mgrgirl

Member
Sep 11, 2003
5
0
I'm just start out ride like two weeks ago. My boy tried to help me. I can ride the bike but my not right to stand up like he tells me to on the bumps on the field. How long should I wait before starting to stand up??? The only time get to ride is on the weekends. What kind of bike should I buy or start on? I'm 5'4" and about 145 lbs. Right now I ridding a bike that my boy has around his place.
 

TheJunkMan

Member
Jul 9, 2003
586
0
I am mgrgirl's boyfriend and to give some more info the bike she is on is a 1970 SL 125 I bought for $3. I let her start on that because it is very un intimidating and easy to ride/start. So come on girls give her some advice I want her to know that there are other Females that love this sport as much as I do..
 

Michelle

Sponsoring Member
Oct 26, 1999
1,245
0
Junkman & Mgr's girl (welcome to DRN btw Mgrgirl :)) - check out the big wheel KLX/DRZ125, CRF150 & TTR125L's.
All nice & small, easy to ride, light, great beginner bikes. The 04 TTR's have electric start but the CRF is slightly taller.
Check out some of the older posts around but I think they're probably your best choices for starters.

Start standing as soon as you feel comfortable. Get a short piece of terrain & ride around sitting, then ride around standing & see which feels best. I got my TTR for riding a ****ty forest (for confidence) & to hopefully help me with sitting down too much. Last week I was timing myself around a course to see whether I was faster sitting or standing on the KDX. I tried standing first (had to sit for two corners) and then when I was "allowed" to ride it sitting, somehow I just had to force myself to & would stand as quickly as I could. Funny how the time was about the same - will try that next time sitting & then standing, but I'm starting to stand more than sit these days.

Good luck, hope that helps a bit & let us know how you go.
 

Pegasus

~SPONSOR~
Jan 31, 2001
177
0
Welcome Mgrgirl...Junkman is right there are a lot of us out here who love this sport.. and more women riding all the time. What ever you decide on make sure you feel comfortable and safe. Most important now it to ride and have fun. Guess thats most important all the time :yeehaw:
My favorite starter bike for a small person it the TTRL with or w/o the e start and depending on what kind of riding you do it will always be a great trail bike.Light fun and reliable.
 
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KDXgirl

Member
May 10, 2003
146
0
Standing up comes with confidence. When you feel comfortable give standing up a go but just do it for short periods. It will be weird at first and take a little while to build up to it. Its also important to have your bike set up properly ie clutch and brakes in the right positions as well as back brakes and gear levers. I remember when I first started out I would try to stand and my legs would get tired and Id sit down straight away, after a while I got better and now I stand almost all of the time barring corners. Keep practicing and you will get there and we are proud of you for having a go!
 

LoriKTM

Super Power AssClown
Oct 4, 1999
2,220
6
New Mexico
Hi mgrgrl!  And welcome to the club. :)

First of all, before you worry about standing up I'd recommend that you get VERY comfortable using all the controls-- clutch, brakes, and throttle.  Shifting, stopping, and accelerating should all become second nature-- you won't even be thinking about it.  Practice corners, set up some cones for figure 8's, and do some drills.  (Also spend some time just playing around!)

These exercises will help you become more comfortable with the bike, and THEN you can think about standing up while riding.  As KDXgirl mentions, once you start standing up more, you'll probably want to adjust the controls so they are are more comfortable in a stand-up position.  Standing up allows the bike to move freely underneath you, lets your legs act as more "suspension" for soaking up bumps, and allows better overall control of the bike.

Sounds like you have a pretty decent starting bike.  The TTR125L and the CRF150 are good beginner bikes, but you might find them a bit small, especially after you get some experience.  Other options for trail riding are the CRF230, Pampera 250, or even a KDX200.   If you're thinking about doing motocross, you may want to look at a KX100 or any of the 125's.

For now, have FUN!  (And make sure you get all the safety gear-- helmet, boots, etc.) 

 
 

squeaky

Roosta's Princess
Damn Yankees
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Mar 28, 2003
2,561
0
Welcome mgrgirl! Everyone here is great, they have wonderful suggestions. I am still riding my first bike, an '86 XR200. It's a little heavy at times but all in all a wonderful bike. I wouldn't worry about standing until you are fully comfortable with the other features of the bike. It took me literally 3 months to get out of first gear, learn braking (I used to just jump off of the bike to stop), and then finally learn standing. I was scared to death of standing, but now I pretty much stand all the time. Just work at your own pace and do what you're comfortable with, you'll be a great rider before you know it!
 

MXGirl230

Stupid tires and trees
~SPONSOR~
Mi. Trail Riders
Dec 19, 2002
2,358
0
Hey what's up mgrgirl? It took me a long time before I would stand up. It scared me! I started out on an XR100 and did not want to leave the seat. Which was ok, but not for long. Definitely learn and be comfortable with all of the controls. Then worry about standing up. If you try to throw that in right away, it might be too much to concentrate on doing all at once. Once you can shift, and brake without thinking about it, then you can start working on standing up. I sat down all of the time, until I went to Tony DiStefano's Motocross school, he threatened to have one of his guys remove my seat! So after that I learned to stand. Now I stand pretty much the whole time.
Just take it easy and learn one thing at a time, then you won't get overwhelmed trying to pick up on everything at once. Welcome to DRN
 

MC chick

Member
Sep 14, 2003
2
0
hey whats up chicky.
Well you i started to stand on my 1 week of riding. and ive riden for about 11 years already. lol. and my first bike was a lil honda, yuk. Now i have a kawasaki kx 250. And its great. if i were you, i would start to get really really good and use to it before u start to go up to a larger version of bikes. well hope to chat with you in the future. lata.
 

TheJunkMan

Member
Jul 9, 2003
586
0
Thank you too ladies. She wants to at least ride good enough to ride the loop when I ride a Trial event, I hope that she will eventually want to maybe compete in the women's class (Novice class Lines) someday down the road. She enjoys watching me ride sections but if she wants to see the good stuff she has to hike the loop (up to 7miles at some events) so she just sits and waits for me to finish each loop. Again I thank you for giving her the advice, I though maybe I would do less damage if she got outside advice from you guys uh gals... instead of me I guarantee our relationship thanks you!!
 

bbbom

~SPONSOR~
Aug 13, 1999
2,094
0
To get comfortable with standing try forcing yourself to do it on easy sections, then, as you get more comfortable with it start standing in more difficult terrain, you will normally find that standing is easier.

Something I have found though is that standing up to ride is somewhat dependant upon the bike and it's set up and the speed that you are riding at.

I'm not familiar with your bike but I know on the smaller, more maneuverable bikes, I find that by standing up it is much easier to control the bike than sitting down. On my bike, I use both standing & sitting - standing for more of the rougher stuff but sitting for the smoother sections.

As far as speed goes, the faster you are going the more beneficial standing is at least from my experience. I can't stand up in the areas where I'm just putting along, it's more work to keep my balance. I do it once in awhile just to see if I can stay balanced but it's easier to stay balanced standing up at faster speeds.

If you can ride behind a good rider to see what they do over certain terrain it helps. Try to mimic what they do but still use your own judgement if your skill is not up to their level. It was very helpful for me to follow Karl to see what he did and then for him to follow me & tell me what I was doing right or wrong. Especially this past Monday, when I saw him hit the log on the side of the goat trail that blew him down off of the bank, it was very helpful for me to not hit the log!!! ;) :laugh:
 

KDXgirl

Member
May 10, 2003
146
0
Yep Bbom is right, trying mimicking other riders
I ride with a guy that stands up almost all day long so when we go out I copy him and stand when he does and sit when he does (which isnt vey often lol)
Sometimes he makes me stand so much and so long my legs turn to jelly but I just need that little extra push otherwise I get lazy.

After a while, standing will become second nature, just take it slowly to beginning with and you will get there
 
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