It had been quite a while since I last rode a multicylinder KTM on a racetrack – all the way back to 2011 and the Red Bull-sponsored factory RC8R 1200cc V-twin on which Martin Bauer was victorious in that year’s IDM German Superbike Championship, with teammate Stefan Nebel third. That was a key moment in the Austrian dirtbike specialist’s climb up the ladder to equal status, with the likes of Honda and Ducati in the road racing pantheon, and showed that orange was a colour to be reckoned with on-road as well as off it.
So, the chance to be one of only two fortunate journalists invited to join the 30 privileged owners of the new KTM RC 8C Version 2.0 in lapping the Valencia GP circuit on their first acquaintance with the blind dates they’d paid serious money for six months earlier meant going back to the future, as KTM rediscovers its road racing mojo and once again devotes a small slice of its massive R&D capability to developing customer road racers – albeit at this stage for just a few lucky customers with high-speed internet connections who could grab their chance with both hands to own this iconic piece of Austrian moto art.
It was also the chance to finally square the circle by riding a Krämer Motorcycles product, for after visiting Markus Krämer’s workshop 12 years ago in the humble converted cowshed where his Supermono R&D project was taking shape in between his day job working for KTM R&D, I’d never yet been able to take up any of his many invitations to ride one of his bikes. Was it worth waiting for? You betcha...
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der August 2023-Ausgabe von Fast Bikes UK.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der August 2023-Ausgabe von Fast Bikes UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
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Sensational Suzuki Live - Blending decades of motorcycles, racing legends, track time and a beer tent with a cracking band, Suzuki Live's formula proved a winner for the thousands there.
Blending decades of motorcycles, racing legends, track time and a beer tent with a cracking band, Suzuki Live’s formula proved a winner for the thousands there. As motorcycling events go, Suzuki Live's 2024 effort is surely set to take some topping. Held over two days at the iconic Cadwell Park circuit, the event played host to a list of two-wheeled legends and a mixed bag of iconic Suzuki machinery spanning five decades.
Steve Parrish
It's been a busy old month but so good being back in the thick of it. Despite the great British weather, it finally feels like summer is here, and I've been all over the place with some really great events since we spoke last month.
Christian Iddon
It's a long time since I had that feeling... 1057 days, to be precise, and if you were to ask if 'that day' was the day it would happen again, then I would have bet all my worldly belongings against it.
BOTH A CRIMINAL AND CIVIL CASE
There’s a time and place to lawyer up to the hills, and this is one them...
LONGTERMER KAWASAKI ZX-6R
Last month, I was gearing up to consign my ZX-6R to the back of my garage while I disappeared for the best part of three weeks to work at the TT with Batham's Racing.
YAMAHA WABASH RT
When you live a life of wheelies, burnouts and fast laps on race tracks, it's hard to spot a midlife crisis... but six months on in the saddle of Yamaha's Wabash e-bike, I daresay that's exactly where I'm at. I'll be honest, cycling isn't for everyone, and quite frankly, Lycra is even more polarising, but for me, life on two wheels, be it powered or pedalled, has formed my staple diet for as long as I can remember.
24 HOURS FLAT-OUT!
Ever fancied a crack at 24-hour endurance racing? You might think again after reading this...
PROJECT 37 A TEST OF TIME
Having got his head around the standard bike at Cadwell, Timmy heads to Powerslide Motorcycles with a wish list of improvements for the Suzuki GSX-8R...
'WHY WE GO RACING...5
Ever wondered why big brands spend big money and put in huge amounts of effort to go racing? Well, we did too, so we didn’t hesitate to ask the man who makes that call for Honda Racing UK...
9 BIKES WE WISH WERE STILL HERE...
No one’s worked out how to bring things back from the dead, but if we had our way, these are the bikes we’d oe see makingareturn.