KTM 300 E/XC

Many riders back East shun the 300, thinking it has too much motor for the woods. Out West, we always felt the engine was so smooth how could it be too much? Then we tested the '01 E/XC line in Ohio and Indiana, and guess what, the 300's response was too instant and more work than the 250 E/XC. Fortunately, we live on the Left Coast, and KTM can send all the 300s here. Compared to the 250 two-strokes, the 300 allowed pulling a taller gear in all situations. The engine has more grunt off idle and builds power smoothly from there, with less hit than the 250 versions but more overall power. This is a really nice motor and one of the few two-strokes that can go head to head with four-strokes in terms of tractability and smoothness. Did we mention the 300 is a missile? It is so silky it doesn't always feel fast, but it certainly is. It stays fast too--our last 300 test bike went three years on the original piston and rings!

Like the 250 E/XC (and Gas Gas' EC-250), KTM's 300 feels very light, so it is easy to maneuver in all situations. Steering is not as sharp or as accurate as the Yamaha WR250F's but this is no desert sled, either. In fact, all the praise the 250 earned is shared with the 300. There is a slight difference when tossing the 300 into turns thanks to more gyro effect from the crankshaft, but you'd need to ride the bikes back to back to notice.

The $6298 300 is a red-sticker bike, and its seat was hard for some and really hard for the rest, but that didn't stop the 300 from being universally liked. Few of the test crew rated it below second! We hadn't really thought of the 300 as a genuine contender here, but KTM keeps refining it--and it proves that two-strokes are far from dead in our hearts or on the trail.

One year I got to keep the KTM 300 test bike and I called it "the cheater bike." Even so, I was stunned at how good it is. The last time I rode a 300 was in Ohio, and it was too much bike for the woods. In our riding conditions, it works sweet! The only reason I picked the 450 over the 300 was the six-speed and the green sticker. Karel Kramer

The 300 is really fun to ride. The standard features like the fat bar and hydraulic clutch make the KTMs easy to adjust to very quickly. The motor had lots of torque, enabling good throttle control in all conditions. Tom Carson

I couldn't be unbiased. My 300 M/XC is the best bike I have ever owned, and over the entire course I felt more comfortable on the 300 than on any of the other test bikes. After riding the 300 E/XC test bike, the Conga Line thinks I have a cheater bike. They won't be impressed when I spank them anymore. They know it's the bike. John Bumgarner

Here's a bike you'd figure is at the opposite end of the spectrum from the 450, but it performs just as well. Great, usable power and plush suspension coupled with the lighter weight make this bike hard to beat. You can ride this one at 100 percent of your ability. Ed Tripp

The 300 is runner-up to the little WR. I was ready to abandon two-stroke off-road bikes until I rode the KTM two-strokes. The 300's easy-to-ride powerband is very trail-friendly with plenty of boost. The bike is slim and nimble with good brakes, and it is even easy to work on. Jason Webb

My second-place bike was the KTM 300. I like this one a lot. It has great power everywhere, and I could ride a gear high and not worry about stalling! It's as though I had a lot of motor in a small chassis, which was very nice for me. Kris Keefer

When I did get the KTM 300 E/XC on the pipe, the acceleration was very impressive. Now I know why Bumgarner can climb the way he does: It's all bike! I was most impressed with the powerful brakes and standard equipment, but that seat was a brick. Ray Gibbs