Suzuki 1970 Grand Prix Motocross Season Film (rare)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ต.ค. 2024
- This promotional film produced by Suzuki about their 1970 Grand Prix motocross season was acquired by Director Todd Huffman and Pipeline Digital Media (PDM) from ISDT legend and AMA Hall of Famer Billy Uhl and his father Herb Uhl in it's original 16mm format. They had it because they were Suzuki dealers in Boise, Idaho. There are some versions of it in existence online or in dvd format but nothing in this quality or full length. PDM had it transferred to a high-definition format and have made it available for all to enjoy.
Please check out the beginning of the Suzuki motocross dynasty in 1970 with stars Joel Robert, Sylvain Geboers and Olle Pettersson.
I am restoring a 1976 RM250A Suzuki. Can hardly wait until I can ride it.
1970, my first dirt bike - I remember these times. Rare to be able to see these races at that time. Memories!
The real riders of motocross!!! No soft plush suspension and tunable power curves here!!! My absolute and total respect for these race legands from yesteryear. All racers not just the podium winners. 👍 my first bike was a 77 model yz80. Drum brakes and a pig to ride by modern upside down fork standards. You all are my heroes!!! Love you all!!!
The so-called plush suspension of today's bikes is much needed because the tracks are 10 times rougher with the speeds of today's bikes unimaginable in the years of 00
@@daffyduck9901I disagree. I ride bikes from the 1930s to present..78 in total.. grew up on 1970s bikes and ungroomed tracks.. modern mx race bikes get it on a track where it needs to be part airplane.. but a full blown 450 ain’t shit on a rough tight woods track. It’s too much I’m far faster on a light 1970/80s bike. Not as tall. Smaller bike overall. And manageable power…. It’s all in application every bike has its purpose
And when the bike's frame breaks in half due to inadequate suspension - need I say more.... Suspension advancement was very much needed.
I raced mx in the 70s. This brings back memories. The sounds of 2 stokes, the smell of premix.....good times.
The best times!
I did the same as you in the 70’s and at 64 I’d love to able to do again.
Was in high school in 70, had a real passion for dirt bikes. I never felt that way for anything after that.
Norm Rohrer they are something special
me too Norm ... those were amazing times and it never left my blood
Class of '79 here. I learned every little thing I could about the men and machines of motocross. People like Roger DeCoster were like gods to me. I didn't know much about other sports. No sport was as cool as motocross racing.
Suzuki did well in the GPs because they had made a fairly competitive bike, and they lightened them with super light custom parts. The FIM then mandated minimum weights, because they were using unobtanium that wouldn't be seen on a stock bike. Still, DeCoster won, and it did the brand a lot of good.
I've owned 2 Suzukis and a Geo, which is a Suzuki. The two I sold still ran great when I sold them. I still have the DR650. Not gonna sell that.
Big crowds. No google, 40 minute motos and no silencers. Those were the days.
And natural terrain, no groomed manufactured tracks! Roger DeCoster on a CZ! Great sport back then, I raced MX from 72-79...
Except we found this in part because of Google LOL.
45?
......and wide, wide handlebars and not a 4t in sight.
Gone forever, never to be repeated. Only in the memories of the lucky few.
In high school ,1971 I lived in the high desert and my new friends talked me into buying a Hodaka Super rat 100cc. Didn't know how a clutch worked and rode it one time before they took me to Dead Mans Point that weekend in Apple Valley CA to race it. Scary at first but I got pretty good and I'll always be fond of those days. Rex Staten was the guy to beat at that time. Thanks for posting !!
I wish motocross was still like this
It is at private/club tracks. Especially on vintage day!!
Never understood why NASCAR got bigger than this this is much more exciting
NASCAR is the motorsport for those not really into motorsports.
This is only for ppl that go to heaven
Inbreeding perhaps?
Those big stock cars used a far bigger park, ran 426s and 427s and went plenty fast. Some of the attraction was the cars, some the speed, some the race. Ok, NASCAR had some hard decisions to make; the cars today are thoroughbred race,
but not the same.
It's because the American riders couldn't compete to the European rider untill .....
I raced from 1971 to 1981. That was the best era of motocross.
Fantastic video! It captures the whole 70s motocross atmosphere.
Awesome video and memories. Joel Robert and Jim Pomeroy were two of my heroes in the early 70's. I went on to own and race a 74 Pursang in the Houston Texas area. My 1st automobile at age 16 was a 71 VW bus same color as the bus at 3:42..
These were of the times I cut my teeth on MX. These men were my idols. I used to drool over the bikes these men rode. This was the beginning of Japanese bikes domination. Slowly but surely the names of Bultaco, Ossa, CZ, even Husky and Maico began to fad from the podium. With the advent of the CR Honda’s, Red began its domination.
Man what memories! I was 15 & in high school in 1975 when I bought a Suzuki TM400 so I could pretend I was Roger DeCoster! And that's all I did, "pretend!" 😂😂 but I loved it!
Same 👍
Fantastic to see those machines being ridden flat out.
Amazing work and amazing document. 3 people Disliked this? And watched it? For Moto?
If anything, it is to anyone in the know, a monumental sign on how much more humans/society developed under less than a lifetime, than perhaps in Any time era before this. It is Stoneage! But most are still alive or relating to a color document. I think it is blinding! Absolutely Brilliant to see this quality for Free, as a fan of MX, and as anyone.
Thanks, for sharing.
3rd place in Swiss GP... Roger DeCoster :)
...Yup! Raced almost to the top of the 250cc class before switching to Suzuki for his run at 6 World Championships in 500cc (winning 5 of them), DeCoster was/is The Man!!.....this should be required viewing for ALL Lucas Oil/AMA Motocross/ Monster Energy/AMA/FIM Supercross racers today! Get a sense of the history of their sport and see firsthand just how good they've got it nowadays!! : )'
The thumbs down came from the Climate Change fans..."look at all the smoke coming from those engines..."
Rodger and Joel make the Suzuki beasts. Legendary.
I always preached to my son.. "elbows out" when riding...should have just given him super wide bars like these guys had lol
😂😂😂
Those were the days. I raced a 250 husky mikkola replica from 73 -75. Can't beat that beautiful premix castor oil smell !!
I had one of them, wish I still had it .
I loved golden spectrum oil the smell was amazing
Went to Namur in'73, fantastic atmosphere at the citadel starts, frightening climbs and drops and all the names. Maico, Husky, CZ and the start of the Japanese onslaught. Great days, great vid.
Growing up in the 70s. Was the best time! To be growing up. Seeing all the different dirtbikes coming out. And the nice thing I lived very close to where all the motorcycles were road. 😊 Right off I5 in Olympia washington.
I am in two stroke heaven. What glorious days, I was 14 that year.
Who the fuck gives this a thumbs down? This is some cool shit. These guys didn’t have the comfort of tuned suspension and tear off goggles.
While in high school we had a Suzuki dealership nearby,loved the TM models
I used to have a 1974 Suzuki TS400.....Like riding a bucking bronco.
Thank you to share this video with us
TAKE A LOOK AT THEIR KIDNEY BELTS , YOU REALLY NEEDED THEM BACK THEN , THEIR SHORT SUSPENSION WOULD BEAT YOU UP BACK IN THE DAYS . TUFF GUYS FOR SURE . I BOUGHT MY TM-400 DELIVERED IN A CRATE BACK IN 1971. THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER . I WAS JUST TURNED 17 . ( CYCLONE ) WAS A PERFECT NAME . I LOVED RACING OUTDOORS MAN . YOU COULD FLY OFF THOSE JUMPS .
Technology has moved on but the sport hasn't, I much prefer to see these riders fighting these beasts along the ground rather than modern flying through the air bikes.
I loved the smell of the castor premix in those days.
U mean Castrol?
...it's Maxima 927 nowadays, all of that wonderful smell without all of the gummed up engine internals!!
@@creekhed697 castor bean oil.
Yeah man, nothing beats that smell.
Nothing beats that smell, especially with race gas
I bought my Husky 360 8speed in 1971. Best bike I ever had. I've ridden Maico, Bultaco, Montesa, Ossa, .but my Husky our rode them all.
3:49 cameramen always find the eye candy for us no matter what year.
I raced a bit in the early 70s on a honda cr250 Elsinore. This reminds me of those simpler days. Still riding, drz400S, and imagining those days when I do.
Imagine riding those 5" of suspension travel machines for 45 minutes?! And no tear-offs and no goggles in many cases. Hand numbered racing bibs.
Jamie B it’s not as bad as you may think. Tracks were very different back then, small jumps, no whoops just ruts and bumps. I raced an Elsinore 250 back in the 70’s and because of the tracks you spent a lot more time sitting which is less taxing. From memory my 250 had around 30- 35 hp which also made it less demanding to ride. But there is no doubting these were tough guys. Robert was my hero especially when he would smoke on the start grid and then just disappear.
@@boeingdriver29 , long and big whoop ti doos at Egypt Valley. And hardly any sitting.
Commenter Five ah I miss the days. 👍
@@boeingdriver29 Right --maybe where you were but there were knee or mid-thigh "bumps" on every sand track I raced on my first full season in 1972 in Sweden..and half the tracks were sand tracks...Not a lot of sitting..
more like 3"
Thank God Belgium gave us motocross.
Great video footage of the old machines and their riders, the old tracks and the variety of fans.
I have the official Suzuki Motocross book of 1971 with many excellent color photographs. The book features the RH 71 and RN 71 factory machines as ridden by Roger De Coster and Joel Robert and with the Maico, CZ, Husky and Bultaco machinescalso shown.
I eventually worked for SUZUKI AUSTRALIA from 1980-1985.
Thanks for making the film footage available.
ちょうどこの頃日本の田舎で草レースに何回か出場したのを思い出します。若かりしあの時代が懐かしい。
Awesome I would love to see more from this era!
Roger Decoster still to this day making motocross great. He turned KTM into the champ it is today.
no no. KTM turned ITSELF into the champ it is today. by building the best bikes
No, Rodger built KTM the best bike and they dumbed it down and mass produced it
@Liberty Tree ktm's couldnt even get thru a 30 +2 before roger
Liberty Tree sure did, good call
Liberty Tree I’d kill for 96or7 200 EXC Jackpiner
I was 13 had a suzuki 90 , I idolized Roger and Joel and these works bikes , 168 lb 250 ! 182lb 500 how insane )))) !!
"Wide World of Sports" intro music! I raced Suzuki TM250 models for four years back in the early 70s for a local dealer; best time of my life!
j avais 10 ans en 70 et en voyant un motard traversant le village en maico en pleine accelaration et roue arriere , j attapé le virus de la moto , j ai pratiqué le cross , enduro , trial at possedé quelques motos , ( fantic , suzuki , yamaha , montesa , kawasaki , aprilia , portal , swm ,motobecane culbuté , en solo et side ) , sur pas loin de 40ans , nostalgie , que de souvenirs .
Fantastic!!
Great documentary!
Ah those were the days, loved my TM 125 and Maico 440 Radial.
Started MX in 1974 on an Yamaha MX100. It looked pretty much like the Suzuki's in this video. Right after that everything changed year by year. Suspension travel, handling, power, etc.
Me too. 74 mx 100. Fast
The birth of MX, beautiful
Debra, moto-cross as we know it...3 heats, start money..etc is said to have had its "birth" at Orly Airport (outside of Paris) in 1945 or 46...The war was over and people wanted to relax but motorcycles were expensive and not a lot of people had them so the organisers invited people from all over (to have a resonable start field) and ran them in 3 heats so there was a day long show...and paid the riders good "start money" to more than cover expenses..For GB and Irirsh riders the organisers covered ferry costs also...This system continued into the 80s...My last International in Europe was 1979 at Orly....(and I had a terrible flu...but the organiser was great and invited me back for the following year saying "Oooooh poooor thing you look like shit, you shouldn't be out of bed..." But he paid my money (about 1/2 months after tax wages at the time..not too bad)
You got gold here.
i still have my old nylon mesh ''world champion motocross' jersey/shirt.it says suzuki usa on the back.i got it from my brother in '74 for my 16th b-day.i had a '72 ts125 suzuki 'duster'. roger de coster was the real deal in that suzuki era. (2/5/2021)
first bike I had as a teen was a RL 250, swapped between Yamaha, Honda, and a few other. i feel proud to own a Suzuki RMZ 250
Roger De Coster (who rode a CZ in this film) later went on to ride a Suzuki to 5 World Championships.
Cz was top bike then fast
Husky was a top ride in the states back then
CZ мог ещё конкурировать
Good documentaries like this
My first motocross bike was a 74 Suzuki TM-125 I remember some of these guys. I still race a 74 Husky 250 in vintage class. Now you have four stroke motocross bikes that cost 10000 bucks… the AMA really screwed up….. should have let two strokes a four stroke’s complete on the same level.
Loved the James Bond music interludes... Also reminded me of how uncontrollable that equipment was.
That's why we should all pick suzuki bikes!!
10 yrs on you had monoshock,watercooled lightweights! Splendid.
Jj Stewart thanks to Yamaha
I felt like such a pro when I got a Jofa mouthguard when I was trail riding. And when I got a Carrera 98 goggles (open sides to let dust in) I REALLY was big time.
😂😂😂
Bars almost as wide as my smile while watching this:)
You can tell the ballsy riders. They don't have goggles. Who needs them at the front!!!!
Joel Robert, Roger DeCoster je les ai vu j'étais tout petit j'avais 4 ans et je m'en rappelle un peu. Les barbcues les packs de bières et l'ambiance qu'il y avait me disait un de mes oncles qui est passionné de motocross depuis les années 60.
Love the music. As They leep through the air
Damn ! I'm born in 1976, I feel so happy I have lived before all that internet and that Googled shit world ! We should have stopped progress in 1996 !
Amen to that my friend!!
These are real men on brutal machines,The way motocross should be.Natural terrain,un groomed tracks and MUD,not a cancellation of the race if it rains like nowdays and crybaby riders! Lol
And DUST DUST DUST and fumes.Sweaty dirty dusty filthy riders. Good memories.
18:30 Amazing to see the outfits, with plaid collar shirts, sweaters, and turtle necks, and rugby jerseys, and the #14 guy wearing prescription glasses! (not to mention the paper mache helmets...) And this was no local 125 race, it was the world championship 500 cc. And, of course, the James Bond sound track adds intensity and drama to the event.
Increible y grandioso video.. mismo año que naci.. jamas imagine que en esos años hubiera tal categoria de corredores de motocross.. gracias por compartirnos ese gran filme..
I enjoyed that, and the wee sidecars clip was a hidden bonus.
Absolute nostalgic goodness 👌
Such a cool video, Thank you for sharing it. That jack at 16:20 is real funny.
golden era, motocross today seems a Grasshopper...
Proper motocross!
WOW 😳 just how far the bikes have came. Which proves that we haven't been here that long. The Bible says that the earth is 6 or 7 thousand years old.
The earth isn't six or seven thousand years old lol. Don't be naive. The only time that makes sense is if you think in terms of human time vs gods time. All all knowing all powerful thing would experience time much faster than us. Just like a slow vs fast computer. So seven days could be more like 7 billion years. It's theoretically impossible it's seven thousand human years old because science proves otherwise.
I think they need "wider" handlebars. Just think if you came up with the idea of a "cross bar pad" back then, you would have made a fortune. Full face helmets? What on earth would I need that for? I love seeing 4 inches of travel bottom out over mild terrain. These guys on these machines were bull riders, but not for 8 seconds, for 45 mins plus two laps. Great stuff. Thanks.
😂😂😂
Experts in natural terra-firma.mud,mud,mud! Splendid👍
3:49 gotta love them 70's gals
Great film of a great era in motocross, but sadly, a bygone era. I was only an amateur racer from south Florida, but don't follow the sport anymore. It has gotten too artificial and commercial altho the riders themselves are still top athletes. The Japanese takeover of the sport and the industry was also a sad thing, but they can't be blamed for building better bikes and more competitive machines. However, I am glad to see the likes of KTM, Aprila, Ducati, Triumph, Indian and others competing and winning not just in motocross, but in roadracing and dirtrack as well. People like to root for their favorite manufacturers as well as the riders of those marques. Again, thanks for the great video.
Todd, Thanks for posting this. Really amazing footage.
Where else are you ever going to catch a moto-R-cross film that's really shot on FILM (I think I see an Arriflex 2C in a few places) and features a multi-time World Champ (Robert) pushing his trailer-towing Mercedes diesel sedan through the mud (1:49), or an orchestral version of the 1969 Glen Campbell/Jimmy Webb classic "Galveston" (at about 7:20) as the "drivers" navigate the treacherous sand and gravel of the circuits, hoping to avoid a "fatal accident caused by a tiny scratch in a tire!"
I'm pretty sure that's the '60s Marlboro cigarette TV commercial theme playing under the opening and at about 20:15 (though I think most of the GP riders of the time were partial to puffing a filterless Gauloises between motos).
Great stuff!
I think that opening tune is from a James Bond movie.
great clip thaanks for sharing it. My motocross started in the late sixties. You should have seen the look on my dads face when he saw I stripped a perfectly good enduro and raced it and then put the components back on!!!!! LLOLL
You think that is interesting my mom didnt know what to do with the trophy? A third overall two fourth finishes, I was a consistent rider for sixteen years. Seems the trophy was not as good as the basketball and baseball looking trophies to her. Ancient thinking by WWII parents.
At the end, Roger DeCoster is shown as riding a CZ and took 3rd
That was the winning machine of that days😉
Eastgerman Paul Fridrichs won 500cc class 66.67.68😎
Great times great riders.
Big air in those days was flying 20 feet, 2 feet off the ground.
When I raced back then, I remember my Dad telling me to keep the back tire on the ground as much as possible, instead of in the air.
Worked for me.
And some of them looping it.
Back when Suzuki put effort into its off road bikes . They are now king of 'Bold New Graphics" Bring back the RM250's
Now that's real Motocross!!!
Google Eric Geboers - Stefan Everts - Roger De Coster- George Jobe -Andre Malherbe and many more Belgian racers whom dominated the races in all the classes for years .
Had a Carabela 250 Centauro back then in 1980, so much fun to ride. Crossing was so much better at that times, as it was not professional. Nowadays the performance level is much higher, but i fear the fun is lost (as in most professional sports...). Just being glad to be born in `65. Ride on.
I remember when Roger DeCosta won the MX Championship on board a Suzuki. Team Suzuki, DeCosta, Joel Robert, Geboers and the rest of the Suzuki riders definitely made Team Husky, CZ and Maico think twice!
...DeCoster....
Nothing here in 1970 was engineered into the 1971 Suzuki TM-400 Cyclone.
Ah yes...I remember it well....on or off power curve...vibration was brutal...welds broke everywhere....would love to have it back. At that time also had the ORIGINAL KTM...opps I mean Penton 125 six day. The TM cost $799 and the 6day was $1200...miss em both. THANKS FOR POSTING THE VIDEO.
Death with 2 wheels lol
The great comment in the newspaper ads; Suzuki TM400, rode twice, injury forces sale. The original widow maker for sure.
When u had to ride the machine clutch n brakes only plus two strokes
Digging this
Awe the smell of Castor bean oil is in the air!
I love the smell of Castor oil in the morning. Smells like....... Victory.
This is real mx Racing,
Somewhere there's a picture of Joel Robert enjoying a cigarette on the starting line before a moto - where he went on to smoke the field!
thankyou for this post
Missed it. Was doing something even more exciting - Southestern Vacation Tour.
I restored one of those yellow bikes if anyone wants to see
You have a real RH?
It's like watching two-wheeled versions of Model-T's racing.
Bob Hannah...coming soon !
Una maravilla, no os lo perdáis.
Love suzuki scramblers , 97cc 125,cc 185cc 5 speed and 185cc 6 speed ! its good bike even its run out off 2T oil it still can run ! That was past year 1970s in Asia , the champion lead by wacala punchamul from The kingdom of Thailand and 2nd from Malaysia ! Old memories ! Kuala lumpur monday 27.04.2020 20.18 pm.tq to the youtubers !
Mi respeto y admiración para todos los ingenieros, diseñadores, mecánicos, pilotos de esta hermosa marca de motos Suzuki e tenido la suerte 🍀 de tener algunas motos Suzuki, por ejemplo Suzuki PEv400 cc. Modelo 1980, Suzuki PE 125cc. Modelo 1984, Suzuki PE 250cc. Modelo 1982, y mi actual Suzuki DR 1997 650 cc. Dual SPORT una hermosa moto y Grandiosa máquina
Suzuki PE 400 quise escribir en la primera moto que tuve que por cierto era 2 tiempos y con ese tamaño de motor aaaaa no corría volabaaa jajajaja las otras motos Suzuki que tuve fueron ya 4 motores 4 tiempos también muy lindas y fuertes motos Suzuki
La suerte 🍀 que les deseas es el emblema de OSSA 😁
i still got one suzuki ts100
There’s a scene in _On Any Sunday_ where Bengt Aberg dumps it. He probably wouldn’t have even felt a bump on one of today’s MX bikes.
No cell phones no Muslims no blacks. Father's and mother's with their beautiful children.
What's your problem with muslims and blacks??
Hey, what's your problem? All of people only want peace, please don't underestimate other religions, greetings.
Troll playing the Race Card, Different kind of Race here: Racing man! You've clearly tuned into the wrong channel.
No problems with muslims, blacks or cell phones. I just noticed how happy all the spectators were.
This would be a great movie.
I have a 1969 Suzuki tc120 still runs like a champ