Dirt Bikes/ Week long D/S Bikes

[Redbone]

Looking for guys to post up what you have as far as dirt bikes/ dual sport bikes and how you use them. I have been jonesin' to ride in the dirt once again and origially thought about getting a full on ADventure touring bike but by the time I had it set up it would cost me close to 20 grand if I bought everyhting new. I then started looking at less expensive dirt bike/ dual sports and came across the Husaberg line of bikes. They look a little more like what I want or maybe what I could afford.
Here are a few pictures of a Husaberg, it's unique 70 degree engine and one set up for long weekend dual sporting.

 

[gamorg02]

i use my xr250r for mostly trail/woods riding. it has a 'street legal' plate and some lights but its far from passing inspection. its mostly there 'just in case' which has come in handy a couple times.

the local ktm dealer has those bikes in stock. the fit and finish on the new ones is quite nice!

 

[[email protected]]

'91 CR500. Dirt only. Most fun you can have on 2 wheels. Mine is set up for tight single track but you can do a lot of different things with these bikes. Its pretty popular to set the up for the street by changing the stator and adding lighting kits. Probably not what your looking for but they can be found cheap. They are dead easy to rebuild. Parts are comparatively cheap. And did I mention you can configure the bike to do whatever you want. Super moto, street/trail, trails only, MX, hare scrambles, hill climbs.

there are a couple good forums out there if you're interested.
http://cr500riders.com/cgi/yabb/YaBB.pl

http://bannedcr500riders.com/board/index.php

 

[Rusty McNeil]

2004 XR650L, sold it last year, it was tough as nails and virtually indestructible. not a ton of power, but very friendly to ride. I had street tires and a smaller rear sprocket on it for while and it would run 95 all day long without complaining, toppe dout at 105-110mph. Great "poor mans" supermoto bike.

And talk about a whellie machine:biglaugh: My nieghbors hated it.......

Took it on several 300 mile trips and it was as comfortable as a Vmax. Wish I hadn't have sold it but it was just sitting there depreciating and not being ridden after I started this job I have now....so I sold it....I would buy another in a heart beat...my dream bike is a Ducati Hypermotard...

If you get back on the dirt don't forget.......Old people don't bend; they break.....and it takes a lot longer to heal....Ride on the dirt and you WILL go down...

 

[Buster Hymen]

I have a Suzuki DRZ400 and it sounds like it might be what you're looking for. Street legal, bullet proof and a great all around bike. Be aware that the DRZ400, the Berg you posted about and other bikes like it have horrible seats. They are meant more for off road so it means you should be standing up. If you want a comfortable seat and less of an off road bike, check out the KLR650, DR650 or XR650L.

 

[Redbone]

The reason I like the Husaberg is that it's water cooled, 570cc, has a 6 speed tranny, good for long rides on dirt and road. I should look into a more pratical bike, like those that ya'll have/ had as they would be a less expensive way to hit the dirt trails. I appreciate the input!
The base reason I want a dirt bike is to ride in the dirt. It would be advantageous to me if it was street legal so I can ride to the trail head or if I come to the end of one trail I can head to another. I think a bike that is 80-85% dirt with legal road capabilities. I think I'm realistic enough to know I'm not 22 so I probably won't be doing 25-30' jumps or seeing how fast I can go down a trail, I do like slow to medium speed technical sections to test skills.
Here in the U.P. I can ride from one end to the other (for the most part) on dirt with plenty of places to play along the way. Hell, I have one largest National Forest's around that I can access right from my house so even if I end up with a non street legal enduro it would work for a while.
Ultimately I would like to do some adventure touring with a bike that is more tour (70%) than dirt but like the option of taking a fire road to explore an area or as part of a destination route.

 

[06VMAXIMUS]

I would LOVE to be able to live and ride in the U.P., Brian! We vacationed at Munising, Chistmastown and Whitefish point years ago with the kids. It was an amazing area, and I wish I would have had a offroader to ride! I'm jealous....

 

[Maxine]

2006 KLX250S
Stock the suspension is kind of soft, and it felt more like a 200cc bike power wise. Uncorked...air box mods, jet kit and exhaust made it feel like it gained 75cc. Only other mod I've done is to add the factory kick starter kit.

Decent little street legal trail bike, and great around town. Works well enough on the highways too. I wouldnt run this thing down the interstate more than 10-15 minutes though, its just not up for it.

Seat is dirt bike style and gets hard on the butt after 30-40 minutes.

Regards,
R

 

[maxcruiser]

My days of dirt riding are pretty much gone, but my son has a 2004 Honda CR125 motocross that he races in amateur division. I mostly wrench on it as his chief mechanic.

I do take it out every so often, just to make sure it's race ready and damn that thing is fun. We are fortunate enough to have a motocross park very nearby. They have 3 tracks, for beginners, intermediate and a pro race ready track.


http://www.thevemp.com/index.html

It is open to anybody, as long as you sign a waiver, pay $20.00 for the day and have a bike you want to beat on, your in!

The next link is a picture of my son on the track;

http://www.thevemp.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=62

Mike

 

[Ford428CJ]

Does snow count!? LOL I only have machines for the snow and not the dirt. Otherwise its all street stuff for me!

 

[likembikem]

I have a 2000 Drz400S bought new. It now has 19k miles on it. I use D.O.T. knobbies, a 4 gal. Clarke tank, 3 tooth larger rear sproket. It has bark busters, bash plate and luggage rack. The seat is like a plank. The tires (Kenda trak masters) do better than one would expect, life is about 750 miles on the rear. I could use dual sport tires but I just want full off road when I want it. I change the tires myself so its not too big a deal. I previously had a'97 XR650L with large tank but had some ignition control module problems (twice) that I was told because of the larger tank restricted cooling air to the module (?) Then the counter shaft stripped inside the sprocket. It was a 1 tooth smaller sprocket, been on there 7k miles but maybe that's why it broke. Welded it back on and sold it (told the guy about though). Then got my 1st Vmax, then a Speed Triple, Drz400, another Vmax (currently and from now on)....Hey; sorry I'm rambling now!

 

[E-max]

I have a 07 YAMAHA WR450F. I got it brand new late in 07 un-corked the thing is awesome in the dirt. The seat is stiff for long rides. The 450 cranks out more power than 90% of guys on dirtbikes need. Thats what i like about dirtbikes, no cops twist the throttle till you chicken out. Good luck finding your new bike!