The miniskirted girl with long legs and long blonde hair walked over to where the biker was waiting. She hitched up her skirt a little and climbed on to the back of the bike. She wore no helmet. The biker kicked the bike into life and roared away. At that moment I fell in love.
Nah, not her, the bike!!! A Kawasaki triple…a two-stroke three cylinder bike. The look, the incredible sound, wow! Built to be fast, the fastest thing on the road. I just had to have one. But, as I was only 16 at the time and still at school, I had more chance of being run over by one than actually riding one.
To quote Lee Doxey…
Most young motorcyclist of the seventies coverted certain dream bikes, from Honda’s CBX to Kawasaki’s range of triples, the latter being more realistic to a teenager. The triples were the must haves, they seemed futuristic with their small capacity triple cylinder engines and wild paint jobs, I’d have sold my soul for a KH250. And now 30 years later I have one, not a 250 but a 400, I’m transported back to the seventies when ever I stand and stare at it…
Me too Lee. A KH400…
If you didn’t have one of these bikes in the seventies as a teenager then you just couldn’t earn the respect that came as part of the package with a triple.
Yeah, so true…
Thirty odd years on and the legend is as strong as ever…nothing on earth sounds better than the ‘howl’ of a Kawasaki triple at 9000 revs or looks as spectacular as the smoke screen that it lays down behind along with that classic two stroke smell.
Gives me goose bumps just thinking about it. Tell us more…
The 250 was the most popular followed by the 400, the 350 is rare but the 500 and 750 were the original demonic machines, Kawasaki thought it was o.k. at the time to fit powerful engines into flimsy frames with skinny tyres and poor brakes, the 750 soon became known as ‘The Widow Maker’ for obvious reasons, but this did not deter the enthusiast and foolhardy from parting with their cash. Out of all the different variants of triples one was to become known as the most user friendly and best all round triple… the KH400, it had good looks, a proven engine, handled considerably better than the other triples and came with decent brakes and electronic ignition.
So, it’s more than 30years on, and I just happen to be scanning some local newspaper adverts when I spot a triple for sale just down the road in the Correze. Could it be? A long lost dream come true? I pursuade Carla to let me go and have a look, she comes with me. As soon as I see it, just like Lee, i’m transported back to the seventies. “Can I try her up and down the road?”, I ask……… “Of course!”. Next thing, it’s me! i’m riding a triple! i’m a teenager again!
Along the valley road, that sound echoing off the buildings as I head out of town. I open her up, she starts to wail. Whhhhhoooohhhoooooo (that’s me). A little later that day we’re heading home with my new/old bike in the back of the van. Yeah!!
‘Let the good times roll’, as the Kawasaki slogan goes.
Many thanks to Lee for taking time to give me great triple buying advice. Why not pop over to his website and take a look at his stunningly beautiful triple?
Had a new x-ray taken down at St Junien hospital yesterday, followed by a consultation with the doctor. It’s healing well, but it’ll need a lot more time. Have a look at the x-ray yourself, see if you can see the progress.
Seen the Orthopaedic specialist at St Junien….. he says it’s a bad break, though he’s seen worse. The good news is that he’s confident it will heal OK without surgical intervention. I’m happy with that. As I understand it the first 10-14 days are most important in terms of a fibrous union forming. So, plenty of rest and good food to give my body the best chance. 
100kms, one way only, along the best trails in the area from Confolens to Nieul, including mulitiple crossings of the Monts de Blond. Not a race, it’s much harder than that! I was 4th rider home last year in 5 hours 15mins, I’d like to come home with the leading riders again this year. With a hot day forecast, and the ground hard and dry it’s gonna be fast and tough.
Would you like to ride with the ROCC? Well this Saturday you’ll have the chance. It’s the ‘Rochechouart Olympic Club Cyclo’ half day velo sortie. There’ll be different length circuits to choose from ranging for 35km up to 100km, with ravitalments (food stops) enroute. All are welcome, the pace is friendly, you’ll be riding through some beautiful countryside, with some fabulous company, so why not come and join us?
Most memorable laps for me were the one where I got dropped in around 10seconds behind my old mate Jean Claude Sansonnet. Thinking he was on a second lap, and I was only doing one I chased like a nutter. As I passed our team camp I got a cheer that said, “there he is, this is the lap you’ve been waiting for, GGGOOO!”. I managed to catch JC and get past him, though at the end of the lap I was ready to collapse.
