Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/646962
2016 KAWASAKI NINJA H2 TESTED P70 KHI projects, reinforces it. As does the chassis. This is one of very few Kawasakis to uti- lize a steel trellis frame. Painted in lurid sparkling lime green, it has two objectives in mind. The first is to minimize weight; the second is to show off a super- charger that would normally be hiding behind a traditional alumi- num twin-spar design. The H2 is as much a visual statement as a performance one. This uniqueness descends across different aspects of the machine. The digital dash lights up the rev counter at the specific engine speed you are travel- ling—all numbers above the rpm you're at in remain black, and only when you have the motor spinning at the correct speed, do the numbers flash up in red. The mirror stems look like they've been fashioned out of a Japanese Katana, with thin, wide, sharp edges. The five- spoke rear wheel, crafted from standard grade cast aluminum, looks anything but. And no other Kawasaki sportbike utilizes a single-sided swingarm. The H2 spine. Yes it's a supersport rid- ing position, which is in itself a compromise for the human form, but the H2 cruises with such poise it feels slow, until you look at the number flashing up on the dash. In automotive terms, this is the two-wheeled equivalent of a Bugatti Veyron—a technical tour The Kawasaki River Mark dates back to company founder Shozo Kawasaki's shipping business in the 1870s. Kawasaki would fly the symbol from his fleet, a symbol that was later adopted by Kawasaki Heavy Industries expressing the company's technology, originality and innovation. and its track-only brother, the H2R, do. The deep seat, with its high- flanked sides and taller back, is designed to lock you in place the same as a racecar bucket seat would. If you're too tall, there's no helping you fit. And there are no provisions for pas- sengers. A ninja travels alone, as you will do on an H2. It's not prefect. The throttle response from fully closed at low speed is like firing a hand cannon, and the gearbox can be a touch on the harsh side if the engine is not spinning north of 4000 rpm. But, who cares? These concerns matter little, as riding the H2 as fast as you can get away with feels like a God- given right, and these issues only surface when riding slow. It feels entirely reasonable to let the H2 roar past cars full of screaming children, although I feel I would have a hard time persuading a police officer otherwise. Part of what makes the H2 so next-level fast is the fact it is perfectly happy to tour at 100 mph without transmitting every bump and grind into the rider's