Month: April 2020

Motocross Memories

30 years with a YZ490 Part II – Into the basement

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I first saw the 490 in September of 1989 when I stopped by Loveland Yamaha, in Loveland, Colorado, to have the rear shock on my 1987 YZ 125 serviced. Like many motorcycle shops at the time, the used bikes were displayed outside the front of the store and I noticed …

Motocross Memories

30 years with a YZ 490

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Part I – Meet the Junkheap For much of the past 30 years, I have been the proud owner of a 1986 Yamaha YZ 490, a fine (if somewhat antiquated even when new) specimen of a two-stroke motocross racing motorcycle (a dirt bike). I first got the 490 in December …