I think you've got it exactly right.

 

What happens if one takes motocross stunts on ADV too seriously
(GS is often called “Goose”)

 

I'm in awe at the climate and trail difference between Calif and say the midwest. This is where I ride, it's just 15 mins from my house. 8 trails, this is one of the easier ones but you can see, no Pan America is going to make the cut. A lot of this is mountain side, if you fall, you fall hundreds of feet hopefully sliding

 

Other than the technical part and endless drop offs we do have single track much like that. Our drops are 50 feet at most but it's still enough to wreck your day. Most of our single track is in tight pine forests with lots of sand. Some of the more popular (or easier to get to anyway) ones are deeply rutted like the one shown in Michigan. Those are a major pita and I don't enjoy them. Unless you have a really high clearance you end up duck walking the bike through those sections because the pegs are dragging through the rut and you can't even keep your feet on them. It's absolutely no fun and very slow going. Then the mosquitos and ticks, but don't get me started.

We do have trails much like the California one shown as far as the technical part. Unfortunately it's Mountain Bike or hiking only. I broke my hand going over the bars on a downhill technical section much like the one in the vid.

 

 

I will say that KTM is a bike that rides lighter than it is. By that I mean the 790 and bigger bikes are more trail worthy than they would appear to be. I recall two instances where I was greatly impressed.

One time was on a technical section of the TAT in Arkansas. I was on my 525exc which made short work of anything there. But another guy was on a 990 Adventure. He was able to pick through some very steep drop off, rock gardens, clear fallen trees, and cross rocky creeks right behind me. Granted, he was a very skilled rider. But there was no way my big GS would have made it through that stuff.

Another time was on a trail up in northern Wisconsin and upper Michigan. It was a fast, sandy trail with some moderate climbs. The guy behind me was on a KTM Super Enduro 950. Man.....that is one helluva bike. Kind of stupid, but in a very cool way. I may end up having one someday. Anyway, we were blasting hard up a climb at speed and then he just disappeared. Turns out he hit a step (basically a sharp rise in the trail that looks like a curb) on the climb and looped his bike into the weeds. We spent a while putting it back together so he could limp it back to camp, but it was pretty tweaked. The point is, out of maybe a dozen other bikes ranging from DRZs, DR650s, WR250s, and a Honda 650XR (yeah, the good 650) this was the only guy on my tail light the whole way. That bike was impressive.

 

Arguably the best bike KTM ever made...

 

I Couldn't find videos of the double diamond trails. I've done them a couple times but not in the last 8-10 years. My body can't hold up through the brutal tree climbs, rock climbs and ruts. I don't think you ever get out of 2nd gear on those diamond trails. Guys with dozens of years experience get life flighted out of there all the time. I took my son who was racing enduro class on those diamond runs and we turned around. I had my trails bike and could do it no problem but my legs lock up after a couple hours anymore.

 

Yeah, we don't have anything like that here. The only place I've ridden where I had to turn around was in Moab. on Poison Spider. There's some rock sections that you damn near have to be a trials rider to get over rock walls.

Here's a section that was a combination of some mild rock stuff and some pretty good sand holes. The last part of the vid I'm doing about 80 MPH (according to the gps - I couldn't look down). I wish the sound was better. One could use a big GS maybe......but the suspension and wheels would have been beat to ****. The exc I was on had a superb suspension that soaked up everything. And it was light enough to float over the sand. In the vid the bike is off the ground for much of it at the end.

 

I did some google and found it. It's trail 6 at Foresthill. My son was 13 when we rode this and he couldn't do it. Takes a lot of skill and strength.
For reference trail 6 is about 24 miles long, you're DONE when you get back to the truck

This shows some good stuff.

This guy little less experience. I've done this in both soaking rain and mud and during 100+ temps. Nice to have a Rekluse.


Double Diamond.