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/1547011
F oreshadowing is a power- ful tool for a writer. Used properly, it is like a savory seasoning, enticing the reader to pause for just a moment to wonder, "Why did she say that?" or "Why did the old man sneer?" or "Why is there a blood-stained chainsaw in the hall closet?" Cycle News masterfully fore- shadowed the Grand Prix moto- cross duel of the decade when they tested both the Husqvarna 400 CR and the Suzuki TM400K in the April 2, 1974, issue. Ownership of a Husqvarna motorcycle in the 1970s was less a matter of acquisition and more like a rite of passage. When you have exhausted the limits of your inferior motorcycle, when your level of skill has exceeded the capabilities of your ride, and when, like young Caine, you have successfully swiped the pebble from Master Kan's hand, you are ready to step into the light. The curtain is pulled back, and the masters—Heikki Mikkola, Bengt Aberg and Rolf Tibblin—will grant you admission into the secret Swedish society. "It is a very demanding, serious racer," wrote CN, "that to be rid- den successfully at all requires that you ride it correctly—in the Swedish manner of motocross. It was, and to a lesser extent, still is an angular, extremely precise motorcycle. There is no room for slop built into it, and sloppy riders didn't find it very tolerant. This will, in turn, make them unhappy." In the eyes of the test crew, the new Husky 400 for 1974 seemed to be a little less rigid and more accepting of dirt-biking plebeians. This Husqvarna was lighter, had a broader powerband, and, according to the test rid- ers, had excellent brakes. Most Husqvarna owners lament the braking power of these bikes, opining that actually applying the brake levers is only slightly more effective than just wishing that the bike would slow down, but we will take the crew at their word and accept the use of the word "excellent." Whatever it did, the '74 version of the machine seemed to do it better than before, and the crew was im- pressed with the changes. There is perhaps no motor- cycle that has been subjected to more slanderous comments and nasty putdowns than the Suzuki TM400. The bike, with its wildly unpredictable powerband, the motorcycle so unmanageable and ill-mannered that its creator christened it the "Cyclone." One magazine editor after another had labeled it as one of the worst machines ever built, infamy that CNIIARCHIVES P138 BY KENT TAYLOR According to CN staffers, the 1974 Husqvarna 400 CR was quick and reliable. THE CHAMPIONSHIP FORESHADOWING 1974 Husqvarna 400 CR and the Suzuki TM400K