Dorks of the Desert

Eighteen years ago this month, a 1973 CB 175 was air lifted by helicopter out of the remote desert of central Utah, all because a man from back east traveled unprepared into the desert to take some pictures. Since that fateful day and after a recap of the story marked down in history as “Mork of the Desert”, the belief has been held that street bikes can’t hack it on The Waterfall Trail, a single-track trail in the Temple Mountain Area of the San Rafael Swell.

Always on the lookout for a new challenge to conquer, Wes and Chance, two ambitious riders from the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC crew, decided to see if it really was impossible to take a street bike (or two) on The Waterfall Trail, or if it was just a lack of skill that lead to the airlifted CB 175 marking this trail as off-limits for the heavier, generally less-equipped-for-adventure road bikes.

Lettenbichler Perfect Six !

PERFECT SIX BRINGS MANUEL LETTENBICHLER (KTM) IN THE HISTORY ON FIM HARD ENDURO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

History has been made as Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM) has completed the first ever FIM Hard Enduro World Championship perfect season with victory at the 24MX GetzenRodeo. Already crowned FIM Hard Enduro World Champion at round five in Spain, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing capped off an incredible year by remaining undefeated in 2023. In the FIM Hard Enduro Junior World Championship supported by KLIM, TTR Squadra Corse’s Mitch Brightmore claimed the world title.

With six wins from six starts in the FIM Hard Enduro World Championship, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Manuel Lettenbichler has unquestionably confirmed himself as the rider to beat in 2023. Having clinched the world title with a round to spare at the 24MX Hixpania Hard Enduro, the German arrived at his home race with the goal of becoming the first rider to ever complete the perfect HEWC season.

Off to a perfect start by topping the Friday prologue, Lettenbichler backed it up by finishing on the top step in the Saturday morning GetzenRace. Sherco Factory Racing’s Mario Roman was feeling good in the technical terrain and placed four minutes behind in second, with Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Billy Bolt third.

However, the all-important 80 minute plus one lap GetzenChamp race quickly followed, and all eyes were once again on the German. With the traditional 24MX GetzenRodeo canon blast at the start, the race was soon underway, and it was time to battle in the woods.

Lettenbichler, Bolt, and Roman were joined by GASGAS’ Michael Walkner and ECONT Bulgaria’s Teo Kabakchiev as everyone fought to gain track position on the tight and narrow woodside course. At the halfway marker, most of the front runners had completed the mandatory Joker Loop, and as the classification balanced out, it was Lettenbichler in the lead.

With 27 minutes to go, Bolt was on the move and began to quickly reel the German in. With 13 minutes to go, Bolt pounced and took over the race lead. Suddenly, Lettenbichler’s hopes of a perfect season began to fade as the Brit pulled a small but critical advantage.

With nine minutes remaining, Bolt became stuck on a rocky climb. With Lettenbichler sailing passed, the German didn’t put a foot wrong for the remainder of the race. Scaling the final water fall section, he crossed the finish line of the 24MX GetzenRodeo to make it six wins from six in 2023.

Despite his best efforts, Bolt had no answer to the charging German and had to settle for second. Roman put in a strong ride and raced his way onto the podium for third.

Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM): “It feels incredible to make the perfect season of wins here in Germany. It’s been a hard race, but this race is unbelievable. I really had to dig deep in the final. Billy was pushing hard and when he passed me, I thought I might not get him back. Somehow, I found a second wind and came back to win. I’m so happy as the 2023 World Champion with a perfect season too. It’s been an amazing year!”

2023 LA Barstow To Vegas Desert Ride

Is it even fun without a challenge?

Is it even fun without a challenge?

There are riders who occasionally dabble in car stuff, and there are car guys who occasionally dabble in bike stuff. And then there's Superfast Matt, who summarizes what it's like to bounce between falling in and out of love with motorcycling on the same exhausting and exhilarating ride.

2023 marked the 40th annual run of the LA Barstow to Vegas Dual Sport And Adventure Bike Ride. It's an event hosted by the AMA District 37 Dual Sport Committee, and it draws a massive crowd of mostly road-legal dirt bikes each year. A GPS route is provided, with choices of both easy and hard options to get to the checkpoints. The idea is to have fun, but there are also bail outs along the way for those that need them.

Matt and his buddy Chris, who suggested running this year's ride, decided to do things the hard way. Riding 400-plus miles across varying qualities of sandy desert is probably never going to be a walk in the park, but Chris made it extra hard on himself by choosing to ride his Triumph Scrambler 1200 on this event. 

Matt, meanwhile, had a Honda CRF250L Rally with an upgraded suspension and more dirt-appropriate tires as his chosen steed. While the Scrambler 1200 had a tendency to wallow and bury itself in the sand repeatedly, the CRF250L mostly did OK as long as Matt kept his speed up. 

In both cases, it was several kinds of fun (including the miserable kind, which Matt gets into in this video), but it was also incredibly exhausting. He noted that he hadn't done much in the way of rider preparation for the event (such as doing much off-roading in the months leading up to this ride), and that definitely made it more difficult. His buddy noted that he might try it again on the Scrambler with more appropriate tires, to try to improve his skills from the experience.

As for the CRF250L, it did reasonably well once Matt got used to how it wanted to be ridden. In a few cases, it felt a little underpowered going up hills, but it was mostly a better choice for the ride than he let on in his opening narration. Happily, it was also likely a lot less expensive than many of the other bikes on the ride, which works out well if you're a perennial project planner like Matt seems to be.

Rick "Super Hunky" Siemen (1940-2023) by: Davey Coombs

We are sad to report the passing of Rick "Super Hunky" Siemen, the original editor of Dirt Bike magazine, which first hit newsstands in 1971. Siemen was a gonzo-style writer and wordsmith who simply loved off-road motorcycling. One of the most influential journalists the sport has ever known, Siemen mixed humor with hard-hitting honesty. During the magazine's ascendency in the 1970s and early '80s Siemen used his bully pulpit and influential column "From the Saddle" to help fight land closures, promote unique events and also keep motorcycle product manufacturers honest. He even appeared on the television program "60 Minutes" to advocate against the closure of huge swaths of the southwest desert to off-highway vehicles because of an endangered tortoise.

Rick was also a firm supporter and regular participant in the Barstow-to-Vegas Desert race, along with his friend and attorney Louis McKey, also known as the Phantom Duck of the Desert, and together they were a thorn in the side of the Bureau of Land Management.  

Siemen also became an early proponent of the Grand National Cross Country Series after attending his first Blackwater 100, hilariously entering the treacherous race on an over-bored 760cc Maico. He did not finish, but his feature article about this misadventure put the event and the series on the national map. Super Hunky also attended the first Loretta Lynn's AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship in 1982 and his constructive criticism had a similar effect on the event and its long-term future. Siemen, and his editorial staff that included Paul Clipper and Tom "Wolfman" Webb, set the standard for coming generations of moto journalists. Earlier this year Rick was nominated to be inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame, where his name remains on the ballot in the category of Leadership & Rights.

Upon retiring from the magazine business Siemen published a book of some of his most popular columns called Monkey Butt. He also moved to Arizona and would host aspiring moto journalists who attended his writing and testing seminars. 

Rick Siemen was 83 years old. Godspeed. 

Two Alphas in the Same Truck

Insight into Cairoli’s decision to join Ducati from Lorenzo Resta

"Tony Needed a NEW Challenge." 

City Prolog | Ukupacha Hard Enduro

Bolt Wins in Poland

Following his dominant win at round one in France, Husqvarna Factory Racing star Billy Bolt has put in another stellar SuperEnduro performance, this time topping the qualifying Superpole before winning two out of three races inside the Tauron Arena in Poland. Earning 60 championship points aboard his FE 350, Bolt extended his lead in the 2024 FIM SuperEnduro World Championship.

The reigning FIM SuperEnduro World Champion began his evening in Krakow on a high, topping the Superpole by half a second. Billy was pleased to secure his fourteenth Superpole victory in a row, firing him up for the following races.

The first rider to roll onto the startline thanks to his Superpole win, Bolt opted to start on the far left in the night’s opening race. After claiming the holeshot, he began to pull away from the pack and set a solid pace. Despite pressure from second-placed Jonny Walker mid-way through the race, Billy kept his elbows out to retain his lead and finished with a deserved nine-second advantage.

In race two, the grid was reversed for the start, placing Billy at the back. As the competition navigated the first corner, he remained patient, making him the last rider to exit turn one. However, it didn’t take him long to get back in the mix, working his way up to second place by lap five. On the attack, the Brit closed the gap to first place to ultimately finish as runner-up, just eight hundredths of a second behind.

Determined to take another race win, Billy stormed out of the gate in the night’s final race to take the holeshot and immediately set about gaining ground. Putting in a mistake-free ride, Billy tested some faster lines and continued to extend his lead over second place. Finishing 14 seconds in front, the Husqvarna Factory Racing ace took the final race win of the night, securing the overall victory in the process.

The Sachsen Arena in Riesa, Germany will host round three of the FIM SuperEnduro World Championship on January 6th.

Billy Bolt: “I’m pretty happy really with a 1-2-1. I rode well in the second race – I just made a few bad decisions and took too long to get to the front. I think everyone was expecting an eruption when I got back to the pits but I was pretty chilled to be honest. I knew I rode well, but I just didn’t put myself in the right place on the track. Overall though I was happy with my riding the whole night and I got better each race, I think. I switched up my line in the rocks on the final race so I think that made a difference and gave me some breathing room on what was a difficult track that Jonny pushed me hard on all night. I’ll keep working over Christmas and come back swinging in Germany.”

RIP Rick...Super Hunky

One of the great influencers of dirt biking has left us. Like many of us I enjoyed Super Hunky's stories.

Davey Coombs

"Very sorry to hear of the passing of Rick “Super Hunky” Sieman, the original editor of Dirt Bike Magazine and a very good friend of my parents. Rick put the Blackwater 100 on the map by flying out from California every summer to take on the original @gncc_racing event and then writing hilarious articles about his misadventures with the “Mud Fleas,” my dad and just West Virginia in general. He was a mentor to me as well and I am sure he was a huge influence in my future life in the media business. He was a tireless proponent for motorcycling and belongs in the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame. Thank you for everything"

Hunter Lawrence On the CR450RWE

If you're Hunter Lawrence coming off of a pair of titles this season, the timing for his transition into the premier class of Monster Energy Supercross with Team Honda HRC in 2024 couldn't be any better. Equipped with the championship-winning CRF450RWE alongside younger brother Jett and with the expertise of the Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) on his side, the stage is set for a high-profile rookie debut in 450SX come Anaheim 1. MotoOnline got his take in this newest Upfront piece.