Now Europe’s largest motorcycle manufacturer, KTM races in nearly every class imaginable — except Superbike. And despite little history in Supersport or Superbikes, the track-only RC 8C sold out its entire 2023 production run in two minutes and 38 seconds — at a price of 39,900 Euros ($67,000) each!
Some of the buyers had missed out a year earlier, when KTM offered only 100 RC8 machines; they hung around online for more than four minutes before being sold out. Clearly there’s passion for fast KTM track bikes, the company leveraging its Moto3, Moto2 and MotoGP success into bike sales.
It was in 2021 that KTM management decided to team up with its former employee-turned-racebike constructor Markus Krämer to develop a high-end limited-edition track day tool powered by its stellar 889cc parallel-twin LC8c motor. It was seen as a way of building on its factory road racing activities by delivering the fruits of the expertise acquired in that to a handful of fortunate — and well-heeled — customers.
RIDING VALENCIA
Climbing aboard the RC 8C in Valencia’s pit lane ready for my first of six 20-minute sessions on a gloriously sunny Spanish spring day had me practically asking for a stepladder, the seat was so high. I mean, I am used to riding pretty extreme GP racebikes, but this seemed quite a bit over the top. But to compensate for that in the pursuit of comfort and rationality, it was easy to tweak the multi-adjustable footrests and clip-on handlebars to feel at home on the bike. At 180cm in height it seemed to be tailor-made for me, a sentiment shared by every owner I spoke to, whether tall or short, thin or — well, less thin, about their blind dates. The day was for 30 of the new owners to try out their new bikes.
KTM and Krämer have rather improbably made this a truly accessible motorcycle. None of the dozen owners I spoke to complained of not feeling comfortable on their bike. With a 1400mm wheelbase, it’s definitely rational in size — that word again — while also, as I’d later discover, decidedly handy
