After the success of the Sherpa T, Bultaco released the Alpina 250, a bike specifically built for enduro riders.
1989 Yamaha XTZ600 Tenere
11-7-25 Update: One year later and this bike is still for sale though the price has dropped a bit. You can now find it with a BIN of $5,500 or best offer and a slight location adjustment to Okeechobee, Florida here on eBay. Just look at the paint scheme on this thing. It makes you want to cut the sleeves …
Cheaper By The Day – 1987 Cagiva Elefant 650
The Cagiva Elefant is an interesting odd-ball – an Italian dual-sport with the heart of a Ducati. Available with a 900cc or 650cc engine, this is definitely the most unique option compared to the KLR, DRZ, and XL/XR options available from Japan. The seller of this example is ensuring that it will sell as he’s going to knock off $100/day …
VIN #1 – 2000 Aprilia Pegaso 650 Cube
The Aprilia Pegaso was an excellent dual sport that suffered the same fate as most Aprilias in the 90s/00s – it was poorly marketed and under appreciated, though it was a great bike. Aprilia developed this bike in tandem with BMW, so the latter’s F650 is mechanically almost identical. Aprilia added a few extras that the BMW did not receive, …
1986 Yamaha TT350
Yamaha’s answer to the recently-retired Honda XR350R, the TT350 was a hybrid between their XT dual-sport and the YZ motocross bike. Yamaha marketed it as “Dirt Tough, Street Wise” and “a purpose-built machine that’s perfect for tackling the toughest enduro…or riding to work!” They only sold it for two years, making it difficult to find nowadays.
2000 Moto Guzzi Quota
Moto Guzzi took their well-known 1,064cc twin and threw it in an ADV package to compete against BMW’s GS bikes. The result was as you’d expect – too heavy and under-suspended for serious off-road work, but very capable as a sport-tourer that could also play on fire roads or light trails. This example is well-modified for touring and it’s had …
75th Anniversary – 1998 BMW R1100GS
For BMW’s 75th anniversary, the Germany company created a limited run (750 examples) of the R1100GS. Differences were limited to the special paint scheme and fancy paperwork called the “Edition Folder” for the owner – Euro bikes got a dark smoke windscreen and the US got a clear one.
1990 Honda Transalp XL600V
In the late 80s, Honda offered both an AT and a TA – the Africa Twin and the Transalp. Both were ahead of the times, though the latter was more street-biased. Consider it a jack of all trades sort of bike with a cult following. The US only got the Transalp between ’89 and ’91, and it was much more …
16K Miles – 1988 BMW R100GS
In 1980, BMW released the R80GS, the first dual-sport motorcycle with a large engine that was comfortable and could perform in the city as well as in the dirt. It still stands as a reference today. In 1987, BMW went one step further in the development of their most successful trail model and released the R100GS.
1 of 133 – 1997 KTM 200LE Jackpiner
The photos of this bike are underwhelming, but these are rare finds and I had to share it nonetheless. If you’re wondering why KTM built this bike, here’s a refresher of how the brand came to be in the US, thanks in no small part to John Penton!
2000 Moto Guzzi Quota 1100ES
Moto Guzzi took their well-known 1,064cc twin and threw it in an ADV package to compete against BMW’s GS bikes. The result was as you’d expect – too heavy and under-suspended for serious off-road work, but very capable as a sport-tourer that could also play on fire roads or light trails. This example is well-modified for touring and it’s had …
Indian FTR 1200 Raffle for the Back on Track Charity
Back on Track (formerly known as Rookies of ’79) is a non-profit charity founded in 2009 to provide financial assistance for injured motorcycle racers and their families when a racing injury/accident occurs. This year they’re running a sweepstakes to help raise some funds and the prize at stake is a 2024 example of the sadly-discontinued Indian FTR 1200. Read along …
Rally Raid – 2023 BMW G310GS
I’ve featured a few bikes in the past that had suspension upgrades from Rally Raid out in the UK as it’s one of the best modifications you can do to the current batch of small/cheap ADV bikes like the Honda CB500X. Here’s a German take on that receipe – a baby GS with the Level 2 Suspension Kit and several …
DENALI Show Bike – 2019 BMW R1250GS
Packed with tons of extras from Denali Electronics and Twisted Throttle, this GS has barely been ridden as the odometer shows just 133 miles!
Homemade Jet Ski Scooter
Here’s something we can all agree on: a Sea-Doo that’s been jerry-rigged into a scooter is both wonderfully terrible and terribly wonderful. Even the police officer who pulls you over for not having a license plate will be heartened at the sight of this thing.