“I have so many wonderful and magical moments on two wheels it is hard to pinpoint a ‘most magical or special’ one. I’ve enjoyed getting both my kids into riding, watching them learn and fall in love with the sport. One of my more memorable experiences was racing the 2016 Baja Rally aboard my BMW HP2. From the comradery, racing down the beach, the scenery and the emotions that come from such an endeavor, it was just an incredible experience that I’m hoping to replicate by racing the Sonora Rally.” – Casey Hilliard
Casey Hilliard is a 35-year-old Oregon based Land Surveyor by day. Dad to two kids and a husband in the evenings. And a self-professed “want to be motorcycle racer on the weekends.” “I have spent most of my life in the Pacific North West but dream of moving south for better desert riding. I’m what you would call a weekend warrior rider, and big trips seem to take a back burner to my family and work. My favorite things to do while not on my motos are working on my mini farm, tinkering with small motors and spending time with my wife and kids.”
Casey has dreamt of riding motorcycles since he was a little kid. “I’d be sitting in our car, driving down the highway, and imagine myself riding a dirt bike down the median, jumping ditches and overpasses. I used it as a way to pass the time on long drives, and that’s where my love of two wheels began.” A lack of money and interest in motorcycles from his parents meant that he would have to be content daydreaming of life on two wheels until he could purchase his own motorcycle. Fast forward to the ripe age of 21, and he’d managed to acquire his first motorcycle, a 1975 Honda CB400 Super Sport. “At a time that Café Racers were gaining in popularity, I was in heaven on my little vintage ‘ sports bike.’ From there, a long list of motorcycles have cycled in and out of my garage, and in the last ten years I’ve never owned less than three motorcycles at a time.” After riding sports bikes for around five years, getting his fair share of tickets and seeing friends get into bad accidents, it was time for a change. “I quickly learned that riding fast is best saved for the race track. Not having any race tracks nearby, I slowly switched over to large adventure bikes so I could continue riding aggressive but without the risk of tickets and a little less speed then is found on sports bikes. After a short time of owning both ADV and sports bikes, I realized that I enjoyed the ability to get off the beaten track and the huge increase in available roads that adventure riding offered.”
One of the bikes that Casey rides regularly is a KTM 950SE that belongs to his dad. “I’m lucky enough to have a father who shares my passion for motorcycles and has too many to ride himself. So I keep the 950 well ridden and maintained. I’m toying with the idea to buy it from him shortly.” Also sitting along the 950SE in his garage is an HP2 Enduro, a BMW G450X and a Husqvarna FE501. “My seven-year-old son has three dirt bikes, my three-year-old daughter has an electric dirt bike, and my wife has a bike as well, my entire family shares my passion and enjoying it together means the world to me.”
“My philosophy for any motorcycle I own is that it has to ‘sing to my soul,’ that it has to bring a smile to my face every time I toss a leg over it and twist my wrist. I truly enjoy owning ‘unicorn bikes”, the rare and not mass produced ones that you don’t see every day.” And the KTM 950SE fits this bill perfectly. This 98 hp four stroke was produced between 2006 and 2008 and featured a 942cc V-twin engine, heavy duty adjustable off-road suspension, and distinct enduro styling right off the factory floor. At its launch, it was heralded as a “radical departure from any existing dual-sport, enduro or street models, while having the characteristics of all three.” This specific model now boasts a 7.9 gal / 30 L Safari fuel tank, a Head 2 Wind jet kit and an R&D Flex Jet mixture screws working on the fuel side of things. Konflict motorsports tuned the suspension with a KM2 re-valve, and new springs for the Kashima coated fork uppers and lowers. While a KM2 re-valve and spring were applied to the rear shock. Also added is a Cyclops Adventure Sports 8″ race light with custom Mini Fairing up front. “I’m a huge fan of Cyclopes Lighting and their customer service. I have their lights on two of my bikes and have never been sorry about the investments.” A Black Dog skid plate protects the essentials while a Scotts/BRP triple clamp and damper keeps things steady on the trail. Casey is also a staunch proponent of MotoZ tires for all his motorcycles. “Best tires I have used in a long time, and they provide a lot of bang for your buck. Great traction paired with decent longevity have sold me on them.”
Ironically for a map maker Casey mostly use GPS as a means for navigation. “I have paper maps slung on many walls in my house and shop but find carrying them on the road a bit cumbersome and archaic. There are instances where a paper map is my only option, but those are few and far between. I also navigate by roll charts from time to time, if they were easier to create, it would be my main mode of navigating. Being lost is sometimes part of the adventure but being able to find your way home is always important. I usually have my Garmin Montana and a dedicated iPhone for navigating and storing tracks. On my phone, I run a few different apps, MotionX-GPS, Avenza Maps, Trailforks, and RallyBlitz. Between those four apps, I’m never lost for long and can easily share tracks and routes with friends.” While knowing where he’s headed is important Casey is no stranger to exploring. “Always riding within your ability is the biggest thing I try to do while exploring new areas. Aspects of traffic in the area, wildlife, and new terrain are some of the big unknowns you can encounter in an unfamiliar place. In these instances, I always try and ride at 80% of my ability which allows me to handle anything that comes my way.” Riding in remote and difficult terrain affords a lot of opportunities for difficult moments. But as Casey remarks: “All those moments lead to vivid memories, and that’s what it’s all about. The easy days are soon forgotten, but it’s the days that where difficult that you remember.”
One of the aspects that adventure motorcyclists find daunting at first can be the unknown. Be it a road that leads to an unexplored destination, crossing new borders or finding places to sleep after a hard days ride. “Whether it’s on the side of a dirt road or in a room someone has graciously loaned me, finding a cool place to pitch a tent for the night is way easier in the moment than trying to preplan. Some of my favorite camp spots have been found at dusk and by chance as they are usually not on any available maps. Don’t be afraid to wing it; awesome things can happen when you do.”
“I’ve ridden as far north as the Yukon territory and as far south as the Baja Peninsula and through most states west of the Mississippi River. I can’t even begin to count the miles that I have traveled on two wheels, I’d say 50,000 miles would be a fair estimate, but that’s just a guess. I’ve owned so many bikes and have been on countless adventures with them and never paid much attention to miles traveled but more of the memories and smiles that I have encountered along the way.”
See more of Casey and follow him on his Instagram page.
All images by Spencer Hill aka The Gear Dude. Follow him on Instagram.
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