Since the launch of his 350LC-styled XSR900 Yamaha almost five years ago, Hag Hughes says he’s sold around 160 of the kits worldwide. That’s pretty good going for Velocity-Moto.com– the Surrey-based company he set up to offer special performance components and the restyling kits.
As a self-confessed RD350LC fan, Hag used his experience in producing exotic racers and track-day machines to tap into his enthusiasm for the liquid-cooled two-stroke twins from the early 1980s and offer like-minded fans a bike that reflected the iconic look but with modern performance, handling and refinement. And with the peace of mind of ordering the parts kit or a complete bike through approved Yamaha dealers.
It’s clearly worked, as customers from as far as Australia and New Zealand have testified. “I was really surprised,” Hag says, showing me images of the bikes sent by them on his phone, “because those markets didn’t get the models that the 900LC was based on. A lot of the buyers were either original owners of RD350LCs or those who have a collection.”
It was certainly a striking piece of kit, with its polished alloy frame, raucous exhaust system and meticulous detailing. “We raced 350LCs in the eighties and were real hooligans. The RD range was such an iconic brand, which is why it has stuck in the memory,” says Hag, who was part of the team that in the early 1990s set up Fast Bikes, a magazine dedicated not just to the fantasy
