Intercontinental Rally BIke Decisions
Since signing up with the RaidAssist Team for the Intercontinental Rally there's been a lot of chat about prepping the bike. I've spent an inordinate amount of time researching, talking to people, reading, watching films and videos of bike prep for competing in long distance rally. There's so many different opinions and options and the 'rally look' is even in vogue with major manufacturers.
I've noted that most of the mass produced manufacturer bikes are a bit heavy, more like 'adventure bikes' by intent and rally by look. At the other extreme, you have the KTM Rally, a thorough bred professional machine used as the basis for many true Dakar riders.
A small selection of choices below,
Honda 250cc Rally, APJ PR7 600cc, KTM Rally 450cc. They look similar, but the KTM is £30,000!
So there is bewildering choice 'off the shelf' from the manufacturers, but experience has taught me to keep it simple, and i'm familiar with KTM (..but lacking £30k for the race bike)
There's a lot to be said about knowing your bike and almost all of the other competitors are on KTM, that will mean help and parts, if needed, will be easier to come by at the bivouac. One rider who documented his own Dakar prep in 2017, preaches the same. Manuel Lucchese's 'My Dakar' videos are well worth watching and can be viewed on YouTube. Lyndon Poskitt and AdventureSpec did a feature length film called 'Malle Moto' in 2017 and then a series in 2018. The difference between the years is notable and it's interesting to see how Lyndon prioritises his own well being in the second year.
There's a lot to be said about knowing your bike and almost all of the other competitors are on KTM, that will mean help and parts, if needed, will be easier to come by at the bivouac. One rider who documented his own Dakar prep in 2017, preaches the same. Manuel Lucchese's 'My Dakar' videos are well worth watching and can be viewed on YouTube. Lyndon Poskitt and AdventureSpec did a feature length film called 'Malle Moto' in 2017 and then a series in 2018. The difference between the years is notable and it's interesting to see how Lyndon prioritises his own well being in the second year.
Below; Manuel Lucchese with his modified WR450 in Dakar 2017
Keeping it simple i'm going to list what's actually needed and attempt stay away from what's just fashionable. I would like a newer bike though, my current KTM will be seven years old by the time the rally comes. I don't want to pour money into an older machine and would like to think that newer means more reliable. Plus i intend to use the bike for next years adventure trips.
I'll add another page to the 'Bikes' section of the blog with the details.
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