KTM RC8C First Impressions & First US Trackday 

Thanks so much! It’s been an absolute blast racing it this season.

Thanks so much, really appreciate it! Where are you located? What tracks do you frequent? My goal is to take the bike around to various tracks around the US this year. :)

@@vtranmoto I ride at JenningsGP in north Florida, it’s a fun track just really hard on tires. That be badass to see you rip it around the track in person

@@Squid675 I’ll be in Melbourne to pick up a very special KTM racebike in about two months :) would be really cool to check out some of the Florida tracks!

Thanks so much Dara!! Definitely highlight of the year for me!

Thank you Derek! I’m gonna work hard to improve my skill and get the most out of the RC :D

Heck yes! I think they hit it out of the park with this one!

Thank you thank you :) in a way this is just the beginning! It’s like starting a new friendship haha. Hehe come check it out :D

is it true no lights no mirrors???

Thank you! I got my suit back in October, feels nice to finally be able to wear it together :D

New sub here! Looking forward for more RC8C clips! 😁

Thanks so much Juan! I feel like I fall in love a little more with it each time I take a trip into the garage hahaha. Will do my best to make some fun RC8C videos :D

Thank you thank you, it’s insanely light weight and agile. I’m looking forward to spending more time in the saddle and getting better at riding it 👍

Thank you man! Really appreciate the footage. It’s interesting to see it from different angles. Looking forward to getting back out there with you guys again :)

thanks Dukie! :D

@@vtranmoto Forgot to mention that to me the sound of that amazing machine is well.. amazing!! But you already know that😊

Me too :D

I totally agree, it’s a bit ugly to have on a bike like this in my opinion, but when asked, Kramer insisted they did a lot of research and they work well. :D

Don't worry , you will never get one so you won't have to deal with gnarly sliders , hahahahahahahahaha !!!

thanks so much! hahaha, I totally agree. My motorcycling life started out on the West Coast so I was pretty spoiled before moving here to TX. Most recently I had the chance to ride the RC8C at Jerez...it's a been a bit of a reality check now that I'm back at MSRH. Despite that, I was honestly surprised at how well the RC's suspension handled the bumps (so far). Which region or country do you ride in?

@@vtranmoto I live in Colorado were the tracks are hard to maintain with large temp. fluctuation. Very cold weather has a huge adverse effect on most asphalt surfaces.

@@kbearpro oh man, I hear ya. My friend used to track out there. Here our issue is shifting soil. We’re in flood plains and the soft soil + flooding really messes with the integrity of the track.

Now that is a lovely bike, I hope you are able to take it out on track regularly. Thank you and thanks for watching :)

Thanks Blake, really appreciate it!

Thanks Victor, much appreciated as always :)

Thank you 🙏

It’s SO loud in person, it’s absurd, and I love it! :D

Thank you!! Really appreciate it :) hoping to get in more laps with him later in the fall. Will you be back out on track soon? I’ll be at RideSmart Cresson June 17-18.

Thanks John! Appreciate it :)

Thanks so much! The RC8 is definitely a modern classic and you’re absolutely right, these track/race orientated machines are much more enjoyable in their natural environment - the racetrack!

Thank you Alex!!!

Great day with friends :) I have something else in the works for lightweight bike ;) stay tuned!

Thanks so much for watching and commenting. Really appreciate it! 👊

thanks man! learning little editing techniques here and there. :)

I agree, ended up switching to the Z04 and they’re fantastic. Only gripe I have about them is it generates a ton of brake dust!

@vtranmoto interesting, haven't noticed that, I'm on brembo full floating rotors. Could be a difference in rotor material, but yea, once you go z04, you won't go back, have been my go to for the last decade.

Thank you Daniel!! :)

Thank you thank you 🙏

You’re absolutely right on all points, thanks for watching Gio! :)

me too :)

Thank you Daryl🙏 gonna try my best :)

@@vtranmoto You got this. Enjoy it Viet!

Thank you 🙏 I think for us mere mortals the combination of power and agility the RC8C provides is *plenty*. You don’t need 200HP+ to have a great time and hone your riding skills!

Thank you!!! Man that 1290 must be a *blast* on track! I haven't heard if Aprilia is doing the racer day after MotoGP this year so I went ahead and signed up for the Ridesmart May COTA weekend. I'm excited to get the RC8C out on track at COTA. lmk if you end up coming out for RS trackday!

Viet Tran yea the 1290 is definitely a “Beast” on track! So much insane torque pulling out of the corners, it’s a fun bike to run against sport bikes before it loses out on the top end lol. And sounds good about May @ COTA. I’ll definitely let you know! 😎🙏

@@shimjohn haha I can imagine, I've tracked a Speed Triple RS and Tuono Factory a bit, but the 1290 is definitely the torque monster of that category. Awesome, hope to see you and your 1290 in May! :D

It’s got a really nasty bark to it, especially on track when it’s wide open throttle. Then there’s a ton of pops and crackle during deceleration and autoblip, definitely adds to the experience! 😁

Thanks so much, the announcement definitely surprised everyone and I knew I couldn’t pass it up!

Thanks Curtis! The quickshifter and autoblipper have worked well. I think the most seamless autoblipper I’ve had was on my Aprilia Tuono Factory. During the race I had several moments where I was unable to get into 4th -> 3rd gear and ended up rolling through a corner one gear too high which hampered my ability to exit. Now that could totally just be the adrenaline/sloppiness, but it did occur more than once which was frustrating. Regardless, the autoblipper is still far better than the one on my R6 which results in false neutrals/failed downshifts so much so that I just clutch any critical/heavy braking zones because I no longer trust it. At a high level, every race bike at this point has a quickshift and likely autoblipper. So to me electronic suites really are the rider aids: traction control, slide control, launch control, and wheelie control - of those, the RC8C has none. Which I think is the right call given the class it’s in and relative “low” power. :)

@@vtranmoto I was surprised to hear the RC8C lacked those electronics, considering how well-specified (and functional) the electronics on other KTMs are. With good throttle connection, though, as you say, on a bike with that torque and HP level, perhaps the lack isn't a big deal. The bike is clearly special on a number of other levels.

I actually *just ordered* the TRS for my trailer. I just got the truck and trailer not long ago. Thanks!

@@vtranmoto Congrats man send it!

@@eyesuk2 yessir!

The front definitely gets quite light with how much torque the bike puts down. It’s pretty satisfying to see how quickly it gets out the corners vs my friends 600! 😁

I have a membership to MSRH so I can go pretty freely and turn some laps when there’s few people around. I’m always happy to host if you’d like to come! I’ll be there 2/4, 2/11, and 2/20.

@@vtranmoto Did you go on 2/4? It was freezing! I'd love to join you one day.

@@ulisesbernardotti1339 I did not hahaha, as ambitious as I am that would’ve been *miserable* Awesome! Just lmk :) weekdays are usually very empty so we pretty much have the track to ourselves. I’ll be there a lot as the season kicks up and at Speedsportz for mini training.

Once you get that corner speed dialed in for the GP2 I bet you’ll go even faster than the 1000 and have more fun while doing it!

Yeah we'll see corner speed is very risky. And I prefer to keep it down as possible, I don't follow the YCS BS it's too risky

Cảm ơn bạn rất nhiều!!!

@@vtranmoto ae ở Việt Nam! Nhìn chỉ biết ước à

Thanks for watching! I ended up taking out 3 clicks of preload and that seems to have helped! I think the other part of it for me is also just relaxing on the steering inputs as well. I’ve had a lot more fun with the bike recently :):

@@vtranmoto nice! I found the same helped for me haha. Thanks for the content. There's so few rc8cs out there and even less that are tracked

👊👊👊

Thanks! Decals are from 212 Decals, they specialize in race bike number plates m.facebook.com/212Decals/ Shoot them a message and tell them Viet sent you. You can request the metallic edges which look AMAZING.

Good luck! I think you’ll be pleased.

Thank you 🙏 so all of the bodywork and engines come directly from KTM, for chassis components I order through Kramer. It’s not bad! My girlfriend was in Korea and I was in the US when it went on sale and we were on three different computers/phones refreshing trying to get the order in. I was even luckier, I was one of the first 25 (1 minute 10 seconds) so I was able to go to Spain to meet Dani Pedrosa and the KTM/Kramer team. :):):)

@@vtranmoto its great to hear from you... Goosebumps man.. Upload more videos.. We are waiting... wishes and good luck for your racing days.. I booked for a rc390 and i am so excited to see my orange beauty.. 😜👍🏼😅

@@Rajeesh02 thank you very much! Congrats on your 390, they are very very fun and great bikes! Will do :)

@@vtranmoto 🧡

Congrats! Be sure to join to our RC8C owners Facebook group: m.facebook.com/groups/210258747695771/?ref=share Damper has worked well and Houston has one of the most awful track surfaces I’ve ever ridden on!

I'm looking into doing a track day at COTA in July. How is the wheather that time of year. I'm from Cali.

@@jrmontemayor3124 should be great! nice and sunny.

Hi Erik, yes will be there likely in March! I’ll keep you posted :)

Hahaha! Congratulations! Fair ask. I haven’t seen a kickstand modification but I’ve seen some use a triangle stand that’s similar to the dirtbike triangle stand, I believe some ktm dealerships provide them and some don’t (mine didn’t). That’s as convenient and easy as a stand as you’ll likely get for a turnkey race bike!

@@vtranmoto thank you, in the UK there is a sneaky way to have Non-homoglomated bikes road registered. I have a2022 FS SM 450 and a 2023 FC 350 both road registered.

@@iainhutchinson345 well that is going to be a riot on the street, just some warning, it is *exceedingly* loud. I absolutely love it! :D

Hi Viet Tran, is there a Workshop Manual for the RC8 C?

@@iainhutchinson345 I do, can you find me on Facebook and I’ll send it? Look for “Viet Tran” located in Houston, Texas.

Haha, the 390 is great on track! Really fun bike for sure.

Chào bạn! Việt nói được một chút tiếng Việt. Việt sinh ra ở Nha Trang, nhưng gia đình Việt qua Hoa Kỳ khi Việt chỉ 5 tuổi. Hiện tôi Việt sống ở Texas. Bạn sống ở đâu?

Great question Lala! I don’t know yet as this particular track doesn’t have a very long straight. I will be at COTA in May and that has a 1KM straight so we will definitely find out. I’ll share that when we go! Right now my focus is more on lap time than top speed :)

212 Decals here in Texas! m.facebook.com/212Decals/

Hi there, it’s not road legal. It’s a race/track only machine. Ordering was online and limited to 100 units worldwide. :)

@@vtranmoto never thought you would reply thanks for replying

@@BlueSky-bz9vn I try my best! Always happy to talk about bikes with fellow riders :) thanks for watching!

I would not say it’s sad because it performs extremely well because it’s track only. There are no compromises, no extra weight: no headlights, no mirrors, no tail plate, no street exhaust limitations, it’s pure performance 👍

Hahaha it certainly is

Supposedly they are working on a sportbike model with the new twin engine they’re developing; it’ll be less track focused but a streetable sport KTM will be well received!

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