OREGON Dirtbike Riders!!!

I chose not to go since it's only 50 min of ridin

 

I have a friend who was gonna do it but his team backed out

 

You can run solo with a pit crew. I'm still debating it, my boss wants to do it also. Their are 8 woman so far that are doing it solo. Tough bitches lol

 

Heading out to Millican tomorrow with the SAE Baja team. Several of us are bringing our bikes with. Sounds like I'm ending up with three in the yota...

 

Yeah idk about riding for 24 hrs lol - i ride for a small percentage of that and im exhausted.

 

turned out being a great night and they did 4 20 minute sessions. by the last one there were only a few people riding but it was a good time

 

So the stock headlight on my 250x sucks.
The bulb is 35w so I'm thinking:
http://www.totron.com/led-light-bar...led-light-bars/6-inch-36w-9-32v-led-light-bar
It only pulls 36w. I feel like I should be able to get away without upgrading the stator or any of that stuff, right?

 

Just got back from my riding class (well, at 5pm). I only fell down twice, lol. Second time was lugging up the hill because the instructor said to have it in 2nd and I think my bike was geared different than the others. I was riding a Kawasaki KLX 250S, everyone else on 230 Yamahas. Does that make sense or was I doing something wrong? Whenever I was following people on flat ground, we would all be in 2nd and they would be fine while my bike sounded like it wanted to die. Was I supposed to keep revs up and ride the clutch?

Other than that, the course was great. Instructor kind of talked me into looking at 250s instead of bigger - his argument is that the 250 will have plenty of power and is easier to toss around, anything bigger is not really necessary. He used to race amateur and said while he couldn't beat the bigger bikes on a straight line with his smaller bikes (250s, 150s), he tore it up in the corners and would typically be the one waiting at the finish.
I'm not looking to race, just want the maneuverability and a dual sport. His recommendation was an 06/07 KLX - dual sport setup, and those years were still focused more on dirt than road as opposed to the newer models, which have been tamed down.

 

So no answers from the pros?

 

really it depends on what you want more mike.

since your shooting for a dual sport, the real question is do you want it for more road or more trails.

if you want to ride on pavement more i say get a bigger boy bike lol. Will make cruising nicer and longer trips more enjoyable. If you want to just cruise to trails, then rally trails you should go smaller.

Also mike, your weight has a small factor. Some 450s and bigger have heavy springs in the forks to keep the front from diving while trying to stop with a heavier rider. Dont get me wrong, not saying your a big guy just some facts. With lighter springs in some 250 models, corning after a hard brake will dive down and you know have to pick yourself up off the ground lol.

 

My plans are just riding back and forth to work, then getting out on some light trails (which is probably me biffing out on access roads to the trail, lol).

Yeah I'm aware of the weight. Trying to unsuccessfully lose a small child from around my waist, kind of hard to do on my own.
From what I was reading, the KLX and the WR250 had more options for performance (the WR250 being better), whereas the DRZ was pretty stuck and dialed in. I read the KLX was pretty good for suspension adjustment as well, so maybe ability to stiffen?
My other thoughts were:
-KLX/WR don't have kick starts... seems like quite a drawback, but it seems like a common thing these days?
-WR is fuel injected, might make for a less temperamental engine

I feel like I'm in a catch 22 - I have to own one to begin learning enough how to ride and realize I bought the wrong thing, lol.

 

Honestly i'm just very unfamiliar with the dual sport bikes etc... never ridden one.
However, i'd always prefer to have a kick start as a primary or secondary.

 

Just watched the 2013 monster cup series - did some digging around but couldn't find the qualifiers for that cup (Amateur all-stars). Just curious as to how they get in that race

 

Keep your eyes out for something like an XR250 plated or the like, ride it, beat it up, they never die. Then if you decide you love the sport get something newer and with more HP, better suspension etc. Something like an XR will sell for what you pay for it assuming you pay market price.

I have a CRF250X with a plate, best of both worlds for a 250. Wouldn't want to ride it long distances on the road though, not without regearing it a bit.

Not a big fan of the KLX, I prefer more power than what they offer. The WR250F had good power and lots of mods, just not sure about the X model though.

Also, remember just about any bike can have the suspension redone, I have done it on my X and then even had it professionally done a few years later.

If you're in PDX hit me up and you can take it for a rip trough my neighborhood, assuming you are done dropping the bike.

 

Also think about seat height, not sure how tall you are, an XR will be a lot lower than a modern CRF etc.... Especially for a new rider a lower seat height may be appropriate.

 

I'm about 5'11". The late model KLX I was on seemed fine for height, and I've never had much problem getting on most anything at the store.

I talked more to a friend here at work and we agree the KLX I rode sounds like it needed a tune up, kinda sluggish.

 

maybe we can plan a weekend bash with a few of us at TSF mike. Ill bring my 250 and maybe a 450. their not street legal but you can see the different power between them if you would like.

 

So I was at the dentist today (feels like I've been punched in the mouth, even 5 hours later) and got out a bit early from work, so I did the evil thing of tempting myself and went over to the motorcycle dealers in town. Looked at a new WR250R at one place and a 2010 KLX at another. The Kawi dealer was a real slick Rick and tried to tell me that in late '09 Kawi changed their bikes back to focus on off-road performance with the same spring travel as the early models (total BS), and oh-wouldn't-you-know-it, we have a 2010 right here with 200 miles for $4k.

Did my research and the WRR is looking like a great option, at least for me. Not a whole lot of changes between model years, typically the top performer in the reviews I'm reading, and FI means no out of tune carb or needing to warm up. I wish it had a tach, but that seems like a pretty uncommon thing so it's better not to have a handicap. Most shortcomings will be that it's not as well suited as a true offroad bike for suspension, but I think it will be fine for my current level.

Now I just need to see how I could try one

That would be pretty neat. Unless I get more experience quick, I will probably stick to doing hot laps with the fat lady, lol!

Hey, I only dropped twice.
First one was me skidding on grass in 1st and I managed to do a sort of hop-step-set-bike-down
Second was because the instructor kept telling me to be in second as I went up the practice hill. I lugged it up the whole hill and it gave up at the crest, so I lost balance. Busted up my knee and got some dirt on the aluminum handguard.
I think that gives me a "B" rating as a noob!

 

hey i wana go play at browns obviously mine won't be street legal