[ToNY97]

Check out the February issue of Cycle World.

You'll see your favorite bike on the cover and its ancestor next to it.
It's celebrating 30 years of the Ninja.

The article says that the Ninja 900 or GPZ1000? introduced in 1984 is the forefather of the Ninja 1000 not the ZX10R.

I saw an original Ninja at the Times Square Takeover in Sept. 2012.
It had a small badge denoting "liquid cooled" and it sported a rectangular headlight, banana seat and relaxed handlebars.

If you watch Top Gun you can see one too. The marketing director at Kawi made the movie producer pay for 3 of them because demand was great and money is money. Since Tom Cruise insisted on a Kawasaki for the movie, the producer had to oblige but he did cover the Kawi badge with stickers. He showed them.

 

[stayup]

haha. Nice point on Kawi not giving the motorcycles for free.

I think I remember reading that somewhere

Kawi flexing its muscles.

 

[Cpt. Joe]

30 years of Ninja. So weird that 1984 is thirty years ago now.

I'll have to pick up the issue, or at least look through it at a gas station of something.

Did you actually read the article? Did it have much valuable info on Kawasaki, the Ninja and the Ninja 1000?

 

[ToNY97]

I read the article. It was a fluff piece that read like a promotional flyer.

It was positive with nothing detrimental. I liked the history aspect.

 

[blue cheer]

GPZ900R it was

 

[ToNY97]

Was that from the movie? Are those Naval decals?

 

[KawiRider]

Was that from the movie? Are those Naval decals?

it was in the movie Top Gun:

Scenes from the movie "Top Gun" with the Kawasaki GPZ 900R

 

[stayup]

loved that movie.

 

[blue cheer]

so did the military, boosted enrollment big time just in time for the gulf war

 

[-VOID-]

I think that the auto industry has a lot of "journalism" that is really marketing. Writers just copy the press release for the car. Granted, maybe they don't have much info to go on given that auto companies hold their cards so close all the time.

 

[ToNY97]

>Top Gun came out 6 years before Gulf War.

>Cruise got on the bike from the right side. Don't most get on from the kickstand side? I bet it was a camera angle/lighting thing.

>Ok, I'll be Maverick, anybody wanna be Goose? We have room for an Iceman and Viper, etc.

 

[Sportsfan]

Thanks for the offer but I'll pass on getting Goosed.

 

[blue cheer]

>Top Gun came out 6 years before Gulf War.

>Cruise got on the bike from the right side. Don't most get on from the kickstand side? I bet it was a camera angle/lighting thing.

>Ok, I'll be Maverick, anybody wanna be Goose? We have room for an Iceman and Viper, etc.

25 years later, how ‘Top Gun’ made America love war

 

[Warprints]

I well remember both Gulf of Sidra incidents - 1981 and 1989. The Libyan encounter in the movie was very loosely based on the 1981 incident (obviously not on the 1989 incident).

Maybe Cruise was trying to emulate motor cops who often mount and dismount from the right. (I doubt he was - I agree that it was due to the lighting/angle they wanted for the camera.)

 

[ToNY97]

I knew from the opening credits that I would like the movie.

 

[stayup]

 

[ToNY97]

Did love scenes with Tom Cruise cause Kelly McGillis to switch sides?