DIRT AND TRAIL

KEEPING THE OLD WHEELS TURNING
2001 KAWASAKI KX500
THE HOLY GRAIL BACK TO STANDARD - Gary Freeman Raced Kawasaki’s for 3 years in the 80’s. Took this up
as a hobby – and to keep the old wheels turning. The bike is back to standard. All original Kawasaki parts.
Gary always wanted to build a bike like
this but they are very rare. He looked at
importing one, but prices were prohibitive.
How rare is this bike? In South Africa,
10 were sold in 2000 and 10 in 2001.
‘Unrideable.’ ‘Violent.’
All quotes used to describe Kawasaki’s
legendary KX500.
For more than 20 years, it was generally
accepted that if any bike made more
power than a Kawasaki KX500, it was
impractical. The KX was seen as the upper
boundary of sanity. It might have been
true. Today’s 450 four-strokes make about
the same peak power as the first KX500
of 30 years ago. But what made the 500
so formidable was the narrower spread
and fearsome delivery. It was a bike for
real men. Unfortunately, it seemed that real
men were in short supply, and the market
gradually moved away from the KX500
and the other 500s that followed. When
it finally was dropped from the Kawasaki
line, it had been unchanged for more than
10 years, and its sales numbers were
unimpressive. The question of cause and
effect remains unanswered to this day. If
the KX had moved with the times, would
its era have lasted longer?
Interestingly enough, the KX500
remains competitive even now in one
very specialized realm. It was, perhaps,
the greatest desert racer of all time.
Motocross might have been its intended
mission, but it’s particular blend of
strengths meshed perfectly with the needs
30 DIRT & TRAIL MAGAZINE MARCH 2018