2009 Kawasaki KLX250S… beaten in Death Valley

Thirty years in the saddle have surprisingly not yielded a great amount of seat time in the dirt. Sure I’ve done some very demanding BMW GS off-road intros over the years and some crazy road bike stuff in South America and India, but hitting the trail for serious dual-sport ride has been an experience that has eluded me. Until yesterday that is. Slapping me up side the head like my old English teacher’s black board duster, a day in the saddle of the 2009 Kawasaki KLX250S on the spectacular and challenging trails in Death Valley has got me instantly addicted and made me realize what I’ve been missing all these years.

On the face of it, to the uninitiated, the Kawasaki KLX250S could seem a little pedestrian. A low horsepower, 277-pound 250cc single cylinder motorcycle doesn’t sound like a recipe for too much fun. Hit 40mph on a twisting, turning, rocky trail through the picture book stunning Echo Canyon, where a wrong move will have you doing some serious aerobatics before you hit the ground, and that perception is instantly kicked to the curb. Providing all the adrenaline you can handle, forcing a level of concentration equal to being at a racetrack, the sure-footed KLX skips across the rocks and dirt with the confidence of a young mountain goat at play. Of course you can slow down a little to sniff the proverbial roses, and while this is a tad less exciting, it’s still a mind blowing experience absorbing the wild desert scenes playing out in the 360 degree scenic panorama flooding through my face shield. Floating over every different kind of surface you can imagine without drama, the KLX 250 did absolutely everything I asked of it and more.

Back at silly speeds again chasing Kawasaki PR man, Jeff Herzog, and all my peers meant goodbye scenic view hello 100% concentration. Involving virtually every muscle in my soft, office-shaped body and delivering the biggest collection of sweaty grins I have seen in a while when we paused for liquids and a snack, I am now totally sold on the benefits of Dual Sport riding. And, in my humble opinion, the Kawasaki KLX250S might just be the perfect tool for the job. As a class I am not familiar with, a little research has revealed Honda and Yamaha make similar sized DP bikes, but at this point I can’t make a comparison so I’ll stick to the small Kawasaki.

As I have done a few trail miles on 650cc singles and big GS Beemer’s, so far I have always found them to be very demanding in the dirt. Not so the KLX250S, light, maneuverable, and unbelievably forgiving to a poor off-road fool like myself, the diminutive Kawasaki is certainly responsible for saving my unworthy hide on more than one occasion during our day of riding. Totally impressing me also with the way the suspension dealt with keeping my 180 pounds in the saddle, the exact moment I fell in love will remain crystal clear forever.

Plucking up the courage to keep up with the group, all very experienced dirt riders, I didn’t see the sudden drop before it was way too late. Bracing myself for the resulting crunching feeling I was about to experience in my wrists and shoulders, the front wheel hit the ground, the suspension took the hit without thinking about it, and the bike and I stayed on the track without any resulting pain.

Responsible for saving my tail on this and a number of occasions, the 43mm inverted fork comes with 16-way compression damping and a trendy looking shroud for ’09, which apparently didn’t come on last year’s model.

Displacing 249cc and with one 72mm piston moving through a 61.2mm bore, the KLX doesn’t so much accelerate but more gently gathers speed. On two-lane blacktop this takes a little reprogramming as you get up to road speed, but once there, the KLX will zip along at 65-75mph quite happily. It will also hold 80mph plus if you so desire, and tucked in pulling out of a draft, I had 91mph registering on the digital speedometer at one point.

Throw in a head wind and it’s necessary to drop to fifth gear to hold these speeds. This doesn’t cause a problem as sixth gear has been lowered some this year so the rpm don’t go off the scale. Remembering the little single is pretty close to red line at these speeds, a figure that occurs at 10,500rpm.

Looking at the gauges on the KLX has one of the most attractive set ups I have seen in a long time. A skinny oblong affair, the rpm race across the top of the LCD screen as the engine rise, and the mph are shown by a digital numbered readout. There are dual trip meters and all the usual functions lights for neutral, turn signals etc. This gauge sits behind a small number-plate style fly screen and is really more of a cosmetic feature than a wind protection device. Bars are fairly narrow and not as high as I would have thought for a dirt-oriented machine. Switchgear is simple and functional, and the round mirrors do a very good job of showing what’s behind without blur or close ups of your elbows. Levers are non-adjustable and the clutch is cable operated. This is light and easy to pull and doesn’t put any strain on your hand working it hard in the tight stuff. The front brake is sensitive to the touch, which builds confidence in the dirt, and was easy to modulate when needed. Easily able to overwhelm the softly sprung front fork on the street though if you aren’t careful, it still can get the light bike slowed quickly when used in moderation with the back brake. Both rotors on the new KLX have been upgraded to Kawasaki’s signature wave pattern, and the rear has also been enlarged this year to 240 mm.

At 35 inches the seat height appears to be tall, but the suspension is soft enough to eat into a few of these inches, so it’s easy to get your boots on the deck when needed. The saddle is narrow, but not torturous when compared to something like Aprilia’s SVX450/550 series, and will let you make some miles before your rear end starts complaining. Another reason for this comfortable ride is the plush suspension. Soaking up bumps with aplomb, there are also 16 positions of compression adjustment available from the single Preload adjustable Uni-Track rear shock. Ground clearance is quoted at 11.2 inches, and I used all of this up at my most extreme moments. Real expert riders are going to need to stiffen up the suspension or just ride within the bike’s limits. Entry-level riders aren’t going to have a problem.

Fuel capacity seems a tad small to me at two gallons from empty, but with the bike probably pulling over 60 mpg, it will give you plenty of seat time in the dirt before you need to find more. Transmission duties are taken care of by a very slick shifting six-speed gearbox, and shifting up and down with out the clutch is no problem when needed. Coming to a showroom near you soon in Lime Green or Sunbeam Red, this stylish dirt go-getter is reasonably priced at $4,899. As a machine that will most likely be a second bike and be taken on a trailer to the sort of places we were lucky enough to test it, I can’t think of too much more affordable fun. Get together with a significant other, your best mate or riding friend, and go out and have as much fun as you can have on two wheels without breaking the bank. And, with the way fuel prices are heading with its frugal fuel consumption and light weight, it will also make the perfect zipping to work tool especially if you have to deal with heavy traffic and our lovely irregular road surfaces.