OK KTMster, I’ll try to explain…
The Pampera is THE bike for tight and/or technical trails. It’s incredibly well balanced; footpegs are in the right place, handlebars are at the right height, it’s narrow, and the weight is nicely distributed for handling either quick corrections at speed or negotiating slow-speed technical maneuvers. The power is evenly distributed throughout the RPMs with no kick like a typical 2-stroke. No hesitation in power when ya twist the throttle. I rode my husband’s DRZ400 and I think my Pampera has nearly as much power. As for hill climbs, it has gobs of low end torque for really steep loose nasty hill climbs with rocks ledges and all. You can lug it! The Pampera rules at Moab for deep sand to rock ledge transitions. Keeping up on switch-back single-track through trees and over roots is not a problem anymore. And the very cool thing is that the Pampera’s light weight doesn’t wear me out like a heavier bike does. This is prime Pampera stuff.
Now here’s something to think about. High speed whoops and big air jumps are NOT prime Pampera stuff. Yeah, I take my bike to the mx track and have a blast in the corners and on small jumps. Yeah, I’ve been trying doubles lately (not actually doing them, just trying) since I finally have the power. However, I don’t have the suspension (or the kahoonas) for the really big stuff. I tried a large step-down this past weekend at the mx track and bottomed out the suspension for the first time. THAT hurt. So if your thing is to blast full-throttle through mammoth-sized whoops or to sport a “heart attack” fifty feet in the air, then maybe think about a different bike.
Ya know, it’s that tall suspension that keeps me from riding most bikes so I’m not particularly interested in that anyhow. Did I mention that I’m short? At 4’10” 103lbs, I CAN lift my under-200lb Pampera when I wreck, biff, or otherwise tumble. And it’s easy to kick-start. THAT give mini-me confidence.
So that I wasn’t totally biased due to my size, I asked my friend Sara (5’7” 130lbs) to give her honest opinion this weekend. I though she might think it too small for her, but I was WRONG! She almost didn’t give it back! Her comments: It’s great fun, it’s powerful, it’s maneuverable, and it’s confidence-building to be able to stand flat-foot! She looked at her bike, shook her finger at it, and said, “your days are number!” (She was just kidding about that part; her bike is great too!)
So the verdict on the Pampera: It’s a trail bike with a very high fun factor!
Hope this helps you in your decision, KTMster! Some of the desert stuff you mentioned may lead you to a different bike if you ever got bit by the aggresive bug. If not, the Pampera might be perfect for you too.