What's the most awesome Z1 / KZ1000 racer?

DuHamel raced a Z1, Spencer a KZ1000, Crosby a Z1 and a Z1-R, Lawson KZ1000 before the ELR and much more. What is the most desirable version in your opinion? Which one would make the coolest modernized streetbike? The obvious ELR? Or the early Yoshi ridden by DuHamel?* Or something else?

Personally, I have a soft spot for the MKII based bike ridden by Lawson.

* yeoldecycleshoppe.wordpress.com/2013/01/...-z1-yoshi-duhamel-1/

Lawson never rode an ELR. He rode the real thing, thank you Mr Muzzy.


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You are of course correct, but Kawasaki did sell a copy of Lawson's bike to other racers. Well, not an exact copy, but race ready and with little in common with the street version, the KZ1000R.

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faffi wrote: DuHamel raced a Z1, Spencer a KZ1000, Crosby a Z1 and a Z1-R, Lawson KZ1000 before the ELR and much more. What is the most desirable version in your opinion? Which one would make the coolest modernized streetbike? The obvious ELR? Or the early Yoshi ridden by DuHamel?* Or something else?

Personally, I have a soft spot for the MKII based bike ridden by Lawson.

* yeoldecycleshoppe.wordpress.com/2013/01/...-z1-yoshi-duhamel-1/

Without doubt, all were very good bikes but the top of the tree would be Lawson's 1982 'J' based KZ1000S1. That was a very special bike developed by Mr Muzzy and put together 30 examples to do just one thing - win the 1982 AMA series.
This thing had bits that no other super bike ever saw - aluminium liners with nikasil coating, titanium con rods ( standard wasn't but Muzzy race prepared did ) KR500 brakes with magnesium centres on discs - the list goes on.... and that is why I am making a S1 clone, because it IS the best of the best, no question.
Being an Aussie, of all those bikes you listed, I only saw one - Croz on the Yoshi kwakasaki and that thing was fast ( that he was an absolute lunatic on the thing had nothing to do with that either of course...... ) but I would be betting every one of those would have wanted a Muzzy S1 to ride!!!

Ahhhh, Croz at Bathurst in the driving rain, pulling a mono over the hump in Conrod straight and holding it for what seemed forever, the closest bike behind in a 3 lap race was milessss behind him - none was as crazy as Croz to ride flat out in pouring rain!!! He was GOOD to watch!!!!

Wayne

Interesting info, thanks

I'm reading his book these days, he was of an old school (constant drinking and partying), qualities some people think highly of... But no doubt he was a natural talent! BTW, the chapter I read last explained how Joey Dunlop spanked him easily on the Ulster race on identical bikes, although he eased off in the important TTF1 race to allow Croz to take the championship.

And we're off topic already :laugh:

What Firestorm3 said.

my 2 cents?

sure ELRs/S1s are the most iconic, but it has been done and redone so many times that it gets a bit boring...
there was one guy here that was about to build a early yosh rep, that's already more original/out of the box.
a mag in uk ran a story on a whole meeting of ELR's and lookalikes a few years ago, dozens of them

Pantall, Moriwaki, Egli, Martin and many others build very interesting racers too.

If you are not stuck to just the US/UK/AUS scene, check the host of Kawasaki France and Godier Genoud endurance racers from the 70's, these would make very nice road bikes....

Great input, turboguzzi. That was the idea of this topic, to bring up more, less obvious choices.

This is based upon a Z1000J

i love this photo

DoctoRot wrote: i love this photo

From the net --

Dave Aldana sporting the bones leathers aboard a Yoshimura Kawasaki Z1. Alongside the red A on his helmet, the black leathers with a white skeleton print became a trademark for the American legend, breeding folklore that the wild child of flattrack racing was threatened by the AMA to stop wearing the gothic garb.

Good Fortune!

Yes, it was pretty original :woohoo: :silly:

Look at the ram scope, they must have been concerned about cooling!