My first bike was a Yamaha. An old DT175, actually a DT125 someone added a larger piston and barrel to make it a 175. I rode, crashed and trashed that thing like crazy. It handled like crap in the dirt, and things would routinely vibrate loose and fall off of it, but I had a fantastic time on that first bike. It got me pointed in the right Yamaha direction. Later, a neighbor bought a 1977 RD400, and frankly there wasn't another streetbike on the planet then that I wanted more than the RD. I'd watch him ride up and down the street with my mouth open. 25 years later I got my 76 RD400. What a blast from the past, I love that ring de ding thing.
After the DT175 I raced motocross as a kid, beginning on a Suzuki RM80. My closest friend then had a Honda CR125, and I would often kick his ass on the little 80. The CR had a bad CDI, it would run for about 40 minutes and then bye-bye ignition, had to wait an hour or so for it to cool down before he could ride it again. Kinda gave me a dim view of Hondas, I know they're much better now, but I will probably never own a Honda. So back to Yamaha's, like they say, when you want the best..... 8)
I recently bought an RZ500, advertised in "very good condition", but an outright lie. The motor had a mild seizure, and I'm currently restoring it. I plan to have it running by spring 2005.
