Electric dirtbikes have been gaining a lot of traction – both figuratively and literally – in recent years. Loved by many thanks to their silent operation and instantaneous torque, it can be argued that these types of off-roaders hold the key to the future of powersports. That said, there have been tons of new and exciting electric dirtbikes in the market in recent years, with the Stark Varg being an exciting, albeit controversial model.
Now, I say controversial because a lot of people have criticized Stark Future’s claim of 938 Newton-meters (694 pound-feet) of torque. Indeed, this number is more than enough to raise eyebrows. For reference, a Porsche Taycan has about 850 Nm (630 pound-feet) of torque, so how on earth can an electric dirtbike have more torque than an electric performance car? On top of that, assuming this torque figure was true, how can it manage to put all that power to the ground?
Well, whatever the case may be, the Stark Varg electric dirtbike is here, and it’s real. In fact, Guy Martin, famed British racer who has made quite a name for himself because of his exploits in the Isle Of Man TT, as well as his charming personality, recently raced the Stark Varg in an interesting flat track course on the beach. A vlog-style video uploaded by YouTube channel Moto101 UK showed Guy Martin and Jayden Haigh slug it out against a bunch of 450cc motocrossers in the Mablethorpe Sand Racing Championship.
Right from the start, the Stark Varg showed its prowess, pulling way ahead of the pack. From a dig, we can see the Varg gapping the pack of 450s by a substantial margin – around six or seven bike lengths. However, as the race progressed, it appeared that Guy Martin and the Stark Varg struggled to maintain traction on the loose sandy surface, and were eventually overtaken by the 450 dirtbikes.
My theory here is that the 450 dirtbikes had the advantage due to the power pulses of the single cylinder engines. This allowed the bikes to maintain traction while cornering, as opposed to the Varg’s continuous power output which allows the tire to slip much more easily. Whatever the case may be, it was quite an impressive run for the electric dirtbike, with Guy Martin finishing in 8th place.
Stark's ambitions for the future
As far as the Stark Varg goes, the company has some pretty big plans for the future, particularly when it comes to racing. The most recent news is that five-time Erzberg Rodeo winner and five-time AMA EnduroCross Champion Taddy Blazusiak has joined the Stark Future racing team for the SuperEnduro and EnduroCross series. Blazusiak is also a six-time FIM SuperEnduro Champion, and has enjoyed notable success with the likes of KTM and GasGas. He joins the racing team not just to race the bike but to help in the development and refinement of the Stark Varg.
