Guys weekend dirt biking and "camping"

[jhynesrockmtn]

The guys were me, my 16 yo and our two labs. We took the RV I bought last year that now has a custom built hitch and the dirt bikes to an ORV park about 2 hours southwest of Seattle. First real trip in the RV and we had a few shakedown cruise issues but nothing a little duct tape wouldn't fix.

My son did a great job rebuilding our trailer the week prior to the trip. That kid can really work when there is a goal in front of him. Removed all the wood as it was all rotten after 10 years and dealt with the rust on the frame. Paint, wood sealer and lot's of grinding the old self tapping bolts off. He also put my bike back together we tore into a bit to clean the carb, get the muffler repacked, etc.

I'm pretty new to dirk bikes, we have two used CR250's. He actually bought his first and sort of drug me into it. I'd prefer a 4 stroke but these things are simple and cheap. They are not the most forgiving trail bikes but we're learning. We took the MSF course last fall which was a good basic skills day. Looking forward to a lot of trips this summer/fall in between car races. Good bonding time with the kid and of course the dogs.

[livi]

Looks like great fun. What are the dogs doing while you blast threw the woods? Tagging along or hanging by the bond fire with a couple of six packs? Great pics!

[J P Stein]

I put more scars on my bod in a few years of dirt biking than in the prior 30 years.....still have them 30 odd years later.
That said, it was good fun. There was a great place to ride over near Roslyn.
You could run fire roads from there to Levenworth and it's a hell of a lot drier than the West side......and the coal slag piles at Roslyn are huge. This was a long time back...

[charleskieffner]

now thats what i call FUN! nice lab a dabs! dirty bikes/dawgs/and lots of woodsy trails to ride.

[jhynesrockmtn]

We're heading to the eastside in a few weeks I hope. The weather needs to calm down first. Taking my son to a campus and NROTC visit in Pullman and hope to get some riding in there and back.

The dogs are both 10 and running behind a mountain bike let alone dirt bikes would be a bad idea. Too much traffic on the trails too. They hang the RV with lots of blankets while we're out riding.

Lot's of forest roads posted no ORV's. My next bike will be street legal. I'm just not keen on a street legal bike for my son. I ride a street bike but won't let him as long as I have some control over what he does. "Do what I say, not what I do" I guess. I would want him to have years of car driving experience before he ever thought about a street motorcycle.

[DUK]

Looks like good fun. We have a choclate that could probably keep up with the bikes, but she would rather chase a ball.

BTW- how do you get any farter west that Seattle? I thought that was as far as you could go without getting wet.

[911boost]

Nice, what years are the CR's? My dedicated trail bike is an '01 CR250R. I agree they are cheap, and they can be great trail bikes. They are light, stop well, and have great power if you use it right.

Ditch the tiny stock tank, and get a bigger one, and you can really ride for a while. ALso make sure you get some good protective guards for them, especially for your rear brake disc. If you smack that sucker on a rock and bend it, it makes for a long day. It looks like one of the bikes has "bark busters" or hand guards on them, I'd stick a set on the other bike, they will do wonders for your hands. I'd be more than happy to take pics, or show you what I have done with mine.

Also you can get a kit that adds a little rear light and a headlight to the CR that makes it street legal. I don't have it on mine, as I also have a 1975 MT250 Elsinore with all the lights on it.

Great fun! I pull my camper and then a 5x8 trailer behind it with dirtbikes and a Polaris 4 wheeler on it. Camping season is just around the corner here and I am getting excited! Our two dogs love it as well.

Bill

[jhynesrockmtn]

One of them is a 98, the other an 01. I had to buy a new set of plastics for mine (the 01) as I dumped it in a very large puddle and lost the left rear and the front fender was screwed up from the PO. It was cheaper to buy a whole set and then we'll have extras. I bought bark busters for the other bike at the same time. My son hit a tree on this trip and bent his brake lever. We have one desert tank not yet installed the PO of my bike gave me. I think it needs some brackets fabricated to fit. My son tried to install it and couldn't. We do need the extra gas. I ran out on a ride near Bend last year.

I'd love to see pics of any other mods you'd suggest for a trail bike. My son's has a guard on the front disc, not sure about the rear. Mine has a flywheel weight, not sure how heavy it is. His does not. I think both have stock carb jetting. The guy at the dealer told me not to screw with the stock jets. I'm just looking for a little better low end throttle control. We have spent most of our riding time on fairly slow trails in 2nd gear. We put these rubber deals on the mufflers to quiet them down, they work pretty well. DB snorkel I think it's called.

My son has looked into the light kits. I'm not sure how WA state is with getting an MX bike plated. I've heard it's not easy even with lights, horn and blinkers.

[911boost]

Let me take a look at my bike tonight Jerry. I am having a brain fart on some of the brands I have used.

One of the latest changes I have made is to add brake levers that flex front and back, so that when I do wreck, ti doesn't bend them. I still carry a spare set in my pack though.....

With regards to the desert tank, is there a bracket on it all? If so, it is probably the correct one. The first time I installed mine it took a bit of work to get it to fit. Be careful though, you don't want to strip out those bolt holes.

[dhoward]

Better low-end throttle control wiil generally happen if you go one leaner on the pilot jet. Most of those guys are rich from the factory. Flywheel weight helps too, although those CR's like run way up in the RPM range. Not the best at lugging around in the woods. Still fun, though.

[911boost]

You can also get a different pipe that has a little better low end, but you lose some on the top end...

[dhoward]

Go here.
www.dirtrider.net
Tell Okie DHoward sent you...

[TheMentat]

Originally Posted by Duke Zink

BTW- how do you get any farter west that Seattle? I thought that was as far as you could go without getting wet.

The Olympic peninsula is HUGE


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