Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126603
(Clockwise from top left) Kawasaki KXT had born racer written all over it. Drum brake takes care of the stopping problems. Location of axle was changed to make steering easier. Rear end sports eight and a half inches of travel. Rogers and his new love - the KXT. Rogers started from ground zero 00 his swingarm. but the results were well worth the wait. The horsepower comes from a KX top end and a KDX lower end with a 36mm Mikuni. The final product - second place at San Diego Stadium. Kawasaki: Racing toward '83 By Lance Bryson . . In late '81 the three-wheel market seemed to surge ahead with the introduction of Honda's ATe 250R and Yamaha's 175 Tri-Moto. Rumor had it that Husqvarna might be working 6 on a three- wheeler along with Kawasaki, and that even Suzuki might get involved. On Aug. 9, 1981, at the Bridgestone/SCORE Off-Road World Cham- pionship at Riverside , CA , Kawasaki showed up , to everyone's amazement, with a 250cc two -stroke. Lee Rogers , Research and Development Test Super. visor for Kawasaki, was and is th e man behind Kawasaki's endeavor. " It was almost a year ago - I was in th e shop working when all of a sudden I got this idea to build a 250cc two-stroke, gofor -it racer," reflects Rogers. "Nobod y in the Kawasaki plant knew what I was up to , nor did I want anybody to know. I wanted to wait until everything was right , or at least almost everything was right. When it came time to show my boss what I had come up with I don't think he knew really what to say . He had no idea. It completely caught him off guard. " On Nov . 15, 1981, Rogers showed up in San Diego to ride the first CRC Three-Wheel Supercross program, putting in an impressive ride to finish second overall. "T he coverage I received in ATV N ews flooded Kawa saki 's switchboards. I'd say at least 90% of Kawasaki's employees had no idea what was going on, but the paper really opened their eyes," Rogers relates. Asked how Kawasaki feels about his efforts today, Rogers said, "You are here getting an exclusive rundown aren't you ? In fact , I was rather surprised they let us get together. Even though this is a prototype, it's exciting to know they're going full steam ahead. " One look at the KDX gives you a sense of heighth. Roger's first prototype (this is now his third) sported 10 inches of travel front and rear. Rogers has now brought the travel down to eight and one half front and rear. Up front Rogers elected to go with a drum brake instead of disc. It's hand built but uses the same size brake as ' the KDX and the motocrossers use . The reason for the drum? "It was easier to make the hub and everything to accept the drum brake than it was for a disc . The swept area is bigger than most disc brakes on the market. With the new motocrossers now using