My first bike

[Wrdkawa]

I've finally thought seriously about motocross after watching for a long time and need some advice for a first bike. I'm 21 years old 6ft 80kg quite strong (a lot of gym work). The bike would be used for woods and trails rather than racing. I'm very mechanically minded and spending time on the bike wouldn't be an issue.Price would be an issue, would look to buy relatively cheap second hand and I've always liked kawasaki's,was told a 4 stroke would be better than a 2 stroke for what I would use it for. Thoughts and opinions please!

 

[rmc_olderthandirt]

Keep in mind that "motocross" and riding woods/trail are two different things, although you can use the same bike for both.

A bike optimized for motocross will be as light as possible. Suspension is king. If it doesn't make the bike go faster, it isn't put on. No skid plates, no lights, a smaller gas tank, etc.

THe opposite end of the spectrum are "trail bikes". These are cheaper bikes, lower performance engines, a little more comfort.

Then there are bikes in between. They will be as expensive (or more) than the motorcross bikes, full suspension, and a bit heavier due to a few extras, such as a kickstand, larger gas tank, and possibly electric start.

A sub division in these categories is two stroke versus four stroke, although two strokes are becoming rare.

If you have never riden a dirt bike before I would recommend a four stroke as they are so much more forgiving. If you were only doing motocross it wouldn't matter so much, but a two stroke can be very frustrating when you are struggling up hills and/or over gnarly tree roots.

As for the brand, it is pretty much pick your favorite color.

I am not familiar with the Kawaski line of bikes.

In the Yamaha line, the "YZ" line are the motocross bikes. The WR line are the "inbetween" and the "TTR" bikes are the cheap trail bikes.

You will very soon want to be in either a 250cc two stroke or 450 cc four stroke. Those might not be the best to learn on, however.

Consider your first bike to be a learner bike. I would recommend 10 years old or newer just so aftermarket parts are easily available. You can get some really good bikes for around $3000.

If you live in a state where off road vehicles are registered then I highly recommend buying one where the title/registration is all in order. It can be a real P.I.T.A. to register a bike that hasn't been registered properly ever.

Make sure you leave enough in your budget for all the gear:
Helmet
Goggles
Boots
Gloves
Chest Protector

I highly recommend riding pants. They will survive a lot more abuse than a pair of jeans, and protect your skin in the process.

I also highly recommend knee/shin pads. The handlebars are the widest part of the bike, but they are up high. Down low it is your knees that are what's going to hit the obstacle you didn't quite clear.

You will need a way to transport your bike.

Dirt bikes will take an incredible amount of abuse but they do break regularly.


What you need more than anything else is a riding buddy. It is a really, REALLY bad idea to go riding off in the woods by yourself.

And make sure you have health insurance. You will crash.

Enjoy!

Rod

 

[Wrdkawa]

Cheers some really good insight there! I think I'd settle with a 450 motocross specific bike then if racing or track days ever do come about it would be able to cope with the change with minimal mechanical changes. Obviously I'll invest into the safety equipment involved with motocross and I'm more than prepared to crash haha if I spend plenty of time with experienced riders and don't mess about hopefully that first crash will come at a low controllable speed and I'll be relatively damage free!! (Touch wood) !!

 

[rmc_olderthandirt]

The safety equipment is for more than just motorcross.

The guys who ride street bikes will often repeat the quote "Is isn't a matter of if you are going down but when"

On a dirt bike, it isn't even a question of when, it is a question of how hard. You WILL go down. A lot. Probably every time you ride.

I wear full body armor. If I am play riding I leave off the Leat neck brace but standard is:
Helmet
Googles
integrated upper body armor, that is the chest protector, elbow pads and kidney belt
Padded shorts
Knee pads
Jersery
Riding pants
Boots

With this protection I can "bounce" and roll and get up relatively unscathed.

As for the types of crashes, I divide them into two major categories: Lay downs and hard impacts

A "Lay down" happens at essentially low speed, often zero speed. A wheel can wash out in a turn and the bike just slides out from under you. You can lose momentum going up a hill and step off the bike before it crashes back down. Sometimes you just come to a stop and go to put a foot down and discover there is a hole there.

Lay downs generally don't hurt. You may fall down in the process but it isn't a major impact. The failure to climb a hill can also invove you rolling back down the hill. The chest protector really helps in these falls.

I would say that I lay my bike down at least once on 75% of my rides.

The hard impact crashes are where in one second you were riding along at 30 MPH and the next second the bike is no longer under you. Maybe your wheel caught in a rut, or there was a rock you didn't see, or you cut a little too close to that tree.

These are the falls where all the gear comes into play.
As an example of how things can go from just fine to terriby bad, look at my helmet cam video:
http://youtu.be/-nAy87KxMEI

Go to time 2:20

All that gear I wear allowed me to walk away from that.

Consider that riding with experienced riders will probably lead you to more crashes. They will push you to ride faster, always at the edge of your control.

Rod

 

[Wrdkawa]

Trust me I'll be investing heavily in safety equipment! Cannot put a price on your own safety! By riding with experienced riders I meant to learn the ropes and different techniques not so much full blown pinned throttle madness

 

[Wrdkawa]

Just watched that vid! Very heavy impact!!! Must be hard riding in that terrain where it looks very difficult to distinguish ruts and dips with it all being that colour. I'm used to a lot more green grass and soft mud in Ireland

 

[rmc_olderthandirt]

It is hard to see in the Youtube video, but in the full resolution version you can see the spray of gas as my body crushes the gas tank. The right side of the tank was caved in and the filler neck/cap was half ripped off. I had to ride back to camp with a big gaping hole in the top of the tank. A lot of duct tape, a change of clothes and I was back out!