Published in MC avisa 07.05.2020 at 07:46

Christian Kleiv (29) lives in Vrådal and was just going to pay the Straand event a visit on a fantastic September day in 2019.
He was also just going to try out a bike during the event – it was expensive!

Text and photo: Ole-Andreas Isdahl.

Christian has been riding motorcycles since he was 16, and he rode a Yamaha R6 until he was 22 years old.
After a few years without a bike, he was tempted to take a closer look at the 82 bikes at the Straand event, and it turned out to be more than he bargained for.

Christian is a mechanic by trade and also drives a tow truck.
He has therefore seen the other side of the coin up close and values his own and others’ safety.
There’s no cheating when it comes to safety clothing here on the farm.

Cristian met Richard at CBP in Skien at the Straand meeting and fell head over heels in love with a KTM 790 Duke.
We can understand why, because the Duke is an incredibly fun and good motorcycle that is perfect for the winding roads of Telemark.
The love affair was so intense that Christian made an appointment with CBP to follow up the following week.
There are many indications that he had already made up his mind before going to Skien, because the boy brought a trailer with him.
Since Richard had his bike ready, it was literally difficult to turn around – without taking a brand new 790 Duke with him.

Expensive, yes – a mistake, no:

With a touch of impulse control intact, Christian returned to Vrådal and has enjoyed his Duken ever since.
MC Aviva’s test pilots met him in Vrådal and were shown around local and winding roads on the way to Rjukan.
Christian says that he enjoys his Duken so much that he’s happy to encourage everyone else to live out their dream at the upcoming Straand event in September.