all that torque but without giving
the rear tire too hard a time. Sport
mode is the best for general cruis-
ing, but it negates the immediate
punch that the engine is so good
for. And I doubt anyone will spend
much time in Rain mode, but it's
nice to know it's there.
The LC8c motor winds up fast on
track, charging through the rev range
quicker than you'd expect a parallel-
twin to do so. It'll rip past 8000 rpm
and into the nines but here you must
be careful because you will hit that
rev-limiter without notice, as the
engine doesn't give a sensation it's
trailing off before doing so.
However, it is an extremely flex
-
ible engine, allowing you to make
the odd mistake with your corner-
ing here and there without punish-
ing you with no drive like a tradi-
tional four-cylinder 600 would.
You can thus be a little lazy in
your riding, leaving it in a higher
gear than normal on the road and
letting it pull you from corner to
corner. On the track, the mistakes
are magnified with a touch more
zeal, but it's still an engine that wills
you on rather than breaks out the
cane if you mess up.
Much of this is down to the
plethora of electronics at your dis-
posal, and it also depends on which
package you buy after picking up
your RC R.
Go for the Track Pack for $499
extra from your KTM dealer, and
you'll get the Track riding mode,
two custom modes, five-stage anti-
wheelie plus Off, launch control,
lap timer, a very cool telemetry
screen and the MTC Slip Adjust
of nine levels.
Spend an extra $400 for the Tech
Pack, and you'll get everything men-
tioned in the Track Pack, plus cruise
VOLUME ISSUE NOVEMBER , P91
