RealClassic

Paraller Lines

Were I an advert copywriter, which happily I am not, I might describe Kawasaki's W650 as sweet, neat and fleet of foot. You can see why I'm not an ad copywriter!

But in fact that silly set of words sums up the bike pretty well, because it is all of those things, as I discovered for myself, only a few decades after everyone else on the planet had ridden one and made up their own minds. No need to rush things, I feel.

We were progressing swiftly enough along a Herefordshire B-road, light traffic, clear views, with endless changes of direction and elevation - a great road for trying out an unfamiliar machine. Except... except that the Kawasaki felt instantly familiar. So much so that I wondered for a while whether my memory was at fault and that I have in fact ridden one - maybe more than one - before. And I may indeed have ridden another; if so it left no impression at all. Which is not unique, but is certainly unusual. And unusual is what the W6SO should be. It should be

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