Wrap things up for this year.
The year started off with people wearing masks and staying away from eachother – and it ends the same way. A bit of hope in the summer time for us – but a lot of drama also and not too much of traveling options. But we got a lot of experience, a good bunch of streetmiles and a new and bigger bike to play with. The year started with many questions about plans and by the time december hit- we still have the same and then some. We got smarter about suspension valving and options, we learned a lot about engines of the KTM group and managed to test the results of the 790 build. We really hope, the new owner can have good adventures with the bike and we can help many of these bikes in the future with the knowlege we now have. About the 790 – it is a good bike for those, who want something more pwerful and a bit more comfortable than a 1 cylinder bike – but do not care much about road mannners. If that is the case – then the R model with good setup is WOW – how capable. But this was not for us. We have a rallybike for the offroad side of things and needed a longhauler for the rest. And the 1290S is good for that. It does get the “treatment” as they all do and straight from start we changed to 18/21 wheels and believe, that this is the way that this bike should have been born as. It rides well on tarmac, gravel and strong fire roads. Just don´t take it full off-road and it ´ll be all good. The bike is massive and when dropped in a soft spot with full tank of fuel – it takes a big man or 2 to get it back up. Impressive is the range. We managed to average about 5l/100km all the time and this means an easy 400km tank. We got to experience the new quality of garmin xt navigation. Yes, it is very expensive for a limited function, but it does that very well. We got to test the new Dunlop adventure tyres – trailmax mission. They are a nice fresh addition to the wide range of the black round things on the market. One of the goals was to ride a bit more, than last year. This worked out. The excercise needed for offroad riding and also quite a few road miles with the big bike. It is so comfortable, that the few tankfulls of riding in a day is just a breeze.
The workshop got a new coat of floorpaint and some new tools and goodies. Some of whithout we cannot get the job done. This year was a delivery and logistics nightmare though. So much of waiting for parts, waiting for orders, waiting for updates etc…
And finally I think it is time for numbers:
Engines built:
10
Engine writeoffs:
1
Suspension builds:
14
Saddles:
8
Strongwheels:
9 sets
Odd bikes in the workshop:
1200 gs with more than 200 000 km on the clock
Husqvarna 650Terra
Ktm RC8
Beta 125
Ktm 1290 Super duke R
and then the countless nr of 690, 950, 990, 1190, 1290,
and a big load of Huskies.
We really hope the 2021 will bring us more interesting jobs, fun bikes and more worn rubber on road!
