The following is a collection of items regarding one of the finest motorcycles ever made, the Kawasaki EX500. The Maintenance and Performance Section is comprised of my personal mechanical experience with regard to this machine. It is by no means either authoritative or comprehensive, merely a idiosyncratic view of my wrenchings with my EX500. These mods are not entirely race oriented, and can be of use to the mild-mannered street rider who wants to improve the performance of a near-stock EX. Next are a few EX related articles and those that address various suspension topics. The Links Section has a variety of websites that are primarily devoted to the EX and other motorcycle goodies. Finally, the Photographs section has a collection of my personal EX500 images showing myself in action on a few racetracks on the East Coast of the United States.

My 1989 Kawasaki EX500 is black with red stripes, as pictured above, and I bought it used for U.S.$1,425 with 131 miles on the odometer. It had a few cosmetic scratches but was otherwise brand new. This bike now has racked-up over 35,000 miles and has been raced at New Hampshire International Speedway and Bridgehampton Racetrack. I have been a frequent entrant at 1998 LRRS events, Amateur Plate #436. For 1999, I have garnered enough points to advance to the Junior-Expert Class in the LRRS. If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to e-mail me a mattlai@hotmail.com. Happy surfing!

1998 LRRS/CCS Race Results & Sponsors

Matt Lai's 1998 Amateur Race Results/Points

1998 Sponsors

EX500 Maintenance and Performance
The frugal Tuner's Guide

Transforming 36mm Forks with Race Tech Fork Emulators

Factory Shift Kits

Uni-Trac Linkage Maintenance

Inexpensive Jetting Suggestions

Tapered Roller Bearing Installation

EX500 Articles

Cycle Magazine's 1987 Review of the EX500

1998 EX500 (Ninja) Specifications

Motorcycle Suspension Articles

Cartridge Forks - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1994

Damping Rod Forks and the Race Tech Gold Valve Emulator - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1995

How to Set Your Sag - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1995

Spring Rate and Preload - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1995

Rebound Damping - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1996

Compression Damping - Paul Thede Sport Rider, 1996

Suspension Tuning Guide - Dave Hodges

The Club Racers' Guide - Max McAllister

EX500 Links

Sport-Twin's EX500 Homepage

Patrice Letang's Ninja 500 Homepage

EX500 Photos

Click on a thumbnail photo below to see the full-sized image

Riding a Penguin School EX500 (#5) at Daytona, November 1997	Yet another shot from Daytona’s West Horseshoe	Daytona -- Yikes! This guy is either gonna pass me or hitch a pillion ride
My 1989 EX in Street Trim in Pennsylvania	My 1989 EX in race mode at Bridgehampton Raceway	Smoking a butt prior to my first amateur race, Bridgehampton 1997
Posing at NHIS, July, 1998

© 1998 mattlai@hotmail.com

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