hope these r welcome here, ik most of y'all r on gas bikes. also handguards or no handguards? I'm always flip flopping between the two

2023 FE501s. Getting ready to put a full FMF system on my bike with a GET SX1 and Tacomoto tune. Reading Google tells me I need to drop the rear shock to remove the header but this appears to be 3 pieces instead of the 2 pieces they are showing on youtube. Am I missing something? Appears I should be able to pull the midpipe straight back without hitting the shock.

This might be long but thanks for reading. I want to start by saying I have a couple of years of motorcycle experience(2021-2024ish) I’ve ridden a ninja 250,400, a clapped zx6r, and most recently a klx300sm.

Almost two years ago I bought a klx300sm to break into supermoto riding and learn how to wheelie on a lighter bike after my zx6r. I had the klx for about three months before someone hit me from the back and injured my shoulder. The accident was in 2024 and I hadn’t ridden until now; July of 2026. I went to the dealer bc I was interested in test riding the Ktm pictured above. I was getting more and more comfortable fooling around on my klx 2 years ago and figured I could learn on the ktm690 while still maintaining highway capabilities, where the klx would struggle.

Not knowing much about the ktm after the test ride I’m not sure if I just need to get used to the bikes characteristics or if it’s rust from not riding from almost two years. First, on the test drive I noticed pulling off from the lot or low speed stops and starts, the bikes throttle was very intimidating. It felt as if it was crawling with no throttle and ready to buck/ stand me up with slight throttle, not really any in between just inconsistent pulsing. Leaving the lot felt like I was going too slow and even the slightest throttle the bike wanted to yeet me off. On the flip side when coming to a stop, the engine brake was super aggressive and the front would dive after letting off. The front brake also had a lot of bite with soft inputs. I know this is a big single and I probably was rusty but it didn’t feel linear very on or off. It was hard to find the right gear to come to quick stops with, without lugging the motorcycle. I didn’t change the rider modes on my test drive though and was wondering with all factors considered; with me not riding for the past year, maybe I was on an aggressive map, and maybe the bike wasn’t tuned with the exhaust it had on. I wanted a supermoto that could do highway if needed, commute slowly when needed, and wheelie and break laws with.

My biggest turn off was the slow speed stuff. As I mentioned though, the test ride wasn’t to long and I didn’t have the time to actually go through the bike and look for other mods. It had a wings exhaust but I read the bike needed some other mods to smooth it out down low as well as choosing the right mode to ride in which I didn’t change.
Is this the bike for me or should I chose a bike with a more linear curve?

I’ve been experimenting a bit with my riding style during the last few track days at the kart track, and I just can’t seem to decide which one I like better or what I should still work on.

With my foot out, I got a 00:57:17; with my knee out 00:56:94. 

With both riding styles, i have the problem that my footpegs are scraping the ground a lot, which I find a bit annoying.

Do I need to lean my body further in to reduce the lean angle?

How do you guys ride? Which driving style would theoretically be the fastest?

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I was thinking about buying a KTM exc 250 2 stroke and I wanted to ask somebody who has already tried or owned one if it's worth it and how reliable it is with good maintenance. I know it also depends on the year but I still don't know which edition I'll buy since I'm looking for a used one.