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40 Years Ago February 25, 1975
Kid in cowboy boots riding a big wheel graced the cover of Cycle News 40
years ago, representing the "Helmet Challenge" facing motorcyclists at the
time. Mandatory helmet laws prompted protests from many riders, which led
to rap sessions with lawmakers and discussions about rider safety educa-
tion… Rick Blanton won the Hangover MX in the absence of Mike Hannon,
who was busy getting married that weekend…
Continuing with the legal theme, we interview
Idaho lawman Chuck Wells who also hap-
pened to be an off-road racer.
30 Years Ago February 27, 1985
An inside look at the GSX-R750 powerplant was not the only cover story 30
years ago. After riding the bike in Japan, we get a closer look at the heart
of the new Suzuki… Indian Dunes Motorcycle Park closed its gates, citing
reasons of high insurance costs and the threat of a lawsuit… Jeff Ward and
Jim Holley did battle in the 250cc class at a CMC Golden State National
in Hollister, California. Ward took the win while GNCC Champion Rodney
Smith was also there, and won the 500cc
class on an air-cooled Yamaha YZ490.
10 Years Ago February 23, 2005
Suzuki's all-new RM-Z450 made the cover of Cycle News 10 years ago. We
were thrilled to finally ride the new big-bore motocrosser after having seen
pictures of it and watching Suzuki testers ride it for over a year… Ricky Car-
michael was on a roll in Supercross, having claimed his fifth consecutive win
at the Indianapolis round, while a young Davi Millsaps grabbed his career first
Supercross win in the 125 class… We rode a 1200cc Harley-Davidson-pow-
ered Supermoto bike and also chatted with Supercross stalwart Heath Voss.
Subscribe to nearly 50 years of Cycle News Archive issues: www.CycleNews.com/Archives
20 Years Ago February 22, 1995
Supercross winners Jeremy McGrath and Damon Huffman made the cover
20 years ago, after having emerged from San Diego as the big winner… Ty
Davis cleaned house at the Adelanto GP, winning every class he entered
and taking a total of five victories at the classic race… With the help of Pro
Circuit, we turned our 1995 Suzuki RM125 test into a fire-breather. When
everything was said and done, the bike that finished last in our 1995 125cc
motocross shootout proved to have plenty of
potential in the right hands.
LOOKING BACK
