Issue#74 Feb/Mar 2017

OFFROAD PHOTO SPECIAL MIND-BLOWING PICS FROM THE GREAT OUTDOORS

WE RIDE THE A4D E-WIN N IN G

AUSTRALIAN 4-DAY ENDURO THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY

MATHIAS BELLINO’S FACTORY FE450

GLENN KEARNEY INTERVIEW THE LEGEND HANGS UP HIS RACE BOOTS

FEB/MAR 2017 ISSUE 74 AUS $9.95* NZ $12.20 (Both incl. GST)

OFFROAD ADVENTURE BATTLE KTM 1190 ADVENTURE VS HONDA’S AFRICA TWIN

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ISSUE #74/FEBRUARY/MARCH 2017

REGULARS 6

SNAPSHOT

A frame grab of what we live for

8

BIKE OF THE MONTH

A classic piece of steel that’s high on drool factor

28

FEATURES 28 MATHIAS BELLINO’S A4DE-WINNING HUSKY TESTED And, yes ... it’s a damn fine motorcycle

36 MOTO HOTEL A place to rest your head that knows what the rider needs

40 AUSSIE 4 DAY ENDURO Some great rides, some poor rides and the Frenchman who

36

won the lot

44 PHOTO SPECIAL Some of the best images from the trails of 2016

58 NEW MAN’S TRACK Finding adventure over the longest distance

64 KTM 1190 VS HONDA AFRICA TWIN The two most dirt-oriented ADV bikes go head to head

74 GLENN KEARNEY We catch up with the racing legend as he takes his final bow

40

BACK PACK 84 LEGEND SHOT Who is this issue’s featured champ?

86 TECH TIP We get greasy and play with our tools

88 RIDE TIPS Tackle the easy to the tough with these two-wheel tips

44

92 READERS’ RIDES Your photos of your bikes in full-colour glory

98 PARTING SHOT The last word — or photo — till we see you again

58

74 4|

OFFROAD PHOTO SPECIAL

MIND-BLOWING PICS

WE ER RID ID DE THE

A4DE-WINNING

FROM THE GREAT OUTDOO

RS

AUSTRALIAN 4-DAY ENDURO THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY

MATHIAS BELLINO’S FACTORY FE450

GLENN KEARNEY INTERVIEW THE LEGEND HANGS UP HIS RACE BOOTS

FEB/MAR 2017 ISSUE 74 AUS $9.95* NZ $12.20

(Both incl. GST)

OFFROAD ADVENT URE BAT TLE KTM 1190 ADVENTURE VS HONDA’S AFRICA TWIN

ON THE COVER Shane Booth rips a sand berm a new one under stormy skies.

PHOTO BY ASHENHURST

MANAGING EDITOR Damien Ashenhurst STAFF WRITER Shane Booth CONTRIBUTORS Greg Smith, Craig Bernard, Paul Sneddon, Ian Neubauer DESIGNER Connie Leung ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Fiona Collins: 0410 977 365 ADVERTISING DIRECTORY Ian Cassel: 02 9887 0325 ADVERTISING PRODUCTION Ian Cassel ADVERTISING ART DIRECTOR Martha Rubazewicz PUBLISHING MANAGER Marcus Hucker

CHAIRMAN/CEO Prema Perera PUBLISHER Janice Williams CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Vicky Mahadeva ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Emma Perera FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION MANAGER James Perera CIRCULATION DIRECTOR Mark Darton CREATIVE DIRECTOR Kate Podger EDITORIAL & PRODUCTION MANAGER Anastasia Casey MARKETING & ACQUISITIONS MANAGER Chelsea Peters

Circulation enquiries to our Sydney head office (02) 9805 0399. TRAILRIDER #74 is published by Australian Publishing Pty Ltd, Unit 5, 6-8 Byfield Street, North Ryde NSW 2113. Phone: (02) 9805 0399, Fax: (02) 9805 0714. Melbourne office, Level 1, 150 Albert Road, South Melbourne Vic 3205. Phone: (03) 9694 6444, Fax: (03) 9699 7890. Printed by KHL Printing Pte Ltd, Singapore, and distributed by Gordon and Gotch, Australia. This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. Enquiries should be addressed to the publishers. The publishers believe all the information supplied in this book to be correct at the time of printing. They are not, however, in a position to make a guarantee to this effect and accept no liability in the event of any information proving inaccurate. Prices, addresses and phone numbers were, after investigation and to the best of our knowledge and belief, up to date at the time of printing, but the shifting sands of time may change them in some cases. It is not possible for the publishers to ensure that advertisements which appear in this publication comply with the Trade Practices Act, 1974. The responsibility must therefore be on the person, company or advertising agency submitting the advertisements for publication. While every endeavour has been made to ensure complete accuracy, the publishers cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. *Recommended retail price ISSN 1323-935X Copyright © Australian Publishing Pty Ltd. ACN 003 609 103. MMXVII www.universalmagazines.com.au Please pass on or recycle this magazine.

|5

SNAPSHOT

6|

BELLINO French rider Mathias Bellino isn’t quiet the household name in Australia that he may be in Europe but his recent Australian 4 Day Enduro overall win will go some way towards changing that.

Mathias has a pretty healthy résumé, the highlight being his 2015 E3 World Enduro Championship win.

Mathias claims that once he has his bike the way he wants it in the pre-season he doesn’t change anything at all through the season. Watching him ride, you’re reminded just how well rounded the Euros are, with their sublime trials skills as well as the ability to handle anything fast and open.

PHOTO ASHENHURST

|7

FEATURE BIKE OF THE MONTH

BIKE

8|

OF

THE MONTH

HONDA XR200 A couple of issues ago, when we featured an old advertisement for an IT175, the nostalgia bug got hold of us so we went looking for another cool vintage ad. We couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go past the XR200. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

somewhat overshadowed by memories of the 250 and 400 on the trails but the 200 was an excellent bike that not only introduced a lot of people to riding but was all some folks ever needed.

|9

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| 11

PRODUCT GUIDE HELMETS

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KTM • Comp light $399.99 ktm.com.au

12 |

NEWS TRAIL NOTES

SUNDERLAND SURPRISE It wasn’t to be for Toby Price and Rod Faggotter’s race ended through no fault of his own, but the show goes on and, in the face of a massive one-hour penalty to the Honda team, Dakar got another first-time winner in Brit Sam Sunderland FEATURE RED BULL CONTENT POOL

am Sunderland could be forgiven for feeling cursed by the Dakar Rally. After enjoying a promising debut in 2012 as seventh on the opening stage, he and his bike were on the sidelines the following day with a mechanical.

In 2014, he suffered a similar fate on stage four while the following year he’d won the opening stage in Argentina — the youngest in the history of the event to do so — only then to crash out.

In 2013 and 2016 he failed to even make the start line, having crashed badly at his final warm-up and, on the latter occasion, broken his femur.

But on Saturday the curse was finally lifted as the 27-year-old made it to the finish line for the first time in first overall place in the motorbike class, the first Briton in history ever to win the prestigious Dakar.

He has long been in thrall to the Dakar. Of his early impressions, he says, “It blew my mind. I was riding through Argentina and there were people 50-deep across both sides of the road for miles and miles. It gets more than four million actual physical spectators — that’s crazy.

Everywhere you go, there are people cheering you on.”

Prior to the event, he said he “fully expected to break my run of bad luck”.

He described his previous forays in the event in South America as “not a very glorious record, I admit”.

For 2017, though, it was different.

This time around he decided to make Dakar his sole goal for the year and only did certain world championship rounds in order to prepare for the arduous opening two weeks of this year.

That resulted in second in the Desert Challenge, victory in Qatar and a second place in Morocco. With such a record, his minimum target was to finish at the business end in South America.

S

14 |

THE DOWN TIMES Sunderland is no stranger to adversity on two wheels. There were very real fears he might never ride a motorbike again after he crashed heavily in 2005 riding a 125, resulting in breaking both legs, his knees and pelvis.

Aged just 15, he was confined to a wheelchair for two months and ordered to stay off the bike for a whole year — but he didn’t listen.

In an interview with the local newspaper in Bournemouth, where he grew up, his mother Jacki recalled, “I really didn’t think he would ride again after months in a wheelchair. It was really scary.

“I couldn’t believe it when he got back on a bike just five months later to win the Weymouth Beach race. It was his comeback. Sam’s just addicted to motocross. I’m glad he went back to it, although I was so worried at first.”

Things rose up a gear four years later when Sunderland moved to Dubai for a change of scenery, got a job with KTM and started racing bikes there “just for fun”.

He steadily climbed the ranks and started mixing it with the best offroad bikers on the planet. Despite his run of DNFs and DNSs at Dakar prior to this year, he never lost the belief in his own abilities.

There was, though, one concern: “I know I can ride as fast as anyone else but I didn’t have the experience in terms of navigation and that’s 75 per cent of the job. The Dakar is so hard; there are so many factors. I know how much goes into it.

“The hardest part for me is taking it easy, keeping the tempo down. There’s also the fatigue management. It’s a high-speed game of chess.”

It’s a high-speed game of chess in which he’s habitually faltered. This time it was checkmate. Of the experience, he says simply, “It’s nuts, I love it.”

Motorcycles have always been Sam’s first love but, for a time, there was a rival sport: football. He trialled with Southampton FC as a youth and would conceivably have been in the take-up for the academy that year which included Real Madrid star Gareth Bale.

But motocross would always come first and Sunderland skipped Sunday matches in favour of being on his bike.

“Maybe I’d have been financially better off if I’d stuck with football but I love my life,” he says.

And, now he’s broken the Dakar curse, there are no regrets.

2017 DAKAR RALLY 1. SUNDERLAND, Sam Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM 32:06’22 2. WALKNER, Matthias Red Bull KTM Rally Factory Team KTM +32’00 3. FARRÉS, Gerard Himoinsa Team KTM +35’40

4. VAN BEVEREN, Adrien Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Yamaha +36’28 5. BARREDA, Joan Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +43’08 6. GONÇALVES, Paulo Monster Energy Honda Team Honda +52’29 7. RENET, Pierre-Alexandre Husqvarna Factory Rally Team Husqvarna +57’35 8. CAIMI, Franco Honda South America Rally Team Honda +1:42’18 9. RODRIGUES, Hélder Yamalube Yamaha Official Rally Team Yamaha +2:03’06 10. RODRÍGUEZ, Joaquim Hero Motorsports Team Rally Hero +2:19’37 18. Todd Smith highest-finishing Aussie 19. Matthew Hart next-best Aussie

E R O L P EX D L R O W THE Y A W R YOU

NEW The Triumph Tiger Explorer rides new routes across new countries, but doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to stop when the road runs out. Ruggedly dependable with a powerful, torque-rich engine, extended fuel range, agile handling and practicalities such as a centrestand on all models, the Tiger Explorer also features ABS, traction control and cruise control as standard. And for even more capability on unmade tracks, the Tiger Explorer XC includes wire-spoked wheels, aluminium sump guard, engine protection bars, fog lights and hand guards.

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FEATURE READERS’ RIDES

READERS’ RIDES Evan Streets

Tfa Stehn

Mick Duczynski Steve Ralston

Paul Rhook Max Livingstone

16 |

Neil Dimech

Mark Hall

Lachlan Joseph

Nick TriantaďŹ lou

Graeme Ditterich

Sam Hazlett

| 17

NEWS TRAIL NOTES

KTM SHIFTS TO SYDNEY

CONDO SET TO FIRE The 2017 Condo 750 is set to roll from March 31 to April 2, with competitors to rip into the iconic landscape on bikes as well as two- and four-wheeldrive buggies, side-by-sides, quads and in the new sidecar class.

The navigational rally is held on a 750km track and this year will see the Smith brothers, Todd and Jake, once

Completing plans that have been in the works for some time, KTM & Husqvarna Motorcycles Australia will relocate its head office and warehousing facilities to Sydney from its long-established home in Perth early this year.

KTM general manager Jeff Leisk outlined the reasons behind the move: “When we first began importing, the volume was around 400 units a year. In 2016 we are handling more than 10,000 bikes across the two brands and the market will continue to grow.

“The move to Sydney will put KTM

and Husqvarna in a new purposebuilt facility at Prestons in Sydney’s west, designed by AHG to house its automotive corporate office and the motorcycle business. We look forward to being closer to the majority markets and increasing our levels of interaction.

“Having the parts operation based on the east coast will speed up delivery to many dealer points and will allow larger parts orders to be sent overnight to most east coast locations. The improved time zone will also benefit our New Zealand operations.”

again compete with Rod Faggotter in what will be one of the hardest-fought races in the country.

Bad weather has made the task of course marking and reconnaissance tough but there’s no stopping the Condo. All Condo-related events are free, so take some time to go see one of Australia’s most special races.

2017 HONDA CRF450R HITS OZ, RX SET TO FOLLOW

JAKE MOSS COPS 4-YEAR BAN PHOTO AARYN MINERDS According to MA’s official statement, “On 22 May 2016, Mr Moss tested positive to the prohibited substance Ostarine (Class S.1.2 Other Anabolic Agents) following a doping control test conducted by ASADA at the MX Nationals in Murray Bridge, South Australia.

“Mr Moss did not apply for a hearing in the Court of Arbitration for Sport and accordingly the mandatory fouryear sanction has been imposed.

“MA imposed the mandatory

18 |

provisional suspension on Mr Moss on 15 July 2016 and his sanction has been backdated to take account of the time he has already served. This means he is ineligible to participate as an athlete or support person (including coaching or officiating) until he has completed his four-year sanction. The ban includes using Member facilities.

“Mr Moss will be eligible to recommence participation in the sport from 15 July 2020.”

The most anticipated motocross bike of 2017 has finally touched down in Australia Honda officially lifted the covers off its all-new 2017 CRF450R for the first time down under on Friday, November 25, the opening day of the 2016 Moto Expo in Melbourne.

In even more great news for Australian riders, shortly after the expo Honda announced that the off-

road version of its new CRF range, the CRF450RX, would be heading to Australia in March after initially not being slated for the local market.

The 2017 CRF450RX is based on the all-new 2017 CRF450R but with some slight tweaks including endurospec suspension. PGM-FI and EMSB mapping plus a larger fuel tank, an 18-inch rear wheel, sidestand and electric start will be standard.

®

SOCIAL GET-TOGETHER

BRAD “WONKA” WILLISCROFT “Been on some of the sickest MTB trails in the country today here at Margaret River WA #traveloz #burm #freedom”

TADDY BLAZUSIAK “During my morning MTB ride I realised something ... Today is my last day as @superenduro_maxxis World Championship points leader. #redplate at least in 2017 #OldButGold. Good luck to all @ktmfactoryracing boys this weekend in Germany #tb111”

SOCIAL get-together Some of the best Instagram posts from the past couple of months on the trails and adventures

TOBY PRICE “Haha, proud as punch... way back where it all started racing around the flat track circuit... I think I still have the same face every time I get gear from sponsors.”

CRAIG “ANDO” ANDERSON “#fbf 1993 racing in Indonesia with my cousin @ crtwotwo great times traveling together seeing the world @mrsando100 @mrstwotwo”

TOM McCORMACK “Day 1 of the career change but same industry. #letsgoracing #bossman”

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ROD FAGGOTTER “After several days finally received my last bag at midnight. The other ones had my riding gear and helmet, but this one had my wet/cold gear and more importantly the weeties tea!!! #dakar2017 #bivouacfoodnotalwaysgreat #nohamncheeseforme”

RICK HALL “Thank you Honda. The best bikes. #CR500”

MSC MOTO “New Suzuki DR650 preload fork caps ready for a holiday project out in the shed. Add some adjustment to the front end of your Zook ready for the new year!

Only a 1-beer job but can make it a 2-beer job if you want to take extra care. IN STOCK NOW. http://www.mscmoto.com/suzuki-dr650-preload-adjuster-caps”

JOSH GREEN “Been a frustrating year! 6 months off bike with knee reco!

On the bike 3 weeks early and raced the A4DE! Got the overall win in the E1 class and 4th outright for the event! Won my final moto today! Stoked is an understatement! #backtoback Cheers to everyone in my corner! @threesix.motorsports@ yamahamotoraus @6hd”

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FIVE GETTING THE TIPS MOST FROM

YOUR BALLARD’S CATALOGUE 2.

1.

Don’t lend it to mates — they’ll never give it back. You know, just like those tyre levers you lent out two years ago?

Make sure you have time set aside. Send the kids out to play, hide from your wife and turn your phone to airplane mode.

3.

Make sure you spot all the brilliant and traditional illustrations in there.

Sometimes we actually learn stuff from them.

4.

Keep it safe for repeated viewing. What’s the best thing about actual pages? Web posts disappear in a flash but mags last for year after year.

22 |

5.

Support an Aussie company.

This is an all-Australian affair backed by an all-Aussie legend — it doesn’t get much better than that.

BMW Motorrad

7+( 1(: %0: 5 ê&#x2013;¦ê&#x2013;§ê&#x2013;¯ê&#x2013;¯ *6 5$//<( ; *U DPNFT XJUI UIF MPPL BOE HMPSJPVT DPMPVST PG SBMMZ MFHFOET "OE JU HJWFT ZPV NVMUJQMF PGG SPBE GFBUVSFT UIBU XJMM MFU ZPV NBTUFS DIBMMFOHFT ZPV OFWFS UIPVHIU ZPV XPVME Z 8JUI &OEVSP 1SP .PEF UP BEKVTU JU UP ZPVS SJEJOH TUZMF BOE TQPSUT TVTQFOTJPO UP 8JUI &OEVSP 1SP .PEF UP BEKVTU JU UP ZP QVTI JUT QFSGPSNBODF /P NBUUFS XIFSF ZPVѳSF PGG UP JU XJMM HFU ZPV UIFSF QVTI JUT QFSGPSNBODF /P NBUUFS XIFSF Z 'JOE PVU NPSF BU CNXNPUPSSBE DPN BV

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MEMORY CARD BEHIND THE SCENES WITH THE TRAILRIDER TEAM

North Queensland

doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t do grey are

as

Knowledge ... or something like that

Pretty sure this giant frog came direct from Fukushima

The Hilton of camping setups

earned trail snacks Ev and Mark stop for some well-

Damo vs the kidney stone that kicked in while shooting the Bellino Husky

Honda CR500: wo rthy

MEMORY

CARD

24 |

of worship

PRODUCT OF THE MONTH ODI LOCK-ON GRIPS

ODI

LOCK-ON GRIPS

Fitting grips is balls. Nobody likes doing it and most of us have stuffed it up at least 35 per cent of the times we’ve tried it. Some of us have even glued our own fingers to the handlebars ... so we hear.

With the ODIs you can’t really get it wrong and the whole exercise takes so little time your beer won’t go flat while you’re doing it. No wire tying needed and you get throttle cam options to play with as well. We are massive fans.

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GRIP FEATURES

 100% slip-free performance guaranteed  Simple installation & removal without waiting for glue to dry  Throttle tube included with snapon cam to match more models  Knockout ends easily accommodate handguards  No safety wire required means longer grip life, even in the event of a crash  Medium-diameter knurled pattern EMIG design includes specially designed half-waffle pattern with thumb relief

TH E

BI KE

TH AT

BU IL DS

CH AM PI ON S

ew N l al

17 0 2 kx250f

G ICKER HANDLIN ER ENABLING QU • 1.7 KG LIGHT P TIMES LA ER ST NE FOR FA POWERFUL ENGI DY POSITIONING • NEW, MORE LOWS EASIER BO FLATTER SEAT AL D AN S UD RO • SLIMMER SH DITY IMPROVED RIGI IUM FRAME WITH IN UM AL R ME • SLIM OULD GRAPHICS YLING AND IN-M NEW FACTORY ST CK • AGGRESSIVE AR-END FEEDBA SION BOOSTS RE K REAR SUSPEN RA I-T UN ED ) OV FF • IMPR FRONT FORK (S RATE FUNCTION CORNERS CE-READY SEPA AND THROUGH S • ENHANCED RA MP BU OVER BRAKING TY ILI AB ST S SE INCREA BLE FOOT PROVEN LAUNCH ADJUSTA S NDLEBAR LA H CONTROL SYSTEM EGS & A P R FR GE ON 27 E ASY E T DIS 0MM NGINE FI COU TUNIN C PLERS G WIT BR H KX CALIB & GEN AK RATIO UINE ES N KIT ACCES KX SORY kawasakiaus

@kawasakimotors

www.kawasaki.com.au

FEATURE MATHIAS BELLINOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S A4DE HUSQVARNA

ELITE

ENDURO We ride the 2016 A4DE-winning factory Husqvarna 450 of Mathias Bellino STORY SHANE BOOTH PHOTOS DAMIEN ASHENHURST

28 |

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FEATURE MATHIAS BELLINO’S A4DE HUSQVARNA

I

’ve been lucky enough to ride some great bikes in the past but this was the first time I’d had the chance to ride a factory enduro bike — and I was excited about it. Mathias had just won the A4DE outright and Husqvarna offered us the opportunity to take a spin on the bike that he rode to victory.

AT FIRST When I threw a leg over this bike I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Mathias runs a very regular setup: aside from the bars maybe being rotated back a little further than I like it felt comfortable straight away.

One interesting point I found after talking to Mathias was that they really work on getting a setting that he likes pre-season; once they do he really doesn’t touch anything on the bike for the full race season. While many riders and teams chase settings and test constantly, he sets the bike up and leaves it. He said he found you learn the bike better and know how it reacts to everything, good and bad, and that that’s what he liked.

NOT TOO ENDURO Another thing I noticed very early on is that the separation between a motocross bike and enduro bike is now very small. In the past, you expected an enduro bike to be a little heavy or doughy in both the engine and suspension and to feel bigger, too.

Well, that’s not the case now; this one feels like an enduro bike only in the ways they want it to. It feels nimble and actually has quite a firm suspension setting for off-road, something that I really liked.

The 52mm Cone Valve forks were spot on to my liking — if I could’ve slipped them off the bike and taken them home I would’ve loved to.

The progression in the forks was impressive: they worked very well on the small stuff and had the customary bottoming resistance.

The track I rode was sandy and rough with some big rollers and square edges; the thing that impressed me the most is how well the bike remained in line and really didn’t react badly to any of those sections. If I hit something hard it just absorbed it and stayed settled — no

ng in This bike is pretty stro -road it r off production trim so fo rsepower — wasn’t about more ho opposite e it was in fact a little th

30 |

rebound back in your face, so to speak.

It leads to rapidly increasing confidence in the bike and helps you go faster. It really didn’t feel like my regular enduro setting but it worked very well for me, and obviously for Mathias as well.

THE ENGINE This bike is pretty strong in production trim so for off-road it wasn’t about more horsepower — it was in fact a little the opposite. Mathias rejected

the original engine setting and worked towards a more linear power delivery so it would be better suited to all of the varying conditions faced in enduro.

About the biggest change made to the engine is it’s had the FC 450 or motocross gearbox fitted. I saw no reason to think you’d require more power from this bike for enduro racing than what it already has. You can ride it in higher gears and labour it and the bike just soaks it up.

The efforts to smooth out the power haven’t been in vain, that’s for sure.

It has a solid bottom-to-mid delivery that’s fun to ride but controllable and it enjoys being ridden in high gears.

FACTORY STOCK One thing I did notice is how much of this bike remains production. In the past, a factory bike would have just about every conceivable item replaced with something else but as

production bikes get better and better those days are over.

Don’t get me wrong — this bike has some special parts on it but the aftermarket or factory-made parts are minimal. The suspension is the bigticket item: the 52mm Cone Valve forks and Trax shock aren’t easy or cheap to come by. There’s also an FMF titanium and carbon exhaust system. Neken handlebars are the team’s choice and Blackbird graphics finish off the look.

| 31

FEATURE MATHIAS BELLINO’S A4DE HUSQVARNA

Don’t get me wrong — this bike has some special parts on it but the aftermarket or factory-made parts are m inimal

MATHIAS BELLINO’S RACING RÉSUMÉ • • • • •

32 |

2015 Enduro 3 World Champion 2012 Enduro Junior World Champion 2011/12/13 ISDE Junior World Champion with French Team 2010 MX1 French Championship Vice-Champion 2008 French Junior Motocross Champion

FEATURE MATHIAS BELLINOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S A4DE HUSQVARNA

rs and teams e d ri y n a m e il h W test constantly, d n a s g in tt e s e s cha nd leaves it a p u e ik b e th ts he se

34 |

Chris Urquhart Motodevelopment Rider Training

Lightest sealed ring chain on the market. 20% longer wear life over RK KZU Chain. Teflon UW-Ring provides no power loss with amazing lube retention. Ideal for MX Race application 125-500cc.

170014

Imported & Distributed by:

FEATURE THE MOTO HOTEL

THE

MOTO HOTEL Ian Lloyd Neubauer checks into the world’s first fully integrated motorbike hotel STORY & PHOTOS IAN LLOYD NEUBAUER

36 |

I

n 2010, Chilean architect Cristian Maragaño sold his house, his car —“everything but my memories and toothbrush” — and flew to Miami to start an epic five-year two-wheeled odyssey through 135 countries on a BMW GS, the same make and model made famous by Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman in the TV miniseries Long Way Round.

But, unlike McGregor and Boorman, who travelled with a support vehicle and film crew on a Hollywood budget, Maragaño did it solo and spent frugally.

In Canada, he camped in the wild, eaten alive at times by flies and mosquitoes. In Australia, where he rode from Sydney to Alice Springs and up to Darwin, he stayed in backpacker hostels. In Tanzania, he slept with villagers in dung huts. In China, he stayed in hotels where he was kept up all night by noisy karaoke bars. And in various other countries he was made to feel unwelcome or rejected outright by hoteliers for turning up covered in mud or dust after long days on dirt roads.

But, in Eastern Europe, Maragaño came across a campsite called MotoCamp Bulgaria. “It was in the middle of nowhere,” he says. “The road getting there was terrible — it was snowing heavily — and the place was closed when I arrived. But the owner let me sleep inside his house, which was full of motorcycle memorabilia: Ducati ashtrays, BMW bottle openers etc. There was also a communal barbecue area where you could cook your own food [and] a workshop full of tools.

“I loved the concept,” he adds, “a place that was just for bikers.”

A CAMP IS BORN In 2015, when Maragaño completed his journey, he decided to open a moto camp of his own in Pucón, a lakeside town 800km south of Santiago known as the adventure capital of Chile for its skiing pistes, hiking trails, watersports and other adrenalin-inducing activities.

Pucón also lies on the crossroads of two of South America’s most iconic motorbike routes: the Austral Highway, a 1250km sprint through the spectacular alpine wilderness of Patagonia; and Argentina’s Route 40, a 5000km stretch of tar and gravel that runs parallel to the Andes Mountains from the Bolivia border in the north to the continent’s southern tip.

MotoCamp Chile sits on the outskirts of Pucón on a prime 2.5-acre plot at a gentle bend of a crystal-clear river full of salmon and trout. Trees and water fill the view in every direction — apart from the south, where Mount Villarrica, a massive 2847m snowcovered strata-volcano, nearly splits the sky in two.

MotoCamp Chile is the world’s first fully integrated motorbike resort in that it is an accommodation property, campsite, function centre, restaurant, bar and repair shop in one. Maragaño describes it as “a paradise for bikers where like-minded travellers can make new friends, share stories about where they’re going and where they’ve been ... where every guest is both a teacher and student”.

who Unlike McGregor and Boorman, and travelled with a support vehicle , film crew on a Hollywood budget frugally Maragaño did it solo and spent

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FEATURE THE MOTO HOTEL

dy “We just opened and we’re alrea receiving enquiries from all over the world,” Maragaño says

PHASE ONE Phase one of MotoCamp Chile opened this summer. It features a campground with 150 sites, four dorm rooms with 16 beds, a sprawling wooden riverfront deck with fire pits, communal dining tables, a chef’s kitchen with barbecue station and bar with a highly Instagrammable beer dispenser made from the engine of an old Kawasaki Ninja.

“When I worked as an architect I specialised in high-end houses,” Maragaño says. “I would spend a day living with the client, observing where they ate, worked and spent most of their time. I made it my business to understand their lifestyle before I drew my proposal so the house fitted them and not vice versa.”

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MotoCamp Chile was designed according to the same principles.

Every structure is made of sustainable pine with the planks positioned vertically to meld visually with the trees dotting the site. Alongside the parking area is a storage room for day visitors with lockers large enough to store two helmets and chunky motorcycle jackets so guests don’t have to lug their gear around or occupy chairs and tables with it as they do at roadside diners.

The lockers in the dormitories are larger still, with heavy-duty clothes rails and four power sockets in each to charge GoPros, smartphones, GPS units, laptops — all the electronics serious riders tend to carry.

The doors are made of diamondstamped metal, while old motor parts — sprockets, pistons, disc brakes and chains — have been repurposed as door handles, clothes hooks and bathroom fixtures. Plus there’s a drying room where guests can hang wet jackets and gloves so they never have to ride off in wet gear in the morning.

GOING GLOBAL Phase two of MotoCamp Chile — four more dormitories, 10 private cabins big enough for guests to actually park their motorbikes inside their rooms, five hot tubs overlooking the river and a workshop with a full-time mechanic — is scheduled for completion early next year.

Maragaño also has plans to open three more moto camps in Chile: in Coyhaique, a popular fly-fishing spot 1000km south of Pucón; in Puerto Natales, gateway to World Heritagelisted Torres del Paine National Park near the very southern tip of Chile; and in Tongoy, a coastal resort north of the capital Santiago. He’s also looking for franchise partners to open moto camps on iconic overseas motorbike touring routes like Spain’s Mediterranean coast and Route 66 in the US. “We just opened and we’re already receiving enquiries from all over the world,” Maragaño says. “The idea is simple but strong. It can work anywhere in the world where people tour on motorbikes.”

FEATURE 2016 A4DE

y r u f f o 4 days rans ride hard te e v f o le p u co a , in A Frenchman sneaksfavourite struggles and young and bow out while a ome to the 2016 Yamaha A4DE guns ďŹ re shots. Welc

PHOTOS JOHN PEARSO

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N

I

n many minds the Yamaha Australian 4 Day Enduro (A4DE) is still held up as the marquee enduro race of the year. It’s not a universal view and criticism of venues and low rider numbers is ever present — the rescheduling of this latest FourDay didn’t help in any way.

But there can be no doubt that winning the Four-Day still holds some gravitas and prestige. It also continues to throw out some great racing and genuine surprises as evidenced by the 2016 running in Mansfield, Victoria.

The race got off to the perfect start for Frenchman Mathias Bellino (Husqvarna), who won the prologue

against a field of Aussies that included Matt Phillips, Dan Milner, Chris Hollis, Daniel Sanders, Tye Simmonds, Tom McCormack and Glenn Kearney, as well as Josh Green in his first race back from injury. Even Shane Watts lined up, which brought the legend count to an all-time high.

AND IT BEGINS Day one saw Dan Milner take his familiar role as fastest bloke on the track, which put him in a good place to hunt down his fifth consecutive A4DE win — something that only Watts has done. Chris Hollis finished the day in second with Bellino in third and Josh

Green in fourth, all separated by just 20 seconds.

BELLINO BOLTS On day two, Bellino made a charge to grab the win comfortably. But the ride of the day arguably went to Josh Green who bagged second overall on his 250F, holding off Hollis and Milner by a fair margin — not bad for a guy who had to sit out 90 per cent of the racing season.

But also, how’s Hollis? This guy continues to pull rides out of his hat every now and then to remind everyone just how damn good he is. But it can’t last, right? He’s too old, right?

MILNER FIGHTS BACK On the third day, Dan Milner bolted and did what he could to gain an advantage over Bellino. He rode brilliantly and made good time but once again it was Chris Hollis in second place with Bellino in third, with Sanders finally putting a KTM into the top five.

The Kato boys would be pretty disappointed that AORC champ Sanders failed to make much of an impact and Tye Simmonds battled to even get close to the top 10.

By the end of the day, Bellino held an advantage over Milner and Hollis and the final moto was set to be a thriller.

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FEATURE 2016 A4DE

HOLLIS HAMMERS ’EM The final day was a dramatic one.

Milner got the holeshot and needed to clear out to secure that historic fifth win — but Hollis was having none of it.

In his last-ever Four-Day moto before he slipped into retirement, the Yamaha rider passed Milner and proceeded to gap the field. Meanwhile, behind him, Milner faltered and went down, allowing Bellino to grab second, a position that would give him the overall win. In dusty conditions and with too much of a gap to make up, there was nothing Milner could do.

In the end, Chris Hollis once again and for the last time confirmed his greatness by taking the moto win and second place overall. And he did it on a WR450F, not a YZ450F like the one Milner was riding.

In the E1 class, Josh Green capped the best possible return to racing with the class win over another retiring legend with a heap of speed, Glenn Kearney.Daniel Sanders, though no doubt he’d prefer to be higher than fifth in the overall standings, did clinch the E3 title with an epic final moto charge while Tayla Jones topped the Women’s class with an excellent week of riding and a blistering final moto.

2016 YAMAHA A4DE FINAL OUTRIGHT 1. Mathias BELLINO 2:08:28.623 2. Chris HOLLIS 2:08:40.857 3. Daniel MILNER 2:09:04.995 4. Josh GREEN 2:09:11.774 5. Daniel SANDERS 2:10:10.920 6. Lachlan STANFORD 2:10:25.041 7. Matt PHILLIPS 2:11:27.466 8. Glenn KEARNEY 2:11:38.834 9. Jack SIMPSON 2:12:06.448 10. Riley GRAHAM 2:13:03.630 E1 CHAMPIONSHIP 1. Josh GREEN 2:09:11.774 2. Glenn KEARNEY 2:11:38.834 3. Jack SIMPSON 2:12:06.448 4. Riley GRAHAM 2:13:03.630 5. Stefan GRANQVIST 2:13:47.264 E2 CHAMPIONSHIP 1. Mathias BELLINO 2:08:28.623 2. Chris HOLLIS 2:08:40.857 3. Daniel MILNER 2:09:04.995 4. Matt PHILLIPS 2:11:27.466 5. Broc GRABHAM 2:13:12.684 E3 CHAMPIONSHIP 1. Daniel SANDERS 2:10:10.920 2. Lachlan STANFORD 2:10:25.041 3. Lyndon SNODGRASS 2:13:22.842 4. Christopher DAVEY 2:14:41.842 5. Nic TOMLINSON 2:16:00.101 WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP 1. Tayla JONES 2:20:10.605 2. Jemma WILSON 2:28:20.050 3. Jess GARDINER 2:29:05.649 4. Emelie KARLSSON 2:33:03.980 5. Sophie COLDICUTT 2:34:16.610

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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As we drop gates and press the Go button on 2017, we take a quick look back at some of the best images from trails and adventures throughout 2016. Featuring the likes of Toby Price, Josh Green and Tom McCormack as well as scenes from trail rides and adventures, it was an epic year in the bush â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s to many more to come.

PHOTOS ASHENHURST

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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FEATURE PHOTO SPECIAL

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FEATURE ADVENTURE: PERTH TO CAMBODIA

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PERTH TO CAMBODIA Two mildly sensible young guys on a three-month overland trip from Perth to Cambodia, attempting to ride as much dirt as possible on enduro-orientated machines laden with 25 litres of fuel, 20kg of luggage/camera gear and a drone to catch all the action ...

What could go wrong?

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FEATURE ADVENTURE: PERTH TO CAMBODIA

A

s we relax in Bali waiting for our bikes to be shipped from Darwin to Dili, having already completed the Perth-Darwin leg of our trip, the answer to the above question is: a lot!

From losing a gear lever, getting completely lost in cattle country west of Murchison and running out of fuel on the Gibb River Road to riding 250km on a rear tyre with a two-inch tear held together with zip ties, we’ve had our fair share of moments that put the adventure into adventure riding.

With a lot of excitement and enthusiasm, and just a small amount of trepidation, we said our final goodbyes to family and friends gathered in Kings Park and clicked our bikes into top gear, attempting to get ahead of the blustery storm that was

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inundating our hometown of Perth.

The railway access road we’d planned to use to make our way 500km north to Mullewa now resembled a moat more than a dirt road. We couldn’t risk an injury or damage to the bikes on the first day of a three-month trip. Though sliding the rear wheel around the slippery corners was extreme fun, after a fast-flowing river crossing and a few close calls under braking in thick mud we resigned ourselves to the bitumen for the rest of the day.

The rain subsided as we woke in the first night’s camp outside Mullewa. Mild temperatures and slight cloud provided an unforgettable day of riding. Our Garmin Montana GPSs had us carving station tracks, crossing river beds and blasting down fence lines for over 350km.

But the smiles on our faces were

quickly wiped when a remote station track we’d been following to Murchison Settlement suddenly disappeared at a disused windmill. Doubling back to find another track left us with less fuel and more profanity yelled through our Sena headsets as we quickly realised we’d bitten off more than we could chew.

With both our bikes’ fuel lights well and truly illuminated by this point and our GPS route telling us we had another 60km to travel, the only option we were left with was to bush-bash 20km east to the Carnarvon-Mullewa Road.

It was slow going as we battled numerous sandy sections, eating further into our fuel and water reserves. Laying the KTM690 on its side provided Alex with the final litre he needed from his Rally Raid tanks to roll into Murchison on fumes, spluttering

to a halt once we made the main road.

Relieved we didn’t have to get the joggers out to ferry fuel back to the bikes, we reflected at camp on how vast the outback of Australia really is and how quickly you can get yourself into trouble without really knowing about it at the time.

The report of overnight rain further north towards Gascoyne Junction was true and we were met with slippery, muddy conditions as we followed designated 4WD tracks between stations, eventually fuelling up in Gascoyne and camping on the banks of a river bed out of town. A near trip-ending collision with an overly territorial bull at 90km/h made sure Alex’s undies blended in with the rest of his riding gear that day. Luckily, the GoPro was filming.

WATER SAVERS The next day we had to sacrifice our four-litre water container as an extra fuel bladder, leaving us 26 litres each of 91 octane fuel to cover the 420km from Mount Augustus to Paraburdoo via the Ashburton Downs Road. We didn’t see a soul for over six hours as a mix of sandy river beds and rocky hill climbs kept us on our toes.

If we weren’t on a tight schedule to be in Broome for the Broome Cup we agreed we’d have fuelled up and ridden the track once more, it was that good! In what was becoming par for the course, we made it Paraburdoo with only a few litres to spare between us.

Two days exploring the gorges and waterfalls of Karijini National Park left us excited for what lay ahead on the Gibb River Road. After failing to successfully navigate a disused 4WD track from Karijini out to the abandoned town of Wittenoom, enduring a flat front tyre and subsequently running out of fuel (the Husaberg’s turn this time) on our way to Auski Roadhouse, we rode into Port Hedland under cover of darkness.

The next day we slogged 680km in order to make the renowned Broome Cup wet T-shirt competition — and wet it was. After two days of recovering on Cable Beach from

our large weekend we said our goodbyes to our mates in Broome and the Gibb River Road welcomed us that afternoon with better-thanexpected conditions.

The bikes floated over the corrugations and rocky outcrops as we passed numerous 4WDs rattling along at 60km/h. Our only issue over the 780km was running short of fuel (thank God there were two of us on this trip!) west of Mount Barnett Roadhouse as a result of too many detours to capture yet another amazing waterfall with the drone, tripod and camera gear in tow.

crifice our The next day we had to sa an extra as four-litre water container litres each fuel bladder, leaving us 26 420km of 91 octane fuel to cover

THE MACHINERY ALEX’S 2014 KTM 690 ENDURO R The 690 was chosen for its extended service intervals and, above all, reliability. With now over 13,000km on the bike I have encountered no mechanical issues with it at all.

Essential modifications: • Rally Raid front tanks • Rally Raid 4L rear tank • Upgraded high-tensile subframe CHAD’S 2009 HUSABERG FE450 Chosen for its light weight.

Upgraded and revalved suspension ensures the ’Berg keeps its enduro traits even with 25kg of gear hanging off the back.

Essential modifications: • Safari fuel tank • Strengthened subframe • Plumb plastic subframe to store 4L of oil

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FEATURE ADVENTURE: PERTH TO CAMBODIA

REACHING DILI After two days of exploring the magnificent El Questro Station and nearly drowning the bikes in one of the station’s deeper river crossings, we rode the last section of the Gibb with a sense of accomplishment that we’d completed one of Australia’s great outback roads.

In order to make our shipping cut-off date in Darwin, the next 830km was all bitumen riding on bikes not well suited to the task. With little wind deflection, knobby tyres and dirt gearing, the uncomfortable conditions got worse when we noticed a two-inch tear in the Husaberg’s rear tyre.

The D606 tyres had worn extremely well so far but we suspect high tarmac speeds and low tyre pressure caused

d the tear from Two zip ties prevente e backed off w getting any bigger as the ’Berg the the speed and nursed in final 250km into Darw

62 |

the tyre to heat up. When summiting a rocky hill to find a campsite, the tyre may have been sliced by a sharp rock.

Two zip ties prevented the tear from getting any bigger as we backed off the speed and nursed the ’Berg the final 250km into Darwin.

In the 6398km of our trip so far, the bikes have hardly missed a beat.

Despite being a highly strung enduro weapon, the Husaberg FE450 had a leaking counter shaft seal (fixed in Karijini) and a flat front tyre (which can be chalked up to tyre pressure laziness on behalf of the owner).

True to its heritage, Alex’s KTM 690 Enduro R had zero mechanical problems, the only issue being his gear lever falling off because of a lack of thread locker.

As we embark on the second leg of our journey from Dili in Timor Leste to Cambodia, we’re fortunate to be supporting Ride Aid, a non-profit organisation establishing education and health projects throughout South East Asia. You can visit their website at www.rideaid.net.

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FEATURE HONDA AFRICA TWIN VS KTM 1190 ADVENTURE R

HEAVYWEIGHT

t u o t hi

nd sizes but a s e p a h s f o y t me in a varie o c s e ik hen it comes b e w r l u a t u n q e e ll a Adv t o n road/ hat theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re its undeniable t ting. We put two of the best offich one tops to pure dirt blas through their paces to see wh dirt starts. adventure bikesthe black top ends and serious the other when STORY & PHOTOS

ASHENHURST

N I W T A C I R F A HONDA

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s

R E R U T N E V D A KTM 1190

E

rgos are purely objective and because we all come in different shapes and sizes, you can only gauge a bike’s comfort by sitting on it yourself. With that in mind, this represents only my personal experience.

Both bikes are comfortable in stock trim but they feel nothing alike. They’re roomy up top with a good feel from the seat to the ‘bars, which gives you space to shift bodyweight and not feel cramped on long rides. The KTM feels a little squeezed from the seat to the pegs for me, though, and I found myself stretching my legs out every now and then — and the Honda has terribly small footpegs suitable only for hooves and not actual human feet.

Both are excellent to stand and ride but the Honda is a little more difficult to

grab with your knees given the slope of the tank — and those footpegs will start to hurt after a while. But the bars are nice on both bikes and the levers are all good bends and shapes.

The manually adjustable windscreens on both bikes are good and they both have comfortable seats.

POWER If this came down to a cage fight the KTM would slap the Honda into a submission hold and choke it out on the floor. There’s no contest when it’s punch-for-punch but the story is different when it comes to how you use that power.

The KTM walks into the ring with 150 horsepower but trust us; you don’t want none of that. In ‘Offroad’ mode the 1190’s ‘roid rage settles to a far more usable 100 horsepower and this is somewhere

around six more than the Africa Twin.

The KTM’s engine feels like a 1200 engine made manageable through electronics while the Honda feels like it’s designed specifically to do the job; it might not be as versatile overall but in the dirt it’s brilliant.

There are no engine modes on the Africa Twin — what you get when you turn the key is everything — whereas there are four engine modes on the 1190 but only one that’s worth using in the dirt.

Both are adept at handling lowspeed tricky stuff with good clutch feel and no shortage of torque. In fact, these bikes are better in these conditions than their sizes would otherwise indicate and it doesn’t feel like you’re trying to chain down a beast or labour a container ship.

These are very different engines

and of course the KTM has plenty more CCs but they are both manageable and a pleasure to ride. Both can sit on high speeds for extended periods and then handle a snotty sand section with equal confidence. For the tighter trails the Honda is easier to keep in check and sits right on that line of having just enough but not too much power to be fatiguing. We’ve heard time and again from adventure bike owners that if it’s not 1200CC then it’s not enough and that 1000CC just can’t possibly cut it, but that’s just dumb road riding mentality. The glory of a super-fast 0–60 means nothing compared to whether you can climb a hill or pick through wet clay or bone-dry bulldust pits, when horsepower takes a back seat to manageability and versatility. Both these bikes excel in this department.

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FEATURE HONDA AFRICA TWIN VS KTM 1190 ADVENTURE R

is For the tighter trails the Honda right easier to keep in check and sits gh but on that line of having just enou uing not too much power to be fatig ELECTRONICS The KTM has some and the Honda has little. KTM has about double what the Africa twin has, which is about half what BMW runs. It kind of doesn’t matter, though, and here’s how it broke down on our rides.

We turn the traction control and the ABS off immediately on the Honda. We turn the ABS off but sometimes leave the traction control on with the KTM. The KTM has things like Wheelie Control, Motorcycle Stability Control and a ride-by-wire throttle whereas the Honda does not. Does it matter? In the dirt it doesn’t much and although there’s a clear winner in what’s on offer on both bikes, the electronics isn’t going to be the point that sways us to choose one bike over the other.

If we were to think more about the road then the Honda comes across as lacking, but for offroad riding the fact that the KTM has a better traction control system that we did use quite a bit is all that separated them. The fact

66 |

that the 1190 has four separate ride modes is far more of an advantage to the road rider than the offroad rider.

The KTM’s dash is a mix of digital and analogue while the Honda is all digital. Both are OK to read with the sun behind you or while standing up.

Both bikes have a well-placed 12volt socket but just to give you an idea of what’s not on either bike but can be found on others, there is no Bluetooth connectivity, no cornering lights, no hill assist or cruise control, no fully electronic adjustable suspension or integrated GPS and no heated handgrips. These clearly aren’t titans of the electronic age of motorcycling, but with the exception of cruise control and heated hand grips we can live without all that stuff in the bush. Cruise control is a brilliant tool on multiple day rides or long, straight stretches of road like we have in Australia, and heated hand grips never cross your mind till you need them — at which point you’d kill to have them.

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FEATURE HONDA AFRICA TWIN VS KTM 1190 ADVENTURE R

s made for the offroad d ke bi re tu n ve ad o tw These are t they are a rare bree bu at th in e on al â&#x20AC;&#x2122;t en rider. They ar

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FEATURE HONDA AFRICA TWIN VS KTM 1190 ADVENTURE R

If this came down to a cage fight the KTM wou ld Honda into a subm slap the iss and choke it out o ion hold n the floor HANDLING They’re both very good but they again feel very different in how they go about their business.

The KTM has a beautifully neutral feel and for a large bike it’s surprisingly easy to change direction quickly as long as you’re mindful of how far the back-end can step out (traction control helps here). The Honda resists the initial turn, wanting to stand up, but with a flick of the throttle is ridiculously easy and predictable to slide and steer with the rear wheel. So, in short, the KTM feels better in the first part of a turn while the Africa Twin exits more predictably, which has as much to do

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with the power characteristics as it does the overall handling package.

Both have excellent brakes so coming in hot isn’t the end of the world, but to split them I’d choose the Kato on a high-speed turn and the Honda on a technical turn. It must be said here, though, and I did plenty of riding on both bikes in just about every condition and terrain, these are two outstanding machines to ride in the bush. The way they can both handle ruts, roots, soft, hard and stay comfortable for a long day is amazing. They are simply the best in their classes.

When things get really technical the Honda shines with its lower seat

height and lighter overall weight. The KTM will punish you for letting it tip past a pretty short point of no return, after which you’ll be deadlifting a monster, while we found ourselves planting the foot and doing bush turns on the Honda with little effort. The Kato feels more top heavy when the going gets tough and would better suit a rider with solid experience. But until things go to poo, both of these bikes are ahead of the competition in true, deep offroad conditions.

The 1190 feels like it has more overall flex and a plusher fork than the Africa Twin but it can certainly take some big hits without bottoming out.

The Honda’s suspension feels like it’s ready for war but can feel a little harsh on sharp edge hits.

It’s such a difficult line to tread with bikes of this size to provide a setup that can take punishment but still remain comfortable. Jumping the 1190 is great fun and that’s because of the suspension, while I’d rather hit sand on the Africa Twin and when things get sideways the Honda is easier to pull back into line.

For a good mix of riders both bikes aren’t far off the mark, but some tuning would be needed to get both just right for faster riders. Not much, though — they’re both well balanced.

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FEATURE HONDA AFRICA TWIN VS KTM 1190 ADVENTURE R

separate ride ur fo as h 0 9 11 e th at The fact th advantage to the an of e or m r fa is es mod road rider road rider than the off VERDICT These are two adventure bikes made for the offroad rider. They aren’t alone in that but they are a rare breed. The 21/18 inch wheel sets, the light-on electronics approach, appropriate gearing and overall feel on a variety of offroad terrain make these two less road bikes than much of the competition.

A choice between the two would come down to smaller details. If you do a lot of road and it’s undeniable that even pure adventure riding can involve hours on the tar, then the KTM with the extra 200cc and useful ride modes is the better choice. But in a straight one-on-one in the dirt it’s not so clear. The Africa Twin is easier to manhandle in tricky stuff. The KTM has far better traction control. The KTM tips into a corner like a bike half the size but it’s less fatiguing controlling the power delivered by the Honda over a full day.

The KTM gets more kays out of a tank but it costs several thousands of dollars more than the Africa Twin. The

72 |

Honda’s pricing for the middle model is pretty damn aggressive.

If we had either bike we’d be happy. If we had both we’d never stop grinning.

It’s not hard to find examples of both that have done crazy distances and served well and we reckon you should ride both before choosing one and then make the decision based on its feel in the dirt.

Having said that, nobody likes a fence sitter so we reckon for pure dirt riding the Honda is the pick. The Kato is more versatile across all surfaces but by the slimmest of margins we like riding the Africa Twin a bee’s dick more offroad. Price plays a role here too but it just feels more like it can be pushed harder by a less experienced rider, thus broadening the Honda’s appeal.

KTM decided to drop the 1190 from the model line-up for 2017. A 1090 will take its place and we’ll be keen to put that and the Honda head to head.

We really are getting spoiled for choice at the moment.

FEATURE INTERVIEW: GLENN KEARNEY

END OF AN ERA

Glenn Kearneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s done it all and won a heap along the way but now his full-time racing days are over. Aaryn Minerds caught up with the legend to go over his long and brilliant career

WORDS AARYN MINERDS PHOTOGRAPHY ASHENHURST

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FEATURE INTERVIEW: GLENN KEARNEY

All our riding started in the backyard to begin with and I gu ess my parents thought we were a bit better, or at least a bit crazier announcing his racing retirement at the end of the 2016 season.

After such a great career, it was only fitting to sit down and reflect on some of the great achievements Kearney has been part of in his many years of travelling the world racing, and to see exactly what the future holds for a man who will go down in history as one of the legends of Australian off-road racing.

M

ultiple l i l AORC and d A4DE championships and podium finishes, a GNCC championship podium along with a plethora of GNCC race podiums, eight ISDE Gold Medals including a junior and senior trophy podium and of course the granddaddy of them all — a Senior ISDE Championship win as part of the 2015 Australian team.

Yep, there isn’t much Glenn Kearney hasn’t achieved on a dirtbike since he started riding at the age of four in his home town of Picton, New South Wales.

Add championship success as a team manager-cum-rider for the Australian Husqvarna Off-Road team over the past few years to his racing record and it is easy to see why the now father of two was quickly picked up by the Australian KTM Off-Road team in the team manager’s role shortly after

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LET’S KICK THINGS OFF AT THE BEGINNING. HOW WERE YOU INTRODUCED TO THE WORLD OF DIRTBIKES? I think I was about four years old when I first rode a bike and like most kids I got into riding through my old man.

He had motorbikes during his time growing up, and he got me and my brothers started at a young age on a PW50 and we just went from there.

All our riding started in the backyard to begin with and I guess my parents thought we were a bit better, or at least a bit crazier, than the other kids at least on the bike and we ended up at the Oakdale Junior Motorcycle club.

That is where the racing began when I think I was about seven.

I spent all my junior days racing only motocross and did not actually start racing enduro/off-road until probably my second year in seniors at about 17, but the majority of my riding while growing up was done in the bush.

Where we grew up there was a lot

of places to go riding in the bush but not too many motocross tracks that you could get onto. My racing was done on a motocross track but my riding and training mainly in the bush, which probably helped when I made the transition to go off-road more natural.

WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER OF YOUR JUNIOR RACING DAYS AND IS THERE ANYTHING THAT STANDS OUT IN YOUR MEMORY? We only competed in club stuff for a long time growing up, but I grew up with a few talented guys that went right through and made a name for themselves that all grew up around Nowra, Wollongong, Oakdale area.

I am about the same age as Robbie Maddison, Clint Debner and Chad Reed, who is a little younger but I raced against when I started racing more up around the Newcastle area, and also Aaron Gobert.

As I got a little bit older we raced a few New South Wales state titles and I won a junior state title at 14 or 15 years old on a 125, and had some good results on 65s and 85s when I was a little younger. But we never raced any national championships growing up.

SO WHEN DID OFF-ROAD RACING BECOME YOUR FOCUS? It was about 1999 or 2000 possibly, I would say, with Sutto’s on a Husaberg.

The plan back then was to race the Thumpernats series that was still running back then, some motocross and some off-road.

The way the calendar worked that year, I ended up racing a lot more offroad than anything and was reasonably good at it to begin with.

I had the late Ian Cunningham as a mentor to begin with as he was riding for Sutto back then. He sort of showed me the ropes back when I started and also helped me out a lot during my first ever four-day, which I raced over in New Zealand.

That first four-day was a fun experience. If you ever had anything to do with Big E, it made for a pretty casual and fun entry into the offroad experience.

I spent two years racing for Sutto’s with some mixed results before I approached Geoff Ballard to get onto his team. His team was the team to be on at that time and the 250 four-stroke was the bike I really wanted to be racing at that point.

Ballard took me on and backed me for 2003 and we were able to pick up my first A4DE title in that class, then the year after in 2004 we were able to win the four-day title outright which was a great achievement.

Heading into 2004, I already had ambitions of racing overseas after heading over to America with GB in 2003 to check out the GNCC series.

I got a bit of a wake-up call that first year over there when I got my ass handed to me!

At that point in time everyone in America was racing 250 two-strokes and I decided that was where I wanted to be racing. So in 2004 we did the deal with Yamaha to race a 250 twostroke here in Australia, where we won the four-day outright, and then headed back to America and I was able to get a podium finish in the two rounds I raced that year.

My results in my two races in the US were enough to land me a deal to race a 250 two-stroke for the following year and I spent the next six years racing in America.

THOSE FIRST TWO AUSTRALIAN FOUR-DAY TITLES MUST RATE AS SOME OF THE MOST SPECIAL MEMORIES OF YOUR CAREER? That first one was really special; I remember it pretty fondly. I had my old man down there, a mate of mine Dave Roach — Big Dave — he was a big help at that event.

The battle back then was with Wonka (Brad Williscroft) and Jake Stapleton at that point in time. I remember Wonka having a misfortune when he missed an arrow and picked up a trail penalty, which took him out of the running.

I then battled Jake down to the final moto and everything came together there. I have fond memories; it was a pretty cool event.

AS YOU SAID, AFTER YOUR SUCCESS IN AUSTRALIA YOU MOVED TO THE US AND SPENT A BIG PART OF YOUR RACING YEARS CONTESTING THE GNCC CHAMPIONSHIP, THE BIGGEST OFF-ROAD CHAMPIONSHIP IN AMERICA.

period of time I was always good at, so the format over there I feel suited the style I like to go about things.

YOU MENTIONED THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO LAND ON THE PODIUM WHEN YOU HEADED BACK IN 2004 FOR A COUPLE OF RACES. HOW LONG ONCE YOU SIGNED TO RACE FULLTIME IN THE US DID IT TAKE YOU TO CONSISTENTLY FIND YOURSELF AT THE POINTY END OF THE FIELD? I remember the first year I went over back at the end of 2003 when I was racing for Ballard. I raced a WR450F and got lapped in both the races I entered!

Actually Wattsy (Shane Watts) won one of those races. He actually stopped when he came past to lap me — I think I was bogged in a mud hole or something.

He came past, stopped, gave me a spray and then kept going. (laughs) When we went back in 2004 I landed on the podium in both races we entered, so that was a big step for myself — going from getting lapped one year to being on the podium the following year.

Then in my first full year racing the series with Suzuki I managed to finish on the podium in the final championship standings. Juha Salminen won the championship, Barry Hawk was second and I was third.

I was sitting in second position with just a few rounds to go when I broke my leg at a state round in New York, which looking back now was a pretty big turning point of my career.

It was a pretty bad injury and was the injury that resulted in my ankle being fused 10 years later. It affected the way I was able to ride and control the rear brake from the day I broke it all the way until today.

Over the next six years I rode for a couple of different manufacturers and had a lot of race podiums, but the one regret from my time in the US was never being able to get the job done, as I never won one of the rounds.

Twice I had a race all but wrapped up but lost either in the last corner or the last series of corners leading into the finish, but it was not from lack of trying that is for sure.

YOU CERTAINLY HAD A GREAT CAREER IN THE US AND DURING THAT TIME YOU ALSO REPRESENTED AUSTRALIA AT THE ISDE ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS, WHICH CULMINATED WITH YOU BEING PART OF AUSTRALIA’S FIRST-EVER SENIOR TROPHY WIN. HOW WAS IT TO PULL THE GREEN AND GOLD ON AND REPRESENT YOUR COUNTRY RACING A DIRTBIKE? Over the years I think I have raced 10 International Six-day Enduros and picked up eight gold medals out of those 10.

The first real memorable result for myself was racing a 250 four-stroke in Brazil. I had a lot of top times and was right up there in the outright results, which was pretty cool for me at the time.

I was part of a junior trophy team that finished on the podium I am pretty sure in Poland — but my memory is a little foggy — and also the senior trophy team that finished on the podium in 2012 and they were some great memories.

Then obviously to finish off my ISDE racing as part of the winning Australian team after getting called up at the last minute to replace Strang after he had some visa issues, that really was the icing on the cake.

It was always a great feeling to

represent Australia. As soon as you pull that green and gold jersey on and you get your helmet painted up its hard not to feel proud and excited.

I was lucky to have Browns Grafix paint me up a helmet every year we went. To have that sort of stuff still sitting on the mantle now is a great memory and a great way to look back on those events.

The best thing about the ISDE: as riders we would compete against each other all year, then for that one race we came together as a team and bonded.

There was always some funny stories.

It was always a great event and all the top riders in the Aussie off-road scene are good blokes so it was always fun.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT AUSTRALIAN RACING THAT IS PRODUCING SO MANY GREAT INTERNATIONAL RIDERS? I think the formats that we have help a lot. At the moment we are the only country that I know of that during our national championship we run sprint races, enduro races and cross-country races, giving us a great variance in formats.

We also have a great variety of terrain. We can have one round held in sand, then the next round we can have a rocky or drier, harder dirt. Then we also have at least one mud race each year, where a lot of other countries are stuck with the one type of format and the one type of terrain to race on.

Probably the biggest thing, though, would be that we are so far away from the world scene. If someone from Australia wants to make it they have to really commit.

Then when we as riders see the likes of, say, Wattsy before me and Grabbo, and then you see what Toby is doing and what is possible, the

Coming from our Australian events, which would be lucky to be as big as a club day over in America, to rocking up to my first GNCC and seeing the amount of riders and people in the pits and everyone involved with the races, it was a real eye opener to begin with.

The events themselves ran like clockwork; they are very professionally run with a full-time promoter.

The big thing, though, was the format — it’s just so hard and you just can’t explain to guys back in Australia just how hard racing a GNCC is. Even though we try and replicate it here with three-hour races, just the sheer volume of bikes that enter the races over there makes a huge difference.

By the time the pro class hits the track it has had two days of quad, junior and amateur-class races already held on the same track and the track is so beat. Every single race is very difficult.

That sort of suited me, though.

Growing up, any type of long-distance running or anything that was hard and you had to push yourself over a long

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FEATURE INTERVIEW: GLENN KEARNEY

level gets elevated and riders back here know if they can match a guy like Chucky (Daniel Sanders) they can match anyone in the world when they head to a six day.

SINCE RETURNING TO AUSTRALIA AND MORE SO OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, YOU HAVE TAKEN ON THE ROLE AS TEAM MANAGER FOR HUSQVARNA AUSTRALIA. HOW HAS LIFE AS A TEAM MANAGER BEEN SO FAR? It has been really rewarding actually.

During my final stages of racing in America, my brother came over as my mechanic and we ran our own program.

It gave me a bit of an idea on how to manage stuff and get things sorted.

It was still difficult at first trying to run the team while continuing to race myself in that first year, but we still managed to win an AORC title and A4DE title in the E3 class that year.

In that first year we had three riders, with Scott Keegan and Lachlan Stanford alongside myself. We had to reduce the team size the following year with Lachy staying on the team for ‘15 and ‘16.

It has been an enjoyable experience and we have built some good relationships and had a great base there with Christian Horwood as our mechanic over the three years — he is a good, solid, reliable guy, which made life easy.

cked me Ballard took me on and ba to pick for 2003 and we were able class at up my first A4DE title in th

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THIS YEAR WAS YOUR FINAL YEAR OF RACING AND DESPITE AN INJURY AT THE START OF THE YEAR IT HAS BEEN A SUCCESSFUL ONE WITH ANOTHER AORC AND A4DE CHAMPIONSHIP PODIUM RESULT. DID YOU KNOW HEADING INTO THE YEAR THAT THIS WAS GOING TO BE YOUR FINAL YEAR RACING OR IS IT SOMETHING THAT CAME ABOUT LATER IN THE YEAR? I only made the decision about three months ago! Over the past few years I have spoken with Jeff (Jeff Leisk) and even before that back in the PFG days with Paul Feeney. The plan was always to move into a role with the company and even from the start with Jeff I was always interested in running a team and working within the company.

I was really looking for the right time and opportunity for things to work.

At the same time I have still been quite competitive on track, which makes it hard to give it up, especially when you are still beating the guys you are hiring. (Laughs) This year started out the same as other years but with the way things have worked out with the company moving from Perth over to Sydney and the role opening up at KTM, everything came about with not too much of this year left.

I knew heading into the four-day what was going to be happening and knew that it was going to be my last event. It’s

definitely not going to be my last-ever race, but certainly my last race as a full-time professional off-road racer.

This final season has been good; I finished second to Jack Simpson in the E1 class in the AORC championship.

I was really fit coming into the year.

Dropping back from the 500 down to the 250 four-stroke I planned on really cutting down my weight and I was coming into the season really fit and lean. Then I broke that shoulder at the Clipsal enduro-cross, just two weeks out from the first round, which upset the points right from the beginning.

I can’t take anything away from Jack; he rode really well all year.

The four-day was a solid finish but it sort of reminded me of the reason I was retiring. Josh Green was back in E1 and he beat me by a couple of minutes at the end of the four days. It sort of cemented the fact it was time.

There is a reason you retire — you used to beat these kids by that amount and now they’re starting to beat you by over a minute instead of just a few seconds, so the writing is on the wall.

HOW WERE THE EMOTIONS WHEN YOU FINISHED ON THE FINAL DAY AND KNEW THAT WOULD BE YOUR LAST OUTING AS A PROFESSIONAL RACER? It was quite emotional and it was good to have my old man back out there for my final race. He has been there from the start and an integral part of my racing the whole way along. He has not been at too many races over the past couple of years so to have him there for that final race was pretty special.

At the same time, unfortunately my wife, Krystle, couldn’t be there as we just had our newborn son, who was only a couple of weeks old. She has been a big part of my racing over the past 10 or more years.

It was an emotional day and pretty cool to go out like that with the other riders doing a bit of a guard of honour, and to also finish up my racing in one piece and still reasonably competitive was a good feeling.

YOU JUST MENTIONED YOUR WIFE, KRYSTLE, WHO WAS ALWAYS AT THE RACES WITH YOU ALONG WITH YOUR YOUNG FAMILY. HOW IMPORTANT HAS IT BEEN FOR YOU TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE IN A SPORT YOU ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT AND DO FOR A LIVING AND AT THE SAME TIME HAVE YOUR FAMILY AROUND YOU WHILE YOU DO IT? It has been unreal and we structured it that way from the start and made it work.

When we were in America it was more of a family sort of thing for everyone at the races, with everyone in motorhomes and their families being involved. Even with the big teams a lot of them were family-run operations.

There is no way I would have lasted

You can’t explain to guys back in Aus tr how hard racing alia just a GNCC is

six years over there without Krystle, so when we came home we just continued on in that same way and made it work out here.

You could do it either way and leave the family at home and just go to work and do your job, but I think Krystle complements my racing having her there and doing it as a team. It certainly made it more enjoyable along the way.

THAT IS GREAT TO HEAR. WITH YOUR PROFESSIONAL RACING DAYS OVER YOU HAVE JUST ANNOUNCED THAT YOU WILL BE MOVING ON FROM THE HUSQVARNA TEAM AND WILL MOVE OVER TO RUN THE AUSTRALIAN KTM OFF-ROAD TEAM IN 2017. HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT AND WHAT CAN WE EXPECT TO SEE HEADING INTO THE YEAR? The original plan was to continue with Husqvarna as the team manager, then when Grabbo moved on from KTM to be offered the role to run the number-one off-road team in the country and go

down that path was one that I could not pass up. I am really excited and looking forward to 2017. I have big shoes to fill but I am hoping I can succeed with that. Preparations have already started for next year with managing the team.

I want to stay in the industry and try and help to make things better any way we can. The AORC have a program running in 2017 where they will help junior riders with coaching and I’ll be involved with that alongside the AORC early in the year. I just want to give back a bit to the sport that has given me so much over the years.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME, GLENN. YOU HAVE HAD A GREAT CAREER BOTH HERE IN AUSTRALIA AND OVERSEAS AND WE CERTAINLY LOOK FORWARD TO CONTINUING WITH THAT SUCCESS WITH YOUR MOVE TO KTM. Thank you. It has been good to go through my career and reflect on it all — you don’t take the time to do that very often. It has been a fun ride so far.

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WE FEATURE ONE OF THE GREATS

H TIPS TEC

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WE GET GREASY AND PLAY WITH OUR TOOLS

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CAPTURING A GREAT MOMENT IN TRAIL TIME

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LEGEND SHOT GLENN KEARNEY

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SEE YA, GK Glenn Kearney needs no introduction. He’s been a top rider on the racing scene for what seems like forever. In fact, it’s hard to remember a time when GK wasn’t racing motocross, enduro or GNCC. Not many riders get to enjoy a career this long and fewer ever approach being so competitive all the way through. Who could ever forget the insane finish to the 2007 Steele Creek GNCC against Barry Hawk? If you haven’t seen it, jump on YouTube now and watch that classic race moment and you’ll get an idea of GK’s commitment.

Kearney has been confirmed as Ben Grabham’s replacement as KTM Off-Road team boss so he’ll still be at the races but it’ll be a bit different not seeing his name in the results.

PHOTO ASHENHURST

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TECH TIPS Trailers can be a very important part of your dirtbike experience.

They stand alone in the backyard, waiting for that day when needed.

They follow faithfully wherever you go and don’t complain or argue. Down dirt roads, through creek crossings or mud, they are just there right behind you. Then you leave them alone and ride off, come back many hours later and return them to the backyard — forgotten, unwashed and parked until next time.

Trailers need love, too. I wonder how many of you have had that sinking feeling. You know the one: when some random wheel overtakes you and disappears across three lanes of traffic or shoots off the side of the highway into the trees, shortly to be followed by the clunk and grinding sound of your trailer axle running a deep groove down the road, sparks flying out the back.

Just as with your bike, maintenance is the key to making sure this doesn’t happen to you.

Simple checks of your trailer will help prevent incidents. Check your tyres and tyre pressure.

Then jack up the trailer and rotate the wheel. It should spin freely and smoothly. Listen for any noise. Finally, grab the wheel and try to move it from side to side — there should be minimal movement. Excess movement means worn bearings or they may need to be tightened.

Ideally, you should remove the hubs annually, clean the old grease out, inspect the bearing and bearing race for wear and either replace or repack with fresh grease.

REMOVAL & INSPECTION Wheel hubs are extremely easy to remove. Jack up and secure the trailer and remove the wheel.

Then, with a pair of multigrips, grab the bearing dust cover and wiggle back and forth until it pulls off. Wipe the excess grease away.

The nut will have a split pin locking it in place. Bend the ends of the pin straight then remove.

The nut will now come off with a shifting spanner. The out bearing

86 |

TOWED & FORGOTTEN WORDS AND PHOTOS CLIVE WARD OF MOTORCYCLEBIZ

and washer will pop straight out.

Place aside then grab hub and pull outwards — it should slide off easily. Lever the seal on the back of the hub outwards with a large screwdriver and then the rear wheel bearing will also come out.

CLEAN & INSPECT Wash all the grease away; a mix of kerosene and mineral turps is excellent for this. You need to remove all the grease from the bearings and the hubs.

Closely inspect the bearing and bearing race surface. If it’s pitted, grooved or the case hardening is damaged, you’ll need to replace the bearings and races.

Go to your local auto parts supplier or bearing shop. I recommend getting the bestquality bearings you can and I always ask for ones made in Japan — Chinese bearings are cheap but can fail quickly. A goodquality set of bearings for a single

axle trailer will set you back around $50–60. Also buy a tub of grease: you want waterproof high-temp bearing grease.

REMOVE The old bearing races need to be knocked out of the hub. They’re press-fitted in there, so you’ll need to hit them from behind with a drift. Hit evenly around the race so it doesn’t become jammed in sideways.

Once they’re out you can knock the new races in. Do NOT hit the surface where the bearing runs; ideally, use a large socket or bearing installer on the small outer rim edge of the bearing to knock it in. Failing that you can tap it in evenly with the drift but you can only hit the small outer edge (about 2mm wide). You’ll need to take extreme care if attempting this method. If you mark the surface the bearing runs on you’ll dramatically reduce the life of the new bearing.

GREASE IT Fill the inner hub with lots of grease then place a large lump on your open palm. With the other hand, hold the bearing and push it into the grease.

Keep doing this until the grease is forced fully all around the bearing rollers; pack it in nice and tight.

Place the rear bearing into the hub and tap the seal in behind it until it’s flush with the outer hub surface.

INSTALL Push the hub onto the axle then place the outer bearing on the axle, followed by the washer and nut. Tighten the nut until you feel pressure being applied to the bearing. Back it off until it’s only finger tight, locate the split pin hole and slide in the pin, bending the ends to keep it in place.

Tap the dust cover back onto the hub and you’re done.

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RIDING TIPS WHOOPED-OUT TURNS

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WHOOPED-OUT

TURNS

Sand can be fun but it gets rough; sweeping turns produce big rollers that can get you out of shape and zap your energy. Here are some tips to help you tame them WORDS SHANE BOOTH PHOTOGRAPHY DAMIEN ASHENHURST

VISION Where you look when attacking a whooped-out sandy turn will make a huge difference to how well you get through it. Keep your eyes up and looking well through the corner and all the way out the exit. Avoid fixing your vision on any one section of the corner; if you do you’ll tend to ride to that point rather than through and out of the corner. Identify the deeper whoops so you can be sure to keep the front wheel from dropping into them but don’t fix your vision on them. It’s very easy to look at the biggest whoop and worry about it but that won’t help you get past it. Make sure your eyes identify positive sections of the turn, not negative ones.

can work with the bike through the bumps. The toughest part of this technique is leaning your body with the bike while both feet are on the footpegs. If you don’t do this the bike will always try to stand up mid-turn, so lean your body with the bike and trust the sand to hold you.

WHEELIE THE WHOOPS Lofting the front wheel from top to top across the rolling bumps is what you’re aiming to do when dealing with this type of turn. You really want to avoid your front wheel dropping into the deep hole between the bumps because more often than not it will result in a friendly trip over the handlebars.

BODY POSITION

POWER DELIVERY

This is usually where the majority of riders feel the most awkward.

Standing the whole way through a turn isn’t natural and takes some practice to get comfortable with but it’s really the only way to deal with this type of turn with any speed.

It’s basically your regular central standing position that you’ll be using.

Keep your head over the handlebars or just slightly behind if you need to help loft the front wheel from the top of one whoop to another. Be careful not to get your weight too far back, though, as it can cause the front end to wash and also make your front wheel come up too high as you loft it over the whoops. Squeeze the bike between your legs to help keep it tracking in line and make sure your elbows and knees are bent so you

Keeping the bike driving forward in the sand is the most important thing here. Sounds obvious but if you hesitate or baulk through the turn and the bike slows the front will bury in the sand and cause you problems.

Selecting the correct gear will make a difference, too — you want a gear that will keep the bike driving all the way through and out of the turn. You don’t want to hit the rev limiter halfway through the corner; if you do the front will drop in and over you go. You may need to select a higher gear and use some clutch to help the bike through the first part of the turn until you build some speed on the exit. You’ll find the clutch handy to help loft the front wheel, too, so be sure to keep one or two fingers over the lever so you’re ready to use it if necessary.

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RIDING TIPS SAND TURNS

SAND TURNS A sandy corner is great fun when you get it right but frustrating and energy zapping when you don’t STORY SHANE BOOTH PHOTOGRAPHY DAMIEN ASHENHURST

DON’T BURY IT This is where most people get into trouble. It’s really easy to bury the front wheel in the soft sand when you go to turn the bike. You have to avoid the temptation to go into the nice-looking berm square on and just smash off it. Try to pick up your turn early and make a wider, smoother turn; this will help you stay lighter and on top of the sand rather than burying into it. The throttle can also help here, so try to roll the gas on in one smooth application; you can be aggressive but keep it smooth. If you come in and dump the clutch with a handful of throttle you’ll just bury it.

RELAX A LITTLE The bike is always going to move around a lot in the sand. It’s never going to feel as stable as it might on a hard surface so you need to get used to that. Try not to fight every little movement the bike makes; if you do you’ll wear yourself out quickly and the sand will be no fun at all. You need to get comfortable with the movement: try to relax your hands and arms a little and use your legs to hold onto the bike.

DON’T OVER-REV Keep the bike in a good, meaty part of the power; don’t over-rev it. You’ll find the bike can pull higher gears with a little clutch because there will always

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be some wheel spin in the sand that helps the engine build revs. If the bike is screaming, it won’t drive well and will just bury.

KEEP YOUR EYES FORWARD Turn your head and look out the exit of the corner as early as possible to help you keep moving forward and not get caught up in the soft stuff. Keeping your eyes up and forward will help you hold your line in the sand and prevent you being affected by the squirrelly lines going everywhere.

LEAN BACK It’s not often you want to take weight off the front wheel in a corner but in the sand you can. Do it by just sitting slightly more upright than normal; this will take some weight off the front wheel and help it stay on top of the sand. It will help you get better drive as you exit the corner, too, so feel free to keep it going there.

TIP IT IN Although the sand will move it will also hold you, so you need to trust that and lean in with the bike. If you try to push the bike down and sit up on top of it as in a flat turn, you’ll struggle. Lean with the bike and use the throttle to pull you out of it. When you get confident with this, sand will be much more fun.

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SNAPSHOT

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Mathias Bellino blasting his Husky out of a circle rut.

PHOTO ASHENHURST

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PARTING SHOT TADDY BLAZUSIAK

TADDY BLAZUSIAK Another one of the greats has called it a day.

See ya, Taddy — you’re a freak.

PHOTO RED BULL CONTENT POOL

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