Motorcycle riding can take you everywhere, from your every day rides to ones you’ ve never seen far from home. And I can’ t think of many better bikes to do that on. The Kawasaki 1100SX is an update of the Z1000SX, aimed at the sport-touring market and upgraded with a beastly 1099cc motor, cruise control, quick-shifter and more I’ ll go into. The bike I rode came in a beautiful Metallic Black with that sharp and distinctive Kawasaki styling. The overall finish is absolutely topnotch; it has good feedback from the switch gear( which is very important feeling for me), the quality of the plastics is very good and, for once, there’ s a decent-looking original fitment exhaust. The 4.3-inch dashboard is well lit, the layout is in keeping with the rest of the bike, there’ s plenty of function and it’ s pleasant to look at. There are multiple trips, adjustable riding modes, power modes and everything is there without needing to flick through menus. The windscreen on the bike is adjustable but basic. I would love to see a future model with electric adjustment. If you’ re worried about riding at night, don’ t be- those headlights are truly fantastic. Probably the best LED headlights I’ ve used, with a beautiful spread of light that actually lights up what I want to see. My initial ride was across town. The bike’ s got a bit of weight to it, but the balance is just right. It flicks around roundabouts and junctions like a commuter bike, but has the easy stomp to get away from lights first with ease. The quickshifter is buttery smooth and lovely to use on the downshift. I found it works really well even at low revs. The ride-by-wire throttle feels linear, with great response in full power mode. The clutch lever( which you don’ t actually need to use all that much) is very light with a good feel. Now to the motor … there’ s so much torque! It has really good pull from any revs, which makes