Innehållsförteckning för June 2019 från Dirt Action

SURVIVAL The opening round of the Pirelli MX Nationals delivered some of the most horrific conditions imaginable. Bikes were bogged, cooked and engulfed in the thick Appin surface. For riders, they were forced to dig deep to perform in the extremely difficult conditions. Photography: Matt Bernard THE AUSSIE GOAT Chad Reed is the greatest Australian Supercross rider we have ever seen and one of the best to set foot on the planet. His impressive 2019 season was de-railed with injury; will he be back in 2020? Let’s hope so! Photography: Suzuki…

The conditions at the opening round of the Pirelli MX Nationals were some of the worst seen in Australia. Factory race bikes were dug from the swamp by machinery, goggles tossed into the glue-like Appin surface, bikes smoking, riders paddling. “I’VE RIDDEN IN SOME DEEP MUD THROUGHOUT EUROPE OVER THE YEARS, BUT THIS IS BY FAR THE WORST I’VE HAD TO RACE IN. I WAS ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD AND GET PAST RIDERS AFTER GETTING CAUGHT UP AT THE FIRST CORNER, BUT IT WAS A BIT OF A BALANCING ACT ALL RACE TO FIND TRACTION, KEEP THE BIKE MOVING FORWARD AND NOT GETTING BOGGED DOWN IN EACH TURN.” TODD WATERS “TODAY WASN’T ABOUT WINNING OR LOSING FOR ME BUT ENSURING THAT I’M WELL PLACED AND IN CONTENTION AFTER THE FIRST…

When a sandy track is presented to you, a two-stroke is pretty high on the list of bikes you’d choose. The high-revving nature of the beasts make for some serious fun. We spent the afternoon bouncing off sand berms and feeding gears to the 2019 Husqvarna TC125 and TC250 to find out exactly why we love these beasts so much. REASON ONE: Both of these bikes have been continually developed. Husqvarna have not stood still when it comes to two-stroke development. These bikes are being updated at the similar rate to their four-stroke family members. They share the same bodywork and chassis design and fundamentals as the four-strokes and feature the WP-USD AER 48 forks and WP shock. REASON TWO: The 2019 TC125 is a torquey little beast. 125cc bikes…

1 . PLAN YOUR ATTACK Where possible, try and have a look on the other side of the drop. There may be a particular line you can take early on to ensure a clear landing or a way to ride down the rocks safely. After you’ve checked the landing, have a look for the line to take off and ensure you land where you’re aiming for. When walking, you have plenty of time to plan; on a 100kg motorcycle, that drop will appear mighty quickly. 2. ATTACK STANDING Never attack a drop-off seated — it’s going to make life extremely difficult. Stand central on the bike, your knees gripping tightly, and keep a couple of fingers on the levers as you’ll need some clutch to help loft off the edge…

Since you’re pretty much always travelling, have you been anywhere interesting since we spoke last, midway through 2018? Surely you’ve chased some waves somewhere exotic! The past 12 months are a bit of a blur. I had to dig out that article we did previously just to reflect on what I have done since then. Basically for the second half of 2018 we got to cover some more ground around Europe and then headed home to Australia. A few highlights include snorkelling off the coast of Turkey, E-mountain biking around the foothills of the Italian Dolomites and four wheel drive / camping / surfing at Sunny Coast’s Double Island Point. In between all this, completing the 2018 MXGP’s and switching to DPH Husqvarna for 2019. Jealous yet? Yes we are!…

Dan Milner is one of the best enduro riders this country has ever produced — there is no question of this. He’s driven by a will to win and to prove any doubters wrong — although how anyone could doubt the guy’s ability is beyond us. He carries the burden of diabetes into battle but nothing, it seems, can slow Milner down. Challenge him and he’ll only push harder. Now with two ISDE wins including one clearly beyond dispute even from the French, he has proven himself at the highest level. Dan tells us what the ISDE win meant to him and we talk about motivation, jelly beans and more. How hectic is preparation for an ISDE? Previous years have been harder. Especially in 2017 when we had to get…

With little to no news on a solid arrival date for the 2019 Suzuki RM-Z250, this bike has dropped somewhat off buyers’ radars following its launch back in November last year. After eight years of what were only minor changes for the RM-Z250, the 2019 model presents as a brand-new package from the ground up, and is now available in Australia. Can a new generation frame, paired with some impressive KYB suspension, dual injectors and a redesigned cylinder head/intake, thrust this bike from what was considered an out-dated class filler, back into contention as one of the better bikes in the 250F mx category? Lucky enough to get our hands on one of the first production units into the country, we headed to the Goulburn Metzeler Amcross for our first…

The 790 occupies an interesting space in the market. Classifying it on CCs shows it’s not really alone with BMW and Triumph both running engine sizes very similar, but the engine will only be a part of the story with the 790 — and not necessarily the thing you should be concerned with. The complete package has no direct competition. The closest we could point to would be the Africa Twin but as we’ll explain, there isn’t much in that either — KTM has redefined the adventure segment with the 790 Adventure R and that can only happen if they got it just right. As it turns out, they hit it out of the park. PLEASE, SIT DOWN An adventure bike has to be comfortable and the only accepted exception…

After the introductory story on the long-term Honda CRF450R last issue, you could say things got a little out of control! This build has turned into a seriously epic beast and we aren’t done yet. From my initial days on the Honda CRF450R, I was completely impressed with the Honda in stock form. The suspension needed to be settled for grass track racing and I needed to personalise the bike in a few areas. Otherwise, it would have been possible to compete on this bike for a full season with little more than some race numbers and suspension valving. That’s all great, but this is a project bike — so let’s build an exciting bike that turns heads, is amazing to ride and hopefully delivers some results! MCD GOES FACTORY…

For 2019, the Amcross series is back, and it’s bigger and better! So what’s new? A bunch of stuff. In particular, we are proud to welcome a new naming rights sponsor to the series allowing us to really help grow this series and offer a range of media that was previously out of reach. The first round is always the most exciting round of the year, and in 2019, Metzeler Amcross Round One was no different. FUN FACTOR Despite the increase in sponsorship around the series, the new electronic timing and all-new website, the series has been able to retain its grass-roots feel and low entry costs. Riders from 50cc to over 50 years of age lined up for some epic grass-track action at the opening round in Goulburn. The…

Goggles have come a long way from the humble Oakley O-Frame that graced the gear bags of anyone who threw a leg over a dirt bike in late 90s and early 00s. One of the leading manufacturers of protective equipment, Leatt has recently entered the goggle market and we were lucky enough to get our hands on these new units prior to their release date. Now, we do have to let on that we were aware of these units in October last year. While in the USA for the Monster Energy Cup, we ran into Leatt-supported rider Cole Martinez at Milestone raceway who actually gave us a run-down on the then prototype units that he had been using. Immediately impressed with the outrigger design, easily interchangeable lens and high-quality face…

The Zeta Adjustable Lowering Link has just landed at DA HQ. We have fitted it to our Honda CRF450R project bike that you can see earlier in this issue. The benefits of this high quality product is to adjust the seat height by rotating the attachment to change the rod length. The Honda CRF450R is going to be raced at the Amcross series, so having the rear lowered and squatted under acceleration is paramount to getting power to the ground. The link has five clips to lower the rear, one standard position and one to lift it higher than standard. Stay tuned for some more information on this awesome product as we are very impressed in the early stages of testing $265 www.stevecramerproducts.com.au…

We’re back again with the 2019 Dirt Action Yamaha WR450F and it can be confirmed that an abundance of fun has been had on the bike since we last checked in! For our first instalment, it was all about getting to know the bike in stock trim following the official world launch of the all-new model at Stroud in New South Wales last December. This time around it’s a little different and we’re starting to mould the bike to suit my preferences, which is always exciting. As I mentioned in the previous update, the 2019 WR450F was already quite a solid package in stock trim. To be honest, I could have left the bike completely standard and been quite happy, but that’s no fun at all! Right from the moment…