RUST magazine: Rust#2

Enduro
125 & 200EXC
KTM’s littlest EXC still packs more than
enough punch to ignite your interest -
especially around a worn-out and tight track
like this where it was hard to get up a run of
speed on anything more powerful. It turns
on a sixpence (which helps when you’re trying
to avoid dropping into holes), has the
sweetest of revvy engines and is amazingly
swift across the bumps thanks to its light
weight and low-mass crank.
Floating the front end of the 125 is as easy
as opening the throttle and I love it for that.
I also love how you always have to ride the
little 125 hard all of the time to keep it on
the boil. And even when it falls out of the
surprisingly broad powerband, momentarily
fanning the clutch will restore the revs and
lift the front again. Personally I loved the
2016 model which continues to be the go-to
125. Enduro bikes don’t come any purer
than this, it’s the distilled essence of a race
bike in the smallest, lightest, sharpest-handling
package there is. It’s noticeable that
it’s the only bike in the EXC range without
an electric-start. I understand why, because
it simply doesn’t need it and in this category,
every pound of weight counts.
I confess I had a difference of opinion with
the other RUST testers, both of whom loved
the 200EXC, yet I’ve always found it an
incredibly tricky bike to ride hard. Sure,
most of the time it skits swiftly round the
course - just like the 125 with which it
shares a chassis - yet has a bit more zip on
Oranges,
no Lemons...