JaegerKTM
Puppy
I had the opportunity to spend a couple of hours with Kamanya, DarthVader and co. learning the finer art of sand riding on the Atlantis dunes on Saturday. The most sand riding I had done up to this point were some sandy sections on some of the back roads I like to ride when I get the chance. It was a great ride although I only lasted about an hour becuase I started overheating quite badly in my ATGATT.
For those of you who know the Atlantis Dunes, great advice by Kamanya on sand riding saw me make the road up to the dunes first time although my bike thought it was the 1970's and Saturday Night Fever was at number one the amount of twisting and shaking that was going on!
I made it onto the dunes without falling and learnt some good lessons really quickly mainly from watching the other guys ride (some seriously good sand skills were on display) and feedback from Kamanya,
1. Forget about the clutch except when pulling away from a dead stop
2. Third gear on a KLR works really well as you lose traction to early in 2nd - it must be all that power
3. Practice makes perfect when picking up your bike :
4. Hitting the deck doing 40kph is not that bad if you can roll well :imaposer:
5. Even a little 1m drop of in the dunes can hurt. I was really glad to have fitted progressive springs and a fork brace when this happened. Although I landed front wheel first and nearly had a sex change courtesy of the tank, I nailed the landing, and rode off by gunning the motor and trying not to squeak to much
6. Full ATGATT is not the gear to be wearing on a warm day in the dunes.
7. The Mitas E-07 tyres work well in sand (at least at my skill level)
I started over heating early on which meant I got tired quicker and made more mistakes. Picking up the bike time and time again meant I just kept getting hotter and I was on a slippery slop downhill. Realising I was at the limit of my virgin sand skills and fitness levels I bade farewell to the other guys and made my way back to the entrance.
I was so pap I rode all the way home at 70kph enjoying the cool breeze rather than pumping up the tyres. Peeling off the ATGATT at home I realised how much I had sweated and weighed myself out of interest only to find I had lost more than 2kg which explained why I felt so pap.
So will I do it again? Absolutely although I will invest in some cooler motorcross gear first and tighter underwear as I am still scraping bits of Atlantis out of places that I am to polite to mention. I was really pleased with the way the KLR handled the sand and it actually inspires quite a bit of confidence.
A big thanks to DarthVader, Kamanya and co. for the sand intro. Most appreciated.
For those of you who know the Atlantis Dunes, great advice by Kamanya on sand riding saw me make the road up to the dunes first time although my bike thought it was the 1970's and Saturday Night Fever was at number one the amount of twisting and shaking that was going on!
I made it onto the dunes without falling and learnt some good lessons really quickly mainly from watching the other guys ride (some seriously good sand skills were on display) and feedback from Kamanya,
1. Forget about the clutch except when pulling away from a dead stop
2. Third gear on a KLR works really well as you lose traction to early in 2nd - it must be all that power
3. Practice makes perfect when picking up your bike :
4. Hitting the deck doing 40kph is not that bad if you can roll well :imaposer:
5. Even a little 1m drop of in the dunes can hurt. I was really glad to have fitted progressive springs and a fork brace when this happened. Although I landed front wheel first and nearly had a sex change courtesy of the tank, I nailed the landing, and rode off by gunning the motor and trying not to squeak to much
6. Full ATGATT is not the gear to be wearing on a warm day in the dunes.
7. The Mitas E-07 tyres work well in sand (at least at my skill level)
I started over heating early on which meant I got tired quicker and made more mistakes. Picking up the bike time and time again meant I just kept getting hotter and I was on a slippery slop downhill. Realising I was at the limit of my virgin sand skills and fitness levels I bade farewell to the other guys and made my way back to the entrance.
I was so pap I rode all the way home at 70kph enjoying the cool breeze rather than pumping up the tyres. Peeling off the ATGATT at home I realised how much I had sweated and weighed myself out of interest only to find I had lost more than 2kg which explained why I felt so pap.
So will I do it again? Absolutely although I will invest in some cooler motorcross gear first and tighter underwear as I am still scraping bits of Atlantis out of places that I am to polite to mention. I was really pleased with the way the KLR handled the sand and it actually inspires quite a bit of confidence.
A big thanks to DarthVader, Kamanya and co. for the sand intro. Most appreciated.
