Martin Alva
As winter approaches in the Middle East, so does the riding season.
More than two dozen riders from all over UAE met again on the 4th of December for the annual Off-Road Riders Dubai community event at Hatta, Dubai. The riders were in for a treat as this year’s event, which was the second such event, saw participation from two of the three GS Trophy Team Middle East participants and also support from local adventure motorcycle shops. Martin Victor Alva and Jorge Ozorio Restrepo who represented Team Middle East at the 2020 GS Trophy in New Zealand, each led groups of riders via some on and off motorcycle training.
Martin Alva from Trails & Dust instructing participants on off road riding techniques
In attendance to support the riders were some of the leading motorcycle gear and accessories shops along with KTM and AGMC BMW Motorrad. Motohub, Touratech Middle East, and Oldtimer Middle East had lined up a superb array of spot-prizes for the participants.
This community off-road event is aimed at those who are just discovering the joys of off-road riding on an adventure bike or coming back to regain their skills after a break from riding during the intense Middle Eastern summer. Even though there is an underlying element of ‘refreshing’ the skills, this wasn’t a training event.
The day was split in two distinct sessions. The first half or the pre-lunch session was about basic techniques and trail riding followed by closed course exercises and technical riding.
The event was wrapped up by a GS trophy styled course where riders had to finish a set obstacle course while being timed. The fastest to complete the course with the least amount of penalty points was the winner.
Some of the things that were covered included;
- Learning to lift, balance and manoeuvre a motorcycle in awkward situations
- Manoeuvring the motorcycle at slow speeds and clutch control exercises
- Improved braking ability
- Ascending and descending hills safely and confidently
- Trail riding on gravel fire roads and dirt tracks
- Momentum exercises
The off-road riding community is growing ever so strong in the UAE. Motorcycle brands are now focussing more on the off-road lifestyle riding segment and that is evident with the new line-up of motorcycles at BMW, KTM, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, etc.