Ultimate Adventure Bike Issue 13

The riding on this year’s Husky 701 Enduro Trek: Northern Explorer event dished up absolutely everything, from challenging former A4DE trails near Coffs Harbour to eye-popping scenic ADV routes up and over the Great Dividing Range. Old Glen Innes Road is one of those adventure routes that should be on every rider’s bucket list. It’s an old bullock dray trail from the mid 1860s that winds alongside the Boyd River and linked Glen Innes and the New England region to Grafton and the coast. At one point it carves right through the cliff face via a 20-metre tunnel that was cut by hand — and today that very spot makes for a perfect Kodak moment.…

Rumbling across the Clarence River aboard the ferry at Lawrence, in northern NSW, on a crisp winter morning, one of my fellow Husqvarna 701 Enduro Trek riders looked across at me and asked, “Hey Clubby, what’s the best ride you’ve ever done?” Oh mate, this ferry trip won’t be long enough for me to answer that question! I tried, but all too soon the bow of the ferry was clanging against the ramp on the far side of the river, the gates went up, and we all filed off and set forth on a charge down the road to a date with the beach further south along the coast at Brooms Head. And from that point on, all I could think of all day was, what’s the best ride I’ve ever done? BEST…

When I used to ride a heap of single-trail, I would sometimes get in the ‘zone’, where I felt the bike was an extension of my body. It was like we had become one — and I don’t mean that in a biblical sense! There was a synergy where the bike and I were working together and every obstacle or challenge was brushed aside effortlessly. I had a heightened awareness of the effects of my input into the controls and how the bike would respond. It was as if we had both been set to autopilot. It was all so simple in those days — throttle, clutch, brakes, tyres and suspension — until you start to consider how your brain is processing all that information at warp speed, turning ideas into action,…

If you had told us at the start of last year that the world was about to be gripped by a pandemic, and that in the ensuing 18 months of vaccines, health restrictions, lockdowns and overall massive upheaval of our way of life that sales of motorcycles would go through the roof, well, you would’ve had a way better crystal ball than us. For the four years up until early 2020, motorcycle sales in Australia were on a downward slide by just on 40 per cent before off-road machines finally started to turn the trend. Then, when COVID-19 hit in the first quarter of last year and then really took hold by mid-year, sales of all motorcycles started climbing — and how! By the end of last year, the Australian market…

America’s GOAT of motocross and supercross racing, Ricky Carmichael, has signed on with Triumph to assist the British manufacturer develop a brand-new range of motocross and enduro machines. He’s being joined in the ambitious project by European off-road legend, five-time world enduro champion Ivan Cervantes. While specifics of the new Triumph off-roaders have not been released, Triumph has indicated the new bikes will be raced in major international championships with the British brand intent on taking on the giants of the dirtbike world head on. “We are 100 per cent committed to making a long-lasting impact and to deliver a winning motorcycle line-up for a whole new generation of Triumph riders,” said Triumph Motorcycles CEO Nick Bloor. Locally, Paul Chiodo, the Managing Director of Triumph Motorcycle Australia, is similarly enthused. “Triumph has a…

BMW has announced there will be a range of updates to its 2022 models, including new colour schemes and revised features across the GS adventure bike line-up. The pint-sized G 310GS will be available in a Black Storm Metallic colour scheme with 458 Style Triple Black features, and it’s a sweet-looking little jigger that is LAMS approved. The F 750GS also scores the Black Storm Metallic with 458 Style Triple Black treatment, as well as getting an updated Active package that includes luggage rack, Riding Modes Pro and heated grips. The same Black Storm Metallic colour treatment will be a feature of the new F 850 GS too, while the 850 range will also include a new Light White colour scheme. As for the big daddy of the GS family,…