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It’s good to see e-bikes having more involvement and structure. The smaller e-bikes like Surron and ERide are getting bigger, more powerful while other Starkish brands are appearing almost weekly.
The Varg is the only direct competitor to the 450 atm, but others like the Arctic Leopard, Radian, Surron Ultra Bee, Bonnell, Altis, are very close.
The largest, most popular competitors are lighter weight mid size bikes.
Stark really got inside your head, didn't they? Give it up.
Or maybe Google "Luddite".
"Getting inside your head" is a bogus theory that's really getting inside Vitard's heads. Very trendy.
Oh, btw, I'm still amazed at how someone posting commercial propaganda for a brand, every week, for years, can be considered OK.
Maybe the goal is getting inside people's heads?
😏
Here’s the closest Varg clones that should be released by the end of ‘26:
(All of these are between $12 - $15k, except for the Dust at $10K)
The Shop
DeCal Works Huge Plastic Inventory of UFO and Polisport kits.
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
Tsssss, stop polluting Beagle's PR work, his sole contribution: the endless Stark only thread...
😄
Dust and Bonnell might get released this year, they've made impressive prototypes, Bonnell has even done some MX and Enduro races (although being bought by Livewire might be the kiss of death for Dust).
Jarv-E (Erzbergrodeo finisher) might make a few dozen bikes this year but it doesn't look like they're ready for mass production.
Flux and Radian have super promising prototypes but Flux has been very quiet for 6 months (possibly pushed back in 2027?) while Radian aims for Q4 2027 deliveries.
Really curious about the big OEMs, they've been able to dissect the Varg for a while, they've seen Stark selling 1000 bikes/month, Yamaha will soon release its first electric dirt bike with Electric Motion and then of course Honda, whenever they'll get their package ready, been 9 years since their first prototype unveiling, is anyone's guess.
The OEMs were way behind the curve when the Varg came out.
There is a thought that customers wanting e-dirt bikes, want a full size 450 equivalent, which is where the Stark Varg buyers fit. But significant buyers for e-dirt bikes are non-moto persons, who like the idea of a powerful emtb/ dirt bike mix. Full size e-dirt bikes are mostly ice e-conversions, while the majority of the e-dirt bikes sold are midsize or smaller - Surron LBX, Talaria, ERide Pro, and smaller Valtinsu EM5 Pro, Yozma, Tuttio, etc.
So in saying that, it’ll be interesting to see where the competition market goes. Infront, Feld, and DC are locked in to the ice OEMs and will only make a move if the OEMs (mainly Honda) approves. In the meantime, the market is wide open for midsize e-dirt bike competition.
Yes there is a lot of choice out there for midsize, hey boss, if you haven't seen it already, enjoy this vid from Pastranaland
I don't know who Beagle is, not been following him, but to support the Stark Varg I would say that Stark Future operations is on a whole different level than most smaller e-startups. Sh*t, Stark is shipping thousands and are supporting racing teams while others are 'building prototypes'.
That doesn't say the future in 5-6years might look different, but right now I would claim Stark Future is the only one building a 'serious' e-mx bike.
The 'mid-size' bikes are interesting, first of all, they seem to be safer, most yourtubers ride them with a bicycle helmet and sneakers.
Midsize e bikes are great to put more bums on seats.
Right now Stark are the only one with a production bike more or less at the level of gas bikes and have been the only electric bike regularly competing in MX, SX and Enduro in national and global series, at amateur and pro level, for the past 3 years (although Jarv-E is also in Hard Enduro World Championship).
I mean Stark is supporting teams and riders in AX UK, France SX tour and Elite MX, WSX, SuperEnduro, EnduroGP, Hard Enduro World Championship, US Hard Enduro... And then lots of amateurs are racing their bike in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and America.
The only major championship they're missing really is AMA SX, I would love to see Hicks allowed to race there on his Stark but obviously the OEMs aren't so keen.
Right now electric dirt bike racing is Stark racing but hopefully this will soon change. Whenever one of the big OEM will be ready (or Bonnell, Flux or other startups), things would get more interesting, the more the merrier.
So the Bonnell 805RX. A lot of guys liked the 805 small wheel. None for the ERide Pro SR. Interesting. Definitely showed the limits of the suspension.
Too bad they didn't get the Dust Hightail prototype, these lighter bikes (805 is given at 211 lbs / 96 kg, Dust at 235 lbs / 107 kg) still pack decent power (56 hp for the 805 and 42 hp for Dust) and could be really great if they can be priced significantly lower than $12k Varg.
I see MXA finally decided to test a Varg (1.2 Gen).
I just got my Varg last week and after 2 days on moto tracks with stock settings, I upgraded to the "pro" settings and the traction control is like cheating. I was liking 48 hp on the moto track with no TC/normal settings, I could ride it aggressively without worrying about getting whiskey throttle with too much power til I get used to it. Then I went trail/play riding out in some open areas and tried 65 hp with 100% tc, and it was even more manageable than the 48 hp setting with no tc. Hold it wide open and it just pulls really smooth. Almost took the fun out of it! I'll have to play around with lower percentages.
I did notice bumping the low rpm power up with a 32hp map was super fun for the woods, gave me enough pop to bring the front wheel over logs/streams. I'm having so much damn fun riding this thing!
I was surprised at how well the Bonnell MTB did. That thing looks like it would be a ton of fun. Surprised they were able to do all of the jumps with it. I started thinking about selling my regular EMTB and picking up one of those
The Varg was at a slight disadvantage being set up stiff for Pastrana and bigger jumps. It will be more interesting to see what bikes start to show up in future videos on the channel. I'm not sure if TP bought the Varg or how he got his. But he's had one for awhile. Be interesting to see if they end up buying some more of the ones they really liked to add them to the fleet he has.
It was cool to see bikes compared to each other that You would never normally see compared to each other. And the benefits of electric being a less expensive platform to develop on the lower end bikes is really showing with the crazy amount of bikes available . Its cool to see so many entry level options that have come out. It would be cool to see a major brand even take an existing platform , one of the better built mid sized bikes. And rebrand it maybe put a little of their own touch onto it. But then support it with parts in dealers. Something Surron sized and then more of a pitbike size . Kinda like Honda and Grainger have done. I think it could help them bring in new customers and just the support of parts and dealer networks alone would make some of those bikes a better value if they could stay the same price as they are.
It’d be good to see Stark offer a slightly smaller, lighter bike alongside the Varg.
I’ll be surprised if the Dust Hightail ever makes it to production. It’s still pricey for a “midsize” bike, above $10K. Same with the Jarv-E, above $13K.
This is Cooper Abbott's ride for when he's not allowed to race his Stark. And it's gorgeous.
Starks are racing in France, UK, Australia, Canada, Hungary, Croatia, Czechia, Germany, Spain, Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Slovenia, Madagascar, Argentina, Colombia, Chile...
Add to the mix WSX, SuperEnduro, EnduroGP, Hard Enduro World Championship. And to be fair, various AMA enduro series.
Yet, somehow, the world did not end.
Stark is now the largest selling Enduro bike in Germany, France and Italy.
Like it or not, the world is changing.
Pit Row
No one’s angry
Coming with KYB kit suspension, heck ya!
Stark marketing team must be happy with whatever it costs them to race WSX given the amount of coverage they get.
WSX round 1 Calgary
Elevation helped them since they're not affected by it, got every holeshot for the day except for one in SX1 and got to celebrate their first overall podium.
In SX2 Hicks made a strong start to this campaign with 2nd OA from going 3/2/3.
His new teammate Hsu was very impressive for his first race with Stark. 8th OA doesn't seem like much but he was fastest in qualifying and got 5/3/16. He was running 5th in the main before some bike issue at mid race, led 2 or 3 of his races so the potential is definitely there. I was very impressed he could race at Hicks' pace from the start, it usually takes some time to learn the tricks of riding electric compared to gas bikes he knows so much better.
In SX1 it was also a good weekend with Friese 4th OA (6/4) and Zaragoza 6th (14/2), the main getting red flagged before 75% of the race because of very strong winds playing havoc with tough blocks while they were 6th and 7th.
All in all they were masters of holeshots (in elevation at least), got to lead races, scored 5 moto podiums (4 in SX2 and 1 in SX1), Hsu made a very promising start and congratulations to Hicks for his first overall podium after stepping on it for all 3 races.
Stark's 1st EnduroGP season is done. It was by far their hardest challenge in pro racing but I'm sure they'll be back next year.
And for good measure
Stark are not bad at racing but they're also pretty good at telling stories
KMG team raises questions over Stark altitude advantage
Calgary elevation results in World Supercross parity concerns.
Konsky Motorsport Group (KMG) team owner Yarrive Konsky has raised questions over Stark Future’s advantage at altitude in Calgary’s World Supercross season-opener, concerned over parity across both the SX1 and SX2 categories.
With elevation a factor at McMahon Stadium – 1045 meters above sea level – traditional combustion-powered engines appeared at a power deficit due to the reduced oxygen on offer – something that wasn’t the case for the electric drivetrain powering the Stark Vargs.
“I was opposed to Stark Racing entering the championship because my concern was never about electric motorcycles – I actually think the technology has a place in racing,” explained Konsky. “My concern was always parity.
“If you are going to put two fundamentally different powertrains into the same championship, you have to understand how the conditions affect each of them and have a system in place to make sure neither technology is given an uncontrolled advantage.
“Altitude was a major factor in Calgary. A naturally aspirated combustion engine is fundamentally affected by reduced air density because there is less oxygen available for combustion. An electric motorcycle doesn’t have that same dependency on atmospheric oxygen.”
Konsky – whose KMG organization operates the US-based Quad Lock Honda team – flagged the FIM’s apparent oversight, given the extensive range of variables that could influence the performance differential between the two different types of machinery and, in turn, jeopardize the parity in WSX.
“We were told by the FIM official that altitude had not been considered in the parity assessment – for me, that is a significant concern,” Konsky continued. “If we’re going to have different technologies competing for the same championship, the governing body has to be ahead of these variables, not discovering them once we’re at the race.
“I don’t have an issue with electric motorcycles racing. I have an issue with putting different technologies on the same start line without properly establishing and controlling parity. That is about protecting the integrity of the championship for every manufacturer, every team and every rider.”
Stark displayed significant improvement in Canada compared to last year’s WSX series – claiming convincing holeshots in all but one of the evening’s races – with US revelation Michael Hicks claiming second overall in the SX2 category while teammate Brian Hsu also featured strongly throughout the round.
High-profile American Vince Friese finished fourth in SX1, while Spanish teammate Jorge Zaragoza captured sixth overall after claiming P2 in the second sprint. Series organizers have since moved to release an editorial explainer on the official World Supercross Championship website.
The other teams starting to complain that Starks are not restricted enough makes for some awesome free publicity for them.
Except the price of the Bonnell MTB….ouch…for an MTB. Spend 2K more and get the 805. That’s the play!!
I hugely admire the way Stark have built a fully competitive bike with disruptive technology, built a complete new brand, are selling boatloads, competing successfully at the highest level AND are making solid profit.
Only those who have been involved in new tech start ups know how difficult that is.
But what I admire even more is the way they never whine about the restrictions and obstacles put in their way by those with vested interests. They just plug away, steadily refining the product, working with the organisers and race Federations to get their bikes approved, putting decent (but not elite) riders on them, and getting solid results.
Yeah, they can holeshot, no gearchanges needed. Yeah, they have a power advantage at high altitude. Yeah, they weigh a lot more. Yeah the range is limited for offroad/enduro. Yeah they are whisper-quiet in a world where evveryone complains about loud pipes.
KTM, Honda, Yam and the rest should build a competitive electric MX to compete directly (and they clearly can't, yet). Or they could add 40lb of lead to their 450s and tune them for holeshots only, to the detriment of manageability in the whoops. That would be 'fair'.
The world changes. Stark have done a remarkable, mature, job of bringing in new technology and it will only improve. Let 'em race - and, Yarrive et al, please stop snivelling about their advantages here and there, whilst ignoring that they also carry clear handicaps. Its racing, figure out where your advantages lie and exploit them.
I'm loving seeing the Starks mixing in with the gas bikes, it adds interest to the races. And the guys on them are having fun!
Only a matter of time before they have access to MX GP and AMA pro racing. I look forward to it!
[Full disclosure: I race vintage 4 stroke. I have never owned an electric two wheeler of any kind. I've ridden plenty of modern 350/450 MX and enduro, and the Stark. All are awesome on track, unlike me].
Spot on post and I agree with it.
It is kind of funny how the story of Stark has transpired and how the view has changed in such a short window. It started out as a concept and so many said oh it will never compete at the top level, it will be just like the Alta. Then now it is people complaining because they have too much advantage and it is not fair. Wild ride it has been.
Not to toot my own horn, but years ago now I predicted that the 16/19 wheel size E-bike market would explode in the upcoming years, because it would be so easy to build a backyard track around their size and capabilities - and fellas, it's happened. E-Ride and Altis are selling out their entire year's production of bikes long before the year is over (it's August, and both are already sold out), and there's trick new parts coming on the market all the time, almost daily. Few people on Vital have even heard of the brand Sirris, but in E-moto, they're THEE suspension to get - and anything but cheap. I just bought an E Ride Pro SR and I'm getting a full Sirris suspension fitted to it. Can't wait. And for anyone who thinks these bikes are more for their wife or girlfriend, an E Ride Pro SR has almost as much horsepower as a 250F - with a 16/19 wheelset. In race mode, it's said to be almost unrideable. I guess I'll find out. Giggle. The future is not "coming" anymore, my friends, it's HERE! - and it's fan-flipping-tastic!
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