Suzuki Dual Sport
I have downsized to just one Suzuki dual sport motorcycle. It has been a bit of a transition owning just one bike. The DR 350 has gone to Maryland to begin a new life. The owner has promised to keep me updated. I now have just under 24000 miles on the DR650 and my only complaint is it’s voracious appetite for rear tires.
As a multiple owner of the DR line, I am admittedly biased. I started out with a 1992 DR250S that I bought as a leftover in 1993. I replaced a 1978 Honda XL175 and could not believe how much better the DR was. Of course it had 15 years of technology and was brand new. The only complaint I ever had through 10,000 miles was the lean running and hard starting. In 1999 I bought a 1998 Suzuki DR350SE. Once I got a taste of the electric start that was the end of my 250. I sold the 250 and never looked back. The 350 was still lean and I dropped a washer under the needle to help on the low end. If you haven’t done this yet, you would not believe the difference it makes.
I motored happily along for 22,600 miles. When I lived in Massachusetts I did a lot of single track trail riding. Once I got to South Carolina I found that the majority of my riding was either on paved roads or dirt roads. I had been thinking about a bigger bike for a while and finally stumbled upon a 2006 Suzuki DR650S with 1100 miles on it. I bought it and have really fallen in love with it.
My maximum miles on a one day ride was 385. I really wanted to make it to 400, but I just couldn’t do it. The Suzuki dual sport line is time tested after over 30 years of improvements. The main place where there is still room for improvement is the seat. After all these years owning DR’s, I am still experimenting.
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