New to Dirt Bikes-General Questions

carolinagirl

carolinagirl

Hello all! My husband and I bought dirt bikes a few months ago. Previous to that I've ridden once or twice on a friend's bike. So my experience level is beginner. We will be mostly riding trails. I don't anticipate riding on a track. Basically we wanted something we could do together as a family and have a ton of fun doing it. Our daughter rides a 4-wheeler for now until she decides if she wants to give dirt bikes a try. We did get her a CRF70 to learn on when that time comes.

We picked up a 2002 Honda XR 100 for me. I'm very short. 5'1" roughly 140 lbs. I can comfortably touch the ground on this bike. I've sat on a few others just to see. TTR 125 i was on my tippy toes. CRF 125 was ok too. Honda dealership didn't have a CRF 150 which I had hoped to see with a seat height of 32" if I could touch the ground... TTR 230 I couldn't get my leg over the seat. Basically I want to know if the bike I have is ok for now while I learn and if an upgrade down the road makes sense. If so, what would you all recommend? (keeping in mind moderate trail riding as we have a younger child in tow). Weight is definitely an issue. I took a nasty fall on a hill a few weeks ago and was thankful the bike wasn't much heavier. Electric start would have been helpful in that situation!

Also, I'm looking for recommendations on DVDs, You Tube videos, etc for riding tips and basics. I know the best teacher is probably getting out and doing it, but I figure any technique help with throttle and clutch wouldn't hurt. I have some woods behind the house with some open area I thought I could practice some before getting back out on the trails with our friends.

Thanks again!
 
Last edited:
PALMER84ONE

PALMER84ONE

Welcome to the forum.
Your little 100 will last you for a while, might look into a 230 Honda or Yamaha in the future when skill level and strength builds. Ez to ride and e-start. Even a 150 in Honda has a e-start now, but the bike is small. Both of my girls about your size rides either 150/230 honda. As far as skill, no, going out and doing it is not skill building if your not doing it right. You can google dirt bike school near you, go on line and just type in motorcycle skill ridding and see what pops. But... bad habits can form if no training or skill was present from the beginning. I have been riding for a long time, could still use skill to be bad asz, but I did a lot of downhill MTB and such through the years.
Peace, kick back and relax, fun site when active.
 
M

MikeinFresno

keep what you have for now. The Honda 150F is a little bigger and has E start, but not worth spending the money right now til you learn a little more. Once you have really learned to ride in a couple of years you may consider a 2st race bike in the 100 size or even a lowered 230 size 4st...but keep in mind the taller much heavier 4st will be a bee atch to pickup when you tip over.
 
Redordead89

Redordead89

:wave: Welcome to DBA And very nice clean bikes too! :thumb:
The oil drips below the Suzuki are obvs chain lube but the drips from the XR are a bit darker, any idea where it's coming from?
If you go check the sump plug after reading this please lie down below the bike where you can see the bolt before you put a socket on it!:naughty:
Soz for mentioning it if you already knew this!:hug:
 
carolinagirl

carolinagirl

Redordead89:
:wave: Welcome to DBA And very nice clean bikes too! :thumb:
The oil drips below the Suzuki are obvs chain lube but the drips from the XR are a bit darker, any idea where it's coming from?
If you go check the sump plug after reading this please lie down below the bike where you can see the bolt before you put a socket on it!:naughty:
Soz for mentioning it if you already knew this!:hug:
Click to expand...
The xr is in the spot my husband's rmz has been. We moved the bikes around today cleaning the garage. Also have old oil spots from the mustang there. But we will Def check it out.
 
O

ossagp

MikeinFresno:
keep what you have for now. The Honda 150F is a little bigger and has E start, but not worth spending the money right now til you learn a little more. Once you have really learned to ride in a couple of years you may consider a 2st race bike in the 100 size or even a lowered 230 size 4st...but keep in mind the taller much heavier 4st will be a bee atch to pickup when you tip over.
Click to expand...

The two stroke 100's make great adult trail bikes. big bore kits for the 80/85's make it possible to build your own with a really trail friendly power delivery. Something to consider when you are ready for the upgrade.
 
Last edited:
Top