The Biedouw Valley Tour

on the Kawasaki Versys-X 300

- Nick Yell

“Now that really sounds like a piss-willy sewing machine,” commented Annette as I started up the Kawasaki Versys-X 300 I’d borrowed from Mike Hopkins Motorcycles in Belville. And in terms of auditory gravitas she wasn’t far off the mark. But, as she had to admit later on in the trip, the little Kawa punched far above its effete soundcard and tame dirt bike looks.

With Annette still chortling to herself in the Pajero behind me, I decided to open up the small Versys once we got onto the open road to Philidelphia. Earlier I’d had some disdainful fellow behind me on a KTM 690, revving his ego orange and riding up my backside at every opportunity, but I was still getting used to the bike and had no idea about its hidden performance virtues, so I just showed him past with greatly exaggerated hand gestures. Pushing the Versys-X 300 to 10,500 rpm — it redlines at 12,000 rpm — on the open road a little later, I was soon up to 150 km/h and I imagined Annette eating her disparaging comments as I disappeared over the horizon. Having said that, though, your face is unlikely to contort into G-force induced folds from the quickness of this bike’s acceleration; rather, the speed builds and just keeps on building at a reasonably exciting pace.