Latest Reviews of Motocross Bikes & Parts

2013 Husqvarna CR125

Vital Review

“Tested: 125 Pro Challenge Husqvarna CR125/144”

There was a time when two-strokes were dying. They went from a once prevalent design to disappearing by the tens of thousands…not unlike the American bison. Once numbering in the millions, the grazing beasts were eventually killed off so quickly that, in the matter of just a few decades, only a few hundred remained before people realized that their extinction might be a bad thing…damn pioneers! However, after some serious conservation efforts the species was saved, but the population will never return to what its former numbers (feel free to shed a tear). Now, I hate to be the bearer of bad news for all of the premix die-hards Read More »

Risk Racing Seal Doctor Tool

Vital Review

“Leaky Seal Solution”

It’s one of the most common and annoying maintenance issues out there: you’re having a great day of riding, but start to notice an unusual amount of dirt building up on your forks; a leaking fork seal. Ugh! By the time you’ve returned home with the bike tied down in the back of the truck, there is a pool of fork oil on the bed liner. The problem is, suspension specialists are busy and you’re lucky to get away with turn around in three days or less. But you want to ride…right now! Well, there’s a quick solution. Half of the time, a leaking fork seal is the result of some dirt or sand that managed to work its Read More »

Works Connection Pro Launch Holeshot Device

Vital Review

“Slingshot...engage!”

Like most inventions and innovations in motocross racing, starting devices first began to appear on factory bikes before they were made available to the public. After they first showed up in the late ‘90s, it wasn’t long before the little gizmos were on every bike on the pro tour. Soon enough, start devices were available from most accessory manufacturers, allowing every Joe Schmoe to improve their holeshot prowess. For a long time there were only a handful of different options on the market. Now a few new starting tools have begun to pop up, and one of the more innovative is the Works Read More »

Oakley Airbrake MX Goggles

Vital Review

“Tested: Oakley Airbrake”

Goggles are in a strange place in terms of the evolution of the sport. Like chains, they seem very rudimentary, especially in comparison to, say, road racing. Yet, no one has been able to devise a better functioning and cost effective way to either protect your eyes or transfer power from a motor to the rear wheel. So, rather than move to face shields (although Simpson did attempt it a few years ago, but it never caught on), MX has stuck with goggles through thick and thin…and now thicker with the new Oakley Airbrake MX. Developed over several years with Oakley’s top athletes, the Airbrake is one of the more innovative Read More »

O'Neal Racing O'Neal Neon 5 Series Crypt Helmet

“A very cool helmet”

The Good: The design, flow, comfort

The Bad: the pricetag

Overall Review: Overall a really good looking helmet. Fits great and is very comfortable to wear.

Smith Intake Sweat-X Goggles

“Smith Intake Sweat-X/with roll-offs”

The Good: Articulating outrigger for goggle strap to help with different helmet shapes, bright vibrant colors, roll-off kit included, Goggle foam excelled at keeping dust and small particles outside. Made in the USA.

The Bad: Slightly long goggle strap, Lack of tear off posts on roll-off canisters, Anti fog lens wasn't as effective as I would have liked.

Overall Review: What you get: The current price of the Smith Intake's I used is $65. For your money you get a pair of Intake Sweat-X's (coming in 4 colorways) a cloth baggy to hold them, and a roll off system.The goggles themselves are well made, multi-layered foam, on a outrigger style frame.Features include:An articulating outrigger system - This allows the outrigger angle to change. This was quite helpful with different helmet shapes. In the past I've run into outrigger frames that just allow the strap to pull wrong on certain helmets and create and uneven seal along your face. The articulating frame helped with this on the Read More »

Acerbis Skid Plate

“Simple, Tuff, Affordable...”

The Good: Uses stock mounting instead of aftermarket mounting brackets, extremely tough, flexible enough to take abuse.

The Bad: Can be air restrictive, but has patterns visible to drill out.

Overall Review: So after a full seasons of racing Worcs, GPs, and other offroad events without ever breaking or having a problem with these I thought it was about time to give them a little recognition.Upside: At 75 dollars the acerbis skid plate is much cheaper than using a carbon fiber or comparable full coverage aluminum skid plates. The molded plastic is both tough but flexible to to take heavy hits from rocks, logs, ect. Also compared to some other aftermarket skid plates it uses the oem mounting. So no messing around with aftermarket clamps that hard to put in place! I personally tested these on kawasaki's 250 and 450, Read More »

2011 TM Racing MX 250 Fi

“Off-the-peg exclusivity”

The Good: Bloody fast and no extras required......

The Bad: The Marzochi forks are a bastard to find anybody capable to work on them.

Overall Review: A fantastic bike, provided us with regular holeshots fresh from the 'box'. No tuning required, no 'bling' neccessary - but we have fitted a Scalvini exhaust anyway!Quality parts make it at least as reliable as anything else on the market and better than most. But don't let just anybody work on it! Lovingly trained experts only please, on this Ferrari of the dirt world!!!!If you want to feel special at ANY race meeting or practice track, this (or any of the other tasty TM's) is for you.

PODMX K300

Vital Review

“Low End Price, High End Protection”

Knee braces are no longer items for the sport’s wealthy, elite, or injured. For the last decade, more and more knee brace options have appeared on the market, with a whole range in both quality and price. Back around 2009, PODMX hit the ground running when they first introduced the K700, an all-carbon fiber, OTF (off-the-shelf) brace with several new innovations available at a upper-mid level price ($799.95, a far cry from the +$1000 price tag of custom braces). After the success of their first offering, PODMX set out to offer another brace with the same great features at and even more affordable price. Borrowing the Read More »

Yoshimura RS-4 Titanium/Carbon Full System

Vital Review

“Functional Art Work”

First off, the 2013 KX450F is not short on power. It has a very strong motor that pulls hard, with good power throughout the revs. Thanks to the electronic mapping coupler system of the new Kawasaki big-bore, there is a lot of room for adjustability in the power output of the bike. However, there is always room for improvement, and that is where Yoshimura comes into play. One of Yoshimura’s newer exhaust offerings is the RS-4 Titanium/Carbon Full System. With a full carbon tip and can that tapers into a titanium base and header, the RS-4 is a piece of motocross art. Add in the anodized billet Read More »