I
t is Daytona Bike Week,
circa 1982, and Yamaha rider
Graeme Crosby is on his way
to an almost certain victory in
the 200-miler. Not far away,
however, another racer is riding
at his own speedy pace on a
machine that in many ways
mirrors Crosby's TZ750. This
rider's mount boasts a nearly
identical compression ratio
of 7.9:1. Revving to 10,000
rpm, the rider is speed-shifting
through the five-cog gearbox,
and Cycle News reports that
"even under WFO riding, the
engine stayed tight," and it sur
-
prisingly vibrated only slightly.
Like
the Yamaha TZ, the race
bike sports 18-inch wheels at
each end, and front disc brakes
are used to slow it down. Will
Crosby be able to hang on for
the victory?
Graeme Crosby gets the win!
The other rider? Well, he's not
even in the race—like literally,
not in the race. It's a Cycle
News staffer, a motojournalist
who spent the week screaming
around the Daytona pits aboard
a 1982 Honda MB5, a 50cc
two-stroke, their test subject in
the May 12, 1982 issue.
(Left) The
Honda MB5 of
the early '80s
made "mini"
bikes cool.
(Right) You
didn't need a
whole lot of
power to have
fun on the
lightweight
MB5.
50cc OF AROUND-TOWN FUN
MB5
MB5
HONDA
CNII ARCHIVES
P136
BY KENT TAYLOR
