Dirt Bike FAQ

My son was about 2 1/2 when he showed intersted in anything with 2 wheels. he was riding a bicycle by 2 1/2 without training wheels and a motorcycle by the time he was 4….

make sure he can hold the bike up by himself, that is the key factor…

honestly, 2 years old is a bit young in my opinion!!! start him out on a bicycle, when he has some balance on that, and can hold a motorcycle up on his own, give him a try…

balance is the issue, but make sure to put him in all the proper safety gear!!!

This is in the wrong category. Try motorcycles.

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.

Let me see. You want me to buy a motorcross bike, service it and let anyone who wants to, ride, crash and distroy my investment. NO WAY. I know of no Dealer who will do that.

Contact your local governing body of motorcycle sport in whatever country you are in for the correct information. In America that would be the AMA and in Australia MA.

There are many here today gone tomorrow dealers of Chinese scooters and motorcycles. Chances are they won't be in your phone book because by the time the new book is released the dealers usually have turned out the lights. Any store that you find that sells this junk should be able to get you the cable you need. Don't concern yourself with the brand because most of them are made by the same company so the parts are interchangeable. Advice…get it running and sell it.

The trailer hitch is the strongest type of on car transport. Ask this question in Cars & Transportation — Motorcycles for more experienced answers — this is actually the section for Bicycles.
Merry Christmas.

I dont live there, but your best bet is to go to your local motorcycle dealers and ask them if they know of any, If they don't know of any trails, they should know of some parks.

Also just look for powerline roads, there is usually trails that run along them.

Well, you are going to probably have to decide what kind of riding you like to do. Starting off on a dirt bike will have set you up well, for handling any emergency manevers you might need on a ligh weight street bike. If you liked playing in the dirt, something on the sporty side is probably going to appeal to you more than a cruiser, but that just depends on you.

I'd start out on something like a used Suzuki GS500, or a Kawasaki Ninja 500. They are great to get the hang of street riding on. Take a motorcycle safety course, just to get use to the "rules" of the road if nothing else.

There is no such thing as a dirt bike license. You cannot ride a dirt bike on the street and so you don't need a license any more than a riding lawnmower license. Legally they are classified the same.