HAVE YOU SEEN THE NEW MXA? A MOTOCROSS MAGAZINE BY GUYS WHO LOVE MOTOCROSS AS MUCH AS YOU DO

HAVE YOU SEEN THE NEW MXA? A MOTOCROSS MAGAZINE FOR GUYS WHO LOVE BIKES

The March 2024 issue of MXA is jam-packed full of stuff you need to know—especially about  motocross bikes, but also because we provide you with a wealth of information that you’ll never see anywhere else. We tell you, not just what’s new on the 2024 bikes, but how they work, why they made the changes they did and whether or not they are any good. MXA is all about motorcycles—if you don’t want to know everything about how motorcycles works, we aren’t for you.

Ever since the release of the 2021 Husqvarna FC250, test riders have raved about the lowered chassis. That doesn’t mean that anything on the ergos or rider triangle has been changed, only that the slightly shorter fork and shock travel allow short riders to touch the ground.

 

You gotta give KTM credit for the changes they made to the 2024-1/2 KTM Factory Edition, not only are they good changes, but if KTM was a Japanese brand they most likely wouldn’t have made any changes to the 2025 model. Why not, because Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawasaki run on four-year model cycles. KTM doesn’t wait, they act.

“Team Tested” looks back on products that we tested earlier in the year. Why do we rehash an old test? Because not every racer needed that product when we first tested it, but they may need it now. EKS Brand Lucid goggles have been catching on quickly, while  Dubya Edge Wheels and Bolt Hardware T-Nuts plates are always welcome additions to any bike.

You have never been been to a party that has as much wild racing action as the “Day in the Dirt,” but, on the other hand, you haven’t been to a race that has as much partying as “Day in the Dirt.” 

The MXA test riders were mystified about what Kawasaki’s engineers were aiming for with the all-new Kawasaki KX450. They did make massive improvements in the handing, braking and ergonomics, of the new bike, but still have some homework to do on the horsepower, gear ratios, airbox and cobby welds on the subframe.

If you spent $10,000 or more for you current 2024 450cc motocross bike, we understand that you may not like that the bike you spent your kid’s college fund on going down in flames in this shootout. But, on the other hand, if you bought one of the top three 450s in MXA’s 2024 Shootout, you can pat yourself on the back. But, you gotta read it to learn the whys and why-nots of all seven bikes.

 

You gotta love the BBR (Brown Brothers Racing). They were the wizards of the pit bike craze and moved on to build lots of creative bikes right to this day—some with their hand-made aluminum frames and some with their hopped-up engines. This “Retro Test”  is a flashback to one of our favorite BBR bikes—built around the lowly Yamaha TT-R125. Even the plastic was hand-molded by BBR to make this mild mannered play bike become a fire breathing 150cc works replica.

 

It’s no secret that the MXA test riders loved the Husqvarna FX450 Heritage Edition bikes. They looked cool wrapped in all white plastic. And, it looks like Husqvarna liked the Heritage Editions also, as they borrowed the color palette, at least the white part, for the 2024-1/2 Husqvarna FC450 Rockstar Edition. The Rockstar Edition gets all the high-tech frame and electronic upgrades that the KTM 450SXF Factory Edition got and, for those who like to whine, it doesn’t have shortened suspension.Do you remember Jimmy Ellis? Probably not. Jimmy won the 1975 AMA Supercross Championship on a Canadian bike powered by an Austrian,  rotary valve, two-stroke engine, and he won the L.A. Coliseum Superbowl of Motocross twice before switching to Team Honda for 1978 and 1979. Then, disappearing to Australia for the next 35 years.

 

The MXA test riders loved the simple, basic, low-tech GasGas race bikes from 2021 to 2023, they were plusher, less complicated and amazingly light. The Gas Gas two-strokes were not only light, but they were the fastest 125/250 two-strokes on the track. MXA pleaded with GasGas to keep the old bikes on the showroom floors, but they believed that their customers wanted modern engines with fuel-injection, electric start and an extra 10 pounds. The massively updated 2024-1/2 GasGas Factory Edition are still a test rider favorite, but only because the old bikes are sold out,

“Ask the MXperts, is where the MXA wrecking crew answerer all the question you may have (thanks to panel of high-profile industry know-it-alls. In the March 2024 issue, we focused on answering the most commonly asked shootout question‚ “Why doesn’t MXA included TM’s in the shootouts?” And the answer is simple. There are no TM’s imported into the USA. And we included TM’s own dealer map from their official website to prove the point that what can’t test what doesn’t exist.

 

We used to be shocked when Suzuki didn’t fix their forks, build a more competitive engine or add electric starting to their new models, but we have come to terms with the Suzuki’s mellow nature. Since Suzuki dealer’s are willing to wheel-and-deal on the out-the-door price, bikes like the RM-Z250 are great starter bikes—and our sport needs more affordable machines. In the end, we don’t recommend spending money to make the RM-Z250 faster, but instead recommend focusing on getting the suspension revalved.

This month’s Alex Martin “Troll Training” column is titled “in Defense of Carbs” Not of the  32mm Mikuni kind of carbs, but the quick energy benefits of carbohydrates. Meanwhile in “Dream Jobs”  MXA has MX-Tech’s Jeremy Wilkey, Kawasaki’s Tom McGovern and  Showa’s Kazutoshi Masuda tell us how they got started in motocross and what they do now.

The success of the Mugen ME125 was built on a partnership between Hiro Honda, son of Soichiro Honda, and American racer and entrepeneur Al Baker. Hiro had the product of the decade and Al Baker was the business manager of a young Indian Dunes rider named Johnny O’Mara. Baker put Mugen and Johnny O’Mara together and the rest is history. Everyone who loves motocross bikes, wishes he had a Mugen ME 125.

 

Josh Mosiman lays MXA’s 2024 Suzuki RM-Z450 down as low as it will go. Photo by Trevor Nelson.

The great Kevin Windham was a fan favorite. He made motocross look effortless. Unfortunately, for his Championship hopes, he rose to fame during the careers of Jeremy McGrath and Ricky Carmichael. Kevin still managed to win 18 Supercross events—with 3 Supercross runner-up finishes, 5 AMA 450 National Championship runner-ups, 2 125 National Championship runner-ups, the 1994 AMA Rookie of the Year honors, the winner of the 1999 United States Grand Prix at Budds Creek and was on the 2005 winning Motocross des Nations team.

Patrick Evans flies through empty Kansas sky at the Red Bull Imagination freestyle event.

Right now MXA is offering a 12 month subscription to the world’s best motocross magazine for only $24.99. This is low  price is made all the more sweeter because if you subscribe now, Rocky Mountain ATV/MX will email you a $25 credit to order anything you want from their massive inventory of motocross products (be sure to include your email address and check your emails to receive your $25). In short, subscribing to MXA for one full year, won’t cost you anything! To subscribe you can call (800) 767-0345 or  Click Here..

SUBSCRIBE TO MXA SO THAT YOU NEVER MISS ANOTHER ISSUE, PLUS GET A $25 ROCKY MOUNTAIN GIFT CARD

   

If you subscribe to MXA you can get the mag on your iPhone, iPad, Kindle or Android by going to the Apple Store, Amazon or Google Play or in a digital version. Even better you can subscribe to Motocross Action and get the awesome print edition delivered to your house by a uniformed employee of the U.S. Government. Did we mention the $25 gift card for any part or product you want from Rocky Mountain ATV/MX? They will email you a $25 credit to order anything you want (be sure to include your email address and check your emails to receive your $25). In short, subscribing to MXA for one full year, won’t cost you anything! You can call (800) 767-0345 or Click Here.