Nobody needs a KTM 1290 or 1390 Adventure R. In fact, the only reason to own an "adventure bike" over 900 CCs is if you're going do thousands of miles on it. Yeah, I said it...and that's just one of my ADV and Dual Sport riding hot takes for the end of 2024.
If you ride dual sport and/or ADV you need to know how to change a tire. This is a basic requirement of riding a motorcycle where roadside assistance cannot get to you. It sucks to learn and it's hard to do but it's an adv riding skill you'll definitely need and so you should learn it as soon as you can.
It's okay to put your dual sport or adventure motorcycle on a trailer or a hitch carrier. You don't have to ride your ADV bike everywhere. There are times when it's advantageous to trailer your bike to a base camp situation and even if it isn't...it's your off road motorcycle and you can ride it however you like.
In terms of basic adventure bike gear...boots are arguably more important than an upgraded helmet. Far too many of you are out there riding 500 pound ADV motorcycles while wearing hiking boots.
Enduro riding injuries study: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4617221/#sec5
ADV and dual sport motorcycle journalists and influencers (myself included) spend a lot of time debating the nuances of each individual bike...but at the end of the day a KTM 500 EXC-F and a TW200 will take you to 90% of the same places.
And finally...only the elite top tier of riders can really take advantage of the most capable bikes. A KTM 1290 Adventure R or 890 Adventure R is wasted on 80% of us because we'll never be able to ride hard enough for the suspension to work as designed and we'll never be able to put all that power to the ground without traction control kicking in.
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Disclaimer for reasons: I am not a professional journalist, expert motorcycle rider, or a mechanic. These videos are for entertainment purposes and represent my personal opinions and experiences. I'm just a dude who isn't even good at riding or making videos, so be smart and don't risk life or limb trying to follow my example or advice.