HONDA CR500 VS. KX500 VS YZ490 two-Stroke Drag Race 500cc SHOOT-OUT 

Personally, I love the fact Kaplan and Co. do these tests on incredibly nice lawns.

This guy has to be the coolest dude on RU-vid.

The lawn is just as incredible as the bikes.

Should do a calendar with the ladies sitting on the bikes!

Great to see everyone having a good time and ripping it up on the old 2 strokes. Times like this are the reason i rebuild them.

The guy that owns all the 500’s and 605 should make RU-vid videos.

That's what living right looks like, I can almost smell those 2 strokes makes me want to let my dad's 87 yz 250 kick my ass like the good old days, these vintage two strokes are timeless cant wait to make the trip to the museum!!!

That is just a beautiful piece of property you have there Mr. Kaplan! Hats off to you and your family, friends and crew for sharing your awesome home to all of us here at YOU TUBE !

This is hands down the best f ing video on RU-vid

Larry agreeing at 3:55 cracked me up he didn’t skip a beat with that head nod

Welcome to the 2 - stroke Jungle !!! You guys sure know how to have fun !

They look like a bunch of kids when they put all there gear on lol..good stuff

I wonder how many weeks Larry slept on his stomach? 🤓👍

That microphone makes all the difference guys! Great upgrade

The KTM 495 was made 4 years. 1981 was dual shock, piston port that Rod Bush rode at 123 MPH. The 82-84 were single shock, reed valved and the 84 they went to a single spark plug head and reduced the compression ratio. They went to a 500 in 1985. The one there looks like a 1984 because of the upside down front forks and dual leading drum front brake. The previous years had conventional forks and 83 had a disc front break. The 84 came in 2 versions, 4 speed and 5 speed. The gearing was the same 2-5 MXC vs. 1-4 MX but the MXC had a 1st that was low. I had the 84 5 speed. The one thing about that bike is that it was over-square. It had a huge piston, 92mm and a very short stroke, something like 73mm. So it reved quick.

Days like these are going to be missed like we all miss the 80s. As close as it gets!!

3:52 that zoom on larry's experienced face 🤣

Holy crap i thought that was gary busey when he pulled up slamming his helmet

I don’t care how old I get. This will never get old! @Kaplan America @Ken Kaplan @Kaplan Cycles @New England Motorcycle Museum

My buddy rode a 95 CR 500 and I on my 92 DR 350. Of course in a drag it was as if my motor fell out. But out on the trails he said man Bill that thing barks, always nipping at his heals. A use of momentum and tractable power delivery meant trail quickness. A dual sport I still ride it with over 30,000 on the odometer. That machine has become a part of me. Use to surprise Harley riders on the road when I got it up to 90 on the speedometer. A wide ratio 6 speed means I can rock crawl up some nasty hill climbs. 4 stroke 350 cc air/oil cooled, Suzuki quality second to none!

Line of 2 smokers can’t beat that

Kaplan- your a dying breed. A real patriot. A real American bad ass. Lamb chops Xtra Large in charge, Still ripped going on 60, Tall as an Oak- manhandles 500's like a bear on a salmon. Thank you for allowing us to enjoy your museum and buisness- online for free!

Man I miss racing ! Nothing like line up next too 39 other guys going wide open into one turn raced a KX250 ,KX125. Four couple years 1984 to 88 . Mx people are the best. You guys rock.

Looks like a good time & there's nothing better than a 500 shootout day....👍🏻🔥💯🇺🇸

There is something about the 80s/90s motocross bikes that just makes them so much better than anything today in my opinion! I remember the first time walking through the door of our local dealer at the time! My father brought us and we couldn’t afford anything but it was still cool to check them all out! I miss my 92 kx 250

The KTM495 is from 84. The following year when they went liquid cooled was pretty much the same cc but labelled a 500. Phil Lovett won the Finke Desert Race in one and the following 1986 Finke, American Jimmy Ellis was leading the Finke race when his transfer port melted. You can find it in RU-vid.

Absolutely awesome video ! ! ! Love seeing all those big bore two strokes lined up beside one another.

You people are awesome!! I’m 55 grew up riding bikes. My biggest was a250. Always wanted to try a big bore. Good on ya! Thanks for preserving them. I know that the four strokes are pretty hot now. Still can’t compare to a two stroke on the pipe. God bless and stay safe . From Canada.

4 strokes are for slow pokes... Nice video. Great to see these old big bore smokers lined up and racing like that. Too bad there wasn't a Maico 700 mixed in there somewhere to make things interesting.

Great video guys thanks for sharing and getting us all together it was a real treat me and my son enjoyed it we just went out and got a couple new four strokes looking for a 250 2 stroke for my son I was a kx500 man back in the day I had an 86 monster thanks again great video 💪💪

One of the absolute BEST videos on RU-vid!!!

80s 90s I owned all the big bores. Hadn't riden in 15 years then 2015 I got a cr500 to relive old times. 2 days of riding in the desert, I was spent.

What a blast! Looks like you guys had a hell of a lot of fun on the 500 race.

incredible. My 11 yr old daughter loved watching all the jumps and the drag races. I think you have a new and young believer in those 500's

Rite there folks , looks like a great time. That's how you live.

Cool to see all those big bikes all together

Great video brother. Brings back so many memories. My teenage years, I had started with the cr80, then to the cr125 and arrived fully at the cr250. I love the sound and smell of any two strokes. At 50 years of age, I have a 76 Harley Davidson shovelhead. Thanks for sharing the love of bikes. Ga Mike

What an awesome video Ken. thanks for sharing this one man I really liked it looks like you guys had a hell of a lot of fun good night.

Dan Huckins, the Builder of my CR500 ask me how it compared on the dyno to my YZ 450 4 stroke which is Bored to 500; the important thing is that my 2010 YZ 450 with a 500cc Athena Big Bore Kit ported and Polished heads Builders cam bigger throttle body balance crank and Hinson clutch with a Yoshimura exhaust that was built over the course of a year with the best of everything produced 1 horsepower LESS than the mighty CR500!!!! But that is not the most amazing thing the most amazing thing is the CR500 has 25% more torque!!! This is not Pie in the Sky B.S. bench racing this is factual proof I had $25,000 tied up in my YZ 500 built by X pro Tim Slater and run on the same exact dyno... I have Dyno sheets for both as proof.... clearly on a track it's easier to go faster with the four stroke but there's nothing like two-stroke power for fun and giggles and it takes the smiles per mile meter!

What a great bunch of people! Having a great time, really nice to watch

This video is golden makes me happy to be on a bike

Awesome video. You guys are from my era. Great to see you all still into motorbikes

GREAT video !!! What a bunch of BEAUTIFUL bikes!! Good times

Just catching up on your video while I have time. I've been riding 500cc 2 strokes for 30 years too. Got my first cr500 when I was 11. Was an 1986. Still the fastest one I ever had. I think the 85 and 86 had a power valve that made them just gnarly fast. I loved that bike. I built 12 more after that and never had one that fast. Great video man. Old school power.....

you made my world a better place thanks ken and all in attendance.in realty two strokes mx ers are the gold bars of dirt squirting in my opinion .what your doing with the museum. = stashing gold for the future. and in the future 100 years from now,people will see these bikes in the museum and the videos u made will be a great reference of the history of how we lived our lives all those years ago.

Greatest page on RU-vid! Can’t wait to share this page with my pops!

“Everything is tight”

That Saleen is beautiful!

Possibly the greatest video on RU-vid!

Unfortunately inside of NJ here, dirt bikes are frowned upon... But we have plenty of places to ride.. I only feel safe on my XR dual sport ... I have a better chance of getting a ticket instead of getting the bike impounded for trespassing and then they will hold the bike until you go to court and probably get a thousand dollar fine plus towing and storage fees... Alot of people lose their biike,, if you don't have a title... Forget it then... It's gone..... never buy a untitled bike... .... But I would love to make some noise on a 500 2stroke. And then run from the authorities.. that would be fun...

Gorgeous machines! I do love the lines on the '84 CR. It's wicked how much they changed from '82 to '84. I still have a few brochures from the '82-'84 CR, XR and XL lines...

i would of loved to been there for that!!!! Love to watch the videos of the bikes y'all do. Please keep it up!

Awesome machinery. Thanks for sharing .

This by far the best channel I watch on RU-vid.. nothing but 2 smoke power I love it 😍💨

Have owned a Yamaha 73' SC500, 86' YZ 490 and 89' CR 500 and I am addicted to the 500 2 strokes, great video!

You guys know how to throw a party, awesome collection of bikes

awesome video man, thanks for sharing... I seen you getting those wins... good job! nice starts!

Suzuki guy in the beginning is like wait for meeee

Oooh baby!! Great video!! Thank you!!! God bless America!!

i love that drive way man.. Awesome video aswell, living the dream

I had a 1983 CR480R years ago, as far as I know the 82 was a 4 speed and the 83 was a 5 speed. Great bikes and loads of torque, absolutely a great video and brought back good memories.

Thank you to all of you guys for being the coolest guys on RU-vid!! This was amazing! An when Chris jumped that bad boy! It was amazing!! Thank you for staying true to your dreams an feeling the rush an terror at certain times an just having an absolute blast!! You guys are a blessing!! I gotta come visit the museum!! I can't imagine what it's like to just wake up an walk into history every day!! I bet it's like being in a time machine!! It has to be amazing!! But until the psychos in office lay off the con-vid kick... Coming to visit is out! But till I do get to come visit thanks for all these videos man!! I appreciate it!! Thank you God bless you an yours!

That is so cool! Awesome bikes! Awesome compound! I bought a ‘83 cr 480 back in ‘93. Had it for 5 years, I bored it, and jetted it and new clutch plates and springs. It was tuned perfect! It was a beast, I geared it down a bit , I rode trails and woods around Missouri. Sold it and bought a ‘87 Honda XL600, my son has that bike now, it was a awesome old bike in the woods.

Awesome!!!! Nostalgia at it’s finest

Omg your family is living the dream!!!!.you guys are amazing!

Such a fun night!

Awesome video I have a 1992 CR500 with a big bore kit 535 hot rod crank port and polished vforce 3 reeds gnarly pipe my bike goes back to the future

awsome video! need more like this. that jump took me by suprise haha

Sick day and a sick video! I had 89 cr500 when iwas a kid bought it as a basket case! That thing was silly fast!!! Especially me being a 125 hare scrambler back then! I plan on coming to the museum on the 25th! Should be a blast coming from rhode island!!! Cant wait to meet the lads from Kaplan cycles!

Bro. You hang out with some cool dudes!! I want a 2 stroke now. They sound amazing

Great look at vintage stuff grew up on those bikes!!!

I love all of the 500s here.. you don't see many RM 500s... I really like Larrys CR.. I cannot believe how Larry hurt his back side.. WOW that's brutal... thank you so much for sharing this post , Kaplan... Robert Jr NJ here XR 650 owner myself....

Just got a 84 4 stroke xr500r can’t wait to get her runnin. Been sittin for a year

Thanks Kaplan your the man !!!!!

I loved this video Kaplan. I hope that i can come from Canada sometime for an event you do

Omg im so jealous right now lol, u guys had a day of something that most people will never have a chance to try

Man that 480 is beautiful! Great piece

Pretty girls and ripping motorcycles…my two most favorite things in the world! 👌

Super badass that you got a foxbody, wasnt aware of that. my first car was a 87 gt, 5 speed. Currently have a 93 coupe, and a 89 coupe.

Hes more than the coolest guy on utube hes deadset the man with the best bikes

Wow!! Super video and a super place

Wow you guys look like your just living the dream.were not even aloud to ride in our own country side much love from the UK 🤘

Ole Kaplan. Closes em out every time. Looks like y’all had some fun.

Love the channel I use to own a few 500cc rippers. I miss my ole 1990 Yz490. I wish I made better choices in life so I could afford a couple of those gems you get in. Keep up that great job and ride safe braaaappppp

I’m callin the RM before I see the hole shot !! My man didn’t even try !! Holy freak , I never seen orange eye !! Thumbs up to the women !!

Great Video Again !

this was off the hook!

This was AWESOME!!!

Holy Chinese Anthropology Batman That Was An Awesome setup & bikes & Taylor Kaplan is Awesome Too she's the Bomb💣🌋🤜🤯🤛🌋💣

That is some pad !!! All those bikes- your yard is like golf course! Soo cool 🙏💪🏻🇺🇸👌🏻☀️ this video rocks

Work hard, play hard. Gota love it!

This is cool AF!. You guys gotsta do a legit 89 CR500 vs 89 KX500 drag race with several drag runs. I've always heard how much more bark the KX has and you should do a head-to-head if you could. I know the planets would have to align for that one though, especially to have both relatively un (or similarly) modified + rear meat. I love those KX's ALOT, but I'm more of a CR guy...so, it'll be what it be. Expectations (or rumors??) have me thinkin the KX might win anyway? 🔧

Love the sound!

Love this video- all of em. Now I’m gonna watch Senior RIP that gorgeous little 500 ( 80cc - Honda Elsinore 💪🏻💯🇺🇸😜 it’s a must see on how powerful these machines really are- 🇺🇸

Holy shit. You guys are living the friggin dream!

Awesome drag races that y'all had. Your compound is outstanding, and beautiful at night. I can't wait to ride with y'all on your amazing family compound, and truly appreciate yall's invitation to me, since I know y'all don't owe me anything.

That cacklin harmony of big bore smokers is enough to give any gearhead a stiffy

Great vid today!!!

Mr. Kaplan you guys have to have the girls ride one day !!

Just another fantastic vid, cheers guys n girls💖💖👍😂😊