VOLUME 57 ISSUE 10 MARCH 10, 2020 P89
My Old Racer
I've ridden a few Katana's in my
time, but none have a place in my
heart like the one I raced for a few
years in Australia and most recently
at the Island Classic for Team USA.
Based off a 1982 Katana 1100,
the motor was bored out to a chunky
1290cc with 145 horsepower. It ran
37mm Keihin carburetors, had a welded
crank, straight-cut gears, undercut gear-
box, heavy-duty race clutch, a full titanium
race exhaust system, and a Japanese Uo-
tani ignition system.
As for the chassis, the bike was pretty
tired with old Ohlins shocks at the rear and a
cartridge fork kit. The
standard swingarm was
removed and we raced
with a Macintosh unit and
braced the frame, and we had
Lockheed AP four-piston front
brakes for the Island Classic.
Despite being up to 30
horsepower down on the com-
petition, we managed a couple
of top-15 results at the 2019
Classic against the likes of
Josh Hayes, Jed Metcher and
Isle of Man TT star, David John-
son. It was a great bike and is
still being raced at selected
events Down Under.
(Far left) Styling is
absolutely on point
with the Katana—the
near perfect mix of old
and new. (Left) Suzuki
has raided the parts
bin for the Katana,
with the bike made up
largely of K5 and 2015
model parts.
center stage. Suzuki's engineers have done
well to link this and the original, which after
40 years still looks the part (in my opinion).
The new aesthetic is just a freshen up of
the original, with the boxy front-end retained
but the rear now a sleek, almost minimalist
design with the number plate moved to its
own separate hanger above the rear wheel—
normally the domain of Harley-Davidson or
Indian but a first for Suzuki.
The tank is one of the talking points.
Suzuki tried to incorporate a design that
stayed true to the original and wouldn't be
too high, and thus impede the rider's arms
with the tall one-piece handlebar, but big
enough as to continue the line drawn from
