Launch: Kawasaki Ag-fest

I started my riding career on an “Ag” bike way back when. Of course, I didn’t know it was a career I was starting, all I knew was that it was a heap of fun — pretty much anything with an engine and two wheels (or even four wheels as I recalled on this day) is.

But I hadn’t thought about my riding roots for years until I recently turned up at Kawasaki’s mini version of Ag-fest. Most of its farm utilities, ATVs and the venerable Stockman sheep catcher were lined up on a pristine day for some sampling.

The track was originally built for wringing the neck out of sports ATVs, but it made for a decent way to test the traction, easy-to-use nature and sheer versatility of these farm-ready weapons from Kawasaki.

Being a bike rider first and foremost, it was the 250cc Stockman I headed for first. It was pretty embarrassing at the start — I wasn’t sure which sidestand to flick up first, it has two, and the clutch was locked in. Huh?

The dual sidestand option is for farmers to be able to use the most practical side of the bike to park it up, on the basis that paddocks and hills are less friendly to park on than city streets. It was a conscious effort to remember to retract the right sidestand for a few goes, but I enjoyed the novelty, and wish my first ride had boasted such practicality back when I was chasing sheep fresh out of school.

The clutch-lock is a similar revelation. Rather than stuff around looking for neutral at each and every gate, and risk a bump from a cow or a stampede from whatever you were mustering, it’s much easier to simply lock the clutch in with a simple mechanical click. Then just hop off the bike to collect the hay bale, open the gate or whack the misbehaving dog, then get back on, “click” and move off again.

I would have given my right nut for this simple pleasure on the two Australasian Safaris I laboured through. Opening gates was the toughest part.

This bike boasts a very Australian heritage, despite its Japanese manufacturer. You can’t get one in any other country, it's built to handle the heat, dust and flies.

To ride, the Stockman is the easiest of the easy. Mellow but tractable engine, reliable brakes, enough suspension to huck the small tabletops on the test course and solid, predictable gearchanges. It is simple.

The Stockman runs a 249cc mill. Most Ag bikes are 200cc, and that extra capacity means the engine can be torqued around easier. Yes, it will wheelie if provoked, but is essentially a lugger — it will lug around all day in the dust of a mob of sheep, carrying a farmer and his dog.

One particular section was a tight, off-camber, muddy uphill bit. On the Stockman it was easy to chug through, never even looking like stalling and the bike making it easier to do, not harder.

For a farmer just looking to get the mob in before dinnertime, it’s a great platform. Speaking of platforms, the bike includes solid racks front and rear, handguards that stay put when tested and decent rubber that will last all year — and probably longer than that.

When judging a bike, you need to keep its intended purpose front of mind — and Kawasaki’s green bush sled nails its design brief. Low, easy to use, quiet, reliable electric starter, simple mechanically but loaded with practical hardware that makes life at the bars as easy as possible for a farmer with work to do.

STOCKMAN IN BIKE SHOWROOM

It’s safe to say some property managers will be exploring a healthy top end down the back paddock from time to time, too. Just cracking the throttle hard in a straight line lofts the front end, which is great for impressing other bike journos, but means farmers will need to remember how much grunt is under their right thumb.

It honestly feels as grunty as the 450cc sports ATVs I’ve had the pleasure of man-handling in the past, though its size means it never actually looks like it is able to haul butt down a paddock, leaving two rooster tails of destroyed grass behind it. It wakes you right up!

It’s still easy to use, relatively speaking, and in low range with 4WD engaged, it’s strong in tight mucky going, the extra power great for pulling loads, or farmers out of trouble. I reckon you could pull a bogged bulldozer out of the mire with this beast!

For those with smaller properties, or with less need for the sheer power, the less aptly named Brute Force 300 would be a great option. It’s cheaper, of course, and has fewer options — two-wheel drive only, no low range, etc, however is much, much lighter (243kg versus 296kg, claimed).

It won’t carry as much as the big jigger, but for bashing through tight bush, finding lost ewes in the deep scrub and being all-round easier to deal with, it’s a great option.

I felt less on edge riding it, the 750 really cracks and I felt like I had to let it, but the 300 is still very practical. Wide footboards, a good seating position and an easy-to-use handbrake and dash setup makes it good value among the various four wheelers on offer.

MULE RANGE
If an ATV doesn’t carry enough for you, or you want something with a seatbelt, then the next step is a good on — the Mule range of Kawasaki workhorses. The flagship can fit three full-sized pig farmers across its bench seat, had a large 453kg capacity tilt tray operated from the cabin, and a superb 993cc diesel engine which grunted up the side of a tabletop in low range, and still pulled 48km/h e- route to the bottom paddock.

It’s big, but feels unstoppable and for big farms or for farmers without a farm ute and in need of something that can ferry people, trailers, and farm equipment around the paddocks, it's a good option. It’s simple to access everything for servicing, boasts proper lap/sash belts and our test unit included the optional roof and small screen.

The tray itself would fit a Stockman in the back, I reckon, especially with the optional tray extender our test unit was running, and you can up-spec the beast with a Warn winch, towbar, gun carriers, skid plates and reverse beepers.

It’s a real weapon of practicality, the Mule Pro-DX EPS, and the diesel engine means you only need to carry one fuel on the property, rather than two drums for unleaded and the more commonly farm-spec diesel.

Two “lesser” Mules were also on test, the 600 2x4 and more off road-focused 610 XC Big Foot, each a properly practical farm asset, but it was hard to look past the Mule Pro DX EPS for top end Mule-ness.

Again, the smaller 600/610 Mules are better suited to smaller farms and less demanding requirements and loaded with features. The Big Foot climbs like a mountain goat and getting one bogged would take a serious tilt at the wrong section of paddock for sure.

The 600 is perfect for farm roads or arid areas where 4x4 is less crucial, and still carries a hefty load.

The working farm market is a big one for Kawasaki, and that’s obvious with this model range. The big news are the evolved Stockman and the monster Mule Pro-DX EPS, though that 750 4X4, which sounds supercharged due to diff whine. Such a weapon!

THE CHOICE IS ALL YOURS
My days spent chasing sheep in a paddock could have been a happier experience had I been running this fleet and the farm dogs would have enjoyed it more, too, with somewhere reasonable to sit.

There’s a weapon for all tastes in the Kawasaki line-up — you just need to choose the one that sits you and your situation best. And if you have a family member wanting to learn to ride, and somewhere to do it, I can highly recommend the Stockman!

I’d also like to go out on a limb an suggest a Stockman race series around Australia – two wheels are two wheels, and the sight of a gate full of these things, loaded with gumboots and fencing equipment, heading to the first turn would be exhilarating.

KAWASAKI FARM ATVs AND MULE RANGE