character. It looks the part now, but it’ s not all show. I’ ve been running Zeta components on my race bikes for some time now, and the Zeta clutch perch and levers make the WR’ s controls feel that bit more comfortable in the hand. More importantly, there’ s real peace of mind in running flexi levers. Enduro racing throws everything at you, and a lever that folds and flexes rather than snapping off in a crash or a tree strike has saved my day more than once. When you’ re deep in a round and a long way from the pits, that reliability matters as much as the feel. I also threw a set of Renthal grips at it, though that was very much a personal preference more than necessity. Credit where it’ s due, the stock grips lasted a very long time. If you’ re
getting a WR, grips are one thing you can leave off the shopping list for a good while, which isn’ t something I say about most bikes as they come off the dealer floor.
GEARING TWEAK The one meaningful change I’ ve made to how the bike is set up is the gearing. I’ ve gone to a 52-tooth rear along with a 14-tooth front, running MTX sprockets paired with an RK EXW chain. That’ s a decent step away from the stock setup, which runs a smaller rear and a 13-tooth front, so I’ ve effectively shortened things up on the gearing front. What I’ ve found from this tweak is more rollon across the board. The bike pulls harder off the bottom and picks up drive sooner, which is something you’ d expect with lower gearing.
50 KIWI RIDER