And the Winner Is.................

[tshelfer]

In this month's issue, Motorcyclist Magazine is culminating a celebration of their 100th magazine anniversary. So instead of just naming a 'Motorcycle of the Year' as they always do, they decided to name a 'Motorcycle of the Century.'

And the winner is ---------------- the 1969 Honda CB750, the "bike that changed everything."

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/fe...9_honda_cb750/

Let the second-guessing begin.

[MPS]

Hard to second-guess this one. It gets my vote. My all-time favorite has to be the 74 Ducati SS 750, but it certainly didn't impact the bike world like the CB 750.

[Keith]

Agreed! Had a later version (1980 CB750F) that was one of my all time favorite bikes.

[Meriden]

Wouldn't have been my pick, but it was a watershed bike. It does remind me though of musician Richard Thompson (Vincent Black Lightning 1952). When he was asked by Playboy to pick the top ten songs of the last 1000 years he knew they meant the top ten songs that people would remember.

[Robert K]

I would have to agree on this. It certainly turned to motorcycling world around and put the nails in the coffin of the British bike industry.

[tshelfer]

I could at least suggest a few runner-ups - all from my youth, by no small coincidence. One would be the original Honda CB350. It gave Joe Consumer a shot at owning a genuine freeway-worthy 4-stroker bike for less money than a well used Volkswagen.

Or there was the earlier Honda 175. Almost as ubiquitous as the Beetle, the perfect knockabout for a generation of high school and college kids, and the bike that put the "nicest people" into the motto, "You meet the nicest people on a Honda."

Or there was that little hellion rebel, the Kawasaki Mach III, the first general consumer bike to give your average 20-year-old access to 0-60 in under 4 seconds. Of course, they tended to self destruct in about 20,000 miles. But they were sure fun miles.

In the long run, though, it's really hard to argue with the CB750. They made big (for the time) bikes affordable, made them respectable, made them common. They were big enough to tour on, light enough to commute on. Heck, they even provided an alternative chopper in the early 70s. If you wanted a chopper, you probably had Sportster. But the "other" chopper was a Honda. Saw lots of them.

[Manfred]

Motorcycle of the century HAS to be the Honda Cub Cadet! So many of them carried - and still carry - families in all parts of the world. I don't think any other motorcycle has had the impact of the small step-through Honda.

[tshelfer]

Originally Posted by Manfred

Motorcycle of the century HAS to be the Honda Cub Cadet! So many of them carried - and still carry - families in all parts of the world. I don't think any other motorcycle has had the impact of the small step-through Honda.

Great little bike. They've sold a zillion of them worldwide.

[NathanH]

Love this passage from the article:

Mr. Honda was famously short with praise, yet even he couldn’t conceal his excitement after riding the CB750 for the first time. One former Honda R&D employee remembered the scene: “It was during final testing in the U.S. Mr. Honda happened to be there. He said, ‘Let me ride that thing,’ and just jumped on and blasted off across the desert. He was gone for nearly a half-hour. Everyone was quiet, and very nervous. When he came back, he just said, ‘What a terrific, terrific machine!’ then walked away, laughing. That was the first time anyone there ever heard any words of praise from him!”



Read more: http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/fe...#ixzz21fgkqPVg

That's just such a cool image to picture.

[MPS]

I had a brand new Mach III when I was 14 years old. I used to smoke CB 750's in 1/4 mile races all the time. But I always loved the CB 750 and finally bought a '78 model in my 50's. It is a great bike. It's slow, but sounds wonderful!

[ItchyBob]

Originally Posted by tshelfer

I could at least suggest a few runner-ups

Page 76: "Alternative Takes" 1960 T120 Bonneville, 1923 BMW R32, 1948 Vincent Black Shadow, 1973 Honda CR250 Elsinore and 1979 Yamaha RD4000F Daytona Special.

[budzrex]

I got to ride as a passenger on the first one in Houston behind shop
owner Bob Lunsford as a boy

Then sat in disbelief as my dad went with the CB350 because it was $300 dollars cheaper

Learned when not to laugh at your parents when one passed us on 90 on the way to Del Rio a few weeks later and left us as we tried to keep pace with him

[DaveC]

I rode my BILs brand new CB750 from Ft Worth through a canyon of concrete and rain grooves in a thunder storm on the way home down IH35. He started riding it after the rain stopped. Fun bike and it worked pretty good in the storm, rain and rain grooves

[Meriden]

Originally Posted by Robert K

put the nails in the coffin of the British bike industry.

That's for sure. One didn't have to be a mechanic to be a rider.

The first CB750 I saw was owned by a kid in Fort Worth named Scoville. He was a little older than us and would ride wheelies down I20. Gotta admit that my Mach III was quicker as long as there wasn't any cornering involved, but anything twistier than a lane change meant that I got passed.

[Buffalo]

The first one I saw was owned by my Uncle. He had a 305 Dream that he traded for a CB450 when they came out in 65. When the 750 came out he traded the 450 for one.

[tshelfer]

I loved the sound of them, too. Never had a 750, but I owned 2 of the inline-4 series. All the CB 4-cyls were quiet at speed, but had a great roar when you hit the throttle. And even at full-on roar, you got the feeling that there was a little more on tap if you asked nicely.

[woodsguy]

I was a /junior or senior in high school when they came out. As a new rider I sure remember drooling over one. Finally got a 78 I believe it was. Black/w red pin striping. Sure was a nice ride.

[Dave.TX]

What little knowledge I have of motorcycles I would guess the choice would be a Honda of some sort. They were the "everyman's" motorcycle.

After leaving the museum at Barber last month I was overwhelmed with motorcycle history/heritage.

[Hemibee]

I was in the fourth grade when they came out and didn't see my first one until the eight or ninth grade.


Posting with Tapatalk for iPhone.

[Ouroboros]

My Dad kept the the key to his in his leather jacket. Left hand pocket. Talk about a rocket ship to ride when you were 14.