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Off-road Motorcycles (Dirt Bikes)
KTM 250SX (motocross)
An off-road bike is just that; a motorcycle designed for off-road use. That includes
closed course tracks as well as trails. They generally are light weight, have longer
travel suspension, lack street legal equipment (horns, turn signals, brake lights,
etc.), lack wind screens, have knobby tires, have lower gearing, good ground clearance,
etc. This is a very broad category that includes mini bikes, off-road recreational
(trail) bikes, enduro, motocross and trials. This category includes bikes for almost
everyone, no matter their size or riding ability.
Off-road Recreational
Yamaha TT-R50
These bikes are intended for the casual off-road rider. They tend to be lower in
performance, have lower-end components, require less maintenance, and have a lower
seat height and a lower purchase price. They may not be competitive if you were
to race them against true race bikes, but they can still be a lot of fun to ride.
A good example of a bike in this category is the Honda CRF230F, the successor to
the Honda XR200. If you’re new to dirt bike riding this (or the CRF150F) would be
a good type of bike to start on.
Enduro
An enduro is a motorcycle rally event where riders follow a predetermined route,
often through the woods, and are required to “hit” checkpoints at certain times.
Riders are penalized for arriving at checkpoints late or too early. An enduro motorcycle
is one that is intended for more serious off-road / trail riding. Many are ridden
recreationally, but have been designed with competition in mind. Some are more race-oriented
than others. They come equipped with higher-end components such as fully adjustable
suspension, higher performance motors, head light and tail light, better brakes,
trip meter and possibly a speedometer. Some are street legal (dual sport). Some
have an aluminum frame and fuel injection these days. Some off-road recreational
bikes could also be classified as enduros.
Motocross
A motocross bike is a race bike designed for racing around a dirt track consisting
of large and small jumps, whoops, short straight stretches and often tight turns.
The surface can be hard-packed, loose, muddy or some combination. The indoor version
of motocross is supercross; the races are held in a stadium where dirt has been
trucked in to build a track. The bikes have high performance, quick revving motors
for fast acceleration and long travel suspension suitable for absorbing the big
impacts when landing jumps. They are very light weight and usually incorporate the
latest dirt bike technology. They are very high maintenance machines and in stock
form do not make the best trail bikes. They don’t have lights, trip meters or even
attached side stands. These are special purpose motorcycles. If you compare motocross
and competition enduro bikes from the same manufacturer, they can be quite similar
in a lot of aspects and may share a lot of components, but there are often differences
in steering geometry, suspension (damping and spring rates, travel), fuel systems,
gearing and power characteristics, weight, fuel capacity as well as others. Both
bikes can generally be ridden under the same conditions, but the enduro version
is optimized for trail use, and the motocross version is optimized for a motocross
track.
Trials
Trials (not trail) riding or “observed trials” is a sport in itself. It involves
riding over obstacles and terrain that in some cases would be challenging to walk
or climb over. Riders may ride over logs, stumps, boulders, up short cliff faces
or steep banks and rocky creek beds. During competition, the riders “earn” points
if they put their feet down, drop their bike or ride outside the marked course.
The rider with the lowest score wins. The motorcycles are specially designed for
this type of riding. The bikes look quite different when compared to other dirt
bikes. They are very light weight, geared very low, have extremely low “seats”,
have special low pressure tires, etc. These bikes are ridden standing up very slowly,
and riders require great balance. It’s a very entertaining sport to watch.
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