Newbies Forum

Hello everyone this is my first post. I have a couple of questions for all of you. First, I also need some advise on a bike. I haven't ridden since I was a teenager and am looking into getting my two boys and myself some dirt bikes. I'm 6'4" and about 230. I had been leaning towards at least a 250. Not sure what manuf. or anything. Should I go 2 stroke or 4? Someone told me that putting around with my boys would not be good on a 2 stroke. Said I'd foul the plugs in no time. Does a 250 seem to be the right size and any suggestions on a good all around trail bike? Secondly, any clubs or groups to connect with around the Southaven/Memphis area? Thanks very much for any input ya'll can give me.  

jstlovtofish:
Someone told me that putting around with my boys would not be good on a 2 stroke. Said I'd foul the plugs in no time.

Welcome!

I'm learning as time goes on...

I do know my dad was getting anxious(on his 4 stroke) every time I would fall; he didn't want his bike overheating.  It was an exhausting ride for him & his bike (only because he had to keep helping me).

How old are your kids? What bikes are you looking at for them?  
- Lindsey

If your boys are just beginning, you are just gonna want a trail bike to follow your boys around.  
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Nobody's gonna hurt anybody. We're gonna be like little Fonzies here. And what's Fonzie like? Come on what's Fonzie like?

Thanks for the replies. My boys are 7 and 11. I have kind of figured out that the 7 year old needs a 50 and I think a 70 is what the 11 year old needs. I'm not sure on brands or models. The way that I am approaching this is; I'm looking for deals on three bikes. I want to make a minimal investment up front so I can see how the boys will take to it. If they really get in to it then the way I see it is we can upgrade. I've been looking at the yamaha pw50 and the honda 50. I've found a Cobra cm 50 for a good price as well. I'm just not sure which way to go. As far as a bike for me, I can see me doing a fair amount of riding by myself or at least without the boys. There are miles of trails right behind our house and I know I'll venture out. So back to my original question, 2 or 4 stroke and what's a good size. Can a two stroke be used for casual riding in which I'm not running 100 mph all the time? I'm sorry for asking so many questions. I'm just very serious about this and want it to be a great experience for the whole family.  

no problem. and no need to apologize for any questions. thast what the board is for! now if the little ones a 50. the 11 year olds a 70. seems a bit small for an 11 year old but like you said start em small and cheap and if they like it you can move up. the real question is what for you. i'd go with the wr 450 maybe.yo want a good sized bike. trail bike. preferably fourstroke for your type of rideing it sounds like. that leaves the ttr, the crf 230's and the wr's as choices. those ar the best 4 stroke trail bikes in my opinion. now the ttr comes in the 125 and the 230 sizes. both of those way to small for your size. and the crf 230 is also to small. that leaves the wr which goes up to a 450. thats what i recomend for you. skip and woods and chud and 92 and quazy and elko im sure have opinions on this as well so hang on a bit and there will be more replies. ~pat  
PEACE GUYS ITS BEEN A BLAST!!!!! ~patrick

a properly jetted bike will not foul plugs. i think you will be better off with a 250 two stroke or 250 trails four stroke. all the brands are good. but your best bet for your application would be a yz250.

for your kids i can understand that you want to make a small investment to make sure that they like the sport. but the ktm 50 and ktm 65 are nice bikes and there two strokes. your 11 year old will probably grow out of the 65 within a year or two then you may want to thnk about putting him on a 80 two stroke. i was on an 80/85 when i was 10 but couldnt actually use the bike that well till i was 12. by that time your 7 year old would probably fit the 65 well. just giving you some options. because the bikes you said are really small. and i tell you what the 2 stroke small bores especially the 80 are a lot of fun. i still like to jump on mine every once in a while. and im 17 5'9" and 150 pounds.  
______________________________
Ride 2 strokes, buy 2 strokes, save the 2 stroke.

1998 cr125
2002 cr80

atkkid250:
no problem. and no need to apologize for any questions. thast what the board is for! now if the little ones a 50. the 11 year olds a 70. seems a bit small for an 11 year old but like you said start em small and cheap and if they like it you can move up. the real question is what for you. i'd go with the wr 450 maybe.yo want a good sized bike. trail bike. preferably fourstroke for your type of rideing it sounds like. that leaves the ttr, the crf 230's and the wr's as choices. those ar the best 4 stroke trail bikes in my opinion. now the ttr comes in the 125 and the 230 sizes. both of those way to small for your size. and the crf 230 is also to small. that leaves the wr which goes up to a 450. thats what i recomend for you. skip and woods and chud and 92 and quazy and elko im sure have opinions on this as well so hang on a bit and there will be more replies. ~pat

pat the only reason i said a 250 trails four stroke instead of the 450 is because he will be cruising with his kids and the 450 will be way overpowering to cruise with the kids.  
______________________________
Ride 2 strokes, buy 2 strokes, save the 2 stroke.

1998 cr125
2002 cr80

yeah. good point with the jetting on the 2 strokes. but do you think he'd enjoy it as much while starting and stopping a lot to take care of the kids and let them catch up? i mean wiht teh 4 strokes he can let it idle while he gets off and helps one of them or w'e he does. chud should be able to help. master as well. they both have kids and ride witht ehm and they can put some nice input in . ~pat  
PEACE GUYS ITS BEEN A BLAST!!!!! ~patrick

yes. good point elko on the 250 vs. the 450 thing. but he is 6'4" and 230. i dunno. he could allways move up with teh kids if thats what he decides to do. o and welcome just loves to fish! and thanks for posting so much info in your original post. that helps a lot. your height weight and such that is really good. ~pat  
PEACE GUYS ITS BEEN A BLAST!!!!! ~patrick

I would check out the Yamaha line for shure as pat suggested. PW 50 for the 7 year old, PW 80 for the 11, and a WR for you. Theas bikes are bullet proof and really nice with good re sale value! Your best bet in my opinion.
Go check them out at the dealer and sit on them!
A great value for top of the line bikes.  
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Ruff!

well he can set the yz250 to idle too. but a 2 stroke is a lot easier to start then a 4 stroke.  
______________________________
Ride 2 strokes, buy 2 strokes, save the 2 stroke.

1998 cr125
2002 cr80

i personnally like the yz85 but i would wait till your kid is like 12 or 13. so wat woods suggest for now then eventually get your eldest son a yz85 when you feel he is ready then move the younger one to the pw80.  
______________________________
Ride 2 strokes, buy 2 strokes, save the 2 stroke.

1998 cr125
2002 cr80

Man, loads of information coming in from you folks. I can already tell that this is a good community to be a part of. Now let's see if I can offer some more information in order to help ya'll help me. I've taken both boys to the dealership to sit on bikes. First, the 7 year old. He can stand flat footed on the 50. On the 70 he can barely and I mean barely touch a tip toe. Also, with the bike on kick stand, he can't stand it up by himself.(the 70) As far as the 11 year old, he takes after his mom and is a little shy in the height department. I feel like his little brother will be catching up with him soon.
It seems like the 70 is a bike in which he could handle without any problem. It maybe a wee bit small for him but it will be his first bike. I don't want him to be overwhelmed or intimidated by it. Yet, I do want him to feel like he is riding a decent bike and be proud of what he has. Now, during these visits to the dealership, I also sat on a few and found that it seemed that the overall size of say a 250 or 230 didn't seem too small. The 450's and above seemed to maybe be a little overwhelming to me. Remember, I haven't ridden much since I was a teenager. I just don't want it to be too small that it is uncomfortable to ride. I've come across a cr500 at a decent price but it is an 88 model and I'm a little weary of it. I guess there are tons of things to consider here. I truly appreciate all of the info.  

Never get a YZ 85 for a first bike!!!! EVER.
My advice stands after 30 years of riding and owned these bikes.  
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Ruff!

ok. the 50 and 70 are extremely heavy bikes. your kids will have a hard time picking them up. that would by why i suggest the 2 strokes from ktm or the pw50 and pw80. they are much lighter then the crf50 and crf70. i have personal experience with that. i was out riding one day and there was a kid on a crf50 and he fell over and his father was kind of far away, so i went to go pick up his bike and i swear i almost pulled out my back. i was on my 80 so i didnt think the bike would be that heavy and it had to be twice as heavy as my 80. and not realizeing that it was the heavy, my back was pretty sore for a day.

and for you i definitly suggest a yz250 or wr250 or crf250x. i am a fan of hondas but the yz250 is better suited for your kind of riding.

the older cr500 was a mean bike and still is but that bike will kill you.  
______________________________
Ride 2 strokes, buy 2 strokes, save the 2 stroke.

1998 cr125
2002 cr80