The first XR

berm, it’d be a shame to ignore the XR and let its small stature define its place in history.

Prior to the XR75’s launch in early ’73, minibike racing was a bit of a hodge-podge machinery-wise, with Honda’s SL70, Yamaha’s Mini-Enduro and other trail bikes of the day being the go-to machines. But the XR turned the mini-cycle world (and it was a minicycle, not just a minibike, if that makes any sense) on its head.

The XR not only looked right, like a four-fifths-scale Elsinore that would debut at the same time, it was right, with an engine that welcomed a big-bore kit, cam, larger carburetor and megaphone exhaust, and a chassis that responded happily to real shocks, fork upgrades and even monoshock suspension systems.

Mini-class races at local and national tracks in ’73 and ’74 featured a sea of XRs, and while Yamaha’s lighter and equally powerful YZ80 would eventually claim the top spot in minidom, the XR changed minicycle racing forever.

Of course, the XR was a fantastic trail bike, too, with Honda selling a bazillion of the things over the years — and right up to today in the form of the XR-esque CRF80F and CRF100F machines. A good thing never goes out of style, and the XR75 sure fits the bill.

—Mitch Boehm

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