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| The Yamaha SR400 was
what I rode in driving school in 1989. |
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| The Yamaha XT350 was a
friend's motorcycle that I could ride on a few
weekends in 1998. |
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| The Honda NX650 Dominator (RD02,
built 1993) was my first real motorcycle. I
bought it used in 1999 and rode it until 2007,
for 107,000+ km (66,800+ miles). |
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| The Honda XRV750 Africa Twin
(RD07A, built 2000) was, and still is, my second
ever motorcycle. I bought it used in 2006 and
still ride it in 2023. So far I have ridden it
for more than 160,000 km (100,000 miles). |
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| The Honda CB650 Nighthawk
(built 1982) was my wife's first motorcycle in
2009. I was the mechanic for it and I rode it
mostly after doing maintenance to make sure
everything works as it should. |
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| The Triumph Scrambler 900 was
a motorcycle that I test rode in 2010 when
Triumph brought a truck full of bikes to a
dealership in a town near us. |
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| The Triumph (no idea what it
was called) was a motorcycle that I test
rode at the same event as above. It was the
first cruiser that I've ever ridden. Not my
thing, but fun anyway. |
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| The Kawasaki KLR650
(Gen.2, built 2008) is actually my wife's bike,
bought used in 2011. I ride it mostly after
doing maintenance to make sure everything works
as it should. |
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| The Zero DS was my first
ever electric motorcycle ride! We attended a
motorcycle rally in 2012 and I got to test ride
one. I have to say, it was a lot of fun. The
acceleration of this small bike was surprising
and to ride nearly noiselessly was a completely
different experience. Once the battery
technology allows for a decent range and they
become affordable I may consider getting an
electric motorcycle. |
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| The BMW F800GS was the
first BMW I ever rode, also during above
motorcycle rally. I have to admit that it's a
good looking bike and it rides nicely too. |
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| The BMW R1200GS I also
test rode during above motorcycle rally. I'm not
sure I could get used to the sideways shaking of
the boxer engine, but it sure has plenty of
power. It's a little to heavy for my taste
though. |
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The Honda CRF1000L
Africa Twin (DCT) was a friends motorcycle
that he let me test ride one afternoon in 2017.
I was very skeptical about the DCT, but was
positively surprised. It's much better than any
car automatic I've ever driven.
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| The BMW R1200R was my
uncle's motorcycle and while I was visiting in
Germany in 2019 he let me borrow it for a day.
It was surprisingly hard to push it into
corners.
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The Husqvarna Svartpilen 401
was a motorcycle that I rented in 2019 in Japan
for a day. My first rental motorcycle and I rode
it for 337 km (210 miles).
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The BMW G310GS was a
motorcycle that I test rode in 2020 when BMW
brought a truck full of bikes to a dealership in
Washington State. I wasn't impressed.
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| The Kawasaki KLX300SM was
a motorcycle that I test rode in 2021 when
Kawasaki brought a truck full of bikes to a
dealership in a town near us. I actually wanted
to ride the regular KLX300, but somebody had
crashed it the day before, so I had to take the
super-moto version. |
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| The Honda XR150L were two
bikes we rented in Belize in 2023 for 10 days. I
rode it for 1088 km (680 miles). Small but
capable bikes, who knew.
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| The Lifan/Meilun ZR250 was
a replacement motorcycle that I rode for a
couple of days after we had technical problems
with the rented Honda in Belize in 2023. 100cc
more than the Honda but not more power, more
vibrations though.
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| The Kawasaki Versys 1000
was a motorcycle that I test rode in 2023 when
Kawasaki brought a truck full of bikes to a
dealership in a town near us. With 118 hp it was
the most powerful bike I've ever ridden.
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| The Honda XR250 Tornado
was a motorcycle that I rented in 2023 in
Guatemala for 11 days. I rode it for 1100 km
(688 miles) on step mountain roads, paved and
unpaved roads, as well as in city traffic. A
light weight, but very capable bike.
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| The CFMoto IBEX400 was a
motorcycle that I rode during the Touratech
Rally in 2025. Powerful little bike, at least
once you rev it past 5000 rpm, below that isn't
much there. I didn't like the throttle response
on it. We'll see how it holds up in the long
run.
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| The Honda XL750 Transalp
was a motorcycle that I rode during the
Touratech Rally in 2025. Love this bike, if it
wasn't for all the unnecessary electronic "rider
aids". You HAVE to switch off the traction
control for any off road riding, otherwise it's
completely unrideable. Of course you have to go
through all the menus every time to switch it
off, such BS.
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| The Harley Davidson Pan
America was a motorcycle that I rode
during the Touratech Rally in 2025. With 150 hp
it was the most powerful bike I've ever ridden.
It's not my cup of tea, but I can see the appeal
for long road trips.
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| The Zero FX was a
motorcycle that I rode during the Touratech
Rally in 2025. Fun bike and nearly noiseless.
Such a different experience, and the usable
range is getting better too.
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| The Honda CRF1100L Africa Twin
was a motorcycle that I rode during the
Touratech Rally in 2025. Nice bike, but way to
much electronics and too heavy for off road.
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| The Yamaha T7 Tenere 700
was a motorcycle that I rode during the
Touratech Rally in 2025. Yamaha chickened out
and took us on a longer, but much easier gravel
road than the other test rides. They don't trust
their own bike?
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| The Honda CRF300L was a
motorcycle that I rode during the Touratech
Rally in 2025. A light weight, but capable bike.
Gets up to 65 mph fairly quickly, but will
probably not go much faster than that. If you're
not racing it will do the job just fine.
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| The Suzuki DR-Z 4S was a
motorcycle that I rode during the Touratech
Rally in 2025. I loved that you don't have to
switch off the traction control every time, like
on other bikes. Lightweight and powerful.
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