Staff bikes: Kawasaki Versys – The return of the Versys

If a man by the name of Sam Pinney ever asks to borrow your bike, say no. Bad things happen.

Everything was going well until I was informed some scamp in London had tried to steal the Versys.

Here are Sam’s thoughts on the Versys and his account of the attempted theft:

“I like riding in London. It’s exciting, stimulating and shows off motorcycles at their best. I took the Versys down to London to visit some friends and see how the parallel twin would cope.

“It performed brilliantly. It’s nimble, tall and the turning circle is amazing. The low-down punch of the engine is perfect for jumping away at the lights ahead of black cabs; it’s a great city bike.

So great, that someone tried to steal it. I was visiting a friend and I saw someone fiddling with the bike. I shouted at them and ran downstairs to chase them off. The scamp legged it, but they had cut a couple of wires so the Versys wouldn’t start.

“We had to wheel the bike to some secure parking and arrange for a van to pick it up.

I still like riding in London, although next time I’ll try not to stop.”

For two weeks I’ve been riding whatever bike I could get my hands on – including Chris Newbigging’s Victory Hammer S, James Keen’s Suzuki GSX-R600, and a couple of other test bikes – to avoid catching the bus.

Today the Versys returns, and I can’t wait – it’s like the day it arrived all over again. After riding an array of bikes, all of them brilliant, it will be interesting to see how the Versys compares.

I’m confident it will beat all the others I’ve been flirting with since it’s been gone and remain the perfect bike for me.

I plan to spend most of the bank holiday weekend reacquainting myself with the Versys before taking it to the Isle of Man TT next week.

It’s going to be a good summer.

Further reading:
Staff bike blogs | Kawasaki Versys blog

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