Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/294885
April 2014 15 RR is extremely stable at speed, yet is about the most neutral turning bike I've ridden. It is probably closest in handling and turning to the new Honda CR-F. The Beta doesn't have that intense desire to turn like a GasGas or Suzuki, yet it doesn't understeer like a Kawi. It's kinda right in the middle which I think is a great thing. Overall handling is light and maneuver- able due to its thin design. The Beta certainly isn't on the same diet as the new Sherco 300i, but it's claimed dry weight of 236lbs is less than that of the KTM 450 XC-F's claimed dry weight of 241. When you li the Beta, it feels heavier that 236lbs, but when you ride it feels much less. Whether you like to sit or stand, cornering and transions are very easy and re- quire minimal input from the rider. A slight shi of body weight will do the majority of the work for you. The Beta's molybdenum steel/double cradle frame is semi- perimeter type frame which allows some of the fuel to sit within the frame to keep that fuel weight centered and low. Despite our best efforts of flogging the Beta in some very ght terrain and straining it in the deep sand, we couldn't get it to boil over. The lack of boil over is helped out with the stock 1.8 radiator cap, and what appears to be Engine Ice as the stock coolant. The Brembo hydraulic clutch worked per- fectly and never faded. On the braking side, the Beta comes with my favorite combo of Nissin Brakes with Galfer Rotors. Yeah, yeah, I know, nothing stops like Brembos, and I won't disagree. The Nissin brakes do have less stopping power; however they don't suffer from brake fade like the Brembos are infamous for. I can drag my lazy foot on the rear brake pedal all day and never lose my brakes. In this case I'll take consistency over pure performance any day. The other nice thing about the Nissin brakes is that the brakes pads are liter- ally available everywhere. Just off the top of my head I know that current model GasGas, Suzuki, Kawasaki, and Yamaha all use the same brake pads. The stock 13/48 gearing on the Beta was adequate for gen- eral riding but I always found myself always trying to find the "right" gear. First gear was a bit low, and second a bit tall. We remedied this by going to a 50 tooth on the rear. This ght- ened up the rao a bit and allowed us to get into second a bit sooner and really spend the majority of the me riding 2nd and 3rd gear. The Beta's 450 long stroke motor just has so much grunt that it will really compensate if you're not in the right gear all the me. With separate gear and engine oil compartments, fluid changes are less frequent, and in the long run a bit cheaper to maintain. We've done 3 fluid changes thus far and haven't noced any excessive metal or debris in the two different filters. All in all the Beta is a well thought out machine that should prove quite capable for most people in any situaon. And re- member, the minor changes we made can be remedied with the Build Your Own Beta program, which apparently most people take advantage of. We'll be keeping notes and will do a long haul follow up later in the year, so stay tuned. We'd like to give a huge thanks to our support- ers. Without these guys this arcle wouldn't have happened! MotoAdventure ww.motoadventure.com American Beta www.americanbeta.com Enduro Spec Suspension www.endurospec.com Fly Racing www.flyrac- ing.com Dennis Lane Photogra- phy www.dennis- lanecom Kenda Tires www.kendare.com 2014 BETA 450 rr A tool-less air box and a storage compartment for tools are a couple of neat features on the Beta. The Beta 450 is outstanding in a variety of terrain. Their Build Your Own Beta program makes it easy to buy a bike that comes tailored to your needs.