| 1987 Suzuki SP200 |
This picture was taken in 1997 somewhere in the middle of
Eastern Montana. Me and the SP rode nearly 200 miles that
day. When Suzuki released these bikes in 1986, I fell in love.
I always liked the look of the 1985 SP600 with its red and
blue colors, front disc brake, long-travel suspension and
bulbous fuel tank. Call it a poor man's Honda XL600R, which
it evidently was, as 1985 was the only year for the big SP.
However, its styling carried over to the all-new SP125 and
250 in 1986. They were affordable bikes, even for a high
school kid with only a weekly allowance and summer farm
wages.
About a year after I picked up a SP125/200 brochure at the
local Suzuki dealership, I finally convinced my dad it was time
for me to own one. In October of 1987, we set out to find a
leftover '87 model and located one at a dealer in Urbana,
Illinois.
Eastern Montana. Me and the SP rode nearly 200 miles that
day. When Suzuki released these bikes in 1986, I fell in love.
I always liked the look of the 1985 SP600 with its red and
blue colors, front disc brake, long-travel suspension and
bulbous fuel tank. Call it a poor man's Honda XL600R, which
it evidently was, as 1985 was the only year for the big SP.
However, its styling carried over to the all-new SP125 and
250 in 1986. They were affordable bikes, even for a high
school kid with only a weekly allowance and summer farm
wages.
About a year after I picked up a SP125/200 brochure at the
local Suzuki dealership, I finally convinced my dad it was time
for me to own one. In October of 1987, we set out to find a
leftover '87 model and located one at a dealer in Urbana,
Illinois.
| Riding to high school |
| Check out the reversed negative images! |