Welcome aboard kabob983.
It's great to see someone standing at the bottom of what seems like a huge learning curve (hill). This way I get to look back and see how much I've learned. ;) I'll try to help for starters, just so ol89, oldguy and the guys/woman can give me either a thumbs up or whack me with a ruler for handing out ridiculous misinformation. There's a lot to learn. I just bought my first bikes not too long ago.
You are gonna have a blast. :cool:
Here's a short summary of my very crude understanding of the differences. Hopefully I'm not too incorrect with this information. It's one way to look at the differences. Possibly not the best way. I stand ready to learn with you.
Offroad bikes- generally speaking- covers all the bikes you mentioned.
From there
one way you could break it into down is into three categories:
1.) MX
2.) Dualsport (which for some salesmen is another name for enduros,
presumably?? because of the requirement of some enduro races for the bike to be street legal.) **correction**
3.) Trail bikes/enduros
MX bikes generally have much more rigorous suspensions than a trail bike and distribute their power differently when you apply the throttle. They are hard to "putt" around on as is common on trails and with much less aggressive drivers. (We'll talk about trials bikes and other exceptions to this later.)
At the MX track you will see different race classes based on power (engine displacement) (as well as age, experience of rider and gender).
However, you'll notice 125's running against 250's and 250s against 450s. Enter the next big subcategory of dirtbikes: 2 stroke versus 4 stroke. A 2 stroke bike is generally going to deliver a lot more power less subtlety per turn of the throttle. It's touchier. They are harder to learn on, but not impossible. A rough rule of thumb is a 2 stroke delivers twice as much power, so a 125 2 stroke=250 4 stroke. 2 stroke bikes require you to "premix" oil into your gasoline. This causes them to burn dirtier exhaust.
Generally 4 strokes are heavier than 2 strokes. This will affect your ability to flick the bike, pick it up after you fall, or to keep it from falling using counterweight techniques etc.
There are 85 cc-250 cc 2 strokes and 250-450 4 strokes.
Freestyle motocross (
FMX) is motocross where they do tricks, hot dogging etc. It has become a highly refined and beautiful artform. They ride MX bikes, but the suspension is lower for tricking. FMX grew out of BMX before you were born. BMXers do the same tricks as FMXers without the benefit of a throttle (on little bicycles).
Dualsports are yes, operational both on and off road.
Correction: On a street legal dualsport, you can ride to your favorite riding area, then ride some more on the dirt. I believe all "new" dualsports are 4 stroke. Aftermarket kits are available to convert trail bikes for street use, making them "dualsport". Laws dictating
which bikes can be converted are state by state, but there are some general things required that are uniform. Dualsports have lights, mirrors, turns signals, horns, etc. You need to have a motorcycle license & registration & insurance to operate one on the street. The tires need to be street legal according to DOT standards in your state. The knobbies that make them great for off road riding will wear quickly on the road and are problematic in inclement weather. Non-knobby road tires or supermotard ties won't give you the traction you need off-road. (The solution is two sets of tires which you swap out.) You can buy anything from a 200 cc to 650cc. **Suzuki markets their V-stroms as dualsport, but again, more of a sport bike IMO. Heres' a great article though on the "adventure tourers" like the v-strom:
http://www.motorcycle.com/shoot-outs/2005-adventure-touring-comparo-14285.html
If you are new to bikes, I'd recommend you starts small. ;)
To use a dual sport on most MX tracks you'd need to strip it of everything that makes it road worthy. The smaller dualsports have more rigorous suspensions than an equivalent trailbike.
Trail bikes and enduros are made for trail riding, open fields, sand, mountain, etc. and encompass a wide wide variety of bikes. Bikes I would consider "trail" bikes are marketed as enduros. (**The crf-f hondas, for instance.) Hopefully someone will step in with a better explanation of the distinction here. Trailbikes can be four or two stroke. 2 strokes range from 50cc to 300cc. 4 strokes from either 100 or 125cc to 450 cc. Enduros from 250-950 cc.
The small 4 stroke variety of trail bikes tend to be heavier than their 2 stroke cousins, but are a breeze to handle and learn on because of their gentle nature. Modifications can tame a two stroke to some degree for handling on the trails. My knowledge gets a bit sketchy from here on, but there are many varieties of bikes from the tame TTRs for old creeky moms like me to the 942 cc monster ktm 950 Super Enduro R for mountain/desert enduros & the manly men. Some handle better in single track and rocky terrain than others. Although the kickstand on a trail bike might be an issue, trailbikes like the ttr are not generally prohibited at family oriented open riding motocross tracks with several words of caution. 1.) They aren't truly designed to be jumped or launched. You and the bike will take a beating if you do. 2.) Know what the heck you are doing, how to hold your line, etc. There are going to be people going a lot faster than you and over your head and the like. This is not an experience for the feint of heart. If you aren't sure of the dangers you might impose on others with your presence, hold off a bit.
Not to be confused with trail bikes are
trials bike. These are neat special use bikes. Extremely lightweight, seatless or low seats, limited travel on the suspension (relative to enduro or mx bikes).
One way to learn the differences between the bikes is to go to the websites of the major manufacturers and look at the specs for each model of their offroad bikes. I printed them out, and studied them. That's how I learned most of the beginning information. It limits you to comparing the different varieties of "new" models.
Bikez.com is another resource which provides specs on new and old models. Or go to a bookstore and look for a book which will provide a better explanation than I am providing here. There's lots of neat histories out there.
I'd strongly recommend you take a class for motorcycle training for road licensing. They are offered nationwide with great regularity. This will thoroughly teach you the basics of handling a motorcycle. Follow that up with a dirtbike school class which will teach you how to get yourself out of trouble when your bike falls or dies on a gravelly hill, etc. After that there are MX schools. Or you could just go ride. Lots of people do it that way too.
I've left out several other categories of information that will interest you in choosing a bike, like how a bike is cooled (air or liquid), electric start, hot start, seat height, weight differences, spark arrester requirements, etc. I've also left out fun general knowledge mx things like supermoto and short track racing. But, that's a basic primer. Hopefully semi-accurate. Knuckles on the ready to be whapped. :)
Last two things: the MOTOSPEAK button up top is pretty helpful.. as is the search function.
And most of all: HAVE FUN! :ride: