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/127733
" ID G"M E S N" Husaberg FC501 R IN I pR S IO the facility has played host to a round of the AMA National Championship Series every year since 1980. Most rac ers will agree that the high-speed, loam y conditions at Wash ou gal, cou pled wi th th e aw esom e scenery, mak e the race one of the best in the schedule. A private ridin g session at Washougal aboard one of the most powerful production four stroke motocross bikes? This is the stuff dr eams are mad e of. I was d isappointed to fin d that Sun was on the mend afte r breakin g his left wrist in a crash at the Adelanto GP, but that didn't dampen my enthusias m. Having never ridd en a Hu saberg, I was anxious to throw a leg over the big blue, yellow and black motorcycle. SOME BACKGROUND. PLEASE... (Left) Talk about a dream come true : a pr ivate day at Washougal MX Park aboard a brand-new Husaberg FC501. (Below) The compact motor revs quickly and produces a good burst of power. (Bott om) The yellow, blue, grey and black machi ne Is a real eye-ca tc her. J 34 By Donn Maeda Pho to s by Brian Barnes ince I've been an editor at Cycle News, all I've heard from my motocross buddies is "how lucky I am to' get to test the new bikes." While I'll agree that riding all of th e newest, latest machinery is a thrill, I usually inform the m th at it really isn 't as glamorous as it all sounds. Unlike the plu sh stree t bikes introductio ns that my fellow editors are invited to - in pl aces like Italy, France and Malaysia, to name a few - MX bike intros are usually held on a hot, blustery afternoon at exotic locales like Perris (no, not France), Carlsbad and Gl en H elen . Som etim es we'll ha ve th e track all to ourselves, but more often than not, the intr o is held in conjunction with an open practice session. Usually, my friends won't believe me. "Sure," they'll say. "You' re just playing it down. You probably get flown all over the country to test bikes." Yeah, right... DREAM WEAVER "Hi Donn, this is Chuck Sun," said the voice on the phone. Yes, it was that Chuck Sun . Mr. Member of the Winning 1982 Motocross d es Nations Team. Mr . 1980 50Dcc National MX Champion. Mr. Former Factory Rid er For Husqvarna and Ho nda ; "Lis ten, I'm wo rki ng w ith th e Husa berg guys these days, and I'd like to fly you up to Washougal MX Park so you can try out the new 500ccMX bike." Visio ns of my frie nds shaking their head s in d isbelief flashed th rough my head . Washougal MX Park is located in the pi cturesqu e m ountains of so u thern Washington. With the exception of 1987, At the heart of the FCSOI is a liquidcooled, single overhead cam, four-valved engine. Bringing the big single-cylinder motor to life with the left-side mount ed kick starter is designed to be easy, thanks to an automa tic d ecompression system. A 38rnrn flatslide Dell 'Ort o handles the carburetion duties, and a six-speed, closera tio gearbox pu t th e power to th e ground. The engine resi des in a single backbone, d ouble-cr ad le chromoly steel frame . The frame is un ique, in that the large, hollow backbone serves d oub le duty as a n ai rbox. Tw o large-cap acity TwinAir air filters feed air into the frame, which is connected to the carb uretor air boot. The high-mount ed air filters require the fuel tank to be mounted low, with the majority of its sto rage capacity on the right side of the bike. Sus pension duties are ha nd led by a pair of 51rnrn upside-down White Power forks up front , an d an Ohlins shock out back. Bot h are man u factu red to Husaberg's specifications.