With any design, be it a logo, car or even a motorbike, you need to have a clear objective. What is the product going to do and what are the expectations? Included in this equation is the target market, or the intended person who’s going to use this said product.
Before the age of ‘Face-web’ and “Porn-surf’, client feedback was hard to obtain but these days you can pretty much research anyone on the planet with them freely giving their information, or sometimes not. This is why, I believe, bikes are becoming so much better, so much faster. Think about who the average off-road rider is, what does or doesn’t he/she like, what riding does he/lady-boy do 90% of the time and how often does he-man/she-beast ride? Very difficult questions to answer a few years ago but not anymore. Research is undeniably the new key to giving the target market what they want, right?
After the KTM research and development team in Austria delved into ‘Face-click’ and absorbed the moans and delights of their previous efforts, their massive wheels of research, racing and development leapt into action. How do I know this? It’s the little details like the pattern on the grip on this new 300 which I looked at it and thought was weird but then, when I rode the bike, I thought “Oh, okay, that’s why’’, so it’s the small things that tell you someone thought about every facet and every detail on the 2014 300 XC-W.
I rode a KTM 300 a while ago and, to be honest, I couldn’t understand the hype. It was a weird bike and something just didn’t click with me; I couldn’t put my finger on it but there it was. So when people would wax lyrical about their KTM 300s I just didn’t get it but this is most certainly not the case with this 2014 KTM 300 XC-W, so let me be the first one to admit I’m now converted. Embarrassingly I’ve egg on my face, been topped up with humble pie and have become a card-carrying KTM 300 fan, hurrah!
How did this reversal of thought take place? Well, it was over a two day testing regime of various tracks, routes and outrides, everything I could possible think of was planned to prove I was right and the bike was wrong.
The testing was divided into two days and on the first day the aim was simply to become acclimatized to the bike. Firstly, I went single-track riding where I overshot every corner because of the lack of four-stroke engine braking which I’d become used to, and possibly because I was going faster than I thought! I then rode onto the Terra Topia motocross track, which is a classic old-school style motocross track that is wide, fast and has some long tabletop jumps. Within two laps I found myself chasing down 450 MX bikes and giving them fits in the corners and straights! Don’t forget this KTM 300 XC-W has headlights, brake lights and an enduro side stand so it should weigh a ton, but instead it’s super light, super agile and super fun. This bike makes every four-stroke MX bike feel like a cantankerous barge, it sticks like a coffee filled keyboard and handles fast, chopped out sections with ease. I could seriously get used to this.
On day two I roped in my neighbor, Shaun (who rides a Husaberg 300), into taking me on a full-blown South African outride to Maraisburg, a 70km loop including various terrains and speeds. Ok, so at this stage you think I’m going to blab on about the 300cc two-stroke motor, but I am not so just be patient, instead I want to waffle on about the chassis and suspension and I can’t help but wonder who designed them because I seriously I want to shake their hand? Power is nothing without control and this bike has plenty of it. It can and will do the slow stuff, tricky rock climbs and massive mine dump hill climbs with ease and then pound out a motocross track. I was hitting whooped out sections flat out and the bike soaked everything up without so much as an “oops, that was close!” We rode late into the afternoon and I was as fresh when loading the bikes up as I was when we arrived (well nearly) and, no, I’m not that fit. This 300 XC-W is that good and usually at this stage I would have forearms like Popeye and a severe limp brought on by ‘rugby knee’ but, instead, I found myself as fresh as daisy, albeit a slightly wilted and sweaty one.
I threw everything I could think of at this bike and it basically asked if that was the best I could do because I was the weakest link at every stage. If you lose a race on this machine it’s not the bike’s fault for sure. The 2014 KTM 300 XC-W is made up of the very best components in a very sorted package; levers, handlebars, hydraulic clutch, braided hoses for the brake lines, Brembo brakes, excellent - no superb, WP suspension and Excel rims, etc, etc. In fact, if you had to build a bike up to this spec it would break the bank and then you would still need to do the testing and set-up. So why bother when KTM has done everything for you, including things you didn’t even know you’d asked for so, therefore, the asking price of R86,999 makes it seem like a bargain.
If you have a bucket list, put this bike on it, you owe it to yourself to either own one or at least ride the ultimate in off-road Nirvana. Oh yes, before I forget, the engine IS as good as everyone says it is; impressive torque, awesome power and speed in spades. So, dear Santa, may I please have a KTM 300 XC-W under my tree when I wake up on the 25th, or I’ll set fire to yer beard?
Check out our video to see Mark Roach of KTM South Africa, give a short tech briefing on the 2014 KTM 300 XC-W.
Buy this bike and other 2014 KTMs from RAD Moto www.radmoto.co.za
