Best Dual-Sport Bike: KTM 690 Enduro

Taking dual-sport honors last year with its 525 EXC proved that KTM was serious about this market segment. Outfitted with all of the requisite equipment for street legality, the EXC gave consumers a competition-worthy motorcycle that didn’t mind a little asphalt thrown into the mix. For ’08, the Austrian company took a different approach with the brand-new 690 Enduro. The updated engine not only offers more power for the street equation but has a three-position ignition-map selector to tame those ponies for attacking the dirt. By offering a much-enhanced street ride while still meeting the demands of off-road riders, KTM has improved the breed, finding just the right balance and putting an emphasis on the “dual” in dual-sport.