As much as I love riding the Super Duke, it's quite an outrageous beast for urban riding in downtown Berlin. Twisting the throttle on it is like doing heroin or crack...the acceleration and the sound coming from the mufflers is completely addictive. However, it's kinda like driving a Corvette in city traffic.
One of my best buds back in Canada has a 2010 model and I've ridden it many times on all kinds of terrain. It's an impressive piece of machine. In 2012 there were several updates including a displacement boost from 650 to 690cc resulting in a few more horsepower. In 2014, they've made a great bike even better.
I've also been longing for something taller, with long travel suspension, lightweight, a little more nimble. Don't get me wrong, the big Duke is a very nimble bike compared to other litre-sized naked bikes, but nothing beats a dual sport in a city where you'll encounter cobblestone streets and occasionally you may need to jump over a curb or some other obstacle. A dual sport is just very easy to manoeuvre when it comes to city riding, in addition to it's obvious off-road abilities. Basically, I miss having a dual sport and I need an excuse to buy one. After looking long and hard at all the options available in Europe, I decided on the new 2014 KTM 690 Enduro R.
There have been several upgrades and refinements for the new 2014 model, most notably an electric ride-by-wire throttle, new fuel injection ECU, and Bosch ABS.
One of my best buds back in Canada has a 2010 model and I've ridden it many times on all kinds of terrain. It's an impressive piece of machine. In 2012 there were several updates including a displacement boost from 650 to 690cc resulting in a few more horsepower. In 2014, they've made a great bike even better.
Last week, I threw my 20% down at the local dealer and placed my order. Before doing this, I had been in contact with KTM's head office in Austria to inquire about getting a Canadian-spec model delivered to Germany -- that way, I can bring it home without any hassle from the Canadian authorities when my posting here is finished in 3-4 years from now. KTM head office agreed to do it for me, and I just had to make the downpayment through the dealer. There will be no issue for me to get a Canadian model plated and registered here in Germany because I am a diplomat and getting an exemption for a non-compliant model is just a matter of filling out some paperwork.
Anyway, I was told today that everything is in place, and my bike will be here sometime during the last 2 weeks of March, so basically 4-5 weeks from now.
My plan is to trade the Super Duke depending on the value the dealer will allow. I trust he'll be reasonable, otherwise, I'll just sell the SD myself later.
This is a European model -- with Metzeler Sahara tires
This is the Canada/USA model with Pirelli MT-21 tires.