1976 KZ900LTD in Alaska

Hello fellow KZ enthusiast's. I entered my KZ900LTD in the 22nd Annual Anchorage Custom Bike Show this past weekend and it was a first for my bike in a show environment so I figured I'd say hey here and share a couple photos.
The bike is a rider not a show bike but I had a pretty good idea it'd be the only Z motor in the building and wanted to give it a chance to bring back some of the memories that I'm sure the fellow riders here in Anchorage have of these old bikes. I entered it in the Antique class and it was one of about 8 or 9 in the class. It was won by a Kawasaki 500 Triple restored as a chromed out cafe type show bike. I am a big fan of the Kawasaki Triple's but not so much of this particular one. I prefer more original types with maybe some expansion chambers. 2nd place went to an original looking Triumph Trident.
Here's a few photo's of the 900LTD sitting in the row. I'll also attach a photo of the 500 Triple motor. I did like that part of the bike.

You got robbed.
Steve

Good for You for bringing that beautiful bike to a show and sharing it with the world. Very Nice LTD
Dave

Wow...for a driver it sure is clean.
Nice bike

More pics of the H1? Also, you have a sweet LTD.

Robbed! Well yeah the 900LTD is the least desirable of the 900's I know but I dig em. It's weird, the only guys who seem to appreciate the bike is guys between 50-60 years old. All the young guys keep right on walking. The Z1-KZ was the genesis of all muscle bikes and they seem to live on in guys memories from the 70's-early 80's but what does that say about the future of these bikes and the following they may or may not have? Will they fade away when we all hit our 80's? Or will our sons and nephews and grandkids end up with our bikes along with maybe a passion for them handed down from guys like us? Who knows. Just seems weird that a lot of guys have no clue what they are looking at when they see the 900LTD. And yeah maybe it's a northern thing.
I did take one photo of the H1 but it was blurred up some so it got deleted. As I mentioned before I do like those bikes. A lot. I had a friend back in the late 70's who had a 500 and it was stock I think except for a set of Denco pipes. That thing was a terror a genuine road burner. I had a KZ650 at the time with an RC Engineering 717 bore kit in it 29 smoothbores, light weight crank and rods and a Yoshimura pipe. It was quick and I thought it was a strong running 650. That two stroke 500 was just as quick to 80 mph. I can't imagine what a 750 would be like to ride.
The 500 at this show just didn't appeal to me at all so I didn't pay much attention to the details on it. I can appreciate the craftsmanship but if a bike strikes me as ugly well, you know. Just my tastes.

Well I've had the Kawasaki 750 triple and also a 71" Trident.... the Kaw was super fast, more so the the hot rodded Trident but the Kaw was the evilest handling bike I ever owned.... the Trident wins hands down every time.
What great old school ride that Triple Triumph was.... would blow off any stock or semi-stock Honda 750 or Norton 750 I saw and anything smaller was a silly race..... wonderful British machine.
But alas, sold my 74' Z1 and 76' KZ900....
The only bike I ever kept longer then 3 years is my 1977 Kaw KZ1000A1, which I still have to date and in the process of bringing it back to full glory!
To me, the KZ900 or KZ1000 was a total package machine compared to any of the other Asian or Brit bikes I've ever owned... (I've owned a lot, 17 at one time a few years ago, including some German and Italian iron).

I meant you should have won. That's why you were robbed. Looks great.
Steve

very nice bike.
those red 900 ltd's are a very sought after bike.
those and the black and silver 80 model ltd's are my favorite ltd's of all time.
if i had to choose i don't know which one would win out.

thanks for sharing,

leon

Nice bike looks like new good job.

Maybe I'm stuck in the past. The road was lousy with these when I parked Bossie in 98. Not used to all the attention.
Steve

no it's not a northern thing... the 900ltd is way undervalued in my book's.. all the way down to okla and farther south... the 900ltd in my books' is a lt more rare than the early z1's.... produced in a lot smaller # like 5000... first factory style custom bike to be produced foreign or domestic... have accumulated just about every piece of paperwork or brochure that come with the ltd when sold new.. would like to find one of the plaque's that was attached to the gas tank's when new... has anyone reproduced that plaque?????
and oh yes I fall into the age group that appreciate's the LTD"S!!!!! 56yr's old