RideApart 26: off-road, in the snow on a KTM

By

jamie

For the the season 2 finale of RideApart TV, Jamie heads to the Colorado Rockies armed with a Butler Motorcycle Map and a KTM 990 Adventure R. Damn, that looks cold.

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  • http://twitter.com/YanBarikad YBohler

    What tires was on the KTM?

    • Jakob Boedenauer

      Rear (and i guess front as well, but i couldn’t see), are the Heidenau K60 tires. The BMW guys have been using them for some time with great results and they are now available, albeit not SUPER many, in the states as well, for KTM sizes.

      They last a TON longer than the stock Scorpions, have better grip offroad, but wet they are a bit less forgiving than the Scorps.

  • http://www.facebook.com/jean.charest.7161 Jean Charest

    Thanks for this. Like they say : there’s no bad weather, only bad gear.

  • di0genes

    Great video!! Jamie is only partly right about the importance of warm hands, your brain is even more important. When riding in cold or even wet weather the biggest danger is hypothermia. Hypothermia makes you stupid, it is like being drunk. When your feet and hands start to get cold it can be the first sign of hypothermia, as your body pulls blood out of your extremities to keep your head and trunk warm.

    Cold hands or feet should be treated as a warning, you are not warm enough, you need to stop and layer up some more (the only way to stay warm in extreme conditions). Cranking up the grip heaters may only be treating the symptom not the cause. I have ridden when it was as cold as minus 18 C (about -4 F), but the coldest I have ever been on a bike was riding down a mountain road in Mexico in the rain, inadequately dressed in a T shirt and blue jeans, when I got to the bottom I was probably just as impaired as having had a six pack. Hypothermia can happen anywhere.

  • http://twitter.com/VagrantCoyote VagrantCoyote

    You will never regret buying a heated vest if you have to ride in the cold. Even just on a cool morning, takes the edge off and lets you focus on riding, not on how cold you are feeling.

  • http://www.facebook.com/SashaPave Sasha Pave

    Really nice job! Loved it. You’re nuts for trying to ride over ice/snow on that beast. Even with knobbies, there is no win in snow.

  • Strafer

    Jamie regularly encouraging people to go out and ride in solitude out in the wilderness – hopefully we don’t go out there and break down or crash in the middle of no where lol –
    Would hate to crash and smash my cellphone on impact with the ground and then pick up the bike and find it won’t start
    Good shots as usual – glad you show the falls as well, i’ll be buying some winter gloves this week (probably heated) as the first thing that gets cold for me are my fingers

  • rohorn

    Other person: “Wow, isn’t it way too cold to ride a motorcycle?”
    Me: “No worse than riding a snowmobile, which people do for fun – nobody does that much when it is warm.”
    Other person: “(…Blank stare…)”

    • Khali

      I learnt it skiing some years ago, there isnt temperature too cold, just innapropiate gear.

  • http://www.facebook.com/chetan.tekur Chetan Tekur

    Surprised by the bad technique in picking up the bike. Aren’t you supposed to be picking it up facing the other way. Otherwise fantastic video. :) Loved it.

    • http://www.twitter.com/seanmacdonald sean macdonald

      picking a bike up the other way requires enough friction between the tires and ground so that the bike lifts instead of slides. doesn’t work on this much ice/snow.

      • Lawrences

        when there is zero grip you can also turn the front wheel “up” and squat and pick up a bike by the low side handlebar between your knees, facing the bike, once you swivel it on the crash bar so it is downhill from you.

  • Jakob Boedenauer

    Another greatly enjoyable episode. Thanks guys!

    Colorado is absolutely beautiful to ride in. Definitely go back during Summer or Fall, when the trees start getting amazing colors.

    Great swan-song to the 990 as well. Seems like the owner made some choice modifications.

    Thanks for including the bloopers as well. Makes these so much more awesome to watch!

  • Tommy Erst

    new fav episode.

  • http://www.facebook.com/hugh.simons.9 Hugh Simons

    Best RideApart yet

  • Khali

    Hey i have those gloves! (Alpinestars Polar goretex) They are great, nice protection and very warm. Just when the temperature drops near 0ºC, you need something else to stay warm. Either handguards, heated grips, or both. They are waterproof too (thanks to goretex).

    Done around 15.000km wearing them. Done around 1.000km under the rain with them. Commuted daily, I bought them because I needed a rather short glove that wouldnt take 5 minutes to adjust with my jacket. This ones are easy to put on, and off.

    Crashed twice wearing them. The first time it was on earth at around 20kmh, the left glove was damaged by the rash. The second time it was at about 60-70kmh, really big crash. I hitted a pothole while cornering at night, and went off the road. There was a dig and the bike crashed there, and I flew over a few meters and landed on earth. They prevented me from breaking both wrists. Broke 2 other bones but that wasnt glove’s fault lol

    Great winter gloves, I just wish they had tougher palms, they were too damaged after such a slow crash on earth.

  • http://twitter.com/burnindinosaurs David Howland

    What a great finale!

    As a couple guys from Colorado we had a blast watching this! Plus it goes great with our RideApart drinking game! Drink every time Jamie says “Woooooooooooowww”

    More Jamie in CO please! Come see us for Pikes Peak!

    • http://twitter.com/TheVeeTwin Damo Von Maciel

      Yeah, this is my new favorite Rideapart. Moving to CO or Central CA might be part of my five year plan.

  • DaveDawsonAlaska

    The black ice covered highway reminds me a lot of my ride up to Alaska last spring. The last 70 miles in Canada were like that, just sheer ice under about an inch or two of snow. Not fun on a supermoto… but at least I also had good winter gear and stayed warm-ish enough.

    How much longer till RideApart comes back? Love it!

  • el_jefe

    Stellar shots, great music and as always, fantastic presentation by Jamie. Thanks for another great season!

  • http://twitter.com/KeyserBroze JB

    Does Jamie have a comprehensive review of that helmet anywhere online? I’ve been thinking of getting one for its jack of all trades personality. It seems like it would be practical and stylist on anything other than a superbike. I searched this site for xd3, xd-3, xd4, and xd-4 but couldn’t find anything.

  • RT Moto

    Badass episode! I’m not a fan of the cold so Colorado in the summer it is!

  • Lawrences

    Great episode … I run K60′s on my KLR… great all round tire… I also now have something in common with Jamie – I can fall down on a snowy/icy road just like he did…on bike and on foot…