Julien Dupont blah blah blah Arthur Coutard blah blah blah trials, awesome, BBQ sauce. Yes, that crazy French trials rider-turned-urban stunt monsieur is at it again, this time with hetro-life partner Arthur Coutard at his side in the French Alps. Continuing his “Ride the World” video series, Dupont & Co. haven’t picked a city for this adventure this time, instead choosing to do things in a more au naturel setting. With more Frenchness on tap than a silent black & white film tragedy about mimes with baguettes, you’ll have more “je ne sais quoi” than you can shake a croissant at after the jump.

I’m going to date myself here, but I remember when I first got into motorcycles, I watched a video of this guy named “Ghost Rider” storm the streets of Sweden. Weaving through traffic like it was a rolling chicane and evading the cops with reckless abandon, I would find out later that Ghost Rider had made a name for himself by doing something all motorcyclists have wanted to partake in at some time or another, but never had the stones to follow through with.

Releasing a number of DVDs of his street antics, Ghost Rider’s identity has remained somewhat of a secret throughout all this, though locals tell me that everyone knows who the man clad in black is, but because of how Sweden handles its burden of proof, Johan Law has never been able to knock on the Ghost Rider’s door. Whether you think his videos are cool, irresponsible, or both, it look like Ghost Rider’s 499hp turbo-powered Hayabusa streetfighter is going to a new home…and it might be yours.

Proper trials riding might be one of the most impressive feats a performed on a motorcycle. Seemingly able to conquer any obstacle, over any terrain, trials riders problem-solve some of the most difficult challenges motorcycling can throw at them, and they make it look easy. Not exactly the most popular sport worldwide, especially here in the United States, there’s a growing desire to put trials competitions more on the map, so to speak. Accordingly, Brian Capper was commissioned to tackle one of man’s more prominent architectural feats, the Moses Mabhida Stadium, with a feat of his own.

On his home turf of Durban, South Africa, Capper took to the Moses Mabhida Stadium’s centerpiece archway. 348 (106 meters) feet above the field below, pedestrians routinely walk up the double-arch, though few run the risk of clearing the sides of the arch, should they fall over. Riding up the arch with an unimpeded view of the stadium below, Capper says his biggest concern wasn’t the ascent, but instead his brakes over-heating on the way back down. Already steeply pitched downward on the stairs of the Moses Mabhida Stadium arch, Capper had to occasionally endo his trials bike to cool the rear brake.

It would take us years to describe those kind of cojones.

As far as motorcycle stunt shows go, this one started out as one of the better we’ve seen in a while (we appreciate some showmanship in our stunt shows, rather than a rider aimlessly popping wheelies for hours on end). As you’ll see in the video after the jump, this show at the Beto Carrero World theme park in Brazil starts out well-timed, well-choreographed, and well-executed.

Of course it goes without saying that we’re showing you this post because all that changes at the end of the clip. For those concerned, we hear that the fallen rider had no major injuries, and even showed up for work the next day. We’d still try to make a workers’ comp. claim for that lost half-day though.

We’ve featured Slovenian motorcycle stunter Rok Bagoroš and his KTM 125 Duke before, and we’ve talked at length about how the Austrian motorcycle manufacturer makes some of the best promo videos in the biz…needless to say, you can see where this post is headed. In the interest of time, let’s assume I’ve already written enough hyperbole about how great this video is, and also enumerated a sufficient number of points about how current motorcycle industry marketing offends me on a variety of visceral levels.

With only a few more weeks remaining in 2011, let’s instead shift the discussion and begin the countdown as to when KTM will bring a larger displacement Duke to the US market. Already building a 200cc version for select markets, KTM is set to bring a 350cc Duke to the US for the 2013 model year. That gives us roughly 350 days before the bike’s public debut (unless of course we see some “spy photos” of the machine ahead of time). If you don’t get excited about a more powerful version of what Bagoroš is riding after the jump, then check your pulse…you might be dead.

In the US, you’d be hard pressed to hear someone say that scooters are for the cool kids. The Diet-Coke of motorcycling, scooters get a bum wrap in the two-wheeled world because of their low horsepower, walk-through seat, and their snooze-fest urban practicality. Despite being the perfect way to get around a city like San Francisco, riders looking to make more of a statement usually opt for something along a different train of thought. Ask around your local bike night, and you’ll hear that scooters are only good for new riders, girls, or men who wear pants so tight you can tell their religion.

Well, if that’s been your experience too, then you probably don’t know Boulon. A product of the south of France, Boulon certainly knows how to make scooters look hip (is that the word kids are using these days?) as he shreds this skatepark on his personal transportation device. A well-shot video of some hooligan fun, our only complaint would be the lack of a helmet. Come on Boulon, you have to set an example for the children. Video after the jump.