KTM Dirt Bikes - History And TodayThe business then became the official supplier of DKW motorcycles and in 1951 developed its first motorcycle, dubbed the R100. In 1953 the KTM company was founded by Hans Trunkenpolz and Ernst Kronreif. The official company name was 'Kronreif, Trunkenpolz, Mattighofen' (KTM). The first production series of KTM motorcycles commenced. KTM has a rich pedigree in enduro and off road racing, the KTM's first raced in the International Six Day Enduro in 1956. They've also dominated the Paris-Dakar Rally for many years, arguably the toughest off road race in the world. In 1968 KTM dirt bikes were exported to the U.S. for the first time by Jack Penton, the Penton Six days was manufactured by KTM and exported by Penton under his own name. I owned and raced KTM's from '95 to '99 and found them to be a quality bike, they were finished better than the Japanese bikes at the time and you couldn't fault the quality of components like White Power, Ohlins and Marzocchi suspension. '09 KTM Dirt BikesThere's still plenty on offer with the junior KTM dirt bikes for '09, the 85SX comes in two different wheel configurations, 17/14 and 19/16, to suit any size youngster. The bigger junior bikes have 43mm WP forks and a fully adjustable PDS rear end. The 50 and 65cc bikes have plenty of quality components, the adjustable seat height on the 50's is a great idea for growing riders.
The range of senior bikes is led by the huge capacity 505 XC-F, then the 450 SX-F and 250 SX-F round out the four stroke range. The 505 has trick black anodised triple clamps while the 450 and 250 have orange. All the senior bikes again have the black anodised rims standard.
The extensive range of Powerparts are again available for the KTM dirt bikes, you can upgrade various components, brake rotors, triple clamps and the like or you can just dress your bike up with nice shiny orange stuff. There's some pretty trick gear but it won't take long to burn a big hole in your wallet. (all images courtesy of ktm.com) Check out all the KTM dirt bikes at KTM's website here or have a look at KTM's US website here. Click here to go back to our Home Page. Please note that to protect our younger visitors to Motocross 101, SafeSearch is turned on in these search results.
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