“King Kenny” Rides Again
At this year’s 19th Annual Barber Vintage Fest, a new display was unveiled. Three-time Grand Prix World Champion Kenny Roberts and his son, Kenny Roberts Jr. were featured in a new exhibit at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum in Birmingham, Alabama. Three historic bikes are now on display for motorcycle fans to enjoy their racing significance. Kenny Roberts, Grand Marshal at this year’s event, and his 1980 Yamaha YZR500 (OW48) along with Kenny Jr.’s 2000 Suzuki RGV500 and 1998 Modena KR3 500 were prominently featured. The Barber Museum is a bucket list trip for anyone who loves any type of motorcycle.
The full installation at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum.
On Friday morning, October 11th, fans were treated to an interview of Kenny Roberts by Kevin Cameron in the restoration portion of the museum. Kevin stated that often people think of motorcycle racers as daredevils, but in actuality they are quite logical and rationally driven to win. Kenny agreed and described how he thought about riding and what it took to go fast. He shared that while racing he was noting how the bike handled under different conditions, the tire grip, the tuning, and exhaust system function. Rider and bike have to be synchronized to perform as one. Winning is a racer’s job, and he had to win to “pay the bills and feed the kids”. Kenny also informed attendees that the YZR500 (OW48) was his favorite bike. Note the design elements of this historic bike in the following photos:
The unique exhaust routing of Kenny’s Yamaha YZR500 (OW48).
Later that afternoon was the Kenny Roberts Collection introduction and fans packed the center staircase of the museum for a photo opportunity as Kenny and the bike came up on the elevator from the basement. Kenny seemed to enjoy the fact that everyone was excited about the installation. As the Barber Museum crew backed the bike into place and anchored it into position, fans clapped and cheered. Kenny and Kenny Jr. autographed souvenir post cards for fans. It was truly a historical event and a job well done by everyone at the Barber Museum.
Kenny exiting the elevator with his bike, discussing it with Robert Pandya as Brian Case and staffer installs the bike, and Kenny posing for his old photog friend Geoff.
A bit of trivia: In 1980 Geoff was able to photograph the YZR500 (OW48). It had returned from Europe during the summer break, as testing was not allowed in Europe. The bike was entered at Laguna Seca in an AMA national race. AMA ran two 100 kilometer races and Kenny won both. He returned to Europe where he would become a three time world champion later that year. Note the white contact paper showing his AMA number 2 over the yellow background and the number 1.
The original bike at Laguna Seca in 1980.
Geoff first saw Kenny Roberts on track in 1973 at the San Jose, California half mile. He actively began photographing Kenny in 1975 up until he retired in 1985 at Laguna Seca. Kenny would often make sure that Geoff had a press pass when he saw him at a race. It was a special treat to photograph Kenny back on track and see that at age 72, Kenny can still get that knee down as he goes through a curve. I enjoyed seeing Kenny’s and Geoff’s love for motorcycle racing come together at this event. The rider and the photographer, together again doing their thing at the track. Geoff having been a “Kenny fan” for over 50 years, it meant a lot to me to be out Saturday, on track shooting “The King” with Geoff, as his idol rode by.
Kenny on track with his historic YZR500, the track staff celebrating as much as signaling with their race flags.
We have a full range of photos from this event on our own site that you can enjoy, from Side Cars to Flat Track on Asphalt, and even a little Road Racing. Link below. We’d love to hear your Kenny stories as well, so leave us a comment. We plan to be back at Barber next year for the 20th Anniversary of the Vintage Festival, October 3-5, 2025 and hope to see you there!
Barb Nickless
*Photos by Geoff Nickless
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