More findings. More racing. More history. The discovery of two Rokon motorcycles sets Keith Geisner back on the trail-through research, interviews, and the stories that refuse to stay buried. Rokon: The Racing Years picks up where the past left off.
Legendary off-road racer Malcolm Smith's famous advice- "You have to slow down to go fast"-is usually applied to racing. Yet it could just as easily describe the journey behind Keith Geisner's latest book. What began as an effort to tell the story of a remarkable off-road motorcycle evolved into a four-year labor of research, preservation, and discovery. The result is a richly detailed look at one of the most exciting machines ever to hit the dirt, arriving just in time for the 50th anniversary of the company's final factory-backed racing season. More than a motorcycle story, it is a snapshot of an era when innovation, competition, and personality helped shape the future of the sport.
Working as a factory mechanic for the ROKON ISDT Team changed the course of my life. What began as an opportunity to help a small motorcycle company compete on the world stage grew into a 40-year career in the motorcycle industry and memories that have stayed with me ever since.
I still remember the long drives across the country supporting our riders as they chased their dream of representing the United States at the "Olympics of Motorcycling." I remember traveling to Peru to demonstrate the RT 340 to the Peruvian Army, building race bikes late into the night, and attending the 1975 Isle of Man Six Days Trial. Those experiences were the adventure of a lifetime.
And who would have thought a motorcycle with a pull starter could win gold medals against the best machines in the world? We did-and we proved it.
When author, historian, and motorcycle restoration expert Keith Geisner contacted me about this project, I was delighted to revisit the photographs, documents, and memories I had carefully saved for more than fifty years. His passion for the story matches our passion for the motorcycle, and this book brings that remarkable era back to life.
-Jon Stillman
Jon Stillman enjoyed a distinguished career with ROKON, Husqvarna, and Honda, contributing to some of the most influential brands in motorcycling.
KEITH GEISNER is an avid motorcyclist who has owned hundreds of motorcycles and ridden thousands of miles on backroads, trails, tracks, and highways across the United States. He enjoys sharing his incredible first-hand encounters with some of the industry's most influential and recognizable names.An engineer with more than two decades of experience in the automotive and aerospace industries, Keith uncovers and preserves motorcycle history one book at a time. His first book, Finding #49 and America's Forgotten Motocross Team, was published in 2019. His second book, Discovering Six Days, was published in 2021.
