2014 Ktm 690 Enduro R on 2040-motos

Moto blog

Bodachs on bikes

With the Gaelic for ‘old man’ being Bodach it was only right we call our annual has been Scottish Racers run out 'Bodachs on Bikes'.  The gang now includes names from the past like Morrison, MacPherson, Simpson and Duffus with a Robert Burns and Big Gordo thrown in for good measure. Island hopping was on the agenda this time round, so for £60 we acquired a Caledonian Macbrayne Hopscotch ticket allowing us three ferry crossings between the mainland, Skye and Lewis.  Having heard lots of good stuff about the new KTM 1190 Adventure I thought this could be the perfect bike for the journey so managed to book Loughborough’s Redline KTM’s demo out for a week.  My first stint was an uneventful 400 miles north but with an average of 250 miles range per tank and 80s club classics on the i pod it felt like I was there in no time.  I also kept myself amused scrolling through the easy to navigate countless combinations of engine performance, traction/anti wheelie and suspension settings clearly displayed on the dash.  There seems to be a setting for everyone; luggage or no luggage, big guy or small guy, brave or scared ( no rider aids or full rider aids).  After assembling in the holiday town of Helensburgh on day two, we rode up around the coast on the A82, A85 and A828 to Ballachulish.  A quick puddle jump across Loch Linnhe then saw us heading round the A861 to Strontian before going north to Mallaig.

EICMA 2013: 2014 KTM RC390, RC200 and RC125 Officially Revealed

Full details about the new RC390 leaked last month, but today at the 2013 EICMA show, KTM officially revealed details about the fully-faired sportbike along with its smaller siblings the RC200 and RC125. Follow the rest of our 2013 EICMA show coverage Of course, all three models are based on previously revealed naked Duke models, so much of the information was expected anyway. The engines are the same as on the naked models, with the same performance figures.

The Moto GP 2 stroke era finally ends.

It might have been the fumes of the 40:1 fuel mix but I had a tear in my eye when the chequered flag came out for the last ever competitive two stroke race in the Moto GP paddock on Sunday at Aragon. With two riders on the sick list twenty two identical single cylinder KTM 125s buzzed round for fifteen laps of mayhem and sometimes eight abreast heading into the first and last corners. The sight, sound and smell were fantastic and the clean close racing was a fitting end to a very special era.