Why does anyone listen to Keefer?

motoarmageddon
Edited Date/Time 1/23/2019 10:42am
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS.
He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm, he thinks they do no wrong, and he talks shit to other testers like ML who disagree. Typical Pro who thinks he knows more than anyone slower than him.
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ob
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ob 1/17/2019 3:12pm
1/17/2019 3:12pm
I like his stuff. I do agree that he talks best about Yamaha and ktm (husky) products but from what I see they are the best right now. And that shit constantly changes depending on who is spending the money on development. I don't think he lies, but sometimes it feels like he is holding his tounge so he doesn't make anybody mad. what can you expect from a guy who puts food on the table working in the industry.
Who is better? Most people who are doing tests or reviews don't say anything worthwhile to the real enthusiasts, just a bunch of bullshit blah blah blah.
Sorry if he thinks whatever bike you ride sucks, it might really suck. And probably does.
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pummel
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pummel 1/17/2019 3:15pm
1/17/2019 3:15pm
I like him. He does have an opinion but that's his job.
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rikhek
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rikhek 1/17/2019 3:17pm
1/17/2019 3:17pm
racerx217 wrote:
Who is Keefer? never heard of the gal
Same question, who is Keefer? I never heard of him/her and no, I'm not trolling it's a serious question.
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Natester551v
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Natester551v 1/17/2019 3:20pm
1/17/2019 3:20pm
Any tester out there, regardless of speed or experience, is biased. Body type, speed, time on a specific brand, riding style, etc., etc. make a huge difference. That's why factory rides are so sought after - they can literally customize the bike to the specific rider. Honestly the best type of test involves lots of different riders, and then a single report - Ron Lawson does a great job of explaining this in one of his recent columns in Dirt Bike Mag.

You've gotta read between the lines with any test report, since they almost have to understate when something sucks.

Keefer is a great dude, and he's definitely not a BS'er. He's always been super cool to me back when I rode a bit with the Dirt Rider guys...he's good people...
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aFACEdismembered 1/17/2019 3:20pm
1/17/2019 3:20pm
motoarmageddon wrote:
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS. He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm...
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS.
He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm, he thinks they do no wrong, and he talks shit to other testers like ML who disagree. Typical Pro who thinks he knows more than anyone slower than him.
It could be argued that KTM and Yamaha produce the 2 best production bikes right now. He's also slightly taller from what I've seen and those 2 bikes could just "fit" him better. We're all partial to what feels good bro.
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BR8ES
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BR8ES 1/17/2019 3:23pm
1/17/2019 3:23pm
What does your testing and experience say OP? Maybe we can get some valuable info and make a better decision. Much TY
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newmann
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newmann 1/17/2019 3:26pm
1/17/2019 3:26pm
motoarmageddon wrote:
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS. He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm...
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS.
He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm, he thinks they do no wrong, and he talks shit to other testers like ML who disagree. Typical Pro who thinks he knows more than anyone slower than him.
I have heard of this Keefer, but never watched, listened or read any of his stuff. But to answer your question, people listen to him for his opinion. I'm guessing just like any other test, people get out of it what they want to get out of it whether it is right or wrong or slanted or whatever.
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coastlinecascot 1/17/2019 3:27pm
1/17/2019 3:27pm
Like I said his insight. The questions he asked the test riders are not standard questions. To a non techy type it can be boring. I'm a techy so it's nice to hear the nuts and bolts of why suspension or bike geometry does this or that. It helps me when I revalve and set up my own stuff.

One thing is clear he is bias. Not to a brand. He is bias to 450s. Especially his questions. Maybe I'm wrong. To me it feels as though it's a job having to test 250s. Like its Not a fun thing. Again I can be wrong.
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TeamGreen
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TeamGreen 1/17/2019 3:28pm
1/17/2019 3:28pm
I think the guy has his own perspective and he’s honest in his analysis of what he thinks makes a good bike worth owning...or not.
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jbrown15
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jbrown15 1/17/2019 3:32pm
1/17/2019 3:32pm
motoarmageddon wrote:
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS. He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm...
I don't understand why so many people think Keefer is "no BS", to me he is ALL BS.
He has definite bias toward KTM and YAm, he thinks they do no wrong, and he talks shit to other testers like ML who disagree. Typical Pro who thinks he knows more than anyone slower than him.
Yeah it’s just crazy that a guy who is an ex Pro, who also worked in the R&D departments for some manufacturers and is basically made a career out of testing products would think he knows more than people slower than him.....lol SMH
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MX690
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MX690 1/17/2019 3:33pm
1/17/2019 3:33pm
I like Keefers pods, but i do believe there may be a bit of bias in there. Example: 2018 450 shoot out they said they were keeping the bikes stock, wouldn't even put a different front tyre on the RMZ, which they all agreed would make the bike better. But when it came to the Yamaha they had some issues with power delivery so they ran a custom map given to them by Travis Preston, and by all accounts on the pod cast it made the bike a lot better. Well in my opinion that's not stock, unless the custom map came with the bike. So they were prepared to change the Yamaha to make it better but not the Suzuki. Is there bias in that to bump the Yamaha up? Sure seemed like it. But apart from that i think Keefer is awesome on the pulp show.
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Grimace
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Grimace 1/17/2019 3:35pm
1/17/2019 3:35pm
I like listening to his insights. I don't agree with everything he says but I'm glad he's saying it. His opinion comes from years of riding tons of different bikes and using a bunch of different gear at a very high level. Don't like, don't listen.
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Permeance_Flux 1/17/2019 3:48pm
1/17/2019 3:48pm
Only thing he might be biased against is 2 strokes. He is admittedly not a fan of them; something about their power delivery. I’ve yet to hear a podcast on testing a 250 or 125 2 stroke on his site.
ob
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ob 1/17/2019 3:53pm
1/17/2019 3:53pm
Permeance_Flux wrote:
Only thing he might be biased against is 2 strokes. He is admittedly not a fan of them; something about their power delivery. I’ve yet to...
Only thing he might be biased against is 2 strokes. He is admittedly not a fan of them; something about their power delivery. I’ve yet to hear a podcast on testing a 250 or 125 2 stroke on his site.
He is a what makes your lap times shorter, not what is more fun. That’s why he doesn’t hype the 2 stroke stuff. I like that view, if I want more fun I’m ride a 110.
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Solidkm
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Solidkm 1/17/2019 3:53pm
1/17/2019 3:53pm
I read his shit all the time. 1. OP If you can do better, bro, have at it. 2. Maybe just maybe yam and ktm are on point as of late? I thought he had good things to say about the kawi? 3. Regardless of speed, I think being able to change parts and settings and identify the changes enough to construct legitimate feedback is an entirely different skill. Which he is good at. Sorry he didn’t jump on the nuts of your ride.
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Permeance_Flux 1/17/2019 3:55pm
1/17/2019 3:55pm
ob wrote:
He is a what makes your lap times shorter, not what is more fun. That’s why he doesn’t hype the 2 stroke stuff. I like that...
He is a what makes your lap times shorter, not what is more fun. That’s why he doesn’t hype the 2 stroke stuff. I like that view, if I want more fun I’m ride a 110.
Nice. Your perspective is that of an industry shill.
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ob
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ob 1/17/2019 4:00pm
1/17/2019 4:00pm
ob wrote:
He is a what makes your lap times shorter, not what is more fun. That’s why he doesn’t hype the 2 stroke stuff. I like that...
He is a what makes your lap times shorter, not what is more fun. That’s why he doesn’t hype the 2 stroke stuff. I like that view, if I want more fun I’m ride a 110.
Permeance_Flux wrote:
Nice. Your perspective is that of an industry shill.
Ok sorry you don’t agree. But do you think you go faster on a 2t? Or is it just more fun? I think 2ts are fun but that isn’t what he is doing. His stuff is about how or what to ride do to be faster. Trust me I love 2 strokes.
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bw56
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bw56 1/17/2019 4:00pm
1/17/2019 4:00pm
Don’t listen to him then. He provides free content, which many people enjoy, and appreciate. I think Jimmie Johnson mentioned you on Twitter...
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ob
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ob 1/17/2019 4:02pm
1/17/2019 4:02pm
Keefer is pure moto
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stonerb
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stonerb 1/17/2019 4:04pm
1/17/2019 4:04pm
What I think makes him popular, is that he seems to be a genuine dude, that isn’t going to feed you a bunch of bullshit. Also, he is a man of the people, that will answer questions from the common man. Every time I’ve emailed him with a moto question, he has emailed right back, without fail. Dude’s cool in my book.

Also regarding the dude a few posts up about changing the mapping of the YZ for the tests, I believe that is allowed because the tuner app comes free with the bike. So, it isn’t something you need to purchase to make a change, unlike the Suzuki front tire that he mentioned in his post.
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mx317
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mx317 1/17/2019 4:15pm
1/17/2019 4:15pm
stonerb wrote:
What I think makes him popular, is that he seems to be a genuine dude, that isn’t going to feed you a bunch of bullshit. Also...
What I think makes him popular, is that he seems to be a genuine dude, that isn’t going to feed you a bunch of bullshit. Also, he is a man of the people, that will answer questions from the common man. Every time I’ve emailed him with a moto question, he has emailed right back, without fail. Dude’s cool in my book.

Also regarding the dude a few posts up about changing the mapping of the YZ for the tests, I believe that is allowed because the tuner app comes free with the bike. So, it isn’t something you need to purchase to make a change, unlike the Suzuki front tire that he mentioned in his post.
I was thinking the same thing about the mapping on the YZ. Kind of the same as turning the clickers on your suspension, no cost.
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PRM31
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PRM31 1/17/2019 4:20pm
1/17/2019 4:20pm
I get a sense he’s a Yamaha fan boy, but whatever. I know that going in. As for the tuning, they should absolutely be able to tune the Yamahas for each rider and track. Kudos to Yamaha for developing a great system.
Crush
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Crush 1/17/2019 4:21pm
1/17/2019 4:21pm
There is a difference between talking shit and explaining a thought out opinion.

And he's paid by a lot of companies to explain his opinion, so perhaps he's not talking shit.
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Jrewing
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Jrewing 1/17/2019 4:25pm
1/17/2019 4:25pm Edited Date/Time 1/17/2019 4:25pm
He has to get sponsors to pay - fact of his business.
I agree with a lot of his things he says as I can relate or feel what he says.
Sometimes I don’t and think he waffle waffles - another fact, that people have differing opinions and conclusions.
Either way the Kris Keefer seems a solid fella that is a true moto family man. Listen to the 85cc wrap for an example of it. I’d like to talk shit and drink beer with him... all the more better because I won’t have to shout him!!

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