2015 KTM 1290 SUPER DUKE R
FIRST RIDE
P60
with, so easy to enjoy you kind
of forget it's capable of rocket
level speeds. There are three
different throttle maps you can
choose from—Sport, Road and
Rain—with varying degrees of
traction and ABS intervention,
including the "Supermoto" mode
in Sport that lets you get a bit
of a drift on before the system
reigns you back in, although
changing maps is one of my
pet hates on the Super Duke.
You have to screw around in the
dash via the switches on the left
side of the bar and just changing
the personality of the machine
becomes an intolerably frustrat-
ing experience. Turning the
traction control and ABS off is
even worse. This has to be done
at standstill with the engine run-
ning and takes the best part of
30 seconds to accomplish, but
if you turn the engine off via the
kill switch and leave the ignition
on, the system defaults back to
having the ABS and TC on! I'd
understand if it defaults back to
"on" settings if you turned the
engine and ignition off with the
key, but using the kill switch and
having to do it all again is a right
pain in the backside.
But the great thing is this
engine is so good you'll soon
forget about the other maps –
just stick it in Sport mode and
go riding. The brilliant low-down
throttle response negates the
need for the other maps, and
with the ABS and TC giving you a
little bit of slip before the power
is cut you can have a rollicking
good time with those safety nets
not tangling you up too much.
WP forks up front are devoid of
preload adjustability for some
unknown reason.
It's a shame the
Super Duke has to
run that massive
muffler right in
front of the single-
sided swingarm.
