Description
This motorcycle is Lot 144 - To be auctioned by Bonhams at The Spring Stafford Sale (The International Classic MotorCycle Show) on 26th & 27th April, please see the Bonhams website for full details.
Auction Timings:
Lots 1 - 147 are to be sold from 14:00 on Saturday 26th April 2025.
Lots 201 - 410 are to be sold from 11:00 on Sunday 27th April 2025.
Public Viewing:
Available 26th & 27th April 2025 from 09:00 until 17:00, at The Stafford County Showground (The International Classic MotorCycle Show).
Lot 144
The Dale Winfield Motorcycle Collection, Ex-Eddie Kidd, OBE
1985 Yamaha YZ490 Stunt Bike
Registration no. not registered
Frame no. 57H-000813
Engine no. 57H-000813
Jumped all around the world
World Record-setting machine
Present ownership since 1993
Authenticating document
Arguably the UK's greatest motorcycle stunt performer of all time, Eddie Kidd enjoyed a stellar career for some 20 years before a tragic accident while performing a jump left him paralysed and suffering from brain damage. Having started his career aged fourteen, Eddie set numerous world records for jumping over rows of cars and buses, as well as acting as a stunt double in many movies. In the latter role he has doubled for Timothy Dalton in The Living Daylights; Pierce Brosnan in Goldeneye; Roger Moore and Michael Caine in Bullseye!; Harrison Ford in Hanover Street; and Val Kilmer in Top Secret. In 1993 Kidd jumped over the Great Wall of China on a motorcycle. The Yamaha moto-crosser offered here was taken to China for that jump, but Eddie elected to perform the stunt on another machine.
While performing at the Bulldog Bash event in August 1996, Eddie had to jump a distance of 49 feet across a drag strip, a relatively insignificant ask for someone of his calibre. Although he completed the jump successfully, Eddie was knocked unconscious on landing and lost control as a result, ending up going over a 20 foot high embankment. He sustained serious head and pelvic injuries and did not regain consciousness until three months later.
Since then Eddie has taken part in the 2011 London Marathon, completing the course in six weeks having discarded his wheelchair at the start. In July 2012 he was one of a select few chosen to carry the Olympic Torch during its journey to London; this was shortly after he had been awarded an OBE in HM The Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to charity.
This Yamaha comes with an undated authenticating document, signed by Eddie Kidd, stating: "This bike has been jumped all around the world i. e. Japan, China, America, Sweden, France, Australia." He goes on to list its following notable achievements:
1989 10 trucks, Tring, GB
1989 100 foot bonfire, Epping Forest, GB (World Record)
1990 140 foot jump, Japan, first ever, watched by 35 million viewers
1991 120 foot fountain, Toulouse, France
1992 8 buses, no hands, Knutsford, GB (World Record)
1993 9 buses, no hands, China (World Record)
Eddie concludes: " Done over 3, 000 jumps and never crashed, it's been a lucky bike."
Our late vendor purchased Eddie's Yamaha at a UK auction sale in London in December 1993 (invoice on file). Following a period of inactivity, this motorcycle will require recommissioning or possibly more extensive restoration before further use and thus is sold strictly as viewed (the engine turns). Key not required.
All lots are sold 'as is/ where is' and Bidders must satisfy themselves as to the provenance, condition, age, completeness and originality prior to bidding. Visit the Bonhams Motorcycles website for all pertinent auction information.
