Thursday, September 30, 2010

ASK DR PHIL:

IT'S ONLY FLAT (SPOTTED) AT THE BOTTOM!

Hi Dr Phil: Can you please let me know who (Sydney-based) would be the best to repair and polish the rims of my Yamaha WR450F? As a result of a ride at Louee riding complex, I have flat-spotted my front rim and as I will be selling this bike soon, I would rather repair the rim as opposed to replacing it. Your assistance would be greatly appreciated.

-- Jeff Swan via www.trailzone.com.au


Thanks for your email, Jeff. No problem at all for a good Sydney contact: speak to Simon Thomas at The Bikesmith, Unit 3, 62-64 Sunnyholt Road, Blacktown, NSW, 2148, phone (02) 8814 8605. Simon and the crew at The Bikesmith are some of the most experienced tuners and motorcycle service agents we have come across in a lot of years in this industry, so give them a call and they will get your WR-F's rim sorted in no time. Ride on!

-- Dr Phil, www.trailzone.com.au

Sunday, September 26, 2010

TRAIL BOSS BLOG

THE WEEKEND THAT WAS: A WEEKEND AT WHITEY'S!

The golden rule of dirt bike riding is never ride alone. There's safety in numbers, right?

So there was myself and Russ, way out in the middle of nowhere on some ride or another months ago, when we kicked back after a long and dusty day on the trails and I pondered: "You know, Russ, my fellow swarthy adventurer, maybe we should throw one of these rides open to the public and see if anyone wants to tag along?"

Russ, who was picking a sesame seed from a toasted watercress and avocado focaccia from between his two front teeth at the time, replied: "Yeah, sure, whatever ... pass the horseradish and garlic mustard, would you?"

Fast-forward to last Saturday morning and the 2010 TZ/ORE Reader Ride presented by AdventureMoto was all set to fire into life at Maccas at McGrath's Hill on the north-western outskirts of Sydney.

Steve Smith from www.adventuremoto.com.au was onboard as ride sponsor, so we had a back-up crew and support vehicle, while longtime ORE Forum moderator Graham 'Whitey' Whitehead had been roped in as trail boss for a two-day run out to Lake Wyangala (where he has a property) near Cowra and back again.

A whopping 30 riders had registered for the overnight ride with 27 actually making the start at Maccas -- where only one thing was missing ... Whitey!

Russ took the call from a frazzled Whitey, who had managed to snap the right-side fuel cap while filling his KTM Dakar V-twin at home with a quick-fill fuel churn. Oops.

Two rolls of electrical tape from Whitey's shed later and he rolled into Maccas albeit a little late, and then with half a roll of duct tape from my Camelbak, we had the fuel cap stuck in place and we were off!

It was a motley group of thrillseekers we had onboard, ranging from some hard-core and well travelled adventurers to rookies making their first overnight ride with nothing but what they carried on their bikes and backs.

We set off north-west up the Bells Line of Road, threw a right at Kurmond and then climbed up Mountain Lagoon Fire-Trail (which has recently been graded as smooth as a freeway!) and popped out at Bilpin to keep heading west across to Mount Victoria, then down into Hartley before chucking a left to drop down to Cox's River and then eventually arrive late-morning at Oberon.

Wolfy on his purring 1200 GS had offered to lead the way first-up and with precious little in the way of drama amongst the pack (save for a rattled-loose chain guard on a DR-Z400), we decided on an early lunch at Oberon before taking aim south for Taralga, now with Whitey in the orange vest and leading the way.

Leaving Oberon, there was a little confusion at Whitey's first cornerman post (ie: no cornerman was posted, oops!), but we figured it out and off we charged, Whitey leading us on a high-speed strop down to Shooter's Hill and Mount Werong and then on to the tighter, twistier and twin-track Range Fire Trail which eventually dumped us at Jerrong Road for a quick blat down to Taralga.

There was a bit of a wait at Taralga, as one of the KTM Dakar V-twins on the ride needed a little rest to get its breath back and threw a tantie with a curious electrical problem -- which eventually proved to be a busted battery terminal. That fixed and Adam AKA 'Dakrr' was soon firing on all cylinders and spraying shrapnel once again.

At Taralga we picked up Whisper and a few of his mates, so the pack was swelling as Whitey rallied the troops and we headed west to Lagan and then Binda, where the dust was still thick and a few sharp turns caught out blind riders and one KTM 640 (no names, hey Norman?) needed a rest and stopped for a lie-down -- facing backwards on the bank on the opposite side of the road to the direction of travel. Oops!

Out of Binda we kept punching north-west to Bigga, then on to Reid's Flat, the entire countryside looking green and lush since the last time I'd been in the area almost two years ago. But, mate, the roads were dry, as evidenced by the dust all day long.

The final ride north into Lake Wyangala is always a good one, as you climb the ranges and get your first view of the lake. Two years ago the lake behind the dam was barely living up to its name -- now there's a heap more water in it after this year's rains, but mind you, it is still only at 35 per cent or so capacity.

We rolled into Wyangala Waters state park on the edge of the lake and soon found our digs for the night -- six camp sites ... or patches of grass and dirt, to be more precise.

Say what?! Camping?!

As you might have gathered, motorcycle camping is a foreign subject to me ... or at least it has been in my 27 or so years of dirt bike magazine publishing. Show me a motel room, a cabin, an on-site van or even a donga at Cameron Corner and I will show you a happy man!

But I knew going in this weekend would be a new experience, so I came prepared.

I had an Ultimate Adventure Kit Biker Swag from Mr Swagman, which I have to say I was pretty stoked with, lashing it to the Barkbusters on the TRAIL ZONE XT600Z Tenere Project Bike at one end, tent pegging it to the ground at the other and setting up my own 'personal space' moto camping base station amongst my fellow two-wheeled travellers.

But then I turned to gaze over the neighbouring sites, and holy flyscreen Batman! It was tent city!

Igloo tents and air mattresses were popping up all around me, but it was the Wolfman who threw down the winning hand: he unleashed a kick-butt Nomad motorcycle tent, which is big enough to sleep you and your best mate (not that there's anything wrong with that ...) AND has a carport to park your bike under!

With tents pitched and swags unrolled, it was time for a little moto camping Masterchefing! Ahh yes, and once again I came prepared.

Reaching into the sizeable confines of my new Giant Loop Great Basin saddlebag, I gathered my kitchen utensils: a brand new Jetboiler Backcountry Gourmet Cooking Set (how good is that name?) that's the size of half a loaf of bread and a Tupperware box of delicious kitchen treats lovingly prepared by the missus (bless her!) was mine for the plundering.

So, while others tent pitchers in the paddock might have mocked my minimalist Mr Swagman set-up as they choked down regurgitated reheated freeze-dried pre-packed meals (oh Russ, what was that alleged chicken-in-honey-soy-sauce substitute you called food?), I feasted!

For starters there was Jatz crackers, cheese and cabanossi with a fine piccolo of Henkell Trocken bubbly -- sure, this might not have been the Qantas Club, but it wasn't far off.

Next up came main course, which saw the Jetboiler sizzle up a mighty feed of fillet mignon with onions, accompanied by fresh coleslaw. Oh mate, it was good! A few Blonde tubes as chasers to wash it all down, followed by a delicate of serving of diced peaches for dessert and then a little camp fire bonding with some of the boys, and I was one happy little moto camper indeed.

By 10.11pm I was plum-tuckered out and snug as a bug in a rug in my Mr Swagman Biker Swag ... talk about all being right with the world.

Life was good as I started stacking the Zzzzzs ... until Wolfman and the lads rolled back into camp after heading into the local club for a feed and to watch the Dragons/Tigers clash on the big screen. At least they kept the camp fire bench racing to a dull roar ...

Day two dawned fine and clear once again, and while my tent city neighbour, Brett, was the first one up and out, I was not far behind as I fired up the Jetboiler again and stirred up a mighty feed of oats with sultanas and brown sugar -- and how good was it! The best.

Right there, right then, life was good. Just me, my Mr Swagman fold-up stool, my steaming serve of oats, a glorious sunrise over a (near-dry, admittedly) lake bed and my trusty Tenere at my side -- does it get any better? No way!

By 9am we were all up and into it for the return journey to Lithgow. After 430 quite uneventful kilometres the previous day, the 330km ride home would go some way to making up for it.

The ride back from Wyangala is a good one, with Whitey basically leading us on a straight line east-nor-east through Pennsylvania state forest to Trunkey then on to Rockley and Oberon.

Unfortunately it went a little pear-shape at Rockley, when the cornerman system once again broke down and a dozen or so of us went left instead of right and ended up almost in Bathurst before Russ hauled down the troops after reaching a corner and finding no cornerman. Oops.

After much scratching of heads and contemplating of navels, we all turned around and retraced our steps to Rockley, where indeed we found the rest of pack waiting, so off we went in the direction of Oberon.

But then at Oberon, Big Al was on a corner and waved me down as I approached, and said: "Hey Clubby, have you seen Terry?" I replied, "Terry who?" To which Al said, "Our mate Terry, he hasn't come through and now the sweep and support truck are here -- he's missing!"

Uh oh. Double-oops.

Nothing like a missing rider incident to spice up your day.

After much more scratching of heads and contemplating of navels, Al and his mates decided to head back to look for Terry – who could have been anywhere between Pennsylvania and Rockley ... -- as myself and Glenn the sweep and Big Pete the support truck driver carried on down the hill from Oberon to the lunch stop at Tarana.

Being Sunday arvo, Tarana was a happening place, so the queues for a feed at the pub were long, giving me time to contemplate what might have happened to Terry and his high-mileage but well prepped DR-Z. If it was a breakdown, the next rider would have found him. If it was a crash, the next rider would have found him (so long as he was visible, of course), but if it was another cornerman failure and he'd taken a wrong turn, well ...

About halfway through my burger I was drawn from the table by the sound of some rumbling dirt bikes coming down the main street -- it was Al and his posse -- and yes! -- Terry was in tow ... but so was another bloke, Mark on another DR-Z. What the?!

Turns out Mark (who was on the ride on his own, hence no one had missed him, triple-oops!) had gone missing like Terry at an intersection, and after figuring something was amiss, they had teamed up and made their way to Oberon, where they bumped into Al's crew. Nice work, boys.

From Tarana the ride started to break up as various riders started to head for home. Many of us stuck together for the short blat across to Lithgow, during which time Big Pete copped a flat in the support truck (how's that, the only flat of the ride!), but a quick plug with one of AdventureMoto's tyre repair kits and we were mobile again.

Out of Lithgow, Wolfman took the orange vest again to lead us home via Hartley, Bell, Bilpin and then a trail I never knew existed through the Devil's Wilderness to pop back out at Kurrajong and the run down the hill to the Big Smoke.

Come 7pm and I was rolling back into the TZ workshop, the Tenere purring contentedly with another 760km under it wheels for the weekend and the milestone 10,000km ticking up on the odo as I cruised down the M2. She's been a faithful beast this one and with every ride I enjoy it more and more. For this ride she scored a set of Hyperpro fork springs from Touratech Australia and an Ohlins shock from Steve Cramer Products and having firmer suspension made a world of improvement to the bike, especially with the added load of swag and camping gear.

In the post-ride wash-up Russ and I have to pay a big thanks to all the boys who tagged along for the ride. The consensus seemed to be plenty positive -- not even the dust and the occasional cornerman hiccup could dampen the enthusiasm of most of the blokes to come back for more. I think what makes these rides work is just getting away for the weekend, meeting a bunch of new blokes and just doing nothing but riding and talking bikes -- a pretty simple formula, really.

Wolfy and the boys from AdventureMoto also deserve a big round of thanks for their support and back-up -- on ya lads! Do yourselves a favour and get on to www.adventuremoto.com.au and order up big!

Whitey gets a big yay for the day as well, for leading the route and showing us all a part of the world that is heaven-sent for adventure bike riding. Punch Lake Wyangala into your GPS and then just get out there and explore.

And if you do drop in for a night at Wyangala Waters state park and you see a lone Tenere parked in a lake-front camp site, a Mr Swagman kit tethered to the bars and a bloke wearing a chef's hat hunched over a Jetboiler with steak and onions sizzling away, make sure you drop by and say g'day -- that'll be me!


PS: Keep your eyes peeled on TRAIL ZONE and www.offroadexplorer.com for details of our next reader ride.
PRESS RELEASE:

GRABBO LEADS KTM 1-2-3 SWEEP OF 2010 AUSTRALASIAN SAFARI

Bathurst’s Ben Grabham made it a trifecta for himself and the CPW Safari /SP Tools/KTM Racing Team when he took out first place the moto division today of the 2010 Australasian Safari in WA.

Grabham was in the lead in all but one Leg of the week-long event, finishing convincingly today an overall 17 minutes ahead of the next fastest Todd Smith.

“It was a fun way to finish, riding across the sand dunes and the beach, although getting through the sand was a bit tough.

“After all the hard work, it’s a big relief it’s over not just for me but also for the mechanics and the whole team.

Todd Smith completed a gritty performance placing second despite nursing a shoulder injury sustained on the first day of competition and having his brother Jacob out of the event with a broken ankle.

“It’s been a pretty rough week, but I just don’t like to give up on things. You finish what you start.”

“It will take me about a month to recover, but now I’m now looking forward to having a party – otherwise known as Leg 8!”

Bike manufacturer KTM was also a winner today, with third fastest finisher Matt Fish completing the trio of moto placings.

“I didn’t finish last year and it’s my fourth attempt at a podium finish, and I’m finally there.

“I had a great day today and the beach finish topped it off.”

Paul Smith was the victor of the quad bikes, having a great run all week. He lead the quad riders from Leg 2 and kept his lead for the remainder of the event. In the true spirit of Safari, Smith towed in his fellow quad competitor Colin Lawson for the last four or five kilometres of the stage. Lawson was stuck in some soft sand and with moto rider Richard Mayfield, they dug him out, tied on his bike and brought him into the finish.

“It was my most memorable day on Safari. I’ve finally won one and we then had to get through the dunes and get Colin out and the bike was so hot, Col pushed the bike for part of the way – it was a huge day!”

The Australasian Safari provides an ideal training ground for riders and drivers competing in the world-famous Dakar Rally event.

International riders Annie Seel from Sweden and Ze Helio from Brazil both agree that the conditions experienced in the Australasian Safari are comparable with the gruelling terrain and lengths of the Dakar legs. Seel is competing in Safari for her second year and Helio for the first time.

Helio, who placed 11th in the 2009 Dakar, and 18th in Safari 2010, said this year he didn’t put big expectations on himself and just wanted to understand the terrain.

“You need a different way of driving for each particular type of ground and I found it less slippery here than what I’m used to in Brazil.

“I like this rally so much and it is the best practice for Dakar,” he said.

Seel, who placed 15th today, said the beach dunes and sand were the perfect way to finish, and she forgot about her mis-navigation yesterday.

“With this kind of riding I could do another week,” she said.

“The long days and technical nature of the stages definitely make me feel I now have the stamina for another Dakar,” she said.

Proof of the difficulty of Safari is the number of competitors who manage to reach it to the finish.

The event commenced with 112 vehicles on the Prologue Day and only 64 vehicles finished today, a 40 per cent attrition rate.

Over seven days, the event has traversed Western Australia, starting on the coast in Perth, travelling east through the wheatbelt to the historic goldfields, then south to the beautiful beaches of Esperance.

An official podium finish on the town’s foreshore saw each of the remaining competitors cheered back into town, celebrating the fact they had finished this gruelling event.

Considered one of the world’s great endurance events, the Australasian Safari has travelled from Southern Cross in the wheatbelt through to the historic Western Australian goldfields, desert, rugged bush and coastal sand dunes.

Results referred to in this release are provisional. Full results from Leg 7 and for the full event are available fromwww.rallyresults.com.au/safari2010

Follow the event action at www.australasiansafari.com.au

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

PRESS RELEASE:

ALL-NEW 2011 BETA ENDURO BIKES ARRIVE IN OZ

The 2011 BETA RR enduro bikes have had their first taste of Australian bush over the past weekend.

The bikes, a RR 450 and a RR520, were imported for promotional use ahead of the first shipment of bikes, which are due to arrive Down Under in mid-November.

Although still being ridden in, test rider Tom Scott stated: “The motors on both bikes lug incredibly well and yet there is awesome power with a quick twist of the throttle. They also feel amazingly light and well balanced for big bikes – I think it is the trials heritage seeping through.

“I think they are going to be single track weapons,” Scott added.

Limited numbers of the 400, 450 and 520 will be available from dealers with unchanged RRPs of $12,495, $12,695 and $12,995 (inc GST).

The all new RR350 will be available in January of next year and, like the other models, will be road registerable.

The 2011 bikes have some significant upgrades from the 2010 model – which was a completely new model with the BETA-built motor replacing the KTM sourced engine. The bikes have proved so reliable that service intervals have been doubled to 30 hours or 200 litres of fuel and the Australian importer is offering a six-months parts and labour warranty for non-competition machines.

Full details of the “Thinking Riders Dirtbike” and a downloadable 2011 catalogue can be found in the Enduro section of the BETA Australia web site www.betamotor.com.au

Sunday, September 19, 2010

PRESS RELEASE:

ARE YOU A KTM SUPER FAN AT SUPER-X?

KTM Australia has launched a new promotion surrounding Super X 2010 dubbed the KTM Super Fan.

Fans of KTM motorcycles will have a shot at winning one of 140 prize packs throughout the 2010 Super X season. The prize packs include 4 gold passes to the Super X round you nominate when entering plus 4 KTM Super Fan packs including a tee shirt, bang bang sticks, posters and stickers. The winners of each round will also be seated together to join forces and cheer on the KTM Racing Team.

To enter the KTM Super Fan promotion log on to www.ktm.com.au and follow the link to the competition page. Fill in your details, nominate which round of competition you are entering and upload an image showing why you are the KTM Super Fan. All images will be published on the KTM Australia website but only the top 20 most creative images of each of the 7 rounds will be the winners.

So get cracking and get creative, pose in front of your KTM, take some action shots, dye your hair, paint your face, anything to show you bleed orange. Only the most colourful and creative images will be selected in the top 20 of each round.

Winners will be notified by phone and published on the KTM Australia website.

For full information, terms and conditions on the KTM Super Fan promotion log on to www.ktm.com.au or visit your local authorised KTM dealer.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

FOR-SALE: BMW G 450 X -- ONLY USED ON WEEKENDS!


Our great mate Klaus Mueller from Australian Trailbike Tours is selling his current BMW G 450 X ... because he's gone and bought a new BMW G 450 X!


If you're in the market for a lovingly maintained Beemer, then check out the details below from Klaus and then give him a call ... and make sure you tell him TRAIL ZONE sent ya!


"OFFERING YOU FIRST OPPORTUNITY TO SNAP UP “ MY LOVED ONE”

My registered, world-class BMW G 450 X with RWC, in excellent condition. 10,300km, 200 hours, 8.3 days use, average speed 51kmh, fuel approx 19-20km/litre. Electric-start, fuel-injected powerful engine. Brembo brakes, linkless Ohlin shock, Barkbusters, better tyres, H/D tubes, new X-ring DID chain and sprockets. Wheel bearings, swingarm pivots and steering stem have just been greased. Fully serviced and ridden with care, never abused or crashed. Tools, riders manual & CD included. Can assist with maintenance. Will deliver anywhere in Victoria. Any test welcomed -- you will love a day-ride with me and the BMW.


"Price: Just $8,000 -- includes Staintune performance muffler."


(Have bought new BMW G 450 X and wife says: “Only one love at a time!”)


For full details call KLAUS MUELLER 0407 424 831

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

TRAIL BOSS BLOG:

LOST ON EARTH WITH STEVE CROMBIE

The sensational Deus ex Machina headquarters on Parramatta Road, Camperdown, in central Sydney tonight played host to the official launch of adventurer Steve Crombie's new book, Lost On Earth.

Quite clearly a master self-promoter, Crombie drew a very sizeable throng of industry supporters (including AdventureMoto's Steve Smith and ORE's Lance 'Russ' Turnley -- pictured), family, friends and fans to celebrate his latest literary work, which has been a whopping four years in the making and is now available in bookstores around the country.

A one-man adventurer who actually lists his full-time profession as exactly that -- 'Adventurer' -- on his business card, Lost On Earth is the story of Crombie's 90,000km journey from Australia to the Arctic Circle via South America.

It took Crombie two years to get the epic journey done, and along the way he suffered dehydration, starvation and disease. He also had to rebuild his motorcycle four times, dodged bullets in Nicaragua, woke up in jail in Tierra Del Fuego and evaded pumas in Guyana.

It was a hell of a ride, leading Crombie to famously predict: "The only way I am coming home is by bike or by box"

Thankfully he got the job done on two wheels.

If you've ever dreamed of taking the road less travelled and seeing the world from behind a set of handlebars, grab yourself a copy of Steve Crombie's Lost On Earth book and check out his www.loston.com web site.

-- Clubby, www.trailzone.com.au

Monday, September 13, 2010

TRAIL MAIL:

REJOICE KAWASAKI'S KLX650R THUMPER

G'day Clubby, Dr Phil, Russ and the rest of the TRAIL ZONE team: Thanks for making a great magazine. You guys are the best in the business when it comes to the "ZONE". No doubt about it. Reading about Clubby's old Yamaha Tenere Project Bike got me thinking. I needed an 'adventure bike' to do dirt roads, back tracks and highway work. The DR-Z400 just isn't built for the long hauls, so its gonna be converted back to my 'trail bike'. I looked in the local Trading Post, newspapers and so on and found myself what could turn out to be an interesting and enjoyable learning curve: a 1996 Kawasaki KLX650R D1. I did my research on the Net, talked to bike mechanics and jumped on the forum at www.advrider.com to find out a little bit more about it. It turned out to be the love-child of a KLR and KX. From all reports it was the match in its day for the Honda XR650R? With only about 1,500km on the clock and a good price for its age and condition, I think it's going to be a great little project. I'll let you know how it's going with some before and after photos. Thanks for being a fair dinkum Aussie magazine.
-- Dominic via www.trailzone.com.au

Thanks for your email, Dominic, and keep enjoying the magazine. We know the mighty KLX650R all too well and can remember test-riding it back in the day. It was a thundering green beast back then and we're sure it still is these days. Now, here's a funny story about the big KLX: eons ago I did a ride with Tom and Reeksy when we were working at ADB and we decided to do a trip to the top of Cape York on three of the smallest trail bikes around back then: Honda's XL250 Degree, Suzuki's DR200 and Yamaha's XT225 Serow. It was the ultimate torture-test of the little bikes, as we hooked up with Roy Kunda from Cape York Motorcycle Adventures and did the trip from Cairns up to the Tip and back again all in seven days -- the usual one-way customer trip to the Tip these days takes eight days! So yeah, we were motoring on the little trailies – and they came through it with flying colours! But what's this got to do with the KLX650R? Ahh, nothing, except for the fact a bloke named Phil who worked at Wayne Leonard Motorcycles in Cairns decided to tag along on the ride with us, and he was riding a KLX650R. The big green banger did the trip to the tip real easy -- although Tommy, Reeksy and me all still get nightmares when we remember crossing Spear Creek on the Telegraph Track on the way back south. It was the worst, filthiest, ugliest snotty piece of quicksand we had ever seen, and all of us hucked a lung up just getting the little trail bikes across. When we had finally made it, we lay there on the southern bank near-exhausted, when we realised, 'Uh oh, what about Phil and the whopping big KLX?!' We still had to help carry the big green meanie across the swamp, and loaded as it was with a big tank and a heap of camping gear, it was a mission! But we got it across, we all saved the veins popping from our foreheads (just!) and Phil got to keep on motoring south with us on the KLX. Enjoy your KLX and yep, make sure you send us a couple of Before and After photos. Ride on!
-- Clubby, www.trailzone.com.au

Thursday, September 9, 2010

TRAIL BOSS BLOG:

WOO HOO: XR75 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS!

Oh wow, long have we been saying that everything old is new again ... starting with 1983 Yamaha XT600Z Teneres!

Now check this out: Honda's famed XR75 mini bike is all set to get a big boost in notoriety with the staging of the first-ever XR75 World Championships next year -- right here in Australia!

That's right, the mighty metropolis of Wallerawang near Lithgow, NSW, is to play host to the event in October next year and viral adverts for the event are now starting to pop up on eBay, while there's also a Facebook page for the meet ... check it out here:


So drag your mighty XR75 mini out of the shed, give ’er a spit and polish, fire ’er up and then lets go do it -- woo hoo!

We'll see you there!

-- Clubby, www.trailzone.com.au
FOR SALE:

KTM RALLYE FACTORY BIKE!

Ever dreamed of parking your backside aboard a bike as close as you will ever get to Cyril Depres and Marc Coma's KTM Dakar factory race bikes?

Then check this out!

And then start saving your Euros, hock the house and cash in your Superannuation -- what a deal!

LUDO BOINNARD : 700cc FACTORY KTM

700cc (original 690 is actually only 660cc) factory bike with factory engine (it's not just a piston!). Has short frame for better handling, factory shock (unobtainium), prepared fork in USA by WP consultant.
The bike was used by Casteu in Dakar 2009, taken back by KTM factory to be redone like new and sold as bonus to Casteu. They forgot to take the shock that they should have kept :-) Then I did my first Dakar this year with that 700. I finished 40th. Bike was fully revised by IFA the Mechanic institute. Piston was changed just because but didn't even need it!! (unbelievable). Clutch for sure was changed and all disassembled and rebuilt clean with fresh parts. Two extra free wheels with it. The price is 20,000.00 euros. CONTACT: Ludo Boinnard
ludo.b@mac.com

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

TRAIL MAIL:

LOAD 'EM UP, MOVE 'EM OUT!

Hi TRAIL ZONE boys: I enjoy reading the mag. I just have got my motorbike Ls and have a 2010 KLR 650 and I decked it out with a Unifilter, aftermaket screen, Staintune exhaust, tank bag and Wolfman panniers and I just want to know what is best put in the panniers and tank bag for an adventure ride?
-- Alex Gattuso, via www.trailzone.com.au

Thanks for your email, Alex, and welcome to the big wide world of adventure bike riding. Okay, when it comes to packing your bike, you'll basically need the goodies to get you through your ride. If you're going to be camping while you're travelling, that means packing camping gear, which can include everything from a swag or tent and sleeping bag right through to cooking gear, food, drinks and water. You'll also need tools and spares to keep you mobile in case of a breakdown, as well as extra fuel if you're going to be a long way between servos, plus you'll need clothes and toiletries. Maps, GPS and a camera are also must-haves, along with a mobile phone, SPOT tracker or even a satellite phone if you're getting way out the back of beyond and need to keep in touch with civilisation – especially in the case of an emergency. Of course, carrying all this gear is one thing, but getting it down to as little as possible and as light as possible is a very fine art, so let your fingers do the walking and check out web sites like www.adventuremoto.com.au and www.motorradgarage.com.au that specialise in trick gear and products that are especially made for adventure bike riding. It will probably take a few trips to get your gear fully sorted, so just get out there and do it, and take hints and learn from other riders you meet along the way. Good luck with it mate -- get out there and do it!
-- Clubby, www.trailzone.com.au

Saturday, September 4, 2010

TRAIL MAIL:

THANKS FOR THE DRIRIDER RALLYCROSS PRO 2 JACKET!

Hi to all the team at TRAIL ZONE: Thanks again for the best jacket in Oz. I received my DriRider Rallycross Pro 2 prize jacket on Wednesday and here is a photo of me in the blue/black Dririder beauty on Saturday -- with a little help from my friends! Thanks again,
-- Lex Porebski, via www.trailzone.com.au

Thanks for the message, Lex. That's what we love to see: prizes being put to good use just like the makers intended! Congratulations again on winning the Photo Stop contest in our latest issue of TRAIL ZONE and scoring a DriRider Rallycross Pro 2 jacket. We get a stack of entries in the contest each issue, so well done on supplying that awesome sand dune photo that stood out from the crowd and won you the jacket. And to all our TRAIL ZONE readers, if you don’t send us your best dirt bike riding photo, how are you ever going to win yourself a Dririder Rallycross jacket? So get those entries in!
-- Clubby, www.trailzone.com.au