690 Enduro Rs chosen for 25,000 mile ride
An epic 25,000-mile motorcycle ride from London to Sydney by two ordinary men looking for adventure began this past Sunday (July 1) fromBritish KTM dealer, The KTM Centre. Using two KTM 690 Enduro Rs supplied by the Hemel Hempstead-based KTM dealer, British fire fighter Darren Higginson, 47, and Australian policeman, David ‘Dave’ Darcy, 51, aim to achieve the incredible London to Sydney ‘Continental Drift’ ride in just three months.
The idea for the ambitious trip came about when Darren watched riding videos made by David on YouTube three years ago. Darren, who at thatstage had only ever ridden road bikes, was inspired by the stunning scenery and spirit of adventure of Dave’s Australian films and made contact with the amateur filmmaker. Within a few months and an invitation to go out riding with David, Darren was on a plane to Australia and a friendship was struck.
That short riding trip in Australia escalated into a 25,000-mile multicontinent adventure, as Darren explains: “When I went over to Australia to ride with Dave, we only rode out as far into the bush as you can in a day from Sydney and back the following day. It was an amazing experience and I just wanted to do more – something bigger. Dave and I kept speaking over Skype about doing some longer rides and Dave just said, “Why don’t we just ride from your place to mine?” I said yes straight away.
Two years later and a lot of planning, the trip is a reality. The 690 Enduro R, £7195, was chosen for the expedition because of Dave’s experiencewith previous models; knowing the revised for 2012 KTM with new engine would deliver on the long journey through every possible condition andterrain.
Dave said: “The beauty of this bike is that it can take you places that big hefty bikes can’t; it’s a dirt-orientated adventure bike rather than a roadoriented one. The 690 Enduro R is a fundamental building block for a great adventure bike – they don’t need a lot of modifications in order to make them true global travellers.
The entire journey will be made into a film to which the men plan to give proceeds from to cancer research charities in both the UK and Australia.For more information on the KTM 690 Enduro R visit ktm.com
