Parents need encouragement

[rabbithounds]

Our son use to ride a jr50. We obtained a ttr125 a month ago and he abandoned his 50 and started riding the 125 off a bucket. He is 4'2", 60 lbs. and 9 years old. The TTR was too tall and too heavy and it was time to pass on the jr50 to his little brother. We went to a local shop and found a kx60, 2003 model brand new which we purchased. I knew it was a 2 strok race bike, and very powerful. Jon rode it as soon as the 3 heat cycles for motor break in were complete. We warned him of the throttle/powerband, and he did well. However, I noticed he did not get into the powerband hardly at all. So after he rode for abpout 30 minutes I stopped him and took a spin for myself. WTF... This thing is like sputter, sputter, sputter - BLAST OFF!!!! WOW!! No wonder he was staying away. I had a yz80 at 13yrs old. Granted it was probably a 70's something model and used, but this KX60 hits harder than I ever remember that bike hitting. A kid would have to have some serious GONADS to ride this thing like its meant to be ridden! My son is athletic and mature, but WHOA this thing could launch me 30 ft over a hill much less him at 60 lbs.

He has rode an hour or so each day for the last 5 days (since we bought it). So for - knock on wood - he hasn't wrecked laid it downor anything.

Tell me its just my fatherly nature and its not really that viscous. Tell me I'm just getting old and can't remember what my old bike feltlike. Tell me he'll be OK on it.

He loves the bike and wants to keep it. I have a flywheel weight being sent second day air - the biggest one they had 10oz. Will this make enough difference?
Sorry to be so long winded!

 

[Patman]

He'll be fine. Chances are he'll crash but he'll be fine. The flywheel weight will smooth things out. Go get yourself a bike. Borrow the gonads from your kid if you need some.

:)

 

[SteveinSpringHill]

He'll be fine. Chances are he'll crash but he'll be fine. The flywheel weight will smooth things out. Go get yourself a bike. Borrow the gonads from your kid if you need some.

:)

Man that was great!!! I know exactly how he feels, I'll take my boys 65 for a spin to check jetting and think "man this kid's got more drive than me"!

 

[Patman]

I've been down that road and have decided that my kid knows more about what is and isn't comfortable for him. My biggest moment was popping him on his new KTM Pro Jr the first time and then recently his CR85R (talk about a hit!).

 

[Ol'89r]

but WHOA this thing could launch me 30 ft over a hill much less him at 60 lbs.

Tell me its just my fatherly nature and its not really that viscous. Tell me I'm just getting old and can't remember what my old bike feltlike. Tell me he'll be OK on it.

QUOTE]


rabbithounds.

I can't tell you how many skinned-up peewee dad's I have seen. :ohmy: :nod: These bikes are not designed for anybody bigger than your son. When the dads ride them, they become unbalanced because we sit so high and so much towards the back of the bike. When they come on the powerband, :yikes: they loop out and there goes dad. :laugh:

Your son will be fine. He will get used to the hit. The flywheel will help and you can even limit the throttle by installing a piece of tubing around the throttle cable inside the carb between the slide and the top cap. This will limit how much throttle he will get and you can cut the tubing shorter when he is ready for more throttle.

The best thing you can do to make him safer and yourself feel better is get him all of the good safety equipment. Make sure he has a good helmet, boots, chest protector and even a neck roll or Leatt brace if you can afford it. He will crash. Be sure you prepare him and yourself for it.

Good luck.

 

[FruDaddy]

Do not worry, when he learns to keep it in the band the hit won't matter. It seems that the smaller the bike is, the more violent the hit is, and the 60-65s have absolutely no bottom end. IMO, it is best to use the clutch to keep it on the pipe, but a beginner shouldn't get into the higher RPM range in lower gears. My son is marginally larger than yours, but wasn't when he first threw a leg over a 65. It didn't take him long to learn to love the power. If anything, discourage the use of first gear, it isn't really necessary to use it, and the hit is a little softer in second (of course, it can still wheelie in third).

 

[150rguy]

It seems that the smaller the bike is, the more violent the hit is,

I don't think so. Have you ever ridden a CR or YZ 85? Those things will knock you on your butt even if you are ready for the hit. :yikes:

 

[rabbithounds]

Thanks for the encouragement I'm feleing better and hes did better on the bike tonight Nads are a little larger tonight than last night. :laugh:

Tonight he was riding and he ran out of gas. I walked down and before I could say a word he asked in a frustrated tone what he did wrong. I unscrewed the gas cap and told him he was out of gas. He face lit up instantly and outloud with a tone of confidence he said "So I didn't make it die this time" . Then a few minutes later while I was pushing it to the garage for supper time he asked if myself and his mother would get mad if he went little faster. In a strange sense it was a relief. Hopefully as he continues to build confience I will too.

 

[Chili]

Then a few minutes later while I was pushing it to the garage for supper time he asked if myself and his mother would get mad if he went little faster. In a strange sense it was a relief.

Don't worry that sense of relief will pass quickly :laugh: Then the :yikes: :yikes: starts.

 

[2 strokes for life]

150rguy, most 65s will beat a YZ, or CR85 in acceloration any day.

 

[150rguy]

150rguy, most 65s will beat a YZ, or CR85 in acceloration any day.

Was I talking about acceloration? No I was talking about hit. Why don't you go get on a kx65, then hop on a YZ85 and tell me which has more hit :nod:

 

[FruDaddy]

Was I talking about acceloration? No I was talking about hit. Why don't you go get on a kx65, then hop on a YZ85 and tell me which has more hit :nod:

No, I have not ridden an 85 2-stroke, but my base knowledge on engine dynamics (although some here may know more about the subject) tells me that small displacement engines, expecially those with small bores, that are tuned for high RPM power rather than bottom end torque, basically have no bottom end. Now remember that my generalizations don't take into account rod length, stroke, or bore, I am anly talking about single cylinder displacement. The only way to get a tiny motor to produce a ton of power up top, is to take it away from the bottom. While I have no doubt that the 85's, especially non-powervalved (I believe some have the valve), have a bit of a hit, and are more powerful up top, they do have greater potential for bottom end torque, and thus are not likely to be as violent at the 65's. I also believe that the hot rod 50's would be even more scary if they were equipped with manual clutches and not tuned to start pulling after the power hits.

BTW, I have also felt some pretty nasty spikes on mid sized street bikes, typically having 4 small cylinders instead of 2 larger ones.

 

[SteveinSpringHill]

The power hit on a 65 is way more violent than an 85. Unless the 85 has been built (wrong way) with porting.

Bottom line is seat time it's amazing how these little guys adapt. Especially if you get him out there with a bunch of other kids on 65's.

 

[griffbones]

150rguy, most 65s will beat a YZ, or CR85 in acceloration any day.

Having been around and or owned both, I can honestly say that you are incorrect, the YZ85 and CR85's have a monster hit when set up to run correctly! I remember whacking the throttle in 3rd gear and just about looping the CR85 out, man I was NOT expecting that kind of hit in 3rd gear! The KX65 was not quite like that. Now the KX85 is a different story, with the power valve it feels very tame and I would agree that the KX65 has a harder hit than the KX85, but not the YZ and CR!

 

[dirtbike_freak]

Do 65's have power valves?

 

[griffbones]

The KX65's do not.

 

[rabbithounds]

The learning curve is speeding up expotentially. Tonight was even better than last night. I changed the plug and re-filled the tank before he rode. We used premium fuel. The bike seems to run better a low rpm's and the hit does not seem as bad pssibly becasue there is more power entering the powerband. Maybe we are just getting use to it. The little man is keeping it in the power band much more and shifting much better keeping the revs up in the turns too. He had a friend over tonight to ride with and was possibly showing off a little, but it looked much smoother and we never stalled the bike. I'm really feeling better about this bike now. We may not even need the flywheel weight that arrived day. :laugh:

Thanks again for the encouragement!

 

[OldTimer]

... Bottom line is seat time it's amazing how these little guys adapt. Especially if you get him out there with a bunch of other kids on 65's.

Amen...
For months and months, every time my kid came around a corner on his RM65, I would be standing there hollering,"DOWN SHIFT, DOWN SHIFT", and he'd nod and keep putting along as usual. Then one day after a junior hare scramble, he did a little free riding with the "85" boys, and when they came out of the woods, he was "on the pipe" and has stayed there since.
Now little brother is on the 65, and the cycle has begun again, only this time I realize that he'll light it up when he's darn good and ready and not before! :cool:

 

[MrPhotographer06]

i havent hit the power band on my DS80 yet. My brother has and i havent asked him how it was yet. Haha i think when i finish typing i'll ask him. I really need to start paying attention to my dad's little "instruction class" so he'll let me ride like my brother did. He was showing off with the DS80 VS. a KLX110. (easly beat him..because of the 2 stroke ) haha.. because my brother is a fast learner (2nd day of riding).. vs. a 2 year safe rider.. .. i'd rather be the safe rider

 

[rabbithounds]

Over the holiday weekend we burned 3 tanks of gas! Little man rode a bunch. Has his first minor 3 crashes all at low speed. JHis little rocket dumped me for the firs time, not bad jsut skinned a knee. Man I gotta stay off his and get me a 2 stroke my size.

Today we did some basic technical riding stuff on the farm going through ditches/tractor ruts, taking off going up steep hills, crossed a rocky creek, practiced stopping coming down steep hills, and such. He improved his riding abilities in every way. We even crossed some small downed trees that I didn't think he was going to be able to do. Much better with the clutch and being in the right gear and I couldn't believe how well he was handling the bike. The power band seem sto not bother him anymore. It even seems like the low end is better and I haven't done anything. He was handling the trails in the woods well too. Just a few days ago he was having fits on level ground. What a difference a little seat time can make. We are blessed that we have many good places around the house to ride! Thanks to all for the encouragement we are glad we kept the bike becasue my little boy is loving it! He wants to ride every minute of the day!

 

[MrPhotographer06]

Man.. i had put putted round the house with the DS80...


and

on monday.. my dad let my brother ride and not me.. AGAIN..

then tuesday.. he was at work.. and i spent the night at a friends house. And about 10 AM (reasonable baffleless 2stroke riding time)... i called him.. i was like.. whats up .. he said .. wow i cant belive you havent asked to ride yet. i said..well i was fixing to.. Can we, can we ,can we please please pleaseeeee?.. yeah i guess.. so my brother was like.. sorry dude .. i've been a hog. u can ride.. and i rode maybe 2nd gear on a simple 9 turn track.. with 2 little hills and 2 straight sections. then later a friend came over with his crf80f and we went riding in a big open field.I only got to near the top of 3rd gear before i had to clutch,down shift, brake and turn. I love riding and you cant pry me from it now!..

I LOVE DIRTBIKES

 

[rabbithounds]

It's great

The newness is gone and the KX60 is doing great. We probably have 70+ hours on the bike. The rings have about a .025" gap so its about time to replace them, but everything looked great at the first inspection at 50 hrs.
how long can I let it go before risking majot damage?

The powerband hit has declined and the front tire will at least stay close enough to the ground that it doesn't feel like it is going to loop over. Even with the wear there is still plenty of hit for a 60lb rider. He is pretty much rippin on it now.

Borrowed some nads :laugh: and got an old XR250 for myself. Then my daughter got an XR100 (11 yr old). She saw how much fun little brother was having on the KX60 and she decided she wanted a dirt bike. Taught her to ride in 1 lesson on the XR100, she did great for first motorcycle and learning to use the clutch.

MY 6 year old boy is learning to ride the jr50. Learning throttle control - doing well.

Now I'm working on the wife. Get her hooked and whammo - We won't be going to the beach for family vacations - and there will be alot more weekend getaways!

Think I'd like a newer model 250F now!!

Happy Trails!

 

[Ol'89r]

I always love a story with a happy ending. :cool: :yeehaw: :yeehaw:

 

[cinco in W MI]

Where did you get the flywheel weight?

Sounds like a fun time is being had by all.

 

[Hughes 097]

i guess your little man is going to be having a fun time with his kx lol