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In the early 1990s, as a backlash to the era of race replicas, riders began favoring naked bikes that were easy to ride yet commanded presence. This retrospective revisits the new standard embodied by the CB, XJR, and ZRX — a nostalgic look back at the motorcycle culture of that generation.
The naked bikes we ride as a matter of course today actually took shape in this era. Not too crouched forward, ridable normally, yet still dignified — the origin of a bike that feels manageable to a beginner is right here. It's fun how knowing the history makes your usual bike look a little different.
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Nostalgia's making it look better than it was, plenty of those were heavy with bad footing back then.
Bikes like the XJR and ZRX have shot up to old-timer collector prices now, it's rough.
Is it correct to think of naked bikes as ones without a fairing?
That's roughly right. Back then 'you can ride it normally' was actually the selling point.
Still love the ZRX1100's air-cooled form more than anything, that boxy tank is the best.
The era of the CB, XJR, ZRX... I remember feeling firsthand how the crowd tired of replicas flowed toward nakeds.
It says it's a reaction against the replica boom, but that's really just demand from middle-aged guys tired of leaning forward.
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