Tim's Motorcycle Diaries: An Adventurous, Versatile, Always-on Versys

Wednesday, 16 March 2016

An Adventurous, Versatile, Always-on Versys

Two bikes not being used...

With the ongoing frustrations with trying to run a 22 year old bike as my daily rider I'm thinking of rearranging things so that I have a more functional motorbike stable. At the moment I've got a KLX250 that I don't throw a leg over very much and isn't a popular choice with my pillion. I've also got the big old Yamaha project bike that isn't getting any attention because I'm spending all my garage time working on the Concours. Rejigging things to have a more functional stable is on my mind.

I miss having I.T. on at least one bike - having an onboard computer means the bike will self regulate and run more consistently. Being a computer teacher means I'm not really scared of digital tech either, so I'd welcome it back.

The process might look like this: sell the KLX, get the XS1100 operational and sell it too, and sell the little Yamaha my son has never ridden. In a perfect world I'd bring in about $4000 with those bikes.

What I'd be looking for is a second bike that could do basic commuting duties including two-up, would run all the time, and could ride a wider range of roads than the Concours is comfortable on. As a road tool the Concours takes some beating (when it works). It'll tour two up comfortably with lots of room for luggage, cover highway miles with ease and makes for a surprisingly agile back road weapon when riding alone. What it needs is a break from the demands of being an always on motorcycle (it's twenty-two years old!).

That always on motorcycle should be light with a fuel injected/modern engine. Of course the Ninja was those things, though it was a very road focused machine as well. Kawasaki makes the Versys, based on the same ER6 chassis as the Ninja but with an enduro riding position. With a few tweaks that bike could become the light-weight all-rounder I'm looking for. At only 180kg, the Versys 650 is a mighty light, very dependable bike.

Where would I find a Versys? They're about. There is a well cared for '07, albeit with pretty high kilometres, for under three thousand over in Kitchener.Starting there I could build out an adventure Versys. There are a lot of people doing something similar...