2008 Yamaha FZ1Yamaha once created streetbikes so treacherously explosive they were coined "widowmakers." These smoke bellowing two-strokes of the 1980s came in several variants, but none are as infamous as the yellow-and-black RZ350s. It's been said these bumblebee rockets were so unpredictably fast that only the best riders could handle them. In fact, many old-timers recall that "coming on the pipe" was so wicked it would either spin, wheelie or buck you off-dyno graphs have shown that power nearly doubled over the course of a couple-thousand RPM.
Fast-forward some 20-years to the damp, foggy morning I encountered this one-of-a kind machine. As the first beams of light tore through the mist and onto the pearly paint I couldn't help but hearken back to the sinister RZs of old, the beasts that Wayne Rainy wrestled to many podiums in his day. Idling under the mid-morning rays, the bark of the Graves full exhaust and the lumpy lope of the cams only reinforced the ancestral similarities I'd previously noticed.
Slowly engaging the clutch I couldn't help but wonder if the similarities were more than skin-deep-I wondered if this purpose-built FZ1 was a "widowmaker" as well. The first few miles during warm-up gave me a chance to feel out the top-rate suspenders, powerful brakes and upright ergos. Shortly after leaving suburbia I found an open stretch and gave it a chance to stretch its legs. Rolling the throttle open in first offered nothing but wheelspin, a quick up-shift to second and little happened as the tach swept past 4, 5 and then 6,000 RPM. Maybe I'd been wrong, maybe this wasn't an RZ of old.
Then, watching the tach touch 8,000 RPM everything changed-quickly. Coming onto the power the FZ1 shot forward with a raw ferocity I'd yet to experience, not even from an R1. Instantly the front wheel was airborne and another shortshift to third enabled me to finally pin it. What can best be described as insanity soon ensued as third gear saw more up-on-one action and acceleration so fierce I could barely hang on. Triple-digits instantly arrived, but a gentle brush on the brake lever quickly got things in check.
Upon physical arrival back at the owner's garage I had to wait a few minutes for my wits to catch up. Still stunned from the experience, I silently admired the unique bike as the owner, Bob Briggs, explained the rich history behind this one-of-a kind FZ1.
"The bike was a joint venture between Graves, Dunlop, Yamaha and The Road 2 Recovery Foundation. It was built for the Doug Henry benefit. The bike was put up for auction and the proceeds were given to Doug and his family, and I won the bid in the last few seconds."
Chuck Graves recalled, "I was sitting around with a friend from Dunlop, and another from Yamaha when we started talking about Doug and his accident. The topic came up and we all decided it would be great to help him out."