Within one lap, I was feeling at home on the 2013 RM-Z250. The bike’s chassis felt tight and precise. For the 2013, Suzuki focused on stiffening up the frame and reducing flex. The RM-Z was easy to put in any inside line at Suzuki’s supercross track and loved 180-degree turns, which is what Suzuki is been known for, a quick steering, and responsive package. The motor on the new RM-Z was very usable and it wasn’t a fire-breathing dragon, but it did have a broad dosage of mid range. This made it very easy to keep the bike in the meaty, happy zone where it was made plenty of power. One of my complaints in the past has always been the shifting. I often hit false neutral or had a hard time shifting when the motor was under a load. I’m pleased to say that Suzuki fixed this problem for 2013. The separate function forks are the 2nd generation of the Showa SFF’s, and although it is the first time they have been seen on the RM-Z, Suzuki didn’t want to release the forks on the production bike until they worked out all the kinks. They did a good job of matching the new forks with the shock as the bike felt very balanced and worked well in unison. Even though I am on the heavier end of the spectrum for a 250F, the Suzuki did an awesome job of staying up in the stroke and not bottoming like I predicted it would on the tamed down version of Suzuki’s private supercross track. It was well suited for an aggressive rider right off the showroom, which is definitely a plus in my book. With all that on the table, we are looking forward to the upcoming Dirt Rider shootout and spending more time on the new Zook.