Rob Walters enjoyed six of the best from Kawasaki with a demo event for its latest models.
The event allowed Kawasaki dealers to get to grips with the new bikes on mountain roads and along the coast in the sunnier climes of Mojacar in southern Spain.
They were fully briefed and able to ride the new ZX-4RR and ZX-6R supersport bikes, Ninja 7 HEV hybrid, Eliminator 500 and Z and Ninja 500.
Rob said: “The surprise for me was the Eliminator which was great fun on the twisty mountain roads. I was surprised how well it went and handled. That new engine is so zippy.”
The same engine is the heart of the Z and Ninja 500. Dealers lapped up an early ride of the new parallel twin middleweights ahead of the official launch.
“The ZX-4RR was good fun with the up-and-down quickshifter. You can ride it really hard, it has very good handling and is comfortable for a small supersport bike.
“The ZX-6R was also great on the twisty roads in the mountains.”
Going from the supersport bikes to the Ninja 7 HEV opened up a new world for Rob but he got on with it really well after a little instruction.
Power comes from a new 451cc parallel twin petrol engine plus an electric traction motor and battery. It has three modes – sport-hybrid when the six-speed transmission is operated manually via a handlebar button on the left, eco-hybrid when it shifts automatically and low-speed pure electric for short distances.
An e-boost button, on the right handlebar cluster, gives five seconds of extra power before charging up again.
“On the twisty mountain roads it worked really well between corners and then regenerated. It gives a punch of extra acceleration which is very noticeable,” he added.
Find out more about the new Kawasaki models and full range at orwell.co.uk/kawasaki/orwell-kawasaki-ipswich