When I was a kid one or both of my elder brothers had a motorcycle at one point or another. I myself have never owned one until very recently, but I have always been around them or on one from time to time. For the last year or 2 the urge to finally get my own has had just become too much. That combined with gas prices and some recent trips to the National Forest off road park with friends in jeeps, made the time ripe to take the plunge.

Like I try to do before buying anything, I did extensive research. My criteria included

1. Low price
2. Versatility
3. Efficiency
4. Support

Coming in at just shy of $5400 The KLR 650 sits at the bottom edge of what you can get a new motorcycle for. As far as its versatility, it is what would be considered an enduro, or dual sport. Meaning it is just as capable off road as it is on. In production for for 21+ years, the design has proved itself time and again, and is Kawasaki’s 4th best selling motorcycle to this day. She is a 1 cylinder (thumper) 4 stroke with a displacement of 651 cc’s, which translates into an average of 55 MPG. I save almost as much as the payment in gas. Compared to my Honda Element, about $120 an month. This bike has what you could only describe as a cult following. There are many forums dedicated solely to this bike, the 2 best I have found being

KLRworld and KLR650.net

The aftermarket support is unreal, and anything you would ever want to do to one of these is well documented on one of the above mentioned sites or others.

Owning this bike has without a doubt made life more enjoyable. I ride it as much, and as many places as humanly possible, and if you are daring enough, it will go just about anywhere you could think of. Because of its geometry (tall, with wide, dirt style handle bars) cornering is effortless, and has been claimed by others to be on par or better than any purpose built sport bike in the twistys. Off road prowess is very comendable too, you can see some examples here. With a recent resurgence underway, there are plenty of dual sport type bikes on the market to choose from, but all things considered (nothing to do with me owning one ) It’s hard to see a better choice than the Kawasaki KLR 650. Of course, like everything there are issues and compromises that must be considered. Most of which in case of the KLR have be addressed by a complete redesign for the 2008 model. So, start doing your research, and no matter which you decide, I hope to see you on the road soon!

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