high speed compression and moving the bars to forward holes in the bar clamp like my old 19 250 it opened up the cockpit and felt more comfortable being a taller rider . The changes made the suspension were quickly noticeable and really it transformed the handling of the bike making it more playful and easier to hold a line . I was quite impressed by the real nice smooth usable linear power that would pull out of the bog hole and maintain great traction on the slippery ground . Looking forward to getting more time on the 250 and getting it more dialled to my liking .

THIRD OPINION - TOM BUXTON They say you only get one chance to make a first impression , and I think this small bore green machine had been told this , as it did not disappoint . So much so that I even had to look down at the capacity decal on the tank , just to double check it was in fact the 250 I was on and not the 450 . 250s are usually the 125 of the four-stroke world , but Kawasaki has broken that mould . Lots of torque meant being in the right gear all the time wasn ’ t a necessity , and could get revving without having to abuse the clutch too hard . And once the green machine was revving , it had plenty of go . KYB looks after the suspension , providing a good all round package . The forks were a bit harsh on small choppy braking bumps , but softening the compression a couple of clicks remedied the harshness . The shock on the other hand was faultless , and provided straight good drive out of very rough corners and uphills . Overall I really liked the feel of the little green machine and like its big brother , I can ’ t wait to hopefully get more time on it to really put it to the test .

56 KIWI RIDER