Honda has owned Baja racing for decades, but it looks like the Red Riders will get their first real challenge since Kawasaki ruled south-of-the-border competition from 1988 to 1996. Since then, you can count the number of Honda losses on one hand. Baja spectators either camp out or get up extra early in order to [...]
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The technique pros use for fast flat-track-style hard-packed turns isn’t simply pitching the bike completely sideways. Instead, they put the bike into a controlled drift, maintaining momentum by putting power to the ground. We asked Baja champion Mike Childress to show us how he does it. “I think of it as a piece of pie,” [...]
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Stand on the sidelines at any race and the difference in style between riders is evident. Faster guys (and girls) are not only aggressive, they are more precise. This includes body positioning, the basics of which we asked Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Justin Soulé to demonstrate. As you’ll see, proper body positioning is characterized by moving [...]
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A perfect two-fer is where Gas Gas has several of its preproduction two- and four-stroke 2010-model bikes for the moto press to ride in conjunction with round eight of the Parts Unlimited Off-Road Motorcycle and ATV Nationals. One of the great features of an OMA weekend is the Saturday afternoon “fun” race, and it proved [...]
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A skill that Shane Watts honed to perfection in earning his many championships and racing triumphs all over the world was flying around a flat turn. It’s a hallmark of the grass track special test so prevalent in Europe, but there are plenty of times that dirt riders out for a trail ride will encounter [...]
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RidingOne major off-road challenge is the tight downhill turn. Unlike a tight uphill switchback type of turn, you can’t wheelie around it-or can you?As a multi-time off-road champion in Australia, Europe and the U.S., Shane Watts has developed techniques to cope with precisely this type of obstacle, and he demonstrated them while conducting one of [...]
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There are few things in dirt riding that make you feel more like a spode than trying to change directions while in sand. Either the front end tucks and you hit the deck, or you’re so cautious that your turn radius exceeds that of the typical MX team’s 18-wheeler. What’s the secret to railing through [...]
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Face it: Sometimes, no matter how carefully you line up at the gate, you’re not going to get the best of launches that earn holeshots.However, that doesn’t mean you have to be at the very back of the pack going into the first turn-unless you really screw up and crash on the way.But if you [...]
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There’s a characteristic of racing and riding in woods and many other off-road situations that’s hard to ignore: People tend to go where others have gone before them. That’s often the safest thing to do, since there could be unseen dangers lurking just off the main trail.However, all that traffic on one bit of trail [...]
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“I let off [the brakes], and I sit down right at the beginning of the turn, lean it over, stay right in the [turn] and just flow the whole way around. The key here is not to use too much front [brake] and to [try] not to turn out of the sand-you actually have to [...]
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Copy CutChoosing the best line is just one of the many last-minute, high-speed decisions professional racers make during an event. The ability to choose wisely comes with experience. In this example, we have a fairly rocky, rutted uphill that’s not extremely difficult, but you can shave perhaps a second by selecting the fastest line up [...]
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If there’s one thing Kellon Walch has seen a lot of, it’s sand. Growing up in Nevada, he did his fair share of riding in it, and as a member of the 2005 Red Bull KTM U.S. Dakar team, he was immersed in it-literally, at times! Even so, he gladly demonstrated how he would tackle [...]
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Unless you have trials experience, steep banks may be unfamiliar territory. Six-time AMA National Enduro champion Mike Lafferty was only too happy to demonstrate and share his techniques. It takes precise timing more than raw speed. Follow along and remember to practice in approved areas.”[I approach it with] both feet on the pegs,” he begins. [...]
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The technique pros use for fast flat-track-style hard-packed turns isn’t simply pitching the bike completely sideways. Instead, they put the bike into a controlled drift, maintaining momentum by putting power to the ground. We asked Baja champion Mike Childress to show us how he does it. “I think of it as a piece of pie,” [...]
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We asked former GNCC and World Enduro champion Shane Watts to demonstrate how a novice should handle one of the trickiest situations any dirt rider can come across on the trail: an off-camber.
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HILLSDALE, Mich., (Feb. 28, 2013) – Cobra
HILLSDALE, Mich., (Feb. 28, 2013) – Cobra
A video recap of the Pro Taper
Recap video for the 2012 Mini O's
