Next stop
So the track bug has bitten. Hard. And also biting is the missing end of my motorcycle immersion - ownership. I don't own a motorcycle today. I've owned a few before but had to sell them since my day job gives me many, many new motorcycles and I have to ride them, allowing me little time to have my own. But now that I've ridden the KTM Duke 200, I want one.
Why? Because it is intense.
On the face of it, it's a solid motorcycle. 200cc, 25PS, 125kg dry is a potent sounding combination. But there more to it than that. There is the stuff spec sheets cannot capture. And perhaps, it is right that they cannot. For the intangible is a powerful thing.
Let me describe a quick short ride to you. Get on the bike. It's freaking skinny in feel. The tank feels so thin, but not too thin. Pegs are back, handlebar is weirdly wide and upright. I think I'll want a fist fight about now, it seems to suggest just by the riding position. Start the engine up. It settles into a blatty, gruff idle. Blip the throttle. Revs rise incredibly fast and fall just as quickly. Gulp.
Click into first, roll on a bit of gas, let the clutch out. The KTM shoots forward with a strong sense of purpose. It forces a quick reset of your performance threshold right there. And then it bounces harshly, unceremoniously off the redline. Already? The damn redline is at 10,000rpm! How the hell did it get there? Snick into second, the digital tacho flashes across the width of the screen and bam, you're back on the redline. This is really getting annoying now. Snick up four more gears and it's the same story, until you see 140kmph on the speedo, bash into the redline once more and drop to 136. Holy cow.
The exhaust note, had it been louder would make this whole drama feel more real, but there is no getting away from it. A short geared set of ratios, a weightless crankshaft and a fast, effortless engine is a breathtaking combination. I'll have another helping of that, please. This time your left foot is a blur, up shifting just in the time, making the blat go louder and more urgent. This is lovely and super aggressive. Again, please?
Then comes a corner. Slide bum off to the inside a bit, hook up the outside knee securely in that extremely well-designed recess, find it awkward to hook up the ankle, but feel solidly hooked up anyway. And countersteer. Oh crap, I'm going to go off the track. On the freaking inside! Where is the 136kg kerb weight? Where the hell did they hide it? The motorcycle is without weight or inertia. It tips smartly, eagerly into the corner with almost no effort. The tyres give a great sense of hooking up and driving forward, the chassis is just so, the feedback you receive is excellent and there is no gap between you thinking of changing direction and the motorcycle responding. A chicane is dispatched with the same effort as you would use to bat an eyelid. And just that quickly. Oh my freaking god. I'm in love. For now. Until the 350 comes out...
I have to get myself one.
I'm going to make a few mods though. There has got to be a louder exhaust on it. I need to fashion and mount a set of heel plates. And I need to figure out what all I can remove or replace to lose as much weight as possible for the inevitable track days it will have to attend with me.
I always thought my next motorcycle would be a big one. A supersport class machine. But hey, looks like the future's orange.
13 comments:
'bout time you posted. And this is probably THE bike that deserved one. Since the RD came and went I swore my next would be a twin (still had the boxer for commuting). And then ended up buying the rtr fi, and swore again that next time would be a twin. Looks like an orange single for me too sir!
welcome back..
duke is awesome machine
a new post after ages...pls start posting again...
Superbly written and I will take each and every word of yours with conviction. But just one doubt which you could clarify...isn't the rear too soft? I mean in plain text book terms a softer suspension expressly compromises on the handling part specially going around tight bends at high speeds?
Who said its soft?
No one said, I felt it when I sat on it. Very same feeling when I once had the chance to ride the Honda FMX650, well not exactly that soft- but yes on the softer side. Any idea as to how stiff is the stiffest setting?
The FMX IS soft. The KTM isn't. It's plenty stiff, my backside says. Also, the amount your motorcycle settles by when you sit is called sag. It's not necessarily a great measure or suspension stiffness to be honest, A bike with soft initial backed up by clever, harder spring rates can feel supple but stiff.
Aaah, thanks for the clarification. Doubts cleared. Just to add, the writeup was short and sweet...though I wish it was LONG and sweet ;)
Thanks for clearing my doubts (but after I paid for the bike). The conflicting opinions on the internet was raising some doubts in my mind. Anyways even i felt the rear suspension to be too soft on the test bike but the saleman told me that there are 10 settings on the rear shock.
Do what I do when in doubt. I ask myself if (insert your racing god's name here) would be faster in this (insert bike name) as it is. Without wondering about softness, hardness and all that stuff. If the answer is yes, it doesn't matter. It means there's more riding skill left to earn, more left to learn. That's all that matters,
After your review of the Duke, (factual and informative, super read), this post gives us the unedited, raw footage that the Duke commands! It's almost as if the OD writer in you took a day off while you wrote this down. And the hook to the RD article leaves us slavering! Now that deliveries have started, my Duke should be home soon, when's yours coming?
Haven't booked yet. Missus says I'm not allowed loans. So I've to first collect the cash, and then only buy. Working on it....
I have a question, so I'm barely 5 foot with my shoes on and my husband and I are looking to purchase a couple of bikes soon. The problem were running into is my height. Almost everything seems to big. Now I know you can lower most bikes but most of them won't go low enough for me. Do you think this bike would work for a very short person looking for a bike bad?
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