Moto Retro Illustrated

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Dear Moto Retro fans:

Things are crazy at Moto Retro Illustrated right now, but in a good way. Issue #3 wrapped last week and is at the printer now, and we’re already researching and working on photos for issue #4, due to release in October.
(So much for the naysayers…)

Issue #3 is another interesting mix of ’60s-to-’80s moto grist, from dirt and motocross, to streetbikes and roadracing, to minis and cool personalities. We start off with a feature on the very roots of professional motocross in America – a photo essay of Edison Dye’s Inter-AM event at Westlake Village, California, in 1968. A friend of mine who’s a bit of a motocross historian found and shared with me an amazing cache of photos taken at Dye’s ’68 event in Westlake. The pix were so good we had to run them, and to help with the research end of things we got together with several of the riders who took part, including Roger DeCoster, Lars Larsson, Mike Runyard and Barry Higgins. It’s an astonishing look back at early professional motocross in the U.S., a time when we were the understudies and the Europeans the masters.

Also in issue #3 is a feature on Mike Baldwin and the Honda Superbike he nearly won the 1982 Superbike championship aboard. The 1025cc Superbikes of the early ’80s – the CB-F Hondas, Yosh Suzukis and Team Kawasaki/Muzzy KZs – are legendary, and to illustrate the point we feature a load of color and black and white action and static photos of that very special Honda, the pinnacle on inline-four development before a new era in Superbike racing – 750s – took over in 1983. The story, titled “Ten Twenty Five: The end of an era,” is packed with technical info, personal info from Baldwin himself, and the type of photography from Kevin Wing and Gary Yasaki that’ll bring you right back to those incredible years of Spencer, Cooley, Lawson, Baldwin and Wise.

Another cool piece is our 3-part feature on Yamaha’s legendary TZ750. Included are sections on TZ history, a preeminent TZ collector and my own personal experiences as a TZ owner and part-time racer. There’re also features in the issue on Honda’s 1975 Gold Wing, Rupp’s Roadster minibike, Marty Moates’s amazing win at the 1980 Carlsbad USGP (Moates was the first American to win the historic event), Suzuki’s radical RH72 works motocrosser, Kawasaki’s Coyote minibike and more. We’ve also got plenty of Back In The Day readers’ photos and stories, a load of retro tidbits, columns, a very special Flashback spread on the Honda Interceptors and even some behind-the-scenes stuff from here at the magazine.

Looking ahead, issue #4 will feature another gold mine of cool stuff: Honda’s first Interceptor; Suzuki’s original GT750 Water Buffalo; Yamaha’s RD400F Daytona Special; a Roger DeCoster feature; some early Superbowl of Motocross stuff; memorable advertisements from old magazines; reports from Hodaka Days, a minibike reunion in PA and Vintage Motorcycle Days; a collection of excellent retro gear and a whole lot more.

As issue #4 will be the final issue for those of you with one-year subscriptions, please consider re-subscribing as soon as you can so you don’t miss an issue. We’re growing slowly but steadily, and it’s vital we keep our existing customers so that growth continues to build a solid foundation for the magazine going forward. Actually, it’s simple: Subscribing – and encouraging friends to do so – ensures we’ll be around to continue bringing you the streetbike, dirtbike and minibike culture you love.

A note to new subscribers: If you don’t want your sub to begin with issues #1 and #2 (and, very shortly, issue #3), please let me know via email or phone. If you don’t, you’ll automatically get our early issues as part of your sub.

Again, many thanks for the fantastic support you’ve shown us. Despite some growing pains, we aim to continue to transport you to the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s in a way no one else can.

As always, feel free to drop me a line at the address and phone below with comments, questions, etc.

Mitch Boehm

mitch@Motoretroillustrated.com