#KTM

In honor of Independence Day here in the U.S. of A., we thought we’d bring you this incredibly exciting on-board footage of Chris Fillmore flying up America’s mountain – Pikes Peak. The 2018 edition of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb marks the 96th running of the event, and this year Fillmore chose to tackle the mountain aboard the all-new KTM 790 Duke, which is slated to come to these shores later this year. And what better marketing for the 790 Duke than by setting the middleweight course record at a 10:04.038 – smashing the previous record by more than 30 seconds! Fillmore’s time was also good enough for third place overall.

KTM updated this little rascal for 2017, but we’re just now getting our hands on the new bike. Basically it’s got even more of the things we liked and less of the ones we didn’t – more accel and decel, and therefore the RC’s an even bigger bargain than before if minimalist corner-carving is your thing.

This just in from the We Knew It Was Coming But Couldn’t Prove It Department: The KTM 390 Adventure is being developed for the 2019 model year. Now, let’s see what the spy shots have to tell us.

As is the rest of the world, we at MO are excited to be one prototype closer to the U.S. release of the 2019 KTM 790 Adventure R. KTM chose the Sardinia, Italy stop of the KTM Adventure Rally June 20-22 to release a prototype version of the 790 Adventure R, piloted by none other than extreme enduro guru, Chris Birch. Chris rode the prototype for the duration of the rally and his quote is what we are all hoping for:

It’s getting to be a bit silly what’s passing for a lightweight sportbike these days. In the beginning, it made sense: You had the Kawasaki Ninja 250. And, well, that was it. It only took twenty-odd years, but the other manufacturers eventually took notice that building small bikes to entice new or returning riders was probably a good thing for the industry, and hence, started building little bikes of their own. Honda came around with the CBR250R…just as the competition upped the ante again. Kawasaki pushed the bar with the Ninja 300, then Honda made a weak attempt to follow suit with the 286cc CBR300R. Yamaha then jumped in the game, shoving displacement rules out the window with its 321cc R3 – but not to be outdone, the brash Austrians (via India) at KTM one-upped all of them with the 373cc RC390.

For this four-part series, we take a look at five easy bolt-on parts that will transform your ADV bike from a Starbucks-destined road queen, to a Dakar-ready desert blasting rally winner. Or something like that. This series is designed to show how much of a difference a few well-thought-out adventure bike upgrades can make to the off-road prowess of your big ADV bike. 

It’s a question we get all the time at Motorcycle.com: What should I get as a first bike? Well, there isn’t just one answer to this question, as different people have different wants, needs, and desires in their first motorcycle. We’re lucky to live in a time where, no matter what kind of riding you’re into, there’s a lightweight, beginner-friendly machine just for you. Here, we’ll give you our take on the 10 best beginner motorcycles available today.

With Yamaha having dominated the proceedings in France for the past few years, many fans, especially those with French accents, expected Johann Zarco to waltz into racing history today, starting from pole with those dreamy eyes. Alas, his unforced error on Lap 9 landed him in the gravel. Andrea Dovizioso’s “own goal” on Lap 6, crashing out of the lead, left the day to Marc Marquez. #93 enjoyed a walk in the park on his way to a 36-point lead in the 2018 championship race.

With but eight points separating the top five riders, MotoGP storms into Jerez on fire, happy to be back in Europe, the contenders looking for a little separation as Round Four is upon us. Jerez is one of those beloved tracks – along with places like Mugello, Assen and Valencia – where riders aspire to join the great ones. With almost a dozen legitimate podium threats starting the race, of which only four have ever won here (in the premier class), the odds of a fifth rider from this grid finishing Sunday standing on the top step of the podium has never been better. Paging Cal Crutchlow.

It didn’t take long to find what would appear to be a worthy contender to the KTM 390 Duke. Enter BMW’s new G 310 R. European? Check. Naked? Check. Single cylinder? Check. By golly! I think we should pit these two lil thumpers against each other in a battle to the death! Or at least compare them to help communicate their similarities and differences and perhaps which motorcycle a potential buyer might be more interested in purchasing based on their riding expectations. Nevertheless, let the battle commence!

The 2018 edition of the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas will not be remembered as one of the best tilts of all time. Truthfully, it might not make the Top 100. But for defending world champion Marc Marquez, today’s walk in the park restored some order in the championship and washed away the ashes of Argentina. The series, picking up speed, now heads for Europe with the top five riders separated by eight points. Tight as tree bark.

Almost exactly one year ago, former EiC Kevin Duke penned (typed?) his review of the 2017 KTM 390 Duke. It came as no surprise to the MO staff when Kevin arrived home from Italy raving about the refreshed and revamped 390. The crew had already tested previous models and had found themselves smitten with the small orange machine, giving it the honor of Best Lightweight/Entry-Level Motorcycle of 2015 and 2016. It would then come as no surprise that the refreshed 2017 model would clench the threepeat with the Best Lightweight/Entry-Level Motorcycle Of 2017, and at $5,299, it would also snatch up our  Best Value Motorcycle Of 2017.

This smooth criminal from Basking Ridge is being forced to part with his KTM 450 EXC Supermoto. Do yourself a favor and give this bad boy a read. Careful though, you may end up with a new bike followed by a whole slew of problems unrelated to the motorcycle. 

As we both braced for impact over what some (my wife) would consider too much speed for entering a parking lot over a large gutter, we were both pleasantly surprised by the 2018 KTM 1290 Super Adventure S’s semi-active WP fork and shock’s handling of the bumpy business in real time. When we both jumped off of the big orange behemoth we looked at each other, slightly taken aback at how well the suspension absorbed the bump.

One of our favorite bikes is getting an update, as spy photographers have snapped images of a new KTM Super Duke R undergoing testing with some significant changes.