#AltaRedshiftMx

Alta’s co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Derek Dorresteyn, is a motorcycle racer, and in his prime during the early 2000s, he was trying anything he could to squeeze more power and performance out of his KTM 450, but any gains he got somewhere, he lost elsewhere. Derek and his riding buddy Jeff Sand, another eventual co-founder and current Chief Development Officer, would get together and talk shop all the time, and they loved the idea of a smooth and perfectly responsive torque curve but understood how difficult this was to achieve with a gas-powered bike.

Two weeks ago we got the opportunity to ride the all-new Alta Motors 2018 Redshift MXR, as well as the Redshift MX for comparison. It was my first time riding an Alta, and an electric dirtbike for that matter, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. How easy would it be to ride and how would it compare to a regular gas-powered dirtbike?

Earlier this month we reported on Alta Motors’ plan to compete with the best in the business at Red Bull Straight Rhythm. Alta entered its Redshift MX racer in the Lites class, to be ridden by Josh Hill, a former MX star who retired three years ago due to a horrific injury. From the start, Alta has designed its Redshift to take on its internal combustion competitors in the Lites category, but instead of treading the waters in local or regional events, Alta decided to jump into the deep end to face the best of the best.