25 Years Ago November, 1983
25 YEARS AGO NOVEMBER, 1983
Ten Best Bikes" was admittedly pretty enticing on the cover, especially with the frame-from-a-dream-sequence photo, but the story that caught the eye of this old Britbike fan was "The Triumph Death-Watch" in Roundup. The English bike-maker had been faltering off and on since 1971, debts were at $4 million, company officials had for most of the year been begging for money and no bikes had been produced since February. Alas, it was the end, and the prototype liquid-cooled 900cc Phoenix Twin in the works never made it to production. The story now is all the more interesting given this month's Thunderbird cover subject!
• Big news from Milwaukee: The Harley-Davidson Evolution engine, known briefly back then as the Blockhead, replaced the Shovelhead. A tech piece highlighted the changes to the engine, while just after came a full test of the first Evo-equipped Electra Glide Classic (yours for $8799). Another odd resonance across the decades, considering this issue’s riding impression of the heavily revised 2009 Road Glide. The lead photo was even a two-up riding shot...
• And Ten Best? Flonda was in big with five dirtbike winners, plus the VF750F Interceptor that won Best 651-800cc Streetbike. Yamaha, meanwhile, got two slots. One of them was in the Touring category, where the Venture Royale upset the Gold Wing. The other Tuning Fork winner was the 550 Vision, Best 451-650cc Streebike. -Mark Hoyer
