Beautiful BMW you have there. It has lived a good life, it appears.

Couple things...

I'm going to say that loading a bike into the back of a pickup by using a 2x10, or the equivalent, is a bad idea. It's fine for someone like Tim, who has probably been loading dirt bikes that way his whole life. For a first-timer, no way. IF you have to use a board, use the widest one you can, have several people to help and do it with the engine off. At least one person needs to be in the truck bed. I like the painters' walkboard better, if it is a heavy duty one. I like the idea of using a loading dock, or other similar architectural feature even better.

As for the motard, I'd caution you there as well. I'm a life-long bike rider and I've owned just about everything I've ever wanted. The current inventory is at least a dozen bikes. I've never owned a motard, though, although I own several dirt bikes. I used to think of a motard as equivalent to one of my dirt bikes, with street tires and better brakes. Gotta be fun, right? After all, I've covered more than a few miles on the street, riding a motocross bike...

So, last year my oldest kid gets a motard. It's a retired race bike, that was raced by a friend of ours. The only change from it's racing days are the addition of lights, a way to power them, and a tag. I was excited to try it, as I had begun the planning in my head for building one for me. Bottom line, I hated it. Yes, it was light; yes, it made a lot of power for it's size (mid 50's) but I hated every mile I rode it. I can't really tell you why. It's certainly uncomfortable, to start with. The seat on a dirt bike sucks when you ride on pavement, as you don't move around on it like you do in the dirt. The suspension was a factor as well, since it had lost the dirt bike plushness, in favor of something stiff enough for pavement duty. Even though it had a pretty good power to weight ratio, I was revving the nuts off of it all the time. Not such a good thing, with a single. Does anybody actually like vibration? There's no way I could see myself riding one on a highway, or a fast country road. And, it was tall. Not as tall as my motocross bike but way taller than any street bike I own. I've never ridden a Suzuki DRZ-SM, or the 250 Yamaha equivalent, so I can't say anything relevant about either of those bikes. I do know that my desire to try one isn't what it used to be.

That Suzuki SV650 sounds pretty good to me.

JR

We've got some really cool 2" thick by 12" wide Aluminum extrusion that works great for loading bikes... Its strong too, we use to 7' pieces to load my car on the trailer. This stuff is re-purposed old highway signs, its light and strong.

Hmmm, that's interesting. The reviews I've read have been good, but I admit the reviews are usually on dual sport/motard web sites. The motards seem ill-suited for freeway use, but around town, they're supposedly better. Right now, the biggest detraction to the supermoto bikes is price. Used prices are higher than a standard bike.

If I lived in downtown San Francisco and wanted to ride in that general area, a motard would make some sense, regardless of the other issues. But, sadly, I live in Oklahoma. Riding around town here, from stoplight to stoplight, is no fun and that's where all the traffic is, so it's not as safe as I'd like. I find that when I ride, I usually get out of town. Not necessarily on an interstate but usually on quieter old two lane roads. For that, you want a bike with some legs.

If you are a beginner you are not going to want to ride around lots of cars. Getting away from town and exploring the boondocks is both safer and more interesting. Motorcycles are a form of escape and the best use for them is to go somewhere you don't need to go, in no particular hurry.

JR

turbo6bar, I don't think you have mentioned your height and weight. That might have some bearing on what bike would fit you. I'm 5'8" with a 30" inseam. If I want to be flat footed while standing up over the bike I can pretty much eliminate any of the dual sport bikes.

I'm 6' with 32.5" inseam. I weigh roughly 165 lbs. I was concerned the dual sport or motard would be too tall, but I've read that folks with 30" inseam can handle the 250cc bikes, as well as the 400SM Suzuki. Height issues is why I'm not considering one of the 600-650 cc dual sports.

I currently live in the suburbs and minutes away from great riding roads. In fact, the curvy roads here are targets for sport bikes riders. I hear the motorcycles every Saturday morning. However, next spring I'll be moving to a different part of town. It's closer to town, and will have to ride at least 7-8 miles to get to the curvy backroads.

While I agree the SV650 might be a great match, I think the small motard could also be a ton of fun. Since I've ridden neither, my only basis is reading on the net and looking at pictures. Superficial, yes, but who's going to lend a bike to a total newb for 3 or 4 days.

jurgen

Well, after a lot of reading, I've narrowed my first bike down to the wr250x yamaha (supermoto 250cc). I was set on a Suzuki 400cc supermoto, but the review on forums say the combination of fuel injection, six speed gearbox, and low vibration make the wr250x a great buy.

I've been searching the southeast and midwest for a clean wr450x. I may have lucked out and found an 08 at a local Yamaha dealer. It's clean, has a few scratches, and a welded up shift lever (probably after somebody dropped it). Otherwise, it's in nice shape. 1800 miles. They're asking $3299 + $150 for doc and local fees, which is under book of $4200, but above trade in, $2800. I rarely buy from the dealer. The price is actually quite fair. The salesman said these aren't popular around here and pointed at the monstrous cruisers and sport bikes. I think as the weather gets colder, this bike will sit. I was thinking of bringing a wad of hundred dollar bills and offering him $2800 out the door.

What ya think?
jurgen

I have never ridden either, but for a fun "short" commute tard, I would be all over the 450 for the power. I think I read that the fuel tank size on the 450 makes for a very short range.

Oops. I typed 450x, I meant 250x. Yamaha doesn't make a 450 motard.

Just last night I was reading a thread (supermotojunkie or thumpertalk) about a supermoto wr450 converted bike vs the stock wr250x. The poster said the 250x won over the 450. The 450 won on power and fun factor, but lost badly on other points. One point was exactly what you mentioned: the 450 had a 40 or 50 mile range vs double or triple on the low HP 250. I think anything less than 75-100 mile range is not going to work. I can do 75 miles in one morning.

I don't see myself getting into a lot of trouble with less than 30 HP and 300 lbs. I do see trouble on a 450cc thumper or a cr500 supermoto.

You can get yourself into a lot of trouble no matter what you're riding. Never forget that.

Best of luck. Keep the shiny side up.

1) You are invisible.

2) EVERY car is trying to kill you.

3) EVERY car is trying to kill you.

4) You WILL fall down. Dress for it. It's a guarantee.

I would worry about being able to ride the 250 at fast (80 mph) highway speeds continuously, but I admit to neer having ridden the wr250x. I would guess that little 250 would be revving it's guts out at that speed, but I could be wrong.

Good advice. Further to #4, Dress for the crash, not for the ride. ATTGATT!*

* All The Gear All The Time

I ride the busy roads on a 20 lb road bicycle. Been there, done that, and have the scars.

Tim, I agree the 250 will be pushed, but guys who've ridden the 250 Yamaha and 400 Suzuki say the Yamaha is much smoother at higher speeds. This 250 is a slice from their R1 sport bike engine, and it loves to rev. I need to be able to do 65 mph to stay with traffic. What does worry me is riding a brick near semis and big vans.

On my road bike, I have an LED headlight and taillamp. You can run the lamp continuously or choose one of three flashing modes. Folks give me a LOT more respect on the road aside from the asses who buzz me with no margin (need anti-tank solution). I've seen very few flashing headlamps on motorcycles. Are they out of favor? I know you'd have to be nearly blind to not see my flashing LED lamp.

All the gear, all the time. NO problems here. I do worry about riding in the summertime. TN gets stupid hot and humid for 3 months. On the other hand, I look forward to riding this winter. The roads ice for but a handful of days.

You still see flashing headlights and the occasional flashing tail light on a touring bike. Pick up a copy of a magazine that caters to that crowd, or find one of their internet forums and I'm sure you could come up with a source.

There's lots of leather gear out there that is ventilated. Stick to the name brands and you should be fine. Lighter colors help, also.


You might take a test ride on the thing before you buy it, jst to see if it has the legs you need. A Yamaha 400 or 450 revs high too and they'll do 65 but high speeds aren't their forte. A 250 is barely more than half as large...

JR

Search results for: 'headlight modulator' - Whitehorse Gear

It took a while, but I finally found a bike. I'm driving down to the Alabama coastline to pick up a Kawasaki KLX400 dual sport bike. I spent time on advrider and decided I had to try a dual sport bike. I want something that can do local backroads and still get through tight forest trails.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1294878933.jpg

It's wearing supermoto wheels, but the sale includes the stock dirt wheels. It already has a lot of great mods (hand guards, Corbin seat, Garmin GPS, skidplate, rack and bag, several extra sprockets, and the list goes on).

I plan to put the dirt wheels on and ride on land nearby. Then, backroads. Last, mix with cagers.

Congrats. That's a great looking bike. Have fun, and stay safe.