1978-80: The way to the first enduro

The roots of the BMW GS lie in off-road racing. At the end of the seventies, BMW Motorrad participated in international events such as the famous Six Days and European off-road racing championships. Also, some BMW Motorrad engineers and mechanics developed their own models during this period, entering off-racing events with these. On the basis of these competitive motorcycles, a roadworthy prototype was created without any official development contract which had excellent qualities for both on-road and off-road use. The prototype itself was so good that the management of BMW Motorrad GmbH immediately gave their blessing to the project and in less than 21 months BMW was able to present the result to the public.