KTM 950 Supermoto (2008) - Review

To the Batcycle!
By, Trevor Hedge

So kitted up with all the fruit I set out around 2pm on a Friday afternoon from Warnbro to meet some good friends at Williams before continuing down to Denmark for the night.

I followed one of my favourite routes to Williams which of course avoids highways at all costs. From Pinjarra the 950 Supermoto took me up the enjoyable 27km run to Dwellingup. Climbing the scarp was a lot more enjoyable on the KTM than when I did the same trip on a bicycle last year in the annual ‘Race the Train’ event that’s for sure!

From Dwellingup I continued along the Pinjarra-Williams Rd before turning right on the tight and undulating Lower Hotham Rd, at the end of which I turned left for the run through to Williams.

I squeezed 11 litres into the 18 litre tank of the 950 SM after that 170km stint to Williams.

From Williams we headed 40km down the Albany Highway before turning right onto the Boyup Brook / Arthur River Rd. Some 100kms later saw us in Boyup Brook and from there it was onto Bridgetown and along the South Western Highway to Manjimup. This made for a 200km stint over which the 950 SM slurped 13 litres of BP Ultimate.

From Manjimup through to Denmark we took the very pleasant route along the South Western Highway meandering through the Karri Forests of Shannon and Mount Frankland National Parks to Walpole.

From Walpole it was another nice run through to Denmark along the South Coast Highway making it a 188km trip from Manjimup, along which the Supermoto drank 12 litres of juice.

At Denmark, a lovely fillet of Barramundi was washed down with a few too many red wines to put a nice end to a 600km afternoon.

Up bright and early with a somewhat weary head from too much red, it was a brisk 235km run in the rain through to Jerramungup. 16 litres and a meat pie served from a service station attendant that should clearly not be in customer service, helped fuel both myself and the KTM.

Another 110km of dodging kangaroos and eight litres later saw us in Ravensthorpe cleaning off the remains of some kamikaze birds before continuing the 200km leg through to Esperance.

After a bite to eat and some scenic stops around Esperance I left my riding partners and headed back through to Ravensthorpe where this time around 14 litres of fuel had been required for the 220km leg that included some sightseeing and photo stops.

Just out of Ravensthorpe I headed north towards Lake King and onto Newdegate, Lake Grace and Dumbleyung where unbelievably a wheatbelt Triathlon was being held miles from any ocean! They make do in the country though and the swim leg was to be completed in the local pool… Dumbleyung also brought back memories of some infamous Black Duck Rally adventures high on the hill above Lake Dumbleyung before green concerns put an end to what was perhaps Western Australia’s last great bike rally.

That conservative ride through to Dumbleyung, with plenty of photo stops along the way, saw the KTM return a 270km range with two litres still remaining in the Supermoto’s 18 litre tank.

Another 270km saw me arrive home on a balmy Saturday evening. The fridge was raided to cleanse my windpipe before jumping in the pool to do the same to my outsides after leaving home some 30 hours, 2000km and 120 litres of fuel earlier. During which the 950 SM proved itself to be an awesome mount for such a journey.

Continued on Page Four...

KTM 950 Supermoto (2008) - Review - Test
By, Trevor Hedge
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