Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2017 i Transworld Motocross

“ I BEL IE VE THE MINI MA JOR I S GOING T O BE THE MOST IMPORTANT RACE FOR K IDS.” —ST ILE Z ROBERTSON I never had a mini bike. When other kids my age were honing their skills on Yamaha YZ80s on the weekends, I was more concerned with whether my mom had bought me Ding Dongs or Twinkies to eat while I watched Saturday morning cartoons. That said, I’m pretty jealous of the kids I see nowadays who get to go to the tracks with their parents— I wish that I had shared something like motocross with my mom and dad when I was a kid. Motocross is a family sport. We’ve all heard that saying before, but I really believe it to be true. After…

THE BIKE The 2017 KTM 250 SX-F contended for Bike of the Year honors in our annual 250cc Shootout, as its super-powerful engine, great suspension components, and razor-sharp-handling character make it a favorite among TWMX test riders. In standard condition the bike makes most of its power in the middle to upper portions of the RPM range, and it’s best suited to faster riders who really like to scream the bike. In search of more roll-on torque, we installed a FMF Factory 4.1 Megabomb system and were stoked with the low-end gains it yielded. Split Design Co. and SDG USA handled the graphics and seat cover to complete this month’s poster-bike look. fmfracing.com splitdesignsco.com sdgusa.com THE GIRL Hannah Jensen is a 25-year-old model from Anaheim Hills, California, who’s been modeling…

COMEBACK OF THE YEAR It’s an exciting year to be in the market for a new 450cc motocross machine, as each and every offering from the six major players are capable of winning races in the right hands. Unlike the 250cc class where power reigns supreme, each one of the 2017 450cc motocross bikes in this year’s comparison test produce far more power off the showroom floor than most riders can take full advantage of. That said, the handling, suspension, and power characteristics of each machine all play equal roles in determining which bike is most comfortable for each individual rider. This year more than ever before our test-rider choices for Bike Of The Year honors varied radically. What does this mean? Although there was a clear-cut favorite among the…

It’s been more than a century since Pirelli first put their rubber tires on a racetrack, and in the time since they’ve become synonymous with automobiles around the world. And while the Italian brand is best known in car circles, they have always played an important part in motorcycle culture and have reignited their efforts for motocross in recent years. With the release of a new product line, we were invited to Europe for a firsthand look at the company’s research and testing procedure. In 1872 engineer Giovanni Battista Pirelli founded the initial company, G.B. Pirelli & C, in Milan, Italy. With a special take on the derivative process of India rubber, the company made products that ranged from consumer goods like raincoats and hot water bottles to industrial uses…

Rider: Brock Bennett Age: 12 Height/Weight: 5’11”/115 lbs. Ability: Expert Bikes Ridden: 2016 Husqvarna TC 85 Right off the bat I was immediately drawn to the Pro Circuit Kawasaki KX85 simply because of its looks. The Pro Circuit Works pipe along with the blue radiator hoses and red N-Style number plates make this bike almost too good looking to ride, but I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. Once I got out on the track I found that the KX85 corners really well, and thanks to the low-end power, even the tightest corners are easy to conquer. One aspect that I thoroughly enjoyed was that I wasn’t forced to shift up immediately following the exit of a corner, because the low-end power seems to pull endlessly. The ported…

Hometown: Derby, VT Years Wrenching: 1 Rider: Carson Mumford If you’ve paid close attention to the amateur ranks of our sport over the past few years, you already know that the big teams have invested further and further into up-and-coming talent. A recent acquisition of a gifted young Carson Mumford marked AMSOIL Honda’s (GEICO Honda’s amateur racing program) deepest dive yet into motocross’ youth, and alongside him keeping the wheels turning is a fresh face in the industry by the name of Christien Ducharme. Having recently graduated through Pro SX MX Tech, an eight-month school program in West Virginia designed and started by retired factory mechanic Scott Adkins, Christien immediately found himself working alongside AMSOIL Honda for his first gig as Carson’s personal mechanic. “I didn’t think I’d be moving…

Maximus Vohland Age: 13 Hometown: Sacramento, CA Sponsors: KTM, Red Bull, Acerbis, Scott, FMF, Troy Lee Designs, John Moore, R&D Racing, Dunlop A second-generation racer, Maximus Vohland has some big footsteps to follow in, as his dad, Tallon, was a very successful Supercross, National MX, and World Championship GP competitor in the ’90s. Already a top rider in the mini classes in NorCal, Max, along with his family, makes the trek down to Southern California to contest as many TWMX Race Series events as possible. “It’s great to come down here and race,” he says. “There are lots of competitive racers in my class, and TransWorld also puts on a great series and I like the tracks in SoCal.” With a father who has accomplished so much in racing, one…

Trail and enduro mountain bikes are fun, but when it comes to serious training a cross-country steed is what you need. The Specialized Epic is a full-suspension cross-country bike that’s designed solely with the purpose of translating all of your pedal power into forward momentum. Suspension bob is the enemy of a rider looking to efficiently climb on a mountain bike, and the suspension design of the Epic addresses this problem head-on. The proprietary Specialized Brain is a shock with an inertia valve mounted near the rear axle, and it can tell the difference between downward forces being placed on the bike’s rear-suspension system by rider input and from inconsistencies in the trail surface. What does this mean? The system allows the Epic to climb with the efficiency of a…

The color scheme of the starting line at a mini-bike race has become a warmer hue in recent years. Once dominated by blue and green bikes, orange machines are now without a doubt the most popular choice with 85cc riders. Kawasaki has fought valiantly to retain their place in the prepubescent class and revamped the popular KX85 model in 2014 with an all-new engine, updated suspension components, and fresh body panels—all of which put it back in contention with the powerful competition from KTM and Husqvarna. But even with the updates the small Kawasaki leaves something to be desired in the engine and suspension departments. The power from the stock engine pulls smoothly from the bottom-end through the middle yet is still a few ticks off of the KTM’s top…