XT Alan

AND dirty. Like I said, I prep the bike carefully so that it can take all the muck without any cosmetic harm. My bikes always clean up in showroom condition, even though I ride all through the year.

Early this evening a friend (on a DRZ400) and I went on some pretty rough stuff. If you have a relief map of Wales, we went from Bontgoch (Elerch) up through the forestry to the end of the Nanymoch reservoire - about 12 miles and a climb of about 1200 feet in one two mile section. It took well over an hour and a half and we didn't see another human being. The XT was surprisingly capable of handling what, in places, was a very steep, rocky and loose surface. This track would be impassable to anything other than a short wheelbase Landrover. The Suzuki was obviously better, but the XT kept its end up. One thing I will do, however, is get better more supportive boots. My road boots were not up to the job. So the verdict on the XT is that it is a true dual purpose bike. The weight was not a problem, though the gearing is a little on the high side for very tricky sections. Crossing streams is FUN! The cooling fan came on for the first time in 2500 miles, which shows how hard and slow the engine was working. Paris Dakar - Here I come :shock:

Hi Pete, I've just read a review of the V Strom in Bike. They love it and think that it is an exceptionally comfortable, and generally useful mile muncher. Good for pillions they say. If you get one, watch out for the oil cooler which is set very low and is therefore very vulnerable to damage and corrosion. I know a couple of people with Suzuki V Twins and they both complain about this part getting messed up. Fit a Fender Extenda right from the off.

Don't be so modest :wink:

I started riding in 1962, when I was fourteen. We lived in the bush in Zimbabwe and the police allowed me to ride to school. The Kwaks were, in my experience, worse than the Suzukis. I had a Suzy 380 and it was pretty good, with its "lovely" bit of tin on the cylinders which they called RAM Air. The Kwak 500 was vicious when the power band kicked in on bends.

:oops:

Too many I'm afraid. How about riding two abreast and overtaking cars on both sides? A favourite game when we were 16. What did I learn? At the time - nothing! 16 year old boys are, and always were, morons. I was a moron!

Go for it Pete, the deal sounds very fair. The Suzuki has a good, proven engine and it's big and comfy. Like I've always said Suzukis are good bikes and their build quality is, nowadays, as good as Honda and Yamaha+they have the BEST gearboxes and fuel injection. Only one draw back - very short serice intervals, which you will have to keep to for your warranty. Just think! All that plastic to polish and no spokes to clean

AND it was the Golden Age of racing: Hailwood, Read, Agostini, Ivy, Redman, Bryans, Ceccotto, Nieto (the original), Cooper (the eyes), Ballington, Minter, Saarinen etc etc. The level of competition puts todays GPs in the shade - Apart from Rossi, Gibernau and Biaggi who is there? It is all very thin. Then the Yanky flat trackers arrived and blew us away in the Trans Am races. The second golden age: Roberts, Chandler, Spencer, Lawson, Rainey, Schwantz and then Gardner and Doohan and then ......... AND there was a real open contest between manufacturers. None of this handicapping of the strokers. Honda went to huge extremes keeping the 4 strokes on the pace. 50cc bikes that revved to 24,000 and had 14 speed gearboxes. Their 250 Six was just fabulous. Suzukis Square 4 strokers, the MV Triples etc. Simply brilliant! The result? Today's multi cylinder superbikes

It's because we started our biking lives in the 60s, the start of the Japanese conquest. Bikes were our only transport (rich kids had cars)and I spent ALL my money on bikes. Every year there were seriously cool and innovative bikes coming out of Japan. Younger riders can never realise quite how excited we got when the first C72 Honda arrived, or the first RDs, 750 and 500 Fours, Z1s, not to mention the Suzuki and Kawasaki triples. They simply blew the Brit Bikes away. The current market is bland and tame in comparison. People like you and I are also survivors. The early Superbikes were really dangerous. For example: the 750 and 500 Kawa Triples were absolutely evil and staying on one without crashing was nigh on impossible. All the technology was in the engines. Just look at the tyres we used to ride around on - thin, hard. Compared to today the brakes were a joke and to get a peg down on those bikes was quite something. Even the worst bikes today can be flung on their ears without a second thought. Only in the last 15 years have the Japanese got the hang of frame design. The younger generation will never know just how much skill it took to hustle these wobbly beauties along.

Piaggio are favourites, but Ducati and Bombadier are also in the frame.

It won't last

This is my FIRST Yamaha, and very good it is too. I've mainly had Suzukis in recent times, loads of Hondas (when they were clearly the best bikes), a Triumph Tiger 650 (Mid 70s), a Dunstall Norton 600 SS, a Cotton, a Francis Barnett and a Royal Enfield.

I think that every biker should have an observed ride with a police rider once every two years. I have done a couple. They are really useful. These boys really know how to ride fast and safe. If you take on board their comments and criticisms your riding benefits for a long time afterwards - then sploppy habits creep in. I also think that all bikes of 100 bhp+ should only be ridden by riders who have passed an advanced riding examination. If biker organisations volunteered to do these kinds of things, we may just head off the draconian restrictions that I think will soon be imposed upon all of the biking world.

It would seem a logical thing to do Pete. Kawasaki have a very small range of bikes. Only the ZXs are on the pace, the rest are all dated and uninspired. It is only a matter of time before we have a Big 3 rather than 4. The Japanese + BMW, Ducati, Triumph, KTM, Harley and Aprilia (if they survive) are pretty much all that's left - sad. In the car world common platforms with cosmetic differences are now the order of the day. Basically only GM, Ford, Benz/Chrysler, BMW, Renault, Peugeot, Toyota, VW and Fiat are left. Saabs are Vectras, Jagsand Volvos are Mondeos etc etc. So Kawasaki V Stroms are straws in the wind.

I said the Welsh hardy ever win. But we have had our moments: Lyn Davies - Long Jump Gold. Colin Jackson -110 Metres Hurdles gold. Not to mention Ian Woosnam - USA Masters Golf Champ and the great Gary Hocking 500cc World Champ in pre-Ago times.

The Olympics. Otherwise known as the "Our Druggies are faster than your Druggies" contest. It is why the Welsh hardly ever win. WE ARE CLEAN AND PURE :wink:

It is exactly the same as the V Strom apart from having an adjustable screen and different cosmetics. Even the Suzuki VIN Plate is on the frame with the word Suzuki over written. The Suzuki is a good bike, so there is no reason why this Kawasaki clone shouldn't be equally good. Unless it has the characteristic Kwappy front wheels

Beware these lycra types, they all ride Hondas :yes and eat muesli :dance

1. Agreed 100%. The adrenelin rush you get from going fast is addictive and people actually get hooked on it and need more and more and more. 2. Agreed 100%. The consequences on a trail bike are less severe though. That you are still riding after your experience, proves that biking is an affliction :roll: Once bitten, forever smitten!

Have you thought about the last version of the old style Fazers? They look a lot better (same fairing style as the Fazer 1000) than the new one in my opinion and some testers reckon that it is also a better performing bike. It uses a version of the Thundercat motor as opposed to the R6.

It's a Swansea thing

Not many. The're all out perched on the pillions of Grandads' R1s and Blades, with their cellulite hidden from sight under their leathers. Maybe Supersports are good after all, they keep Grannies out of the clubs and pubs I am sure that you are competent N Tart. But are you competent enough to exploit the full potential of a 145 bhp, 175 mph bike on the public roads. Pete and I live in Death Valley (Wales). It is, literally, horrifying to watch the terrible bike control of the Sunday thrashers as they travel from the Midlands to Aberystwyth on Sundays. Almost without exception (the vast majority) the sports bike riders are going too fast for their own skills and the condition of the roads around here. They are actually quite funny to watch as they scream up to bends and wobble around them, barely in control. The resulting death toll is horrific. Our village has seen 5 deaths within 2 miles in the last 2 years :!: AND all bikers now have zero tolerance and open hostility from the police all over Wales.

I actually like him :roll: although I do admit that he has his off days, but then, don't we all. I never listen to salesmen anyway Pete, they usually have an axe to grind and have rarely ridden what they sell. I trust my own judgement (got it badky wrong with the CB :? ). Buying a bike is so personal that only I KNOW extactly what I want. What I look for in a dealer is a good mechanic (Mike at David Jones is superb!) and decent aftersales if things go pear shaped AND a place where I'm known, treated well and where you can have a chat. David Jones hits the spot for me. He's a bit pricey, but a couple of extra % on a deal is worth it if you have good back up.

You know Pete that there is the perfect bike for you out there! The Africa Twin. It is "old school" Honda, strong and characterful. Big comfy seat and almost as nimble as the XT. About the same performance as the XT 660 and only a little more cumbersome off road. They were sold until 03, so there must be a few low mileage minters about. I think I've said before that I am not big on brand loyalty - a good bike is a good bike is a good bike............... and the XRV750 is a very good bike. My friend's (one of my Scotland trip buddies) loves his and says that it is the best bike he has ever owned. If I were you, I would seriously keep a look out for one.