Trials Australia Forums

Julz wrote:I'd like to modify my answer to say that the handlebars are repro, but not from Fred (just because I've seen another thread where David has admitted as much...).

We had the second round of our local twinshock series on Sunday and there were 4 green Japanese bikes represented. What's more they took out the first 3 placings in B grade!

Good to hear and I hope KT250s are also well-represented at Conondale this coming weekend

Thankyou Mark and Julian - final reminder for the others that entries in the KT parts guessing comp are closing off tonight at midnight Queensland (real) time.
Slight change to the prize - it is still in the process of being made and may not be ready in time for me to bring it to Conondale. It is worth waiting for.

Hi Everyone,

Seems lately that I am doing everything at the last minute, quite tired at the moment as I finally got to ride my KTtoday, hooray!!!!

So here goes, my GUESS is mainly Kawasaki and Fred's sidecovers, 4mm spacer, gaskets, seals and fuel cap. One thing for sure is it looks very original and without the modern shocks, pretty much as Don Smith wanted it.

Well the game was run and the winner is Reinald. The mugs didn't get finished in time to present it to Reinald at the Twinshock Masters so I plan to present him with his Kawasaki KT coffee mug at the presentation night for the Rocky Trials Club in about a week's time.
Because I was in a quandry about what photo to get put on the winner's coffee mug, I hade two different mugs made.
The other mug will be posted off to Julz in NZ who had the second-closest stab at which parts on my bike were from Fred and Deb's KT Parts.

Woohoo - awesome! Go the green machines...

I have not managed to find myself a Kawasaki riding top, but at the last Ixion club round held in my local area, one of the modern riders was giving away 80's or 90's gear and I scored a couple of tops. One branded Ellgren and one Fantic K-Roo / Bel Ray... I am guessing early 90's from the K-Roo.

Well, I found myself a Kawasaki top on special, so thought I'd better get a pic of me in it.

So here I am today (with my KT250 coffee cup too), about to go for a ride. Thanks again David for the prize!

It was a fun ride - and hour and a half trail ride, then once around our regular practice obstacles.

I did however have the front mudguard mount break with the jar of going over a log. It was already cracked and let go with the hard landing. Might have to see about getting some repro stays from Fred.

David Lahey wrote:

Julz wrote:Hi David

I vote for a coffee mug (as its not warm enough for beer coolers over here ).

Of course, if you happened to have a genuine period GREEN Kawasaki riding top in size large...

Well I'd love that too

Cheers
Julian

Julian this is my 13 YO daughter wearing the only genuine 1970s Kawasaki shirt I have, and as you can probably work out, it is probably NOT large size. It does have pretty good provenance though because it was given to 1970s Aussie Trials Champ Peter Paice on one of his Trans Tasman Championship rides in NZ. It says "Hutt Motorcycle Centre" on the back

Ahhh, Mike Harris' Hutt Motorcycle Centre. Lower Hutt. Shallow river, stoney, just the right depth to get a KT250 across in so many places.
The Hutt Motorcycle Centre... Many good memories there of the Harris's Honda and Ossa shop. Can't remember the Kawasaki shop at all.


[i]Photo Courtesy of Nelson Photo news 1972[/i]
As a customer I used to ride with some of the guys there and can recall such classic bike-shop-at-the-close-of-the-70s moments as watching a Honda 90 trike (ridden by Chris Harris) that didn't steer go straight ahead on the forecourt into the shop plate glass showroom window, riding an Ossa around the showroom floor and trying not to knock over lines of new bike showroom stock (inc a Honda 6cylinder CBX).

And just looking at the 'darky' tyre marks outside the shop!
Eh lad , them were the days. When boys were men and trials bikes were made of cast iron.