Dirt Bikes

[LMagelitz]

Which one, for an old guy that doesn’t have any business with any of them, but nevertheless is looking??

 

[Hoopy Frood]

It all depends on what kind of riding you plan on. Trail riding, trials, serious hills and such. And your height, since some of these are sooooo tall.

 

[WhittleBurner]

Definitely red.

 

[triplethreat]

It's almost impossible to go wrong with any of the 4 major Japanese brands. I've owned, at one time or another, Hondas, Yammy, Suzuki, and of course Kawasaki. There really is no bad choice, it just depends on what you like, price, dealership access if you need it, etc. The bike I'm on right now is a Suzuki and it's #29 in my long list of bikes owned.

 

[Hoopy Frood]

I lean toward the street legal dirt bikes, since they are a little more versatile.

 

[txarsoncop]

Do you want/need a dirt bike or would a dual sport serve you better? Street legal and yet trail worthy. I rode one for 4 years starting at the ripe old age of 44. Only reason I got rid of it was because I wanted to be more comfortable when commuting. Top speed was 60 to 65 making getting on TX highways a sketchy proposition. Brand new around $5K and lots of accessories for them.

It was originally my Dad's. He used a receiver hitch carrier and hauled it with his MH to ride around campgrounds, nearby trails and quick trips.

 

[BigSwick]

I would suggest leaving all the above pictured bikes to the younger crowd. Too fast equals too dangerous. Add in that when you stop you probably can't comfortably put your feet down. Try the street legal models, but try it out before you buy to see if it is a good fit.

 

[LMagelitz]

Thanks all! I should have added more info in my post. I’ve had dirt bikes, dual sport models, and one street bike over the years, starting with a Kawasaki KM100 at the age of 13. That all went by the wayside not long after kids started showing up, so it’s been a long dry spell. I still have an old Suzuki DRZ400 at the moment that I dusted off and got running last spring after many years of just looking at it in the garage. The replacement will be mostly for trail riding in southern Utah with the (now grown) kids.

 

[Hoopy Frood]

JMO, but if it's just for simple trail riding, my choice of the above would be D: None of the Above.

 

[LMagelitz]

JMO, but if it's just for simple trail riding, my choice of the above would be D: None of the Above.

But Hoopy, I want to ride wheelies down the trails!

 

[Hoopy Frood]

But Hoopy, I want to ride wheelies down the trails!

LOL Ah, but look at those "seats"!! Do you want to sit down?

 

[LMagelitz]

LOL Ah, but look at those "seats"!! Do you want to sit down?

Yeah, my brain still wants to write checks my body can’t cash.

 

[triplethreat]

Yeah, my brain still wants to write checks my body can’t cash.

Welcome to my world, I'm in the same boat

 

[jjbbrewer]

Which one, for an old guy that doesn’t have any business with any of them, but nevertheless is looking??

Old isn't a problem, I'd say! I'm 66 and have 6 motorcycles, 3 of which are dirt bikes.

My primary job is dirt bike riding off road (I do trail inventories for various agencies, BLM, USFS, state recreation depts. in the western US states). I also go on multi-day group rides a few times a year. The primary reason I bought my Momentum 349M was to haul motorcycles .. plus it was nice that it has some living space as a bonus.

Anyway, as @Hoopy Frood said, it really depends on what you want to do - 2 track roads, single track trails, open desert/high speed, twisty forest, hilly technical enduro, sand dunes, adventure touring.
Also, where (in the US) will you be riding?

My two main bikes are a KTM 520 MXC and a KTM 250 XC-W TPI. I geared the 520 a little higher so it's almost a perfect dual sporter. The 250 works well for the tight, single track, technical stuff. I'm in Colorado so I have both of them plated and can ride to the trails near my house.

I've had hondas, yamahas, suzukis, kawasakis, & huskys, and I've found the KTMs to be pretty much better than all the rest (except the new Husky's are good too since they're pretty much KTMs).

I won't go on and on (I love talking about motorcycles) .. but primarily, I'd say get something that makes you excited about going riding on it. That makes a huge difference .. IMHO.

 

[jjbbrewer]

Oh and just getting caught up, you said you're going to go trail riding in southern Utah. Are you talking about Emery County, or Moab, or St. George or somewhere else?

My experience has been in the San Rafael Swell, Dubinky/Gemini Bridges, and Chimney Rock enduro areas. I've ridden a little in Moab, but it's pretty much been taken over by SxSs, which is ok, just gets a little crowded for me.

You didn't mention how tall you are. I'm 5'7" and I've done a little lowering to both KTMs so I fit on the better. Pretty much anywhere is the southwestern US, a KTM would be my bike of choice.

One thing that I have found out is that as I get older, I want my bikes to be lighter. I figure there's a 150 in my not so distant future.

 

[LMagelitz]

Oh and just getting caught up, you said you're going to go trail riding in southern Utah. Are you talking about Emery County, or Moab, or St. George or somewhere else?

My experience has been in the San Rafael Swell, Dubinky/Gemini Bridges, and Chimney Rock enduro areas. I've ridden a little in Moab, but it's pretty much been taken over by SxSs, which is ok, just gets a little crowded for me.

You didn't mention how tall you are. I'm 5'7" and I've done a little lowering to both KTMs so I fit on the better. Pretty much anywhere is the southwestern US, a KTM would be my bike of choice.

One thing that I have found out is that as I get older, I want my bikes to be lighter. I figure there's a 150 in my not so distant future.

Cedar City is home base, so out from there. I’m sure we’ll make it down to the Hurricane area. I’m 5’8” now...been shrinking over the years !

 

[jjbbrewer]

Cedar City is home base, so out from there. I’m sure we’ll make it down to the Hurricane area. I’m 5’8” now...been shrinking over the years !

Nice place to be! I haven't ridden around there but it hard to be far from good riding anywhere in southern UT or northern Nevada & Arizona.

There are a bunch of resources for riding areas, equipment, bike choices, trip ideas, etc. if you get serious about being back in the seat. If your DRZ400 is running ok, there are plenty of places you can go on it to see if you really want to get back into it.

I'll keep watching this thread & I'd love to hear if you keep going this direction! The new dirt bikes are astoundingly better than even those 10 year ago and are much more user friendly than my '87 CR500R, which is a BEAST. If you were nearby, I'd say take out my 250 and see what you think. A couple of my friends did and they both went and bought one.

 

[LMagelitz]

Nice place to be! I haven't ridden around there but it hard to be far from good riding anywhere in southern UT or northern Nevada & Arizona.

There are a bunch of resources for riding areas, equipment, bike choices, trip ideas, etc. if you get serious about being back in the seat. If your DRZ400 is running ok, there are plenty of places you can go on it to see if you really want to get back into it.

I'll keep watching this thread & I'd love to hear if you keep going this direction! The new dirt bikes are astoundingly better than even those 10 year ago and are much more user friendly than my '87 CR500R, which is a BEAST. If you were nearby, I'd say take out my 250 and see what you think. A couple of my friends did and they both went and bought one.

Last time we were out there, I visited the forest service office and loaded up on maps, but I haven’t poured over them yet. Planning to go out there in November, so as long as there isn’t a snow storm that closes I-70, we’ll be going thru Colorado! It’s quite a bit shorter than the souther route (I-40).

It’s now just a question of what I end up with, bolstered by so many “old guys” on here still riding. That surprised me.

My wife is good with a new dirt bike, but says “no wheelies anymore”. But now with many guys on here with more than one bike, I have several I can point to and say “he has X number, I only want three!”

‘87 CR500R……whoa. The era of two strokes!

 

[triplethreat]

Last time we were out there, I visited the forest service office and loaded up on maps, but I haven’t poured over them yet. Planning to go out there in November, so as long as there isn’t a snow storm that closes I-70, we’ll be going thru Colorado! It’s quite a bit shorter than the souther route (I-40).

It’s now just a question of what I end up with, bolstered by so many “old guys” on here still riding. That surprised me.

My wife is good with a new dirt bike, but says “no wheelies anymore”. But now with many guys on here with more than one bike, I have several I can point to and say “he has X number, I only want three!”

‘87 CR500R……whoa. The era of two strokes!

That two stroke era was a blast. All my dirt bikes back then were two smokers, then I switched to street riding. Two smokers again. Kawasaki 500 triple two smoker, and because it wasn't fast enough for me, then a very lightly used 1972 Kawasaki H2....the 750 three cylinder two smoker. For it's time, that one was a rocket ship....high 11s in the quarter mile and I campaigned one at the local drag strips for an entire summer.....ET class.

I know of a brand new 1972 Kawasaki H2 triple that a dealer has in his museum, that the engine has NEVER been started, plastic still on the seat with the owner's manual laying on it. It has about 10 miles on it from pushing it around at the dealership, but zero hrs on the engine. I can't imagine what that thing is worth right now.

 

[avf100]

Loved the big bore 2 stroke dirt bikes...I had an 85 cr500 and then a 95 cr500. I rode each bike for 10 years. Moved onto 4 strokes in 2005, bought an 04 honda 450r and now I have an 09 450x.
My buddies dad had a Kawa 750 triple back in the day. Insanely fast.