Adventure Riding - KTM 500 EXC
You may not know the name "Kraftfahrzeug Trunkenpolz Mattighofen" but bikers know KTM as that weird little orange bike, I mean who would want an orange bike?
When I first rode this bike I already knew of its reputation as the best off-road bike in the world, bar none!
But what I didn't expect was what a great road bike it would turn out to be, but first lets examine its off road credentials.
This amazing single cylinder KTM in various forms has won the Dakar rally every single year since 2001. We are talking about one of the worlds toughest off road endurance events, where factory teams plan for years to win, its the "Tour de France" for dirt bikes. So we are talking a serious off road competition bike. Yet this brute is legal in all 50 USA States? And amazingly any rider can walk into his local dealer and ride home with a very close replica of this World Championship winning bike.
When I first rode this bike I already knew of its reputation as the best off-road bike in the world, bar none!
But what I didn't expect was what a great road bike it would turn out to be, but first lets examine its off road credentials.
This amazing single cylinder KTM in various forms has won the Dakar rally every single year since 2001. We are talking about one of the worlds toughest off road endurance events, where factory teams plan for years to win, its the "Tour de France" for dirt bikes. So we are talking a serious off road competition bike. Yet this brute is legal in all 50 USA States? And amazingly any rider can walk into his local dealer and ride home with a very close replica of this World Championship winning bike.
KTM started making motorcycles in Austria in 1953 and are known mostly for their success in MotoX, but seem to succeed in almost whatever discipline they choose to compete in, including World Titles in SuperMoto and Moto3.
So what does it take to turn such a focused dirt bike into a super competitive asphalt racer? Thankfully this is a well trodden path and parts are available off the shelf to turn the KTM into a demon street bike. Start with changing the front wheel from a dirt 21 inch to a more track orientated 18 inch wheel with a bigger 320mm front disc and simply use an adapter plate to move the existing disc calipers further out. Swap the soft dirt bike springs for something harder, spoon on a couple of track day tires and Dr Jekyll becomes Mr Hyde.
So what does it take to turn such a focused dirt bike into a super competitive asphalt racer? Thankfully this is a well trodden path and parts are available off the shelf to turn the KTM into a demon street bike. Start with changing the front wheel from a dirt 21 inch to a more track orientated 18 inch wheel with a bigger 320mm front disc and simply use an adapter plate to move the existing disc calipers further out. Swap the soft dirt bike springs for something harder, spoon on a couple of track day tires and Dr Jekyll becomes Mr Hyde.
In fact this totally amazing bike has crushed any challenge I have thrown at it, click on the images below for details of each discipline.
- 50 State street legal road bike
- Enduro Racing
- Hare Scramble
- SuperMoto
- Hill Climb
- Ice Racer
- Moto-Gymkhana
Once this bike is set-up for SuperMoto, that opens many biking doors, so I found myself entering all sorts of new and exciting events, such as Hill Climbing and Moto-Gymkhana,
And if that's not enough, I screwed a few hundred spikes into the tires and went Ice Racing.
And if that's not enough, I screwed a few hundred spikes into the tires and went Ice Racing.
