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I can die happy!

As an eighteen year old Kenny Roberts was my bike racing God.  I loved Barry Sheene but as a Yamaha FS1E rider I always wanted the little American to win simply because his bike resembled mine.  The coverage of Grand Prix in the late seventies was sketchy but I clearly remember watching the epic Sheene/Roberts battle unfold at the Silverstone GP on my council estate telly.  The Dutchman, Wil Hartog was hanging in there for a while but as the laps unfolded it became a two way battle with Sheene looking favourite to win.  Sheene lost the most time as the pair lapped a certain George Fogarty so my hero Roberts eventually won by just three hundredths of a second.  I’m not sure what happened next but being a Sunday we would no doubt be skidding around later in the day at the Pines chippie pretending to be Roberts and Sheene.  Fast forward thirty four years and a boyhood fantasy came true as I headed out on Chris Wilson’s 1980 Roberts machine for the Barry Sheene tribute laps at last weekend’s Moto GP.  It crackled into life instantly and felt as sharp as any of the more modern 500s I used to race.  The temperature gauge had a maximum marker on 60 degrees so to begin with I was nervous as it didn’t move but being a hot day (although still keeping my hand on the clutch) I convinced myself it wasn’t working.    The bike felt tiny, not helped by the fact I only just squeezed into my 1989 Marlboro Yamaha leathers.  It still felt rapid though as I played out the 1979 classic in my head while getting tucked in down the Hanger straight.  Steve Parrish was also out there on one of Barry’s 500cc Heron Suzukis so we did our best to copy the famous last lap at Woodcote Corner where Sheene came so close to winning his home GP. As a lad I would have said the chances of me riding round Silverstone on a GP winning Kenny Roberts machine were zero, but in the words of Gabrielle, dreams can come true!

Kenny Roberts True American Heroes Benefit – Hang Out with World Champions and Bo Derek!

One of our favorite stories from 2012 was our coverage of the Kenny Roberts American Heroes Benefit Dinner. Hosted by King Kenny at his storied California ranch, it was an incredible opportunity to get close to the three-time world champ and other racing glitterati like Kenny Roberts Jr., Wayne Rainey, Eddie Lawson and renowned dirt-tracker Mert Lawwill. If those names resonate with you, it’s worth reading our story that includes a video and coverage of the Cpl.

Yard Built XV950 Pure Sports Channels the Yamaha FZ750

The latest product Yamaha Motor Europe’s Yard Built custom specials is a Star Bolt transformed into a replica of an FZ750. Dubbed the XV950 Pure Sports after the words written on the original FZ750′s fairing, the project was produced by Italy’s LowRide magazine and Radikal Chopper and styling by Oberdan Bezzi. The Star Bolt – known in Europe as the XV950 – is nearly unrecognizable in this new guise, except for its 942cc V-Twin engine.