ever.
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Beautiful. Without doubt the best vehicle ever to scare the hell outta` pedestrians. I witnessed a young woman scream when one with chambers fired up as she stood behind it.:D The electric wail under acceleration, intake honk and slapping pistons and ringing fins, topped off with a blue cloud, ripping through the gears. For members here that never had the chance, if you ever get the opportunity...grab it. I had rides on the 250/350/400/500 and 750`s.
 
Beautiful. Without doubt the best vehicle ever to scare the hell outta` pedestrians. I witnessed a young woman scream when one with chambers fired up as she stood behind it.:D The electric wail under acceleration, intake honk and slapping pistons and ringing fins, topped off with a blue cloud, ripping through the gears. For members here that never had the chance, if you ever get the opportunity...grab it. I had rides on the 250/350/400/500 and 750`s.
I’ve ridden many. The ‘72 750 H2 was the one everybody wanted. In ‘73 they started to mess with the carburation and exhaust for emissions and noise. They progressively got neutered and noticeably slower as the years went by. The ‘72 also had a shorter swing arm and wheelbase, anyone with a right hand could wheelie that thing.I would also say that on a good day the 750 H2 could beat the Kawasaki 900 in the 1/4 mile which was their flagship model and substantially higher in price.Those two motorcycles annihilated the Honda 750 and are what cemented Kawasaki’s performance reputation.
 
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I’d like to add my earliest memory of being on 2 wheels. My aunt Mary picked me up and took me for a ride on her RD350 back in 1974. I was 5 years old. It was around the block. My Dad loved it. My mom horrified. And to me it felt like I went for a tour around the world.

Her husband/my uncle had a Kawi Z1 at the time. Visits to their house out in Dorchester, I always went to the garage to stare at the bikes. He would start up the Kawi and smoke up the garage but, could never take me out after being told by my mom to never let me on the back.

From my Dad’s 68 triple black T Bird to my family’s involvement in motor sports/motorcycles it has always been a driving force in my life.

That very same uncle rides to this day and very well known in the BC riding GS machines to the limits.

I don’t have pics from back in the day but, here is a recent pic of my uncle’s mule.


 
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Just one year later from McBrides, $3800 out the door.

I remember reading that Canada was a dumping ground for non-current motorcycles, that’s why we got such cheap bikes back then. At the end of the production year, Japanese manufacturers would ship all their leftover bikes to Canada to be sold the following year at a discount without affecting their more profitable markets like the US. There was a chain of motorcycle dealerships (Toronto Motorbike) that popped up out of nowhere and sold a ton of cheap bikes and just as quickly disappeared. Those GS1100 Suzukis like yours were great bikes and quite common. They were known for their tough bottom ends, guys still drag race those things down in the US.I had two of them, a red ‘80 and a black ‘81. I bought the ‘81 from a somewhat dubious character in Scarborough. The VIN numbers on the steering head looked like they had been messed with, I’m pretty sure it was stolen.
 
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