AA Class Race POV | 2023 Sandwinder Enduro | Test 2 | 23 KTM 300 XCW TPI

Ride along with me through test two of the 2023 TSCEC Sandwinder Enduro. Over 500 participants came out to enjoy a day of perfect dirt and weather near Smithville, Texas on the McMahan ranch.
I raced the AA class and my test order was 3, 1, 2 so I did two separate runs through test two at the end of the day. This was my final time through it and the last test of the day for me. I managed to come away with the overall event win and I was stoked!
Bike: 2023 KTM 300 XC-W TPI
Exhaust: Akrapovic slip on
Tires: Michelin StarCross 6 Medium Soft with Michelin Bib Mousse
Bar Clamp: XC Gear Mako 360sx
Suspension: WP XPLOR PRO Cone Valve Fork (4.6 springs) and Trax Shock (6.9 spring)
Suspension Tuned by: Solid Performance (fork line 1, sag 110mm)
Gearing: 13/51
Protection Parts: Enduro Engineering
CDI: OEM with Silber MX tune
Clutch: Rekluse TorqDrive
Headlight: MotoMinded
Footpegs: IMS Core Enduro Sharp
Lubricants: Motorex
Seat: Seat Concepts
Graphics: Bike Graphix

[@SeatTime]

Them: What does "on the pipe" mean? You: [drops video link]

[@TripleT219]

True there! Congrats on the W, Cole!

[@lorenedwards2678]

2 strokes have expansion chamber exhaust. On the pipe is when the rpm range is where the engine builds the most power. You can hear when he is on the pipe. Engine pitch changes and you hear the rpm really pick up. Mostly when he is in the short straight sections. You can really hear the difference when he hits the large open areas.

[@SWFlowseeker]

Awesome man 👍🏼

[@kylemccoy8535]

So amazing to watch. Thanks for posting buddy!

[@astagner41]

CK your videos are always awesome. Make plans to come back to the 100 Miler in Mansfield MO Thanksgiving weekend. Hopefully I can get in on a Gnarly Route soon!

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

I’d love to come back to that race! It’s tricky with my fam and kiddos since it’s right around the holidays.

[@Tlisotta2010]

Great ride Cole!!! So fast and smooth!

[@whitehollywood6447]

Killing it 💨💨💨💨💨 2 smoker yeah buddyyyyyy

[@lowclassmediavideos]

Sick ride brother.

[@williamcrotts7054]

Great video and bike description. Congrats on the overall.

[@nathanmclaughlin7956]

Came by be at 18:00, made my body sore again just from watching you again. Fun event and thanks for the videos

[@PBYZB]

You bike control is insane, always great to watch!

[@kiwi-moto]

Wow.. nice riding! Almost looked like it was sped up! Congrats on the win

[@JSCHNIEDERS1]

So much funner to watch(and hear) you shred the 2-stroke, as opposed to the 350. Great ride and finish. Congrats!

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

Totally agree! I have more fun riding the two stroke as well.

[@otpipe]

@@ColeKirkpatrick do your lap times at a practice track show you faster on a 2T vs a 4T? I have a Beta 300 and a YZ250FX. I can't decide on which I like better. They're both fun to ride. Although the bark on the 4T makes getting past people eaiser 😆.

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

@@otpipe I haven’t timed these two, just went on feel and what I’m most consistent on over the course of a sixty + mile event.

[@giborex1]

Congrats on the overall! This was an awesome event.

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

Thanks! How’d you do?

[@giborex1]

@@ColeKirkpatrick I finished 7th in 50+C. Good luck at your next race.

[@lorenedwards2678]

Man you make that look so easy. Sandwinder was my second enduro in c50+. I was completely thrashed energy wise after that event. I don’t understand how you can pick your line going thru the trees so quickly. I try looking as far ahead as possible but wow really difficult with all the trees. My average speed was 16.12. I think I need to pay attention to knee position. I think I ride with my knees spread to much. I need to squeeze the bike more with my legs. It’s fun to watch your videos.

[@PGPowersports]

My average speed was 14.5 mph for this event. Cole is flying and by far one of the coolest riders to watch on camera and in person. He’s definitely going places at this rate!!

[@michaelwalas5948]

The key is standing 99% of the time. You use less energy and the bike flows underneath you. Hold the bike with your knees. We wouldn’t see enduro races like this in Australia.. ours are way tighter, which means that for every mile that you do … we would easily do 200 more tighter turns, so it’s amazing practice and you learn to rail corners. We would consider this a transport section where it feels like it’s almost a straight line. Get on the pegs and hardly use the seat and you’ll improve out of sight… also helps you look in advance into corners. Lean forward on acceleration and back on the brakes… Watch how his front fender disappears every time he accelerates .. he’s using very little energy😎

[@lorenedwards2678]

Thanks Micheal

[@michaelwalas5948]

Hey Cole, have you ridden the 2024 XC-W’s and compared them to the 24 XC’s? I’ve been on a Yamaha yz250fx for the last 2 years because I couldn’t stand the soft KTM suspension, and was sick of spending thousands stiffening the KTMS so that I could ride them at the speeds you are doing. I have ridden a 24 Husqy tx300 and loved it. I felt it was perfect.. just that little bit softer valving than the Yamaha and I should be able to ride the hard enduro creek beds and rock gardens… I just can’t do that on the Yami. It’s hard unless you ride side by side on the new 24 ktm’s but I’d be keen to know your thoughts 🙏🏻 Great video!! 👌🏼👌🏼

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

Hi Michael, I haven't ridden the 24 xc vs xcw back to back but believe it or not the XC-W bikes are setup much firmer out of the box than in years past. If you liked the TX 300 then you will certainly be stoked on the XC-W platform for 2024.

[@blarpieman]

Nasty bro! I'm curious what your weight is without gear on that bike?

[@brianmullins739]

Awesome video. Do you cut your bars down?

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

I don’t, these are full width 999 twinwall bars.

[@otpipe]

Why do they do a sprint format vs a restart format? I like the restart because you know when you have to be at the line and not too much waiting.

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

For this one it has to do with the property and turnout. I actually prefer the format that was run at sandwinder. Each section was eight miles long and they gave all riders plenty of time to complete the number of test required. For A class we did the following order: test three (three times), test one (three times) and test two (two times). 66 miles total. Riders started about fifteen seconds apart and A riders were on one test while B and C riders were each on their own test. You didn’t have to wait a ton in between tests if you didn’t want to and the trail wasn’t congested with riders.

[@dannyburnap1950]

Congrats on the overall. But more importantly tell your wife we found the key.

[@rafy600]

Cole what tire combo you used for that race. Race C 50+ did good but was having a lot of trouble in the sand. I had Michelin enduro medium on the back

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

I was running the Michelin StarCross 6 Med/Soft. The enduro medium is a great tire but doesn’t have near as much knob as the StarCross 6 med/soft for the softer terrain.

[@rafy600]

Thanks 👍

[@jessemiller1788]

Do you happen to remember the tires you used for the terrain?

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

Hi Jesse, I was running the Michelin StarCross 6 Med/Soft front and Med/Soft rear paired with the Michelin Bib Mousse front and rear to eliminate any chance of a flat tire. I like the 80/100-21 front and the 110/100-18 rear.

[@stevematuro8384]

How do you like the 300 tpi compared to the 300 tbi now that you’ve ridden both ?

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

The TBI would be my first choice but the TPI still is a great machine. The TBI makes stronger power throughout the entire rpm range. The TPI signs off as it gets high in the rpm range.

[@mikebarger3563]

What made you choose the 300 over the 350 for this event?

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

I rode the 300 the weekend prior at a gnarly routes ride and it’s a lot easier for me to throw around.

[@mikebarger3563]

Remapped Ecu and head on the bike?

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

@@mikebarger3563 just an ecu, stock head.

[@williamcrotts7054]

@@ColeKirkpatrick Ok, so what kind of ECU? I have the same bike but you ride a few RPM's higher than I do, lol.

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

@@williamcrotts7054 silber ecu tune. Bike details are listed in the description if you’re looking for other info.

[@Dakota499]

did you go to the national

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

I did not, I had a prior commitment to a Gnarly Routes event in Moab.

[@Dakota499]

@@ColeKirkpatrick ok

[@publicadventures]

What series or club was this

[@ColeKirkpatrick]

It was a TSCEC series race (Texas State Championship Enduro Circuit) put on by the AMSA on the Mcmahan Ranch in Smithville, Tx.

[@publicadventures]

@@ColeKirkpatrick I have yet to run one of the races with that series I usually run OCCRA “Oklahoma cross country racing association” but we don’t have any tracks that are that have that much flow really looks like a blast