Smoking or non-smoking? What is your preference? This weekend at Cooks Corner in Trabuco Canyon it will be all about the smoking.
No, not cigarettes or cigars. Sunday’s annual 2-Stroke Hooligans vintage motorcycle gathering will fill the air with the smells and sounds that only a 2-cycle internal combustion engine can deliver. For young moto fans who may be unfamiliar with ‘strokers’ this will be an historical, educational event. For fans of vintage and classic machinery it will be a sight to behold. For all fans of two-wheeled arcana, this is one not to be missed.
Claiming to deliver the largest collection of vintage 2-stroke bikes in America, the Two-Stroke Extravaganza will feature 150 street bikes, dirt bikes, scooters, karts and mopeds. Of particular fascination will be classic road going strokers like the Yamaha RD line of bikes – the air-cooled RD400, the much beloved “Elsie” RD350LC water-cooled boy racers bike, and the infamous V4 RD500 Grand Prix replica. Kawasaki’s ultra-rare H1 500cc and H2 750cc water-cooled bikes will likely be represented. Suzuki had their legendary GT750 triple ‘water-buffalo’ and will be a highlight of the show, these are one of the most sought after vintage bikes for 2-cycle fans. Suzuki’s RG line of race replica two-strokes may make an appearance although these were less embraced than some of their smokey brethren.
If we are really lucky an appearance by Yamaha’s fearsome racing bike TZ750, probably the nastiest 2-stroke motorcycle ever to roll out of Japan, will steal the show. And Yamaha’s wicked little 350cc twin Banshee quad will almost certainly be in attendance. While we are ‘off road’ there is a long heritage, still carried on today, of two-stroke dirt bikes Honda’s CR line, Yamaha’s YZ line, Suzuki’s RM and Kawasaki’s classic green KX dirt bikes will be in full force.
The event is free to attend, and it’s highly recommended to get there early and stay late. There will be ample refreshments to keep hungry and thirsty moto heads going all day. And there will be plenty of amazing machinery to ogle and photograph, and interesting builders and riders to converse with. One cannot attend the Two Stroke Extravaganza without witnessing the ‘smoke out’. At 12 noon every bike in attendance will be started and the air will be filled with the unmistakable blue haze and aroma of burnt pre-mix.
Cooks Corner is at 19152 Santiago Canyon Road, Trabuco Canyon, CA. The show opens at 9am Sunday September 25, 2011
