Ady Smith KTM Off-road School
Multiple champion Ady Smith unravels the many mysteries of dirt riding at his roving off-road school
ADY SMITH KTM OFF-ROAD SCHOOLS
Where: Locations nationwide How long: one or two days Who’s it for: everyone from complete off-road novices (try-out days) to those with more experience (enduro schools) More info: www.adysmith.co.uk
I’V E NEVER met anyone who regretted having a go at off-roading. Yet it’s a form of riding many British bikers miss out on trying. To some it just doesn’t feel accessible: new skills are needed; it requires dedicated machinery; you need somewhere to ride.
The best and easiest way to have a go at off-roading is to visit a school or an experience day. Which is how I come to be at Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog, just over the Welsh border, about 12 miles west of Oswestry in Shropshire.
I’m here to attend the school run by Ady Smith, a multiple enduro champion and supermoto and supercross racer. He runs a range of try-out days and one-day and two-day enduro schools at different locations around England, Scotland and Wales throughout the year. Whether you have absolutely no off-road experience or are competing and want to hone your skills, there will be a course for you.
Thanks to the tie-up with KTM, the school has at least one of each model of the orange bikes for pupils to try. So for experienced off-roaders looking to change bike – maybe considering switching classes, or trying a two-stroke after years on four-strokes – a day here gives a chance to get familiar with a new machine. That’s one hell of a demo ride.
Smith’s training style is straight to the point. The instructors quickly assesses your riding ability on an open area. After some tips on how to sit – or stand – on your bike, as well as how best to come to a controlled stop on bikes that
are much taller than most of us are used to, we head off to practise some basics.
We cover full-lock turns, which prove rather challenging; how to take corners; and where to position your body. Then we attempt what looks like a simple slalom. After three goes I get it – and feel really good about it.
Next we head to the hills and work on heroically traversing some steep hillsides. Weighting the footpegs helps, but the more riding I do the more I find myself relaxing on the bike, which helps even more.
Slowly more technique is built into the ride. The Welsh landscape offers so many different types of terrain and we find ourselves heading down a wet, stone-lined crevice, trying to find any grip at all. I’m OK until it comes to gassing my KTM 500 EXC-F up and out. I bottle it, lose grip and fall over. This happens a lot, but the bikes are built for it, even if I’m not.
Braking downhill is interesting. I always thought you kept your weight back, but Ady shows us to keep forward to give the front wheel more grip. Similarly, we work at accelerating uphill, with weight at the back to help the rear tyre to get traction.
Then there are ruts. I hate ruts. Around my home in Norfolk there are plenty of trails where tractors create ruts. Once I’m in one, I find it impossible to get out. So I’m keen to learn how to tackle them – except Ady’s idea of a rut is more like a wartime trench. Each one is six foot deep with water flowing along it. Keeping the speed up, looking ahead and moving my body around helps me to tackle them with a lot more confidence than I usually muster.
Throughout the day, the rides get better, each time bringing a new element: bogs, tough grasses, water crossings, a large pile of manure… which I ride straight through. And then fall off. Again.
By the end of the day I’m absolutely knackered. But more crucially I’m exhilarated, and feel more confident and in control. A multiple champion Ady Smith may be, but he is also a great instructor and adapts to his pupils’ different skill levels.
PRICES AND INFORMATION
See www.adysmith.co.uk for dates and locations. A one-day off-road try-out school or one-day enduro course costs £205-£215, including a choice of bikes, plus fuel and all the clothing. Two-day schools cost £295 and one-to-one sessions are also available.