Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2016 - January 2017 i Dirt Action

"IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT TO CONTINUE WITH THE SAME TEAM AND SAME STRUCTURE THAT SAW ME HAVE A LOT OF SUCCESS" A successful return to Australian racing will see Dean Ferris continue his partnership with the CDR Yamaha team. The deal will include a ride in the 2017 MX Nationals series and New Zealand Motocross Championship plus an option for the 2017 Australian Supercross Championship. The 26-year-old credits the team for his first professional championship win and wants to continue pushing forward on the YZ450F. “Returning to CDR was the best thing for me to do,” he explained. “I felt it was really important to continue with the same team and same structure that saw me have a lot of success this year and build on the relationship I have…

The 2017 calendar has been released, featuring two extra rounds and a return to Russia. It kicks off on February 25 when Qatar will once again host the opening round before the championship visits a total of 17 different countries across four continents. The usual hotspots will once again feature including Águeda in Portugal, Baldasserona (San Marino), Uddevalla (Sweden) and Ernée (France). Only one round will be held in the United States before the series heads to Assen a week later and concludes on September 24 at Villars-sous-Écot in Pays de Montbéliard, eastern France. Riders will return to Russia’s Orlyonok for the first time since 2012 while Pangkal Pinang, Indonesia, will host the second round of the FIM Motocross World Championship for the first time. Check out the dates in…

Off the back of a 35-degree day in Lithgow, NSW, we gathered for dinner and a rundown on the new models from the Husqvarna Australia crew. The technical presentation was, well, technical. There’s a lot to take in with the new range of enduro bikes from Husqvarna — many changes that are consistent across the range along with some updates specific to two- and four-strokes. These bikes are more or less completely changed from the 2016 models: engine, frame, electronics, suspension, plastic and graphics are all new from the ground up. There’s traction control now as well. The weight savings are impressive, reaching a pretty massive 6kg across the FE 450 and FE 501. This all sounded pretty exciting heading into the next day’s riding where we’d have a chance…

The 2016 ISDE saw the world’s best enduro riders come together to represent their countries of birth. Six days of riding, multiple tests, endless kilometres and deteriorating track conditions proved a huge test to even the most established riders. Last year’s edition of the prestigious event ended in uncharted waters with the controversy over France being awarded provisional victory. In case you may have forgotten, a number of French riders missed a mandatory checkpoint during one of the stages. For some reason or another they weren’t penalised immediately and it took a couple of official hearings before Team Australia were rightfully declared outright winners. Missing out on the opportunity to raise the trophy in real time no doubt ate away at our riders every day for the past year and…

There was a time when I didn’t give vintage bikes a second thought. I didn’t dislike them; I just didn’t think about ’em much. Something changed a couple of years ago when I started reading bits and pieces about Yamaha’s famous YZM500 (1987–88). I knew plenty about the bike but I was just nerding out on it. Soon after I found myself shooting Craig Dack’s Works YZ250 and CR250 and couldn’t stop thinking about how awesome those things were and how much effort and imagination went into the builds. Something in me was stirred. Not too long after that I noticed Craig “Ando” Anderson was getting around regularly on vintage CRs and when I asked what the hell he was thinking he told me they were amazing and he was…

NO POINT IN RUNNING HIGH-COMP PISTONS, RACE GAS AND EXPENSIVE EXHAUSTS IF YOUR CLUTCH IS SLIPPING OR YOU HAVE ORDINARY TYRES Since the 2014 Yamaha YZ250F hit the market, it’s the bike to be on both here in Australia and around the world. It was a huge step forward from the outdated carby-aspirated 2013 bike and, after years behind the eight ball, suddenly Yamaha riders had something to smile about. From 2014 to 2016, the YZ250F didn’t offer much change except for addressing some durability issues and good old BNG. But for 2017 the bike has gone through some impressive changes and the performance of the bike has again been stepped up. On the showroom floor, the bike continues to sell exceptionally well in Australia. Yamaha Australia’s aggressive marketing plus…

Williams Event Management has announced the 2017 Championship schedule with some small adjustments to the 2016 format. The calendar will observe a reduced mid-season break to avoid clashing with other major events and ensure riders ample time for their Supercross preparation. The series will commence on April 2 in Victoria before heading to New South Wales and Queensland. A sole trip to South Australia will take place on May 28 for round five with the Championship coming to a conclusion in Queensland on August 20. PROVISIONAL 2017 MOTUL MX NATIONALS CALENDAR: • Round 1 April 2 Vic • Round 2 April 23 NSW • Round 3 May 7 Qld • Round 4 May 21 Vic • Round 5 May 28 SA • Round 6 July 2 NSW • Round 7…

Former 250SX East and 250 MX champion Trey Canard will join Red Bull KTM as part of the 450 assault. The Oklahoma native is extremely eager for the move and believes a championship title is not out of the question. “I’m extremely excited to join the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team,” Canard said. “It’s a fresh start for me and I’m hopeful that I can make the most of this great opportunity. I’m excited to work with all the crew at KTM as they have proven to be a championship-winning team. I’m grateful for this opportunity and I will do my very best to make the most of it.” Red Bull KTM will now boast a talented three-rider lineup for 2017, a move team manager Roger De Coster is…

RACE OF THE YEAR HATTAH DESERT RACE For its sheer number of competitors at a time when other events struggle to attract riders, Hattah deserves massive kudos. And running a great pre-race event and huge on-track weekend and having all that come together with an epic battle between Tye Simmonds and Daniel Sanders on a brutal track just capped off what was an unforgettable Hattah. PHOTO JOHN PEARSON HONOURABLE MENTIONS • TATTS FINKE DESERT RACE Toby Price races double duty on two and four wheels and Damon Stokey has a brilliant 450 run. • MXoN The whole day was dramatic but moto three went down to the wire with Cooper Webb getting cross-rutted and going down, handing the win to France and relegating the USA to third overall. It was…

It’s well known that KTM doesn’t mess around when it comes to development and then rolling it into production. The bikes are constantly evolving at a more rapid rate than any of the competition. For 2017, KTM has maintained that trend and rolled out a fair list of changes to a bike that had a total overhaul only 12 months ago. The biggest update of the lot is the new WP air fork that replaces the 4CS fork which, let’s just say, won’t be missed. There’s a new mapping switch on the handlebar that now includes traction control along with a list of other tweaks and refinements across the bike. THE LOOK The 2017 KTMs have switched to orange fork protectors and rear fender while the shroud has turned white.…

“I RECKON THE RIDER WHO’D GET THE MOST FROM THE 1190 IS ONE WITH MORE THAN A LITTLE OFF-ROAD EXPERIENCE” Let me begin with the existential question: what is an adventure bike? My personal take on what bike anyone should own is that the best bike in the world is the one in your shed. However, to discover the best adventure bike is a more nuanced and personal journey, one that requires an analytical look at your desire for exploration, your skill level — and your bank balance. Let’s look at this from a pure dirtbike perspective. We want a bike that can be ridden well and hard on the dirt over long distances. That by definition is a big dirtbike. A big dirtbike that fits that description might be…

1. ARIETE 07 GOGGLE RANGE • Available in four distinct colours: yellow/blue, red/black, blue/light blue & orange/blue • AVS ventilation system • Clear Lexan lens • Anti-fog & anti-scratch treatment • UV-A, UV-B, UV-C 100% radiation protection • Three-layer face foam specification • $64.95 2. FLY RACING 2017 LE LITE TIE-DYE GLOVES • Ultra-lightweight race glove • Lycra finger sidewall & gusset for improved air flow & lightweight feel • Sublimated graphics • Single-layer perforated synthetic leather palms for improved air flow & lightweight feel • Silicone finger grippers • Reinforced double-layer thumb • $39.95 3. ALPINESTARS 2017 RACER BRAAP LE LAS VEGAS GEAR SET JERSEY • Poly-fabric construction is lightweight, moisture-wicking & durable • Stretch collar neck construction • Fade-resistant sublimated graphics • Fitted wrist cuffs for optimised fit…

Athletes converged on Sin City for the coveted Monster Energy Cup and the chance to win $1,000,000. With three races set to run, the all-star lineup was keen to get their engines firing in front of a jam-packed Sam Boyd Stadium. As gates dropped on the opening moto, Blake Baggett rocketed into the lead, scoring the holeshot ahead of Team HRC Honda’s Ken Roczen and Red Bull KTM’s Ryan Dungey. Baggett was placed under immediate threat and within the opening few turns Roczen had the lead. Eli Tomac joined the party, passing Dungey before also making his way past Baggett. Roczen and Tomac were set for a race to the finish, both riders choosing to take the joker lane on lap nine. The new Honda rider was able to hold…

Jeremy Seewer was contracted with Team World Suzuki MX2 until the end of the 2017 season yet, in a huge boost for both the team and the rider, he has extended a further two years to contest the MXGP class. The 22-year-old has enjoyed great success in 2016, scoring 10 podiums from the first 18 rounds. Seewer attributes the new deal to his relationship with team manager Stefan Everts, who he really enjoys working with both on and off the track. “For me it actually was a pleasure to know and work with Stefan for my first year,” Seewer shared. “And I knew I would decide about my future after working together with him. It all worked out great this season. We want to go in the same direction. I…

Daniel “Chucky” Sanders is a pretty animated guy. He’s doesn’t shy from having a chat or sharing a joke and you can’t mistake him with that head of mad hair — the day we met it was the proudest mullet you’ll ever see. As you so often find in the off-road series, Sanders is a nice, grounded bloke who also happens to be the 2016 AORC champion as well as the top E3 rider at the 2016 ISDE, where he finished second overall. It’s fair to say the last couple of years have been pretty good for him. With the departure of Toby Price for the rally world, the race for the top spot at the AORC was thrown wide open this year. Hollis, Green, Simmonds, Ralston and Stanford all…

Last issue we published a feature called State of Play, which looked at a few of the challenges and triumphs of racing in Australia. Since then we had the opportunity to attend the 2016 Motocross Nationals Conference, where Kevin Williams of Williams Event Management (WEM) gave guests an opportunity to look over stats and figures from the 2016 season and some projections for 2017, as well as touch on a number of discussion points. It’s interesting to watch all of this in action. To get a consensus on a host of topics is pretty much impossible and 100 per cent agreement may just be a fantasy. There are a lot of different views on how things should be done and what’s best for the series. Even within manufacturer ranks there…

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