I just signed up. Kawasaki is doing demo days.
Kawasaki Street Demo Days

See if there is a local event near you and sign up. I want to jump on a few for sure... and walk away with a Kawasaki hat. I have simple needs.

 

Not sure if it's the same setup but..........
I spent almost 1/2 day messing around at the similar Can-Am event........all for a 15 minute ride.
Absolutely not worth the time spent IMHO.

Hopefully the Kawasaki event is better with less sales, promotional, and legal BS.

 

I just got back from the Del Mar Event. I signed up to ride the KLR650. I got there at 1:30 and had to wait an hour for the next time slot. So I went for an hour ride on my KLX250S and came back. I've never sat on a KLR650 let alone ride one. It sat about the same as my lowed KLX. The wrap around shroud was a little disorientating at first. That's a whole lotta plastic up front. The handle bars felt really wide. There probably that wide to save all the plastics if you drop it. When I turned the key on nothing on the dash showed you that it was on until you hit the starter. Guess I'm used to the light show on the KLX250S display. It was a cloudy day and the neutral and turn signal indicators were really dim IMO. They took us on a 25 minute tour. They had the KLR in with the cruisers and only old guys ride those so the group of 15 bikes was kinda slow. There was one stretch of highway that I got it up to 90mph, but the front end went all wonky. Dropped down to 80 and it was fine. Guess that's explains why they stuck the KLR in with the slower group of bikes. The motor was at 6k rpm at 80 which was nice. She wasn't a kick in the pants, but she moved. The seat was wonderful. A dream for my backside compared to the KLX seat.

All in all, I'm happy back on my KLX for how and where I ride. The KLX felt like a slug when I got on it. If I was doing lots of highway miles and just dirt roads, I'd be temped to get one. Until Kawi makes a KLX450 that weighs under 300lbs, I'm keeping my KLX250S.

I didn't have time to spend riding all day, but I did sit on the Versys. That would be a fun ride, but I have no need for it.

Here's a link to the ride route they took us on: Jimmy Durante Blvd to Jimmy Durante Blvd - Google Maps

I did get my free hat... but it's white. Not gonna last long. At least it's not green.

They are they are doing it again tomorrow if you got some time to kill and want to ride a few bikes with no commitment or sales people around. Sign up online so you get your free hat.

 

Thanks for the report. I know the KLR is a good bike. I just can't get into it myself though. I sat a Versys yesterday too. I actually like that bike.

After I got my Ninja 500 I wondered if I would ever ride the KLX on the street again. Well I ripped into some maintenance on the Ninja and rode the KLX yesterday. Still just as fun as it was before I got the Ninja. I actually prefer it in a lot of ways. I like the options for sure.

 

Gonna go to the fair later this month..... Rather go to the demo for ktm or husky.

 

I got tired of riding with my left forearm on the gas tank real quick. Not a fan of sport bikes on the street. The Versys has a nice feel to it. I'll need to try one some day.

 

The 500 is nothing like a true sport bike though. The position on that is a lot straighter up than a 600 for instance. I don't know how people ride those.

I was was happy tucked with my chest on the tank bag for hours on end. I also raced bicycles a bit and being aero is something I am used to.

Having said that the Versys has a nice feel for sure. Right now though I liked the price of the 500