Part of joining the worldwide community of motorcyclists is ascending the long learning curve that applies to the sport and its many variations. It is an old problem that sometimes cools a would-be motorcyclist’s enthusiasm. The quest for solutions to the problem is as old as the problem itself. Over the years, there have been countless approaches to answering the need for basic information; perhaps the most common is in book form. One such book is The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook, a great little saddlebag-size work by Bob Behme and Malcolm Jaderquist. Published in 1971, it is also a fascinating bit of history.
The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook gives the reader insight into the equipment available then as well as some of the top racing personalities of the day, including Yvon Duhamel, Gary Nixon, Gene Romero, Don Castro, Eddie Mulder, Dick Mann, Mark Brelsford, and others.
In its 13 chapters, the book takes the reader from learning to ride and how to pick out your first motorcycle to land speed racing, environmentally aware trail riding, and a run-down of the 1971 new-model motorcycles and minibikes.
The book’s historical perspective vividly illustrates how far the sport has come in the last 55 years. Technical details on the bikes are covered by brand—AJS to Zundapp. The 36 charts tabulate specifications for new 1971 models, referring to Ceriani forks and Girling shocks. This book predates inverted forks, single-shock suspension, fuel injection, and anti-lock brakes.
Note to readers: Many of the books we feature in Rider’s Library may be out of print, and some may be difficult to find. That could be half the fun. The Internet should make the search relatively easy. However, none of the books currently scheduled for eventual retro-review for the Rider’s Library section were found with the help of the Internet. They were all found at bookstores, used bookstores, antique shops, motorcycle shops, yard sales, and so on.
The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook’s authors took a stab at prognosticating what some manufacturers had in store for near-future models, coming up with hits and misses. For example, they accurately forecast Honda’s introduction of a four-cylinder 500—the CB500K0 came out in 1972.
For Kawasaki, they accurately foretold the addition of 250 and 350cc two-stroke triples. However, the pair missed on the 750 Mach IV that came out in 1972, instead anticipating a 650cc triple. In the 750 class, they hinted at a DOHC, fuel-injected V4 with electronic ignition. That bike didn’t happen. Instead, we got the Z1, a 903cc inline-four with carburetion. I gotta admit, that mythical V4 could have been a lot of fun.
The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook correctly anticipated a liquid-cooled 750cc road bike from Suzuki, which turned out to be the 1972 GT750 Le Mans. Though they didn’t reveal that it would be a two-stroke triple, they did hint at that by pointing out that they had information indicating the exhaust splits into dual mufflers “as on the BSA and Triumph.” They also accurately foresaw the introduction of a 400cc single motocrosser, which materialized in 1971 as the infamous TM400 Cyclone.
Their lone prediction for a new Yamaha model was an 800cc triple, said to be in development. However, the first of Yamaha’s big-bore triples, the XS750C, didn’t arrive until 1976. I guess that’s not so much a miss as a great long-range forecast.
As old as The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook is, an impressive amount of content still holds true and has value, even today. Tips on maintenance, tools, personal riding gear, trail riding, motorcycle camping, and the like are good examples. Of course, today, we have the advantage of a much broader and better range of options for any kind of riding you may want to do.
The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook Fast Facts
Title: The Motorcycle & Trail Bike Handbook
- Authors: Bob Behme and Malcolm Jaderquist
- Published: 1971
- Publisher: Pyramid Books, New York
- Format: 188 pages; 69 color & b/w images
- Original cover price: 95¢
