The impact of Yamaha on the motorcycle road-racing world of the 1960s and 1970s was tremendous and it is an integral part of those years that will be on display at the 31st Classic Motorcycle Festival at Pukekohe this weekend.

The famous 125cc 1968 RA31A Yamaha race bike from these “Golden Years”’ of road racing, along with one of New Zealand’s own living treasures, Waikato’s former world champion Hugh Anderson, will be out to relive the glory years on the Pukekohe tarseal.

A four-time former world champion, 74-year-old Anderson (pictured above) will ride the rare RA31A around Pukekohe as part of the weekend’s festival.

The bike has been provided by Dutch enthusiast Ferry Brouwer. New Zealand bike legend Ken McIntosh, a name renowned in the classic bike circles, is directing the whole operation and the Dutch RA31A Team will work from McIntosh’s workshop while in New Zealand.

This bike was the ‘blue-print’ of the fearsome Grand Prix 500s that ruled the GP scene until the arrival of the four-stroke era in 2002.

The water-cooled two-stroke engine revs to over 17,000 rpm and makes 42 brake horsepower. This equates to 336 bhp/litre at a time when Formula One car engines were happy to top 135 bhp/litre.  The nine-speed gearbox helped the rider keep the engine in its rather narrow power band.

The Yamaha V4 was so successful that Bill Ivy and Phil Read scored a first and second in the World 125 Championship of 1967 and reversed the result in 1968.  Between them they won nearly every GP event in both years.

In 1967 Bill Ivy set the first 100 mph lap of the Isle of Man by a 125, only 10 years after that speed had been set by a 500cc Gilera.  His lap record on the incredible Yamaha V4 stood for an astounding 21 years.

The festival has attracted over 250 riders from five countries, and will be running events for more than 350 bikes.

Anderson, who ended his road racing career in 1965, after winning the 125 world championship, has never ever seen a 125 four cylinder Yamaha before.

Riding it this weekend is something he is very excited about.

It will be the first time ever that a Yamaha factory machine from the golden era of the 1960s will set wheels on New Zealand’s tarmac, something that is not likely to happen for at least another few years.

Words and photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com