I will hold my hands up at the start and will readilly admit to having a special fondness for this book! I make no apology for the fact that what follows is as far from being objective as my free kick taking skills are from David Beckham's.

The thing is, you see, this book is part and parcel of my love affair with Moto Guzzi as they both entered my life at the same time. It is a little like asking what came first, the chicken or the egg...I have no idea whether the book planted the seed of interest in Moto Guzzi or whether it was the other way round.

Mick Walker has always been associated with with an ability to create a knowledgeable, readable, book on motorcycling and this effort is no exception. He seems to have an uncanny ability to tell a good story whilst at the same time, embedding into the narration a wealth of technical information. One aspect is used to complement the other. I have read many a book where one has been overpowered by the other to the detriment of both the book and my patience. I cannot think of a single instance where I found myself skipping through any section of this narrative.

Several years ago, when I first came by it in the early 90's it was still a relatively recent publication. The Guzzis that were available at thattime were directly derived from those being described by Walker. There had not been such a huge technological advance then. The 1100 Sport owner of "my day" would have found it very straight forward to trace his machine's linneage through the Le Mans V, via the Le Mans I and back to the V7 Sport.


So, how does it stand up today? Nowadays most Guzzisti will be aboard newer machines than those described within. In my opinion, it now fills a valuable place in the history of the Guzzi as a unique record.

Today's initiates into the glory of the Mandello eagle will view the bikes described here totally differently to me. For me, it takes you through the machines I fantasized about as a nipper. It explains to me why my dad was, and still is, so besotted with his beloved T3.

For the modern day Guzzista, from the era of fuel injection, throttle position sensors, CARC torque reaction management this is a different form of romance...it is history.

Happilly though, the stonking motor in today's 1200 Sport is oh so similar to the one that Tonti found himself messing with as the V7 Sport took shape...isn't that one of the things that makes being a Guzzista so special? For me, this represents an account of my Moto Guzzi glory years. I thoroughly recommend any Guzzista reads this...you will thoroughly enjoy it.

Originally published by Osprey, 1986

ISBN 0-85045-650-9

£10.95 in its day!

Buy it through the Squadra Guzzista amazom-powered bookshop: GO