Any of you guys into Motorcycles?

MmmHmm. I've got a little spitfire windshield on my xl500. Makes a huge difference for all day comfort. Especially on highways and such.

I have been riding on and off road since I was 10 including motocross and road racing and I had a absolute blast on a used Honda xl250r.

I didn't spend time touring on the highways, but I rode it to places that I had to trailer my CR250 to and loved it. I sold it because I had 4 or 5 other bikes at the time but I have been looking at other enduros. To me a street legal xr400 would be perfect, but I would use it hard off road. Search Craigslist for duelsports or enduros. They are perfect starter bikes and hold their resale even if dropped a few times

MattGent wrote:

SlickDizzy wrote:

aussiesmg wrote: Try over here http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/sprockets/

Rusnak_322 wrote: I have been riding on and off road since I was 10 including motocross and road racing and I had a absolute blast on a used Honda xl250r. I didn't spend time touring on the highways, but I rode it to places that I had to trailer my CR250 to and loved it. I sold it because I had 4 or 5 other bikes at the time but I have been looking at other enduros. To me a street legal xr400 would be perfect, but I would use it hard off road. Search Craigslist for duelsports or enduros. They are perfect starter bikes and hold their resale even if dropped a few times

Too bad you are not closer my father in law has a street plated XR400 that is mint with thumpers only parts on it that he never rides anymore

I'm 6' 200lbs, all torso inseam is 30". My commute to work is maybe 8 miles, some city, some freeway. I plan on doing light offroad with it, no singletrack etc.

I'll be signing up for the motorcycle safety course shortly.

Plan is to buy a used Dakar, so it'll already have some scratches, etc, on it and won't cost the full boat $8500 that a new one does.

I've found advriders and I've been reading up on the Dakar's. I looked at one today and while it was very nice and maintained well the guy just wanted too much money for it.

I prefer light 250cc for back woods bombing. I take it past fire roads though

Whatever you do, don't forget about getting all the awesome safety gear that will save your tail if/when you have an incident. I spent about $600 on some really basic gear for my first sport bike that I have since crashed/destroyed/upgraded. From there, get all the training you can, then surrond yourself with good people that know what they are talking about. Since you probably won't be around street sportbikers, that should generally be easier.

As far as commuting, be paranoid that everyone in cages are out to get you.

Whatever you do, check this section of GRM.

Not alot of traffic on the GRM Sprockets board.

Yeah, my friend has already enlightened me about the need (and cost!) for gear...

Try and get a little seat time on a Dakar, or any bike you are considering. Comfort and fit are important, and not always obvious. If you're cramped up, or your feet are being buzzed off the footpegs, you won't enjoy riding the bike.

Yes, you can modify a bike to better fit. But this costs money, and depending on the extent of modifications, it can cost a lot of money. Get a bike that fits you well.

This is an interesting site to help you check out some of the fitment of a bike to you.

http://cycle-ergo.com/