VOLUME 59 ISSUE 32 AUGUST 9, 2022 P123
idea is still up for debate, and I'm
not going to get into that today.
In the early '80s, Yamaha
figured the production rule was
coming and, instead of wait-
ing, chose to get a head start
on their competitors. Yamaha
Racing Manager Kenny Clark
announced that its factory
race team would start riding
production-based bikes start-
ing with the 1984 season. (The
production rule went into effect
in 1986.) Yamaha team rider Ron
Lechien said, nope, that's not
what I signed up for, and high-
tailed it to Honda, and wouldn't
you know it that Lechien and
Yamaha's Rick Johnson would
battle back and forth for the AMA
250cc National Motocross title
that year ('84). It was production-
based versus works, and guess
which of them won? Production-
based. By just eight points.
Four days after Johnson
clinched the 250cc MX title
at Washougal, I found my-
self cutting laps at DeAnza
Cycle Park in Southern
California on the very same
YZ250L that Johnson had
won the title aboard. I was
the first person to ride it after
Johnson crossed the finish line.
In fact, the bike still had Washou-
gal dust and dirt on it. It was as
though Johnson's mechanic Cliff
Lett had loaded the bike up at
Washougal and drove it straight
to DeAnza, which I think pretty
much happened.
Of course, Johnson's YZ was
far from stock, but it was indeed
production-based. Some parts
were carried over from John-
son's previous works bike but
they were parts you and I could
purchase at our local Yamaha
dealership, such as a YZ60
ignition Johnson liked for its
heavier flywheel. Depending on
the track, Johnson would swap
out entire transmissions from the
1982 or '83 stock YZs. The front
brake, however, was suspicious-
ly works—it was a disc that would
later find its way onto the produc-
tion YZ250. For the most part,
every modification performed to
Johnson's bike was revealed in
the company's Wrench Reports
that were regularly mailed to all
YZ owners.
I was most impressed with
the bike's motor. Going in, I was
expecting it to have so much
power I wouldn't be able to hold
on to the handlebars or be so
explosive that my arms would
turn into cooked spaghetti after a
lap. I could not have been more
wrong.
idea is still up for debate, and I'm
(Above) Win on Sunday,
sell on Monday suddenly
seemed more of a reality.
(Left) Stiff forks took on
a new meaning after
riding Johnson's YZ250.
YZ250L that Johnson had
won the title aboard. I was
