If you’re over 6-foot-2, your KTM is too...

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2TALL RACING KTM SPACE KITS

I ’ve always had issues riding low or physically tight machines with high pegs and a low seat height. Being

6-foot-2 means that I’m not in the motocross mainstream, and since the days when we actually lowered our CZs to get them to corner better, I’ve struggled with ergonomic comfort. The big change came as I neared the 40-year mark. I had had a handful of knee surgeries and was trying to qualify for the ISDE. I realized that I could not maintain the proper knee flex to keep me forward on the bike for six- to seven-hour stretches. Danny LaPorte helped hugely when he said that most of the European riders he knew that were tall all ran a taller saddle and bars. He told me to look at the knee bend of a rider who is 5-foot-8 and then one my height. Their knees were cocked at a 90-degree angle; mine were squished to maybe a 65-degree angle. From that day on, I started building my own saddles that were usually 20mm taller than stock, and I always used very stiff foam (since I didn’t want it to sag and reduce my knee bend). Companies like Guts and Enduro Engineering that make taller foam kits have been friends of mine for years.

Very recently, I met Jan Doeksen at the Glen Helen round of the Nationals. Jan’s my height and told me about his company, 2Tall Racing. They make space kits for late-mod-el KTMs and, unlike my ongoing mods (taller seat, taller bars and lower pegs if possible), the 2Tall space kit actually raises the handlebars, fuel tank, radiators and subframe. At the same time, you can use your stock handlebars, stock saddle and stock footpegs. He offers two different kits, a Stage 1 and Stage 2. The Stage 1 kit is for riders at the 6-foot-1 range and moves everything up 25mm. The Stage 2 kit targets riders who are over 6-foot-2. According to Jan, there’s little technology available to help taller riders adjust their machines. With the additional 40mm height through-out the cockpit and saddle, tall pilots are raving.

By Tom Webb

If you’re over 6-foot-2, your KTM is too small!

According to Jan, the average height of the last 10 AMA 450 motocross champions was 5-foot-8.

2013, 2012, 2011 Villopoto — 5-foot-82009, 2007, 2006 Stewart — 5-foot-72010 Dungey — 5-foot-102008, 2004 Reed — 5-foot-112005 Carmichael — 5-foot-6

The 2Tall space kit comes totally complete to equip your KTM with an additional 25mm of room through the cockpit zone. Subframe risers, tank and muffler extensions, an airbox extender, and all of the hard-ware to pull it together highlight a kit that is defi-nitely on the pricey side of ergonomic updates.

Our test pilot is 6-foot-4 and is unusually long at the torso and shorter at the leg length. You can see here on the stock KTM a serious leg crunch and an upper body that’s very vertical at the spine, which brings the head back.

With the 2Tall space kit, there is a shade less leg bind but much more room through seat and bars, which allows for a more athletic pose with his head forward and arms bent equaling a more proper cornering gait.

NOVEMBER 2014 / DIRT BIKE 85

The 2Tall kit helps make a machine designed to fit a 5-foot-8 rider layout perfectly for a 6-foot-2 or taller pilot. One of the big questions we got hit with was, “But how will it affect the cornering? If I’m tall in the saddle, I won’t be able to stay low and rail the ruts.” What we’ve found more often than not is that the taller guy can’t get forward on the tank anyway. With his knees squeezed closed, and with knee braces, it’s common for the taller pilot to sit back farther on the machine, which inherently works against proper cornering technique.

THE INSTALLThe parts you get in the kit are a tank riser, handlebar clamps, radiator mounts, new subframe mounts, muf-

fler hanger, an airboot extension, and a gaggle of glues, hardware and directions to help you with fitment. The 2Tall kit works with the stock cables, but you

do need to pay attention to their routing. Most of the bolt-ons are pedestrian and just require common sense. The airboot extension (neces-sary since the whole subframe gets raised and

is farther from the throttle body) needs to be silicone-sealed

in place (they provide it). The subframe risers are

machined out of billet and fit perfectly. The

handlebar clamp is very sano (machined out

The 2Tall clamp raises the bars dramatically, yet allows for the proper lines from the saddle and footpegs to engage a pilot who is 6 to 7 inches taller than the “normal” rider.

The tank spacer maintains the flow from the saddle through the tank, and 2Tall has a sano new mounting system for the radiator shrouds, which, too, are taller.

The subframe risers are CNC-machined and bolt up perfectly. You use a combi-nation of stock hardware and supplied fasteners from 2Tall.

Use silicone seal (supplied) on the extender to fit the airbox boot.

The new muffler hanger keeps the exhaust position stock, yet lets it fit the new taller subframe.

Looks-wise, it’s not readily apparent that your KTM has been fit with a system that lifts it for the 6-foot-2-and-taller pilot.

of billet) and raises the control panel to match the tank, which gets a molded spacer and new mount. The radia-tors receive new catches, basically the same rubber piece that holds up the sidestand on a KTM. The new mount is simple and works well. You have to disconnect the sub-frame, unhook the airboot from the throttle body and then follow the directions. The 2Tall folks told us that they would have either video or detailed photos online to help with the install.

ON THE TRACKWhen you sit on the 2Tall-kitted KTM, it feels identical to

stock, only taller. This may sound idiotic, but compared to fitting a taller saddle and either bar risers or taller handle-bars, it is completely different. A taller saddle has more give and drop. The tank sits low, and you tend to sit more in it than on it, like you would with a stocker. I immedi-ately felt comfortable. My knee bend was closer to the 90 degrees that I want, and I had the ability to slide both forward and aft without being overly cramped. Strangely, it was the first time in years that the layout and feel of a stock KTM felt normal. Because I have been using taller saddles and bars for years, the height of the machine had no effect. What I craved was the ergonomic flow from the saddle to the tank and the ability to retain some decent body alignment and positioning entering corners.

Comfort and mobility are really important to me. Because of knee issues, which hamper my ability to get forward, and the fact that my cornering speed has not ramped up



The radiator shrouds receive a rubber loop and a hook to fasten them. It’s simple and works. Stock seat height is 38.1 inches. The 2Tall-kitted seat height is 39.1 inches.

Stock bike. Can’t get real forward on the tank. Straight back and arms hamper the taller rider.

Just a tick less knee flex with the 2Tall kit, more arm flex and a more forward head showcase the additional space.



2Tall makes space kits for the KTM 85, and they have been well-received throughout Europe. They are slated to offer kits for Husqvarna models (both minis and the regular line) this year.

Stock bike, arms straight, back straight and head back are not conducive lines concerning a dirt bike.

More room equals an increased flexibility while cornering. Head is forward, the back has some tilt and arms are far more flexed. This rider actually looks comfortable.

Heading into a corner following a rough straight on the stocker shows a more knee-bend approach, with the body scrunched in the middle of the machine. This happens mainly with bars that are too low and far back.

The taller machine lets the rider really stay athletic, a slight bend at the legs, a torso that is hinged, a head far more over the bars and a proper flex position at the arms.

Stage 1 kit: Motocross only, $945Stage 2 kit: Motocross and enduro,

$995KTM 85cc: $895www.2tallracing.com

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NOVEMBER 2014 / DIRT BIKE 89

as the clock keeps ticking, I have to keep some athleticism in my stance, and a big portion of this comes from the ability to go from seated to stand-ing easily, plus the necessity of get-ting up on the tank in corners. With a taller seat and bars, I’ve learned how to deal with mobility. With the 2Tall space kit, life has gotten smoother, easier and way more effortless.

The 2Tall space kits are not cheap, but then again, their complexity and design target riders interested in mak-ing sweeping changes to their chassis’ layouts without sacrificing durability and feel. There is good news in that the kit is totally transferable should you buy another KTM. Personally, I think the 2Tall kit may have compli-cated my life, since there’s no going back now and I usually have two to three KTMs in my garage throughout the year.

They are working on kits for the Husqvarna models (2014 and 2015) and have kits for the KTM 85. Jan explained that the Stage 2 kit has many options. 2Tall uses Raptor Ti pegs that are lower than stock (from the top), and they offer units placed farther back for the 6-foot-3 and over crowd. They also suggest Blackbird saddles that retain the exact KTM shape but use a taller foam with a proper density.

In the end, this letter came from Jan’s first U.S. customer: “I’m 6-foot-5 and struggle to try and make a bike comfortable for me. My current ride is a KTM 450XC-F. I stumbled on 2Tall Racing and found the cure. If you are tall and would like your bike feel the way it should to you, look them up on the Internet. I purchased the Stage 2, which raised my tank and subframe 2 inches, as well as moving it all back about an inch or so. Easy install and can be switched to another bike if you purchase a new one. Feels great. Very pleased with it. It feels way dif-ferent but better. Now I know how the 5-foot-10 guys feel on a bike!”

We couldn’t have said it better. o

RIDE C

OSTA

RICA

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