Dirt Bike FAQ

Best thing to do would be go to the dealerships and sit on both the 250 AND the 450…maybe some others aswell

whatever one feels most comfortable to you is best. dont get one you arent sure you cant handle because beginners luck means a lot of crashes on a dirtbike.

obviously 450 is going to have 200 more cc's then a 250 so its going to have quite a bit more power. its is also going to be alot heavier. it might sit a little to high for someone your height though?? im not sure…the last time i got on a 450 i was like 6 (riding on the back of my uncles…im now 15 but a mere 5'3…so as you can imagine something that big is of no use to me! lol). but anyways…my uncle is a big guy…like 6'2 sooo…ya.

the 250 will sit lower and be easier to handle…it will probably be a good first bike. it will have plenty of power. and dont worry about your weight being a factor…both bikes will zip around like crazy with a 200lbs dude on the back no problem.

An Enduro is acually a dirt bike that can be ran on the highway, so therfore if you want an all around bike I would go with the enduro, that way you can run it wherever you want to!

Ebay or Craigslist

On Ebay you at least have a binding contract so that they can't just rip you off as badly if you buy a lemon. They also have the bstr prices since it is bidding.

Craigslist is another but keep in mind they are usually asking much more than it is normally worth and they can also "forget to mention" things with out having any consequences.

Just stick with ebay

In general these mini dirt bikes are not street legal. You should ask your local police to check out if it's legal to ride mini dirt bikes in your city.

There is some good information on riding mini dirt bikes at:

http://www.mini-chopper-tips.com/mini-dirt.html

No.

Since 2002 the EPA has required street bikes to meet their emissions standards.

Off road bikes are exempt from these emissions standards.

If you want a street legal bike, sell your dirt bike and buy a street legal bike.

If you are so concerned about the environment, dump your SUV. Use the money from the sale to buy a Prius. Take the money you will save on fuel and use it to make payments on a street legal bike. But somehow I don't think you will do this.

You are wrong about the myth that your dirt bike is less polluting than a car. Your dirt bike, with absolutely no emissions controls, spews out more pollution than any car.

Well there are a few variations on "pit bikes" but here goes with the basics. At off road races down here in the Dist 38 area, pitbikes are/were just that, little bikes for getting around in the pits between races or when getting ready for a race and your main machine was getting worked on to get ready for the race. They were anything from old Honda Z50's to little XR50's, to Yamaha PW50's etc. These days they are selling so-called "pit bikes" at Kragens and places like that that are made in China, with up to 110cc engines and questionable reliability. More little mini-bikes than anything you could use on a regular basis, they are copies of Japanese bikes in all respect except the reliabilty, not really suitable for long term use in the desert, and not really meant for the street, they are just parking lot toys for semi-grownups. The shocks arent really suitable for offroad, they just have big springs to look like they are, so if you are thinking of buying one for something like that save your money and buy a real offroad bike that you can learn on for reasonably cheap like an older XR200 or CR125. At least they have the underpinnings of a real machine on them.

By the statement made by you as to the other parents being liable for their childs decisions.. wouldn't that go both ways? Should you not be responsible for your sons decision to ride the bike in the first place, as well?

I think it would be difficult to prove any type of neglect on the other parents since they were not home at the time of the accident. I think you will probably have to cover this one on your own though. Unless you can talk to the other family about a 50-50 payment.

My advice would be to contact a lawyer to find out for sure.
Good Luck!

You should look into getting him a crf150r I am 5' 4" and it was a really good fit for me. It should fit him well if hes small or bigger built too. It is a very reliable bike..I had no problems with the bike and put about 20 race and practice hours on it!

I saw a video of a scooter attached to a parasail, and it worked. Nothing is impossible if you are crazy enough to try it. Man didn't learn to fly by sitting on his butt.

To shift the gears on a motorcycle there is something important you should learn from the service manual and that is just exactly how many gears your bike has. Most bikes have either 4 or 5 gears. Modern Sports Bikes have 6 gears.

First put the bike in neutral, it is half way in between 1st and 2nd gear. Squeeze the clutch ( found on left handle bar) before trying to shift. You will know you are in neutral if a green light is showing on your gauges or if the bike rolls freely with the clutch out. Once in neutral you can start the bike, but keep the clutch in. According to your bikes shift pattern (Standard or GP Shift) you then shift into 1st gear by pushing the shift pedal up or down. Slowly let out the clutch while simultaneously increasing your RPM's with the throttle. The bike should start moving forward and as it does, release the clutch completely, but stay on the throttle. Once the bike is moving you can roll on the throttle to increase speed. As your RPM's increase you will need to shift into a higher gear; to do this you will need to squeeze the clutch in again. Then according to your bikes shift pattern, go to the next highest gear. Now release the clutch and roll on the throttle. To down shift you squeeze the clutch and shift to the next lowest gear, release the clutch. Be sure to match your RPM's to the wheel speed on a downshift or your rear tire can lock up resulting in a high-side.

There are currently two shift patterns on modern motorcycles, standard and gp. Standard shift is well…standard, it will be found on most motorcyles. GP shift refers to the shift pattern used by professional racers. GP shift is reversed so that a rider does not have his foot under the shift pedal when needing to up-shift in a corner, it also makes for faster up-shifts. GP shift is primarily found on sports bikes and bikes intended for use on the track, but most sport bikes come with standard shift from the factory.

Shift patterns are set up as follows…

- Standard Shift (starting from neutral):

First gear is down 1

Neutral is up one and it is indicated by a green light on your bikes gauges. If you are not sure you are in Neutral ~ it is the only time when your bike will freely roll backwards when the clutch is not engaged.

Gears 2 ~ 4/5/6 are all up.

- GP or Reverse Shift (starting from neutral):

First gear is up 1

Neutral is down 1 and will likewise be indicated by a green light on your gauges.

Gear 2-6 are all down

Shifting gears on a motorcycle may seem awkward at first, but try it a few times in your garage or drive way with the bike off. Roll on the the throttle and practice using the clutch to shift up and down. If while riding you start going to fast or you feel as if you are not in control, pull in the clutch to disengage the engine from moving the rear wheel and apply brakes accordingly. Within a short time shifting through the gears will be second nature.