IN
THE
WIND
P30
THE KTM
450 RALLY
REPLICA
K
TM says its 450 Rally Replica
machine that finished first and
second in this year's Dakar Rally will
soon be available for customers to
purchase.
The bike features an all-new
frame incorporating an ergonomic
design, a slim body shape with a
better seating position, completely
re-worked rear suspension and a
new overhead single cam 450cc
fuel-injection engine. The bike also
boasts a front and rear fuel-pump
system with multiple tanks, which
allows the rider to pick a fuel source
to utilize the weight depending on
the terrain, a carbon tower at the
front of the bike that gives the rider
better visibility of the front wheel and
many other refinements, according
to KTM.
For those seeking the next level
in rally competition the 2014 KTM
Rally Replica bike is available to pur-
chase for 24,000 Euro ($40,000)
and can be ordered through your
local KTM dealer.
HAYDEN READY FOR 2014
F
ollowing a tense off-season
in which Roger Hayden
helplessly witnessed the dis-
solution of the Jordan Suzuki
team that fielded him the pre-
vious three seasons and was
forced to contemplate a return
to the undercard, the Kentuck-
ian is now poised to make his
strongest push for the AMA Su-
perbike crown to date.
Yoshimura Suzuki, in an ef-
fort to reclaim its once unques-
tioned position atop the AMA
Pro Road Racing pecking or-
der, expanded its 2014 program
to include Hayden with hopes
of taking down the Monster En-
ergy Graves Yamaha juggernaut
that has secured the last four
Superbike Championships.
While Yoshimura was natu-
rally interested in retaining
Hayden's services once he
hit the open market, budget-
ary constraints initially made a
three-rider team seem unlikely.
Desperate to make things hap-
pen rather than get left out in
the cold, Hayden convinced
the team to allow him a top-se-
cret shakedown ride on a works
GSX-R1000. His ploy worked
to plan - Hayden was quick
enough to suitably motivate Yo-
shimura to figure out a way to
make room for his inclusion.
Since inking his new deal,
Hayden has completed two addi-
tional tests on his new bike and has
another lined up this week before
heading to the high banks of Day-
tona in March to kick off 2014.
Hayden's most recent test out-
ing took place earlier this month at
Chuckwalla Valley Raceway.
continued on page 32
