1972 HUSQVARNA 450CR
Auction Sale Estimate: $7000 - $12000
DESERT MASTER

Like many good and proper things that are well designed and potentially very harmful, Husqvarna’s bloodline can be traced back to the production of guns. Producing motorcycles in 1903 at Husqvarna, Sweden, Husqvarna had been building rifles for the Swedish army since 1689. This genetic map seems to have stayed with the factory since they first began to produce motorbikes around the turn of the 20th century. By the 1960s and 1970s, Husqvarna was the dominant force in the world of motocross, winning 14 Motocross World Championships in the 125cc, 250cc and 500cc divisions, 24 Enduro World Championships and 11 Baja 1000 victories. The husky conquered all off-road classes – motocross, desert, enduro – and special events like Baja and The Mint 400, as well as world-class motocross, and made heroes of world-class riders such as Torlief Hansen, Bengt Aberg, Arne Kring and Gunnar Lindstrom. The GP 400 also attracted some fairly hairy fans such as Steve McQueen and Carl Bronson who brought their own reputations to the bike. The Husqvarna GP 400 was and remains exceedingly difficult to handle, spooking almost anyone out there who’s ever swung a leg over a motorcycle. You see, it was designed as man’s bike, either you rode a monster like the Husqvarna GP 400 with outright stupidity or you respectfully declined, claiming old war wounds, threats of divorce from the wife, religious intolerance, pulled muscles or fear of enclosed places, such as coffins. The GP 400 is, without doubt, illegal and should not be underestimated. This example is in razor-sharp condition, it will bite if given the chance.

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