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A Reconfigured KLX250S For All 50 States
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2009 Kawasaki KLX250S
Kelly Callan
05/12/2008
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Photos by Kinney Jones
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Designing a bike for the dual-sport market is a balancing act. Some
riders will spend most of their time on the street, with the occasional
off-payment foray on friendly dirt roads; others will use the street simply as a
means to get to the dirt. Once there, challenging primitive roads and
single-track trails become the adventure.
Kawasaki has made several
significant updates to its KLX250S dual-sport motorcycle for 2009 with both
styles of riding in mind, though the bike definitely favors the off-road
crowd. When I put the bike through its paces on a 120-mile ride through
Death Valley, I started in the dirt—well, to put a finer point on it, gravel.
After three or four miles of deep gravel, I was feeling nicely acquainted with
third gear. The bike floated effortlessly along the top of the gravel in a true
and straight line as long as I was on the throttle. When my speed dropped as I
took a peek at the awesome canyon walls I was picking up in my peripheral
vision, the bike wavered. The DOHC, 4-valve, liquid-cooled KLX has enough torque
to capably pull third gear, so it only took a little twist of the wrist to pull
me back up on top the crunchy stuff.
 As the gravel wash gave way to a
4x4 jeep trail, I was able to sit down a bit and guide the bike between the
rocks that were generously scattered along the path. The revised suspension
soaked up the uneven trail and the straighter line of the handlebars afforded
additional leverage when the unexpected rock, dip or rut couldn’t be avoided. (Click image to enlarge)When traversing a particularly nasty uphill jumble of boulders
blocking the path, the 250 had plenty of useable power on the bottom—the 34mm
semi-flatside Keihin carb works flawlessly—allowing me to finesse a line through
the obstacle. Clutch work is intuitive, thanks to a light pull. This is a great
trail bike—nimble, light, and powerful.
Once out on the canyon I had a
chance to open up the throttle. Straight dirt roads with the occasional bend
allowed for some fast fun. Though not pure knobbies, the KLX250’s street-legal
dual-sport tires do a fairly credible job in the dirt. As the road deteriorated
into whooped-out sections and silty stretches, the bike soaked it all up with
ease, making me feel like a desert racer. Although travel was reduced this year
(just as it was on the KLR650 last year), the 10 inches of travel in the forks
and 9 inches in the rear is plenty for dual sporting.
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