KAWASAKI Z900 RS Riding back into the past
593 MILES
Every time I look out of my living room window at the Kawasaki Z900 RS, it says to me ‘Get your jacket and helmet, we’re going for a ride’. It looks so good if only I could just step out of the front door and go for a ride I think I would! If it wasn’t for reality of daily life getting in the way...
But the other Saturday morning I got up ready to get stuck into the weekend jobs while my wife took our son to his football match, and as she left she uttered those immortal words: “It’s a lovely morning, why don’t you go for a ride?”
I didn’t need asking twice. By then I’d only had the Zed for a week and hadn’t had much chance to get out on it.
I’m lucky that I live on the doorstep of the man-made reservoir of Rutland Water and there are lots of good A and B roads that form a perfect loop around it. My plan was to ride this loop with deviations down some smaller roads.
Right, off we go!
I settled into the Z900 quickly. It’s comfortable with a deep, plush saddle. The riding position is nicely upright and, thanks to the massive handlebars which measure a whopping 86cm from bar-end weight to barend weight (that could be fun in town traffic when filtering), the steering is nice and light with plenty of leverage.
The Z loves the long sweeping bends which characterise the A606’s smooth tarmac. The suspension feels firm, yet comfortable as my confidence in the Kawasaki’s handling grows. The 948cc engine is very smooth and more than happy just tootling around at low revs. But wind it on in the same gear and it pull from the lowest of revs without complaint. Before I know it, it’s flying along effortlessly.
Then it was time to turn off and enjoy some of the area’s quieter back roads, of which there are plenty. But these narrower, twistier roads are no problem to the Z where it proves quite nimble.
In fact, everything is working well until I hit some rougher surfaced roads at a quicker pace. The front suspension copes well but the rear shock begins to get out kilter with the resonance of the bumps. It’s something to maybe look at in the future.
But with my first ride under my belt, I’m more than pleased with the Kawasaki, especially the fantastic looks. I just need to find a bit more time and get away properly!
‘I’m more than pleased with the Kawasaki’