The Rise of the Middleweight Adventure Motorcycle

Who started the middleweight adventure motorcycle category?

That question may be hard to answer. It’s important though to understand where we came from. There were many early pioneers in the dual-sport or the “adventure” motorcycle class, but are these truly adventure bikes?

There is the tried and true Honda XR 650, the bulletproof Kawasaki KLR 650 and the trusty Suzuki DR 650. KTM had their line up in the 600cc class as well, with the legendary LC4 motor and a small handful of bikes with “adventure” in their name.

KTM had the 620/625 and the 640 Adventure. They have evolved their single-cylinder thumper over the years from the LC4 platform to now the KTM 690 Enduro, while Husky has the Husqvarna 701 enduro respectively.

Kawasaki killed off the KLR 650, only to bring it back with some updates a few years later. Then there are a few lesser known brands like the SWM Superdual X 600, which uses the old BMW-built Husqvarna TE610 platform.

Finally, there are even lesser known bikes like the Portuguese born AJP PRV 650 Adventure. Heard of it? Probably not. Now again, are these bikes considered to be in the “adventure” class? Most would say no and call them dual-sport or enduro.

Back to the topic at hand though. In this article, we are talking about middleweight adventure motorcycles. So, who started this movement? Let’s get into that further down into the article.

What is a middleweight adventure motorcycle?

Well, for many years motorcycle manufacturers have been trying to make the perfect adventure bike. One that will do it all. The perfect 50/50 bike. Does it exist? Let’s talk about it.

The “do it all” adventure motorcycle would be comfortable on the road, while being maneuverable enough in the dirt. What is maneuverable enough? Good question! That depends on the rider and their interpretation of “off-road riding” and how gnarly their off-road escapades take them.

For me the perfect bike would do 80-90 mph on the highway comfortably, while taking me on very technical dirt sections and even singletrack trails. Does this motorcycle exist? No, it does not. Will that stop manufacturers from trying to make one? Nope.

Why are middleweight adventure motorcycles so popular?

I think these motorcycles strike a nerve for many different types of riders and skillsets. For some adventure riders, jumping off the tarmac and over to a well-groomed dirt road is all they desire to explore. This to them gets the tires dirty and they don’t have the riding experience to be comfortable on more advanced trails.

This is a category where many motorcycle riders can fit. Why you say? Well because adventure riding is still relatively new and it’s also the most popular segment in motorcycling today, so we’ve got noobs-o-plenty joining the sport. This is great for everyone and brings out a plethora of new products to the market for everyone to enjoy.

The more experienced adventure riders want to ride through deep mud, tackle rocky trails, cross deep rivers and loose off camber trails that are not really designed for bigger adventure bikes. Yet these riders want to push the boundaries of their machine and their skills. This is really what adventure motorcycling is all about.

When you have to white knuckle a mountain pass after a nasty rainstorm, cross a deep river or through a deep sandy wash. These are the memories and “adventures” that you remember the most. If everything goes as planned, then you don’t have as many stories to tell. When things go wrong is when you make the most memories.

Like the time you were doing 60 mph on a great section of dirt road that was nice and dry. Little did you know that up ahead it had rained torrentially right before you got there. All of the sudden, the dry road turns into snot in a matter of minutes and you start sliding all over the road, fully loaded with camping gear.

You lay it down and slide into home plate, gear flying all over the road. You survive just fine, but have to pick up your gear spread out across the road and fix a few broken parts as you grumble. Then you find a way to push through the very slippery mud-bog ahead to get to your final destination.

Who brought the first middleweight adventure motorcycle to market?

I’ll take a stab at it and bring KTM into the conversation. They rolled out the 950 and later the 990 Adventure, while other brands still had 1000-1200cc adventure bikes. I would put KTM out in front of this middleweight adventure movement, before it really existed.

The 950/990 adventure was a great platform for adventure riding and gave riders the ability to get on the slab in relative comfort, while having some serious off-road capability. Did it excel at either one? Perhaps not, but it was an amazing machine that still holds its own and has a place in adventure motorcycle history.

Which manufacturer brought the middleweight category to the forefront of every adventure riders’ mind?

I think this goes back to KTM. When they announced the 790 adventure concept, the internet went insane. The buzz online was off the charts.

Adventure riders were salivating over the thought of a “do it all” bike. Not long after KTM announced the 790, Yamaha teased their 700 Ténéré middleweight adventure bike. Both of these bikes and even the KTM 950/990 before it had a Dakar rally bike look to them.

Motorcycle enthusiasts went wild over the concept of both of these bikes. KTM and Yamaha scrambled to get these revolutionary motorcycles from concept, through testing and into production. During this time the waiting lists grew a mile long at dealers and customers grew impatient quickly, as teaser pictures continued to flood the internet.

Once these motorcycles made it to dealers, the buzz continued to grow online. These machines became highly sought after at dealers and by the adventure rider community at large. They were hard to find and the demand grew even larger.

What came after the launch of the KTM 790 Adventure and Ténéré 700?

After these motorcycles were launched and even before it. Other manufacturers started to take notice and they had their designers go to the drawing board immediately.

KTM sister company Husqvarna announced the Norden 901 concept and once again the interwebs went bananas over the Norden concept. Comments like, “take my money” were all over social media. Husqvarna struggled to get this bike from concept to creation and over to dealers during the manufacturing challenges brought on by Covid-19.

All the while KTM had been working on the next version of the 790, which was the 890 adventure. The 890 used the same powerplant as the Norden 901. Essentially it was the same platform.

The 890/901 shared the same frame and many components with different packaging. Very much like how KTM and Husqvarna treated other bikes to make them have unique differences. Like the plastics, headlight, colors, etc. To me the 901 looked like the rebirth of the KTM 990 Adventure.

Now these middleweight adventure motorcycles are very cool, but are they the perfect adventure bike? Well, it really depends on the rider and how they plan to use their machine. That is the million-dollar question. How will it get used and to a lesser extent, what is the skill of the rider.

Other bikes in the middleweight adventure motorcycle class

Now let’s not forget a few other bikes that do fit into the middleweight category, but are they really dirt bikes? Now I’ll have to tread lightly here. BMW has had the 800 GS and 800 GSA for many years. Now they’ve rolled out the 850 GS and GSA. Of course there were other generations of the smaller GS as well.

Triumph has had the Tiger 800 out and now the Tiger 900 as well. These adventure motorcycles lean much more on the road side to me. Can they go in the dirt? Of course they can, just like their bigger 1200cc counterparts.

You can put knobbies on the the big BMW 1200 GSA and they are quite capable off-road. Ask me how I know. Are they ideal off-road? Nope. Will they do it? Absolutely. The 800-900cc bikes from these manufactures are certainly middleweight adventure bikes, but the KTM 790/890 adventure, Yamaha Ténéré 700 and Husqvarna Norden 901 are just built with a different purpose in mind.

These new dakar-inspired bikes are designed to be more capable off-road vs on-road and I think the BMW and Triumph are a little more capable on-road. As I mentioned, I tried to tread lightly here, but that’s just my opinion and it totally depends on the rider. It’s all about the rider and not the bike, but you knew that right?

Where does the sport of adventure motorcycle riding go from here?

The middleweight adventure bikes are still arriving and I think they are here to stay. The Husqvarna Norden 901 is starting to arrive at dealers. The next generation KTM 890 Adventure is out and the Yamaha Ténéré 700 is out in force with production booming.

Ducati is looking to get into the game and has teased the Desert X concept and Multistrada 950. Then there is Honda. Will they decide to make a middleweight version of the Africa Twin? Will Kawasaki decide to make a true adventure bike? What about Suzuki and their Vstrom platform?

Harley Davidson rolled out the Pan American, which has made some waves. Will they decide to make a middleweight version of this motorcycle? I’m absolutely certain that there are many new middleweight adventure motorcycles on the drawing board at this very moment.  The industry has found a nerve with this new segment and manufacturers are going to maximize their sales potential to the fullest.

What are your thoughts on the middleweight category?

Do you like the smaller dual-sport motorcycles or perhaps the larger 1000-1200cc adventure motorcycles? Are you salivating and ready to buy one of these new middleweight machines? Perhaps you have been lucky enough to buy one already? Share your thoughts in the comments.