A friend of mine wants to get in on the fun and get a dirtbike so he can ride with the rest of us. But what bike to get is a big problem. Here's why:
He's 15 and not the biggest kid around...around 5'10 135 lbs. He has basically no real experience with riding, other than a Quadsport 80 a few years ago. Obviously he needs a bike that he can learn on without the fear of getting hurt badly, or it being too hard to get the hang of it on. Problem? Well his had really isn't set on the idea to begin with, and he surely will not get him a bike this year, and then next year get him a better bike, as was the case with everyone else I ride with. So that certainly makes it difficult...
My friend Jordan and I both started on XR200s. They're great for around my trails, because the trails are slow and tight. Those bikes are easy to learn on, with just enough to punch to keep you excited and trying new things. But...they cannot hang with 125s, which is what everyone rides now, and they can't jump for the most part. It's probably the best bike for him to learn on, but down the road a few months, when he gets good, he's going to be upset because the bike simply cannot keep up, I know firsthand what that's like.
Two of my other friends started on TT-Rs. A TT-R 125 is too small in this case so that's out of the question. A TT-R 225 is in my opinion a very poor bike. It's slower, heavier, and worse in almost every aspect than an XR200 in my eyes and not a good choice for him.
So what's left? Well, as I said he has very little experience, hardly any, and putting him on a 125 would be very dumb I think. Why? Well anyone I know that tried to learn on a real bike like this got very discouraged and usually lost interest. It's not easy to learn the basics of riding on a bike that isn't made for cruising or going slow. They're perfect once you know how to ride, but in this case that doesn't apply.
I have a few thoughts in my mind right now...One is a 250cc, 4-stroke trailbike, such as an XR or a TT-R or a DR. They have strong, yet manageable power, and can hang with a 125 in the trails. They can even be jumped on most of the jumps we have. The one problem is their weight. He's not real hefty and picking one of these things up time and time again when you're learning (at least I had to pick my first bike up a lot) gets tiring for anyone. And with a 270 lb motorcycle, it doesn't get any easier. Plus the size itself is difficult to handle for a beginner, and the worst thing that can happen is for him to get discouraged and want to stop riding. This right now honestly though seems like the best option.
Option number 2 is a smaller MX bike. He talks about the KX100 a lot but I have my doubts. I know that with an 80cc bike, you really gotta rev it out to run it right, and the low end on it is just not there. Now that's not a problem once you know how to ride, but in learning, you don't want something that you're just going to keep stalling. When I ride, I'm constantly doing clutch work and keeping the bike in the optimum revs, it's like second nature now, but last year when I first started riding, it would have been a total chore to worry about the the bike running while also trying to balance and all that. I would imagine a 100cc two-stroke to be as difficult or even more so at first than a 125, simply because it would have less power out of the powerband range and would crave more revs, something that beginners seem to have trouble with. The good thing with this option is that he could basically ride anything we did after he got good, but my concern is, would he ever make it that far?
So it's a little more complicated than it should be, the best choices are basically out. Bottom line is he's got to find a bike that's easy enough to start on, but with plenty of room to grow to keep up and have fun as he gets better. What would you guys suggest? I really appreciate any advice. I cannot wait to see him get into riding.
He's 15 and not the biggest kid around...around 5'10 135 lbs. He has basically no real experience with riding, other than a Quadsport 80 a few years ago. Obviously he needs a bike that he can learn on without the fear of getting hurt badly, or it being too hard to get the hang of it on. Problem? Well his had really isn't set on the idea to begin with, and he surely will not get him a bike this year, and then next year get him a better bike, as was the case with everyone else I ride with. So that certainly makes it difficult...
My friend Jordan and I both started on XR200s. They're great for around my trails, because the trails are slow and tight. Those bikes are easy to learn on, with just enough to punch to keep you excited and trying new things. But...they cannot hang with 125s, which is what everyone rides now, and they can't jump for the most part. It's probably the best bike for him to learn on, but down the road a few months, when he gets good, he's going to be upset because the bike simply cannot keep up, I know firsthand what that's like.
Two of my other friends started on TT-Rs. A TT-R 125 is too small in this case so that's out of the question. A TT-R 225 is in my opinion a very poor bike. It's slower, heavier, and worse in almost every aspect than an XR200 in my eyes and not a good choice for him.
So what's left? Well, as I said he has very little experience, hardly any, and putting him on a 125 would be very dumb I think. Why? Well anyone I know that tried to learn on a real bike like this got very discouraged and usually lost interest. It's not easy to learn the basics of riding on a bike that isn't made for cruising or going slow. They're perfect once you know how to ride, but in this case that doesn't apply.
I have a few thoughts in my mind right now...One is a 250cc, 4-stroke trailbike, such as an XR or a TT-R or a DR. They have strong, yet manageable power, and can hang with a 125 in the trails. They can even be jumped on most of the jumps we have. The one problem is their weight. He's not real hefty and picking one of these things up time and time again when you're learning (at least I had to pick my first bike up a lot) gets tiring for anyone. And with a 270 lb motorcycle, it doesn't get any easier. Plus the size itself is difficult to handle for a beginner, and the worst thing that can happen is for him to get discouraged and want to stop riding. This right now honestly though seems like the best option.
Option number 2 is a smaller MX bike. He talks about the KX100 a lot but I have my doubts. I know that with an 80cc bike, you really gotta rev it out to run it right, and the low end on it is just not there. Now that's not a problem once you know how to ride, but in learning, you don't want something that you're just going to keep stalling. When I ride, I'm constantly doing clutch work and keeping the bike in the optimum revs, it's like second nature now, but last year when I first started riding, it would have been a total chore to worry about the the bike running while also trying to balance and all that. I would imagine a 100cc two-stroke to be as difficult or even more so at first than a 125, simply because it would have less power out of the powerband range and would crave more revs, something that beginners seem to have trouble with. The good thing with this option is that he could basically ride anything we did after he got good, but my concern is, would he ever make it that far?
So it's a little more complicated than it should be, the best choices are basically out. Bottom line is he's got to find a bike that's easy enough to start on, but with plenty of room to grow to keep up and have fun as he gets better. What would you guys suggest? I really appreciate any advice. I cannot wait to see him get into riding.
