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/1485886
P80 BOOK REVIEW I I f you are a fan of motorcycle dirt track racing, or flat track as many people call it, you will enjoy When Honda Went Dirt Track Racing. It is a whopping 560 pages of stories, mostly interviews with the people that were part of the era between 1982 and 1993 when Honda made a huge impact on the sport previously domi- nated by Harley-Davidson. In many ways, it is like the story playing out in American Flat Track ever since In- dian entered the series in 2017 and displaced Harley, which had domi- nated the championship since the last Honda championship in 1993. The book was published by Chris Carter, founder of the popu- lar specialty motorcycle tool company Motion Pro. He grew up in Northern California and worked at a shop called A&A Motors starting in high school and later at Rocky Cycle (one of the companies that became part of Tucker Rocky Distributing, now called Tucker Powersports). Both compa- nies were heavily involved with dirt track rac- ing, and he continued to be involved with the sport via Motion Pro. Carter is a super fan of motorcycle racing and dirt track in particular, and he has an extensive collection of historic motorcycles, including several championship- winning machines. He commissioned Gerald Foster, a British ex-pat that worked for BSA and Triumph before a long career at Ameri- can Honda. Foster and Carter worked on this project for several years, compiling the interviews and photos and combing through the Cycle News Archives for the details that tell this story. Like Indian in recent years, Honda dominated the sport of motor- cycle dirt-track racing, winning four consecutive championships from 1984 lar specialty motorcycle tool company Motion Pro. He grew up in Northern California and worked at a shop called A&A Motors starting in high school and later at Rocky Cycle (one of the companies that became part of Tucker Rocky Distributing, now called Tucker Powersports). Both compa nies were heavily involved with dirt track rac ing, and he continued to be involved with the sport via Motion Pro. Carter is a super fan of motorcycle racing and dirt track in particular, and he has an extensive collection of historic motorcycles, including several championship- winning machines. He commissioned Gerald Foster, a British ex-pat that worked for BSA and Triumph before a long career at Ameri can Honda. for several years, compiling the interviews and photos and combing through the WHEN HONDA WENT DIRT When Honda Went Dirt Track Racing. It is a whopping 560 pages of stories, mostly interviews with the people that and 1993 when Honda made a huge impact on the sport previously domi- nated by Harley-Davidson. In many ways, it is like the story playing out in American Flat Track ever since In- dian entered the series in 2017 and (Left) If you are into motorcycle dirt track racing or just enjoy motorcycle history, you will probably love spending a few months reading When Honda Went Dirt Track Racing. (Below) The book includes several photos of some beautiful, restored Honda flat-track motorcycles and countless pictures of those bikes racing in anger.