“Yeah, but you always say good things about your longtermers”, says a cynical mate when he hears me praising my V-Strom 800DE yet again. Naturally I attempt to counter his doubting, defending myself by saying I only ever choose bikes likely to suit me in the first place, and quickly pronounce the Suzuki as the best one yet. I really do think the V-Strom fits the bill superbly. As my only form of private transport, it’s spot on. Good at just about everything – and I use it for a wide variety of things including menial everyday runs to the shops and visiting local mates, to longer big-mile tours
