FiRSt bike?

[KfAoWrId]

1) your physical size (both height and weight are important)
5'6 120 pounds (female)
2) How physical / aggressive are you ?
intermeted
3) what do you plan to ride- MX/SX tracks, woods, fields with friends or ? pits woods trails.. recreational purpose only
4) Do you have any riding experience? 2 yrs riding 600cc sportbike
5) Do you think you will race ? no
6) Are you mechanically inclined and will you be doing your own bike work? yes
7) Do YOU have a preferance to a brand/ motor choice (2 or 4 stroke)? not sure yet.....
8) Do you have a dealer close by your home that you might use and what brand(s) does he carry? every brand is avaiable
9) How much ($) do you plan to spend on a bike? a few grand..4.5 max
10) Do you live in California? no
11) Your age? 21
12) anything else that you think would help form an opinion.. not doing anything to crazy.. on the lighter size so can get around easy.. but also can still grow experience with..

Any advice would be great.. THanks :)

 

[jb_dallas]

At 5'6", you will be limited on the number of bikes that will fit you correctly. The good news is that your budget will allow you alot of options, such as lowering a bike. I dont normally advocate lowering a bike as it can adversely effect handling, but it is sometimes necessary.

 

[jb_dallas]

Im not exactly sure of the seat height of a CRF150, but Im thinking it might be your size. It would probably be a good idea to ride a few bikes to see what feels right. It will be low on power compared to what you are used to...but street experience doesnt translate to dirt, so you may not want too much power.

 

[KfAoWrId]

yeah thats the thing cuz i was told that i should look at a 250 cc bike, but one i think it will be to heavy for me to lift and handle really good and two im not really wanting to do anything to extreme with it. i dont want to lower a bike. but i also want to grow experience with it as well..and i dont want to get one two small..so i dont no. and i no for sure that dirt and street are complete different. my bike is not lowered and i stand on my toes when seated on it... but yeah i think ill just go and test a few see what feels good.

thanks

 

[jb_dallas]

Im not sure of the seat height on a CRF230, but you might try one of those if you want more power.

 

[flyingfuzzball]

ok just so ya know...

The CRF150F is actually heavier then the 450R.

for you i would say a 125 2T or a 250 4T would work out fine. i have a friend who is 5' 5" who rides a 125 and at times it is tall for him but all in all he can ride it fine.

 

[rmc_olderthandirt]

The Honda CRF230F has a seat height of 34", as does the Yamaha TT-R230. They are both pretty heavy, about 240 pounds.

A Honda CRF150 or Yamaha TT-R125L is a tad lower, 32" seat height. My daughter is 5'2" and she fits a TT-R125L just about right, or perhaps she is a tad too tall for it. If you are 4" taller I would expect you to sit rather awkwardly on a 32" seat. Note that the "L" in the TT-R125L stands for Large wheel. There is a TT-R125 that is even shorter that I am sure you are too big for.

Another question that you should consider carefully is if you want electric start or only the kick starter. The TTR models are available in either a kick only or kick/electric start. The Electric start adds 12 pounds to the bike due to the battery you have to carry around. Electric start is nice when you start getting tired and just don't have the energy to kick the bike back to life.

I suggest that you head down to a bike dealer and sit on a couple of different models. I recommend that you be able to put both feet flat on the ground Ideally you will be in contact with the seat with both feet on the ground. On a street bike you can get away with being on tip-toe as you typically have flat ground beneath you. On a dirt bike you will often stop on uneven ground and there may be a dip where you need to put your feet down.

I recommend getting some experience on something like a CRF230F. After a year or so you might want to trade up to something a little more aggressive, such as a CRF250X. You will definitely be on your tip-toes on that bike, however.

Rod

 

[jb_dallas]

236 pounds for a CRF150F...damn..that is heavy. I didnt know they weighed that much. My YZ400F is 252.

 

[flyingfuzzball]

236 pounds for a CRF150F...damn..that is heavy. I didnt know they weighed that much. My YZ400F is 252.

Yeah my dad rides one and they really are great bikes as long as they stay upright. when they are on 2 wheels they are amazingly stable and thus really good beginner bikes. but they can be quite a challenge to pick up after hitting the trails for a couple hours. the nice thing though is that after you pick it up ya got your electric start to get you going again.

 

[KfAoWrId]

Thanks for all the info guys..
yeah as soon as i get some time im going to some dealers.
ive been talking to alot of ppl and some are saything that the crf 230 would be to big for me that i sould look at a kx100 but im definatley thinking that would be to small..
i want something just to have fun with. and im comfortable driving and can handle good. i dont want to feel like the bike is to big for me.
anywho.. any advice is great! thanks. :)

 

[jb_dallas]

Keep in mind that the KX is a 2 stroke, which has a completely different powerband than a 4 stroke. The 2 strokes tend to have "peaky" power and the 4 strokes have a more manageable powerband. Smaller 2 strokes rev very high and dont have alot of low end torque, which can make trail riding a challenge.

 

[KfAoWrId]

okay .. so deffiantely go with 4 stroke. cuz i don't want to do any racing.. just a trail bike. can u really notice a huge difference between a 230 and a 150 cc bike?

 

[RM85rider123]

okay .. so deffiantely go with 4 stroke. cuz i don't want to do any racing.. just a trail bike. can u really notice a huge difference between a 230 and a 150 cc bike?

Yes. Just do what rmc_olderthandirt said, and that should work out just fine. :cool:

 

[KfAoWrId]

yeat that was good what rmc_.... said..

thanks everyone..