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you ask any motohead to ramble off their bucket list, riding a World Championship-winning race bike is likely going to be close to the top. Who wouldn’t want to swing a leg over a full factory machine, spin some laps, and get to see how a perfectly dialed-in bike feels? I know I would. And when I got the call from KTM offering up the chance to ride Ken Roc-zen’s Red Bull KTM 250SX-F the day after the Mo-tocross of Nations in Saint Jean d’Angely, France, on the same track that the fastest motocross racers in the world had just battled on for the Chamberlain Trophy, I couldn’t pass it up. Add to that Roczen’s total donimation of his MX2 competition, as well as him beating Team USA’s team captain Ryan Dungey

straight up in the opening MX1/MX2 moto, and I couldn’t help but won-der just how ridiculously fast the young German’s 250SX-F really was.

The morning following the race, Jordan Powell and I packed up our tiny rental car and drove to the track, but pulling into the gate offered up a noticeably different atmosphere than the days before when the entire motocross world had their eyes intently fixated on the facility. While fully prepped for the bike test, the track was now devoid of screaming fans, loud air horns, and endless flags. All of that was replaced by workers

scouring the hillsides with trash bags and crews breaking down the infrastructures that were erected for the race. It provided a stark contrast to what we had witnessed the days before, but in spite of that, both Jordan and I were greeted by a full contingent of Red Bull KTM staff complete with the Red Bull hospitality area where lunch would be served later in the day, Roczen’s race mechanic, and everything else that goes along with being a factory rider. The empty pits were like a KTM oasis, and just like Roczen, all I really had to worry about was riding the bike.

After shooting some photos of the bike—the exact machine that Roc-zen rode the day before in the MXoN—I geared up and prepared to take to the track. At first glance, the track looked remarkably perfect: exceptional traction, amazing jumps, great ruts, and perfect bowl turns. All it took was one lap, however, for me to realize that it was actually drastically different than anything I had ridden in the United States. The dirt was littered with rocks—worse than Unadilla has ever been. It was slick, and the jumps were difficult at best. It truly was humbling to have seen how fast the racers were going on it the day before and then get to spin some laps on the exact same track only to feel like a fish out of water. Be that as it may, I forced myself to adapt, and after a few laps on Roczen’s rocketship, I was comfortable and loose—ready to evaluate the ins and outs of the World Championship-winning Katoom.

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Riding MX2 WoRld ChaMpion Ken RoCzen’s Red Bull KTM 250sX-FBY BRENDAN LUTES / PHOTOS BY JORDAN POWELL AND BRENDAN LUTES

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ABOVE: Roczen’s bike is a custom-built machine. Every small detail down to a safety fastener on the radiator cap is taken care of.

LEFT: The engine is very fast with the majority of the power focused up top—exactly where Roczen rides. While racing, he’s aggressive, fast, and keeps his bike wound out.

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The first thing I noticed when sitting on the bike was the bar position. Roczen is a small kid, and because of this, he likes his bars cut down and runs them pulled back slightly, giving the bike a smaller feel. And while this took some getting used to, I did find that it gave the bike a much more compact, together feel. For taller riders, it would probably feel cramped, but for Roczen, I imagine it’s quite perfect. Roczen also runs griptape on his levers, and while it’s not necessary, it provides a much more positive feel when using the clutch or braking. As I shook down the bike, the next thing I noticed was how remarkably soft the suspension was. Of all the factory bikes or race machines I’ve ridden, Roczen’s suspension didn’t beat me up and ac-tually worked very well in rough high-speed chop. On the bigger jumps, it was a little softer than I would have liked, but it didn’t bottom out harshly. Like you would expect from factory suspension, it was very progressive, using the initial part of the stroke to soak up the hit, then the rest of the stroke to soften the landing. Off bigger jumps, I found myself bracing for a hard landing, but being surprised that it never happened.

As expected, the motor on the bike was very fast. Roczen is an aggressive rider, but instead of over-revving the bike like many 250cc four-stroke pilots do, Roczen actually uses all of the powerband, shifting when necessary, carrying his speed around the track, and rarely dropping the RPMs into the bottom-end of the power. I found that the bike didn’t have a huge hit down low, but up top it pulled further than any 250cc four-stroke I’ve ever ridden. As a relative average Joe on a dirt bike, I found it hard to keep the bike going fast, but if I managed to rail a corner perfectly, keeping the RPMs up, the bike absolutely ripped. Roczen’s machine pulled forever and produced a ton of power, especially on the long hills of the Saint Jean d’Angely track.

When my allotted time aboard the bike was finished, I rode back to the semi, got off the bike, and wanted to figure out a way to crate it up and take it home with me. As anyone would expect, it was amazing. Yes, it wasn’t set up for me, but in spite of that, I could appreciate the reasoning behind what Roczen does to make his bike custom fit to himself. And with all the resources available to him, he definitely took full advantage of them to win races and a championship.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP, LEFT: The stock Brembo brakes are some of the strongest in the business, but the

ones on Roczen’s bike are even stronger. They aren’t too touchy, but just right and strong enough to stop on a dime.

The works WP shock has two compression clickers on it—one for high speed and one for low speed. The two clickers offer up a wider range of adjustability.

You don’t see a tag like this on many bikes. This was applied to the frame of Roczen’s 250SX-F by tech inspection before the Motocross of Nations.

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CLOCKWISE FROM TOP, LEFT: The fuel injection system is fragile and vulnerable to flying rocks and

roost, so the team installs this very trick carbon fiber guard.

These X-Trig triple clamps are actually available to the public and offer a wide range of adjustability. Not only can the offset be changed, but the bar position as well.

Due to the strict sound regulations in Europe, the Akrapovic system on Roczen’s GP bike is much different than the one on his AMA Supercross machine.

The wheels on all the Factory Red Bull KTM machines are works of art, but still built to withstand the constant abuse of a top professional racer. In Europe, Roczen runs Pirelli tires, but in the US he runs Dunlops. He’s reportedly able to seamlessly make the transition back and forth between the two brands.

One of the small customizations on Roczen’s bike is the griptape he runs on both the front brake and clutch lever. It isn’t necessarily needed, but it gives a much more positive feel when braking or using the clutch, especially in wet conditions.