Yamaha DT-1

I had the opportunity to photography this beautiful 1968 Yamaha DT-1 a couple of years ago in my studio. This bike was in pristine condition and owned by Gerald Tims, a vintage motorcycle collector and owner of Performance Cycles OKC.

The DT-1 was a game-changing motorcycle. It was the first affordable, light weight and reasonably powerful dirt bike. Yamaha immediately sold out of their first 12,000 unit production run. They quickly increased production while other manufacturers were scrambling to keep up. The Yamaha was extremely reliable for the day, it could compete with the best purpose built dirt bikes on the market, and yet was affordable to purchase and own.

I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to photograph this stunning example. It is one of the most popular photographs in my collection. I hear comments all the time about “Wow, I used to ride one of those things!” What a great bike.