Damon Bradshaw's Dr.D YZ450F - Dream Ride - Dirt Rider Magazine

Since I grew up in a rural, middle-of-nowhere armpit, we didn't have the modern technologies or services that city folk had. For example: a gym, trash service, home-delivered mail and even cable TV were out of the question, and satellite television was too expensive. So except for a few magazines, I was cut off from the world of pro racing and never had the pleasure of seeing supercross live or on TV. Then, one day a friend brought this VHS tape (yes, we had a VCR) called Throttle for the Gold.Throttle for the Gold recapped the 1990 supercross season, and it was the most amazing thing I had seen with epic battles, good crashes, high-flying action and plenty of dicing it up. I got my own copy and watched it every day. There were a lot of great riders captured on that VHS tape, but one exciting athlete stood out. He was a young rider with great intensity named Damon Bradshaw. I looked up to him as a racer because he was so young and so fast. Plus, he rode a Yamaha, and that's what my dad had and what I wanted.The next year I got to see Bradshaw and his bike close up at the Anaheim Supercross. I remember dreaming that one day I'd get to ride a bike like his, and in a venue such as Angel Stadium. Well, my dream came true in parts. I have raced in Angel Stadium, and I finally got to ride Damon's bike!The Dubach Racing Development crew built "The Beast from the East" a Yamaha YZ450F for the U.S. Open grudge match between Bradshaw and Jeff Matiasevich. It wasn't full factory, but this machine seriously belongs under the tent. It had full kit suspension, Dr. D motor mods, lowered radiators, Dunlop tread, Applied clamps, Hinson clutch components and a number of other Dr. D trinkets.I've only ridden one bike that's been set up for SX, my own privateer ride, and this Dr. D machine put mine to shame. The suspension was amazing. At first I thought the fork was going be too firm for me and that it would only work on bigger impacts (which it did quite well). But I was wrong in thinking it would work well in only one area. The track I rode had some braking bumps along with a little acceleration chop. The fork, together with the shock, came up with the perfect recipe to keep the Dunlops on the ground. If your tires are touching the dirt when they're supposed to, it means you're moving forward. This bike tracked and worked really well everywhere!Another characteristic of the suspension that I liked is that it was lively and never blew through the stroke. Blowing through will take away your speed off steep jump faces and make it difficult to get through some rhythm sections. But this progressive Enzo set allowed me to feel confident in trying new jump combinations. Again, this bike was always moving forward.The motor and exhaust combo also helped this YZ along. It felt like Dr. D left some of that stock smoothness and usable power off the bottom that works so well for delivery. Then, they added some strong, usable mid. The transition into mid was definitely faster as well as feeling a ton stronger and more broad than stock. This motor was very easy to ride. Coming through corners you could just twist the throttle and you'd get nothing but traction.I also felt that Bradshaw's YZ450F cornered better than stock. I had issues in Dirt Rider's shootout with the bike always wanting to stand up in the corners. I think by combining Enzo's beefy prototype front axle lugs (which gives the front wheel a more stable feel) with Enzo's kit suspension and the Dr. D radiator lowering kit, they got this bike to settle down and get into the corners faster. Guess what that means? The bike can accelerate earlier!It's crazy to think that when I was a little boy I dreamed of riding Bradshaw's finely tuned Yamaha. And now, 18 years later, my dream came true. This truly was a Dream Ride!PARTS AND SERVICES
Dubach Racing:
www.dubachracing.com; 951.808.1114Front brake hose clamp: $29.99
Hot-start lever: $48.95
SS/A exhaust system: $549.95
Pro-packing: $39.99
Radiator lowering kit: $49.99
Hourmeter: $36.99
Hourmeter bracket: $15.99
Motor mods: $549.99Tag Metals:
www.sixsixone.com; 888.520.4888SX-bend bar: $100Decal Works:
www.decalworks.com; 815.784.4000Complete Limited Edition graphics: $155Niks Distributing:
www.niksdistributing.com; 888.500.6457AP rear brake pads: $39.95
AP front brake pads: $39.95Applied Racing:
www.appliedrace.com; 800.853.0555Upper/lower triple clamp set: $395.95Dunlop Tire:
www.dunloptire.com; see your dealerD745 120/80-19: $121.11
D745 race-spec 90/100-21: $100.51Enzo Racing:
www.enzoracing.com; 714.541.5218Fork revalve: $180.95
Shock revalve: $180.95
KYB kit suspension: $7000.00
Enzo prototype fork foot/axle carrier: $NAHinson Racing:
www.hinsonracing.com; 909.946.2942Complete YZ450F clutch kit: $1114.99