As motoring journos, we’re extremely privileged to get to try out all sorts of bikes. From the latest and greatest sportbikes to the most rugged of adventure bikes. We usually also get to see these machines first, long before they’re even unveiled to the public.
You see, the way we did things here on RideApart changed dramatically when 2024 rolled over—as you could probably tell from the stories we’ve shared over the last year. More than just telling stuff as they were, we tried to go deeper—much deeper. Motorcycling, and powersports in general, is so much more than numbers on a spec sheet. It’s more about the feeling, the emotion that these machines bring us. And I’d like to think we were able to bring just that, and that you, our dear readers, learned from it and enjoyed it more than ever before.
To that end, if you were to ask me what glued itself to my mind throughout 2024 amidst all the bikes and gear I had the privilege of riding, testing, and owning, my answer would be one bike and one bike only. In fact, it’s a bike that I adored so much I couldn’t help but buy it for myself. I am, of course, talking about none other than the Yamaha XSR900.
Those of you who know me know that I’m absolutely obsessed with middleweight naked bikes. And to me, the XSR900 fits the bill to a tee. It’s light (enough) for me to flog around in traffic, it has more than enough power to outrun pretty much any car on the road, it sounds absolutely amazing, and yeah, it looks good as hell doing all those things.
Back when I introduced this bike to you guys, it was essentially brand new to me. I published the story just a few days after I got it, and so anything and everything I told you back then was all just first impressions. Now that I’m five months and 10,000 kilometers (around 6,200 miles) into owning it, I naturally have a lot more to say.
But before I dive into the details, let me give you a little bit of context about the bike. I’m the second owner of this 2020 Yamaha XSR900, and I bought it from a friend of mine who decided he wanted to go in a more Italian direction when it came to his bikes. Upon purchase, the bike had 21,000 kilometers (around 13,000 miles) on the odometer. It was bone stock, save for a full Akrapovic exhaust system which sounds ungodly, especially when starting it up in the morning. As of this writing, the bike has 32,000 kilometers (close to 20,000 miles) on the odometer, as well as a few new upgrades, too.
Of course, I kept the full Akrapovic exhaust system, but I decided to throw in an NRC fender eliminator kit, some bar-end mirrors, and a set of Bridgestone Battlax S23 hypersport tires. So yeah, I very much kept the bike’s sleek and minimalist look, even going as far as sacrificing some practicality in the process. But hey, none of this stopped me from taking this thing on some serious tours.
In October, I took this bike on a multi-day, 700-kilometer (around 430 miles) ride to Baler, a rural beach town in Central Luzon here in the Philippines. The route covered pretty much everything you’d want from a motorcycle tour—long stretches of highway, never-ending twisty roads, occasional gravel roads through wide farmland valleys, and of course, winding coastal roads with breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean. I was the only retro-style naked bike in the group, as my multiple-bike-owning buddies decided to take their adventure and touring bikes for the ride.
But I think I had the most fun out of all of them.
As you’re probably aware, the XSR900 is really just an MT-09 in a fancy suit. And those of you who know the MT-09 know that this thing is nothing short of a hooligan machine. So yeah, the XSR900 was quick to show its rowdy side, popping wheelies on corner exits, dragging knees on twisty roads, and just sounding and looking like a total badass in the process. That’s pretty much what defines this bike, and the reason why I find myself grinning ear-to-ear every time I ride it—even if it’s just a boring trip to the grocery store.
As for the stuff I don’t really like, well, there’s nothing you wouldn’t expect from a naked bike. There’s no wind protection, the throttle is a bit snatchy, and the thing can get a little bit thirsty if you’re greedy with the throttle. But other than that, the XSR900 just has to be the closest thing to perfect, at least in my book.
Now, I could go on and on about how this bike is everything I hoped it would be, or how easy it is to maintain and work on, or how it turns heads left and right whenever I park at a coffee shop. But honestly, I’d rather spend that time riding. So I’ll leave it at this: the Yamaha XSR900—and it doesn’t even matter what generation you’re looking at—is the closest thing to a forever bike, at least in my opinion. So if you’ve been waiting for a sign to pull the trigger on this bike, well this is it.
