EUROPEAN

EXTRAVAGANZA

22 LAVERDA 1200 MIRAGE

Not just a Mirage: King Kong Triple

26 BMW R1OORS

The sportiest, slipperiest big-bbre

boxer

32 MOTO GUZZI 1000SP

The basics are right. Guzzi just

needs to work out a few details,

like selling the bikes.

38 THE ITALIAN MOB

Italian designers and bosses talk

about bikes, philosophies, money,

innovation, America, and Japan.

TEST

46 YAMAHA XV920 VIRAGO

On the boulevard, they call it

Mister Virago.

FEATURES

42 GUIDE: PARTS FOR OLDER

BIKES

Bring us your tired, your worn, your

broken-parted.

50 THE YAMAHA 920-11,600

MILES LATER

A progress report on our October

1981 cover bike

53 BOOK REVIEW

American Racer, 1900-1940, by

Stephen Wright

54 PRODUCT EVALUATION: DVH

STEREO

Songs for the road

56 HOW TO SET UP A

MOTOCROSS CHASSIS

What good are all those

suspension adjustments if you

don’t know which ones to- use?

60 THE GREATEST

BENCHRACING STORIES

EVER TOLD

Hysterical crashes, unbelievable

saves, breathtaking feats, amazing

exaggerations

SPORT

66 AT LONG LAST: LACKEY!

American motocross has its first

world champion.

70 WINSTON PRO: THE TIDE OF

BATTLE SHIFTS

As they head for the wire, it’s a

whole new race.

73 U.S. 250 MXGP AT UNADILLA

Is Danny LaPorte our second MX

world champ?

DEPARTMENTS

4 EDITORIAL

Finding fault, taking blame

6 LETTERS

Seventy years after

8 HOTLINE

Now, about this Can-Am

business...

14 ASK THE PROS

To hang off or not to hang off

16 ACCESSORY SHOP

A plethora of products for rider and

ridee

72 ADVERTISERS’ INDEX

Product research department

75 HOTLAP

Champions everywhere you look

76 LAST PAGE

We like to leave ’em laughing.

ABOUT THE COVER: Covers don’t al-

ways come easy. This one was our third

try. First we shot the Yamaha 920 Virago

on the beach. We didn’t like the results.

Then we tried an elaborate studio shot

with laser light effects. We still weren’t

happy. Finally Art Director Nancy Lem,

working with photographer Jim Brown

and special-effects artist Ed Coach,

came up with this idea. On page 47, you

can find out what kind of special effects

Jeff Karr and Dexter Ford thought were

fitting for “King Kool.”