machines . His outrageous ‘ sit up and beg ’ riding style was not only fast , it also included crowd-pleasing antics like huge wheelies the length of the straight . But he had proved he was able to muscle what were essentially road bikes with far too much power around the track faster than any other rider . He was just what Suzuki needed for its tilt at the TT F1 titles with the new XR69 . Crosby was signed to ride for the GB Heron Team Suzuki works team on a bike that would assure his place in motorcycling history . “ All I wanted was a 500cc GP bike and a TT F1 bike for the 1980 season , and I was in shock when Suzuki signed me to ride the British TT F1 championship , the World TT F1 Championships , the Isle of Man , Ulster Grand Prix , Daytona and Suzuka ,” says Crosby . ( He also rode 500cc twostrokes in the world championship series , but that is another story ). If the XR69 screamed “ don ’ t mess with me ”, so did Crosby . He immediately clicked with the bike when he was called to the factory ’ s test circuit at Ryuyo in 1979 , following the Macau 500cc Grand Prix , to try the new machine . “ I liked it ; it was a good motorbike ,” Crosby recalls . “ It was a little floaty for me initially , because it had been set up for lighter Japanese riders . But it worked really well once we went up to heavier weight springs . I also played round with caster angles . It tended to understeer , so we fitted 30mm extensions on the rear shocks to pull the profile back where I wanted it and that made it turn a lot easier . “ After those changes , I could flick it left and right with my knees and it would almost oversteer , which was perfect for me .”
XR69 ENGINEERING The original GS1000 roadbike frame had been upgraded to a factory design by Manabu Suzuki , with Kayaba 40mm forks featuring brake carriers from the RG500 and twin shocks at the rear , which featured a single disc . The XR69 had 130mm of suspension travel . The forks had an anti-dive system which , according to Crosby , was not very effective : a later version activated by the rear brake was also ineffective . The chassis was a tubular steel double-cradle unit with a longish 1440mm wheelbase . The swingarm was extruded alloy with massive
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