If this is another thread feel free to delete.

"On any Sunday" popped up as a recommendation on Netflix for me. I was tired out from a good charity poker run Saturday and figured I would doze on the couch and watch it. It was made in 1971 and I have been playing around with the idea of getting a vintage cafe style racer or dual sport and this would be great to see some in action.

I was blown away at the motorcycles. A 750 Harley Davidson dirt track bike caught my eye and I didn't even know Husqvarna made motorcycles.

The skill and mechanical knowledge of these riders was simply amazing. Steve McQueen was "the man". Here is a hollywood legend risking his body to race and doing very well at it. He even had to enter races under false names.

Think you are a "real" biker or have an "Iron Butt", try just one of the races Malcolm Smith won easily. It was funny seeing him compete in the "widow maker" with his stock racing bike and freaking out the crowd by riding it back down the 45 deg slope,where every other competitor walks theirs back down with help.

If you want to see classic bikes racing and have your riding skills belittled watch this great movie.

 

Have you watched any motocross or supercross races in the last 10 years?
Riding a dirtbike will definitely make you a better street rider.
My second bike is a Kawasaki KLR650 dualsport. At 60 I'm still playing in the dirt.

 

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No I don't follow any of the racing so it was a surprise to me at what these guys could do in 1971 and all of the different racing they had to do not to mention doing their own mechanic work.

I haven't been on a dirt bike since my teens but having a dual sport might be the way to go for some fun.

 

Great movie! Those guys were great riders and true enthusiasts.





Get one, I guarantee you will have a hoot on a dual sport. Even riding it on the road because they are so light and maneuverable. I find myself smiling more when I ride my DR650 than any other motorcycle I have.

 

I grew up riding dirt bikes and racing moto-x and Enduro. And some of the things I learned racing a 500 Maico have saved my butt on more than one occasion riding big street cruisers and touring bikes.

When that movie came out I remember thinking "big deal, we do that all the time"...and some of what we did was just plain nuts looking back at it!

Great flick. Think I'll add it to the netflix list!

 

Rode a 250XRM over in the Philippines, great riding and lots of fun, although I headed down a few hills I wish I had a decompression value in it to use. Only dropped it 3 times and at 60+ years I figured I did OK.

Ride a motorcycle/bike on the streets over there and you will definitely get an education on bike riding in traffic of all sorts....

 

I remember seeing On Any Sunday in the theatre, and then having to wait until VCRs were invented before I could own it. My first real dirt bike was a '74 Husqvarna 400. "Huskies" were really popular dirt bikes in the 60s and 70s until Cagiva bought the company and tried to put the Husqvarna badge on Cagava bikes, which sunk the Husqvarna brand and destroyed the North American dealer network. Husqvarna has been reborn since then and has had a few owners. I believe they're currently married to Husaberg. My Huskies are gone but I still have an XR600 Honda and a DR650 Suzuki. On Any Sunday got a lot of pre-release publicity because it was produced and directed by Bruce Brown who made Endless Summer a few years before.

 

I was dirt biking when Greeves, Bultaco, Husqvarna, Montessa and Hodaka was all you saw at the local hill climb. I agree dirt riding made me a better streetrider but I'd take that a step further. Trials riding will make you the best street rider.

 

You really "didn't even know Husqvarna made motorcycles"? How is that possible?

When I saw the movie, in a theater, I was pretty impressed too. Of course I was young and hadn't been riding for too many years.

A few years later I was desert racing, like Steve McQueen. Not as good as him, but I don't feel my skills were/are belittled.

Ron

 

Husqvarna? Don't you mean a "Husky"? They were THE unobtainable bike to dream about when I was first riding in the late 60's. I rode a 250cc CZ at the time. When this movie came out I would have "settled" for a Yamaha DT250 or DT400 if only I could have.