2022 marked the 50th birthday of two ultra-significant models in Kawasaki’s back catalogue, which at the same time could hardly be more contrasting one to the other.
They’re the beat-that-Honda 903cc 4-cylinder Z1 4-stroke and the H2 Mach IV 750cc 2-stroke triple, Kawasaki’s ultimate drag-strip dominatrix which took no prisoners in straight-line competition. Going round corners was however quite a different matter.
One man who’s been fortunate enough to be able to celebrate both birthdays by simply opening his garage doors and choosing any of the 22 different Kawasakis he owns for a ride through the countryside around his home is British Kawa-kollector Rich Hobbs. For Guildford, Surrey-born Rich, 57, who runs a property maintenance business, has been a Kawasaki owner since 1984, after passing his test a couple of years earlier on a borrowed Honda SS50. “I’ve always felt Kawasakis were a cut above the rest,” he says. “The
