Web Test: 2009 KTM 250 XC

The 2009 KTM 250 XC's smooth... 

   

  read full caption

The 2009 KTM 250 XC's smooth power finds traction even on slick trails.

Then on to the chassis. It is largely the same as it has been and shared with both the XC-W and SX. The suspension is a cross between off-road and motocross but it is definitely on the stiffer side of the spectrum. It will get proper sag with a 190-pound rider and rip around a motocross track with the stock clicker settings no problem, and they are in the middle of the range. The new fork is a sealed cartridge design and it controls the stroke, especially on the big jump hits and does not let the bike bottom. Nor is there too much bump transmittal like the SX's and XC's had issues with last year. The bike rides high in the stroke and feels light and quite active. A lot of riders confuse KTM's light steering with the feeling of headshake. It isn't unstable at all and if anything since it is just a bit softer than the SX, it settles really well in the turns. When you are off-road, especially in loose or jarring rocks or on roots, the bike will jar you a bit more than a heavier four-stroke with off-road suspension. You can click a lot of this out, more in the fork, but we found it was also easy to go too far and make the bike pack and get worse. If you are going that far with the compression, remember to open up the rebound to let the bike extend out quicker too to stay in the softer part of the stroke. The bike is not wallowly and about a perfect partner for rough off-road. If you like attacking on the trails, this bike is the ticket. It is also about perfect endurocross suspension setup. Stiff enough to let you hit and jump things, soft enough to blow through when you need it too. Then you factor in the light weight and how easy it is to make this bike do what you want it to and it is downright potent. I don't think there is anything else that handles this good off-road and it challenges even the best motocrossers.

The fuel range in the 2.9-gallon tank is about 50-miles trailriding and it will do almost an hour-and-a-half moto. None of our riders noticed or felt the added weight of the battery and we even got it to run an HID light for two hours of first gear trailriding before the battery started getting low. Remember how two-stroke pipes stick out and are prone to damage? Well it didn't take but a few hours before we put a nice dent in ours. Get to know FMF, Pro Circuit and Enduro Engineering well, they make pipes!

The stiff-for-off-road suspension... 

   

  read full caption

The stiff-for-off-road suspension encourages aggressive riding. Jimmy Lewis drops off without worrying about bottoming.

After my date with this XC, I am in love. It is the one dirt bike I could do everything I need to do shy of having a license plate. Sure you pay for it, but you are getting what you pay for, there isn't one bit of junk on this machine. Last year I was partial to the XC-W because of the electric starter, but could never ride one of those on the track. Now with the XC setup and electric starting, this bike will do anything and everything. And since my Labor Day plans include doing a multi-facetted moto/off-road/trials event on Kawai in Hawaii, I'm packing this bike in a container and shipping it over. I see it as an unfair advantage.