Thinking of getting a dual sport but I had some questions.

[thurt88]

I think I'd have so much more fun on a ds or even a motard. I thought about trading my zx10r in but I just can't bring my self to do it. So now I'm going to have to add a 3rd bike. I'll probably get it next year tho.

Questions I had:
Is there one that can handle highway speeds and not be butt ugly ?? I think the klr's and dr650's and the xr's are horrific looking.

Can I have street ability with a dirt bike suspension?? I want to be able to ride it to the mx track and do a couple laps or so.

I was looking at Suzuki drz400, husqvarna te310 or maybe the terra650.honda only offers the crf250l which is awesome but the suspension is soft. The crf250m looks real good tho.

Can any one steer me in the right direction ? Looking at a 6k price range. That pretty much excludes the ktm's.

[ChaoSS]

Ugly is in the eye of the beholder. Look at the KLR, the Vstrom, there's a number of bikes out there that I don't think are ugly.

As for street riding, you won't be as capable as a sport bike, of course, but it should be capable of riding that is a bit more spirited than you would be able to do on most cruisers.

Go check out ADVrider.com, seems to basically be a site for dual sports, and it is huge.

[Dano]

I would go for the DRZ 400 Supermoto version, it has the inverted forks from the rm and bigger brakes and 17" wheels, if you want to go offroad its cheaper to buy dirt wheels on ebay than buy supermoto wheels for the standard drz. there are tons of mods for it and the maintence doesnt need to be done as often as the husky, aprillla ect. If you want a badass one go for a aprilla they are the nicest looking and best performance i think.

[subxero]

i think dual sports are next to worthless off-road. They are only ok for well maintained trail systems and old dirt roads, like mine roads. In rough terrain they just wont cut it and if you do drop it you might be replacing mirrors and plastics quite a bit to keep it looking decent. As far as an MX track, unless you are just rolling over jumps (which really p****** the mx riders off) it will not be able to perform. They are to heavy and lack the suspension to handle actual track riding.

So in short you have a bike that does nothing well and everything half a**

I would only ever consider a dual sport if i lived in super rural place with lots of dirt roads and a real small town. In that cause you could use it to cruise to town and back to pick up small things and take off-road short cuts here and there. Never been there but i think of somewhere like Montana, maybe the Dakota's

I could see a motard being fun around town but thats about it.
JMO

[thurt88]

I've been looking at drz's. biggest complaint I've seen is under powered and heavy. They look nice tho.

Love the aprilia but maintenance is more than I wanna tackle and it blows out my price range.

[ninjamunky85]

Supermoto's are tons of fun. They are a blast on the street, and even my underpowered KLX250sf is capable of doing short highway trips, and some mild off roading.



I've never ridden a dual sport, but have to agree with subxero that none of them are gonna be worth a sh*t off road. Forget the MX track with anything that is street legal. That's why I got the KX 125, even with a full tank of gas it only weighs 200 lbs. No street bike would come close to it off road.

Go check out the supermotojunkie forum. There are tons of guys over there that have traded their ss bikes for supermotos. With a zx-10 to trade you could get a sick KTM or a DRZ and still have money to play with.

P.S. stay away from anything aprilla, they have the reputation of tons of power but always being broken.

[voidrider]

I had wanted to get a dual sport for about eight years.

I am of rather small stature, (about 5' 3-4"), so the Ninja 250 fits me quite well. MOST of the "more competent dual sports" are TALL. Too tall for me to even consider, and I didn't want to screw around with the suspension with lowering links.

A true "dirt bike" NEVER entered the picture for me. I simply can't stomach spending money on an expensive toy. I need to have a bike that is practical. For me that means I wanted a bike where I could ride TO where I wanted to explore using roads and highways, then go offroad. I did not want to buy a dirt bike, then have to have a truck or a trailer to haul it to where I wanted to ride.

I mentioned exploring. That is my mode of off road travel. I want to see what is on the other side of the ridge, I want to see what is around the bend in the valley. When I ride I am exploring, and taking in the sights...not bushwhacking at 80 mph pretending I am in the Baja 1000. I have zero interest in taking the bike to an MX track.

The flip side is I have ridden my Ninja on dirt and gravel roads, but I felt bad "abusing" my bike riding over miles of washboard gravel. Several people have modded Ninja 250s with better suspension and knobby tires for what most people would consider light off pavement use. But, I actually commute to neighboring towns for various work contracts...so I have to do what I can to keep in in good shape. Not quite the "right tool for the the job" in my book anyway.

Looks didn't matter too much to me...I just wanted something competent and about 250cc s in displacement. I looked long and hard at the KLR 250s, WR250, and the Super Sherpa. I've ended up with a Sherpa and I am loving it for what it is - a competent small displacement dual sport. I wish Yamaha would bring the Tenere' 250 to the US market, or their very weird little prototype bike the XTW250 (beauty, eye, beholder - I think all it needs is a big red TONKA sticker on the side of the tank!). I decided against the WR 250 as it had more capability than I was likely going to use, so why pay for it? I preferred the Sherpa over the KLR 250 in part due to it having e-start.

I've talked to some people who feel the Honda CB500X could be a "only bike" for them. Able to do highway with ease, able to do moderate offroad rides, big enough to do some real touring. (Hell, I would tour happily on my old Ninja 250).

A lot of "what is the right bike" for you boils down to what do you want to do with it? ALL bikes have trade offs. In the old days, you mostly had cruisers and UJMs. and they were used for every type of riding, including round the world adventures. What are you going to do on it? What are your criteria? Do you know people who already do rides like you would like? If so, what are they riding? Even in dual sports there is a spectrum from ones that are more street oriented to ones that are more dirt oriented.

I love my Ninja for street riding, I love my Sherpa for dual sporting. Different tools for different jobs, the love comes from understanding and accepting what they are, and are not.

And another HUGE vote to check out advrider, very knowledgeable members, regional forums, threads focused on specific models of bikes too.

[old3]

For under $6000 you can get a used KTM 450/520/525/530, heck, I just sold my 2011 570 Husaberg for $4600!!! Advrider is a good suggestion, and yes, the KTMs can go for hundreds of hours if you keep the oil and air clean. My 530EXC is getting a 610 kit as I post and on 17" wheels it is a riot.

The Huskys have too close of a gear box spread, the KTMs and later sloper Bergs share a awesome wide ratio trans.

[bfpower]

Originally Posted by subxero

Never been there but i think of somewhere like Montana, maybe the Dakota's

Exactly. Here only about 10% of the roads in the county are paved, and most of the rest are maintained dirt roads (Forest Service, hunting, and fire roads). It's a fantastic way to recreate and the availability of aftermarket storage makes camping nice. I even have a coworker who commutes on his KLR 650. Even in more populous areas in other parts of the western US you may find there are a lot of forest service roads.

Do consider the KLR 650 if you're ever going to take a dual sport on the freeway. It tops out around where the Ninja 250 does. The dual sport 250s generally won't keep freeway speed without serious effort.

[backinthesaddleagain]

A friend rails on the yam wr250x. Also has the dual sport model. Not for mx by any means.

[NevadaWolf]

@voidrider I'm 5'3" with a 29" inseam. How's the Sherpa fit for you? They've always seemed too tall. The list of dual sports I've looked at is drastically reduced because of the height issue. Even Kawi's 250 is a precarious one foot deal.

[voidrider]

Originally Posted by NevadaWolf

@voidrider I'm 5'3" with a 29" inseam. How's the Sherpa fit for you? They've always seemed too tall. The list of dual sports I've looked at is drastically reduced because of the height issue. Even Kawi's 250 is a precarious one foot deal.

@NevadaWolf If anything you have a slightly longer inseam than I. So, I think you would be okay.

After riding a few years on the Ninja 250 I felt I would likely be okay on a bike as long as I can dab a foot down somewhat. I find that when I approach a stop I will slide to the front, lowest section of the seat. I can firmly plant the forward section of my foot solidly down enough to feel comfortable. If I slip my butt to the side I can flat foot it. I just need to be aware of any side slope and not just assume I am going to automatically come to a stop using my left leg for support.

The narrower seat becomes a benefit for us shorties.

(no threadjack intended).

[verboten1]

I've put 20,000 miles on this beast.




Yep, it's ugly. It's plenty fast enough, it's capable enough on some easier single track with the suspension upgrades.

I have run600 mile days on the expressway, and 200 mile offroad days.

It will get you pretty much anywhere you want to go.

The KLR is the best do all there is.

The DRZ isn't great at long distances due to the seat. Geared right it seemed fine at 70, but was killing my ass

[tc.young]

the biggest question you have to answer is "are you actually looking to dual sport?"

dual sports are designed for mild offroading (at least to me) where you can go on the highway and then go off-road. if your looking for a bike to take to the mx track then don't look at dual sports, your looking for a bike with a more specific purpose. crf450x's would fit your bill perfectly, powerful, light and a mx track ripper. however riding it on the street is different, you would have to get it plated (pain in the butt) and forget riding for more than a hour on it unless you like to suffer.

basically, i believe if you want to mx then just buy a mx bike. dual sport is a compromise between offroading and being able to slab on the highway for a few hundred miles. i've taken my KLR on multi-day trips that include both. too bad all dual sports are only alright at both.

[Dark]

an SM is much more practical and fun (IMHO). Throw some dual sport tires on it for some groomed trail riding.

I had a WR250X (turbo) and an Aprilia SXV 550. The Aprilia is the boss when it comes to all out hooliganism and power, it has been my most enjoyable motorcycle.

[thurt88]

I thought I found the bike that fit my needs, so I went to the husqvarna dealer to check out the te310. If I sumoed it, it would be perfect. Could swap wheels and tires and it would be better than my abilities on mx track. Only reason I care is that there is an open practice track not even 5 mins from my house.


Anyways, dealer wanted a 700 boot plus my zx10 for a new 2013 te310. The money is a deal breaker for me as I wanted an even swap. I'll keep looking but in the meantime there is a kit that makes the crf250l somewhat mx'able.

[massacremasses]

KTM 690.

or 990

DRZ400 is not good at highway speeds. I hated riding it on the highway. You need a 690 for both. Id get a 690 SMC but the 690 enduros are nice too.

[thurt88]

Ended up getting a '14 crf250l.

Love it love it love it. Suspension is really soft but it's fixable.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by massacremasses

DRZ400 is not good at highway speeds. I hated riding it on the highway. You need a 690 for both. Id get a 690 SMC but the 690 enduros are nice too.

My dad and I always go on rides. He has a DRZ400 and me, my Ninja. He loves taking it on the highway, but I guess it's mainly a preference thing.

[massacremasses]

Originally Posted by Mocha Man

My dad and I always go on rides. He has a DRZ400 and me, my Ninja. He loves taking it on the highway, but I guess it's mainly a preference thing.

does he like going 55? anything over 60 is uncomfortable and it gets buzzy.

I have a hard time keeping it under 80 now... and by 80 I mean 100...

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by massacremasses

does he like going 55? anything over 60 is uncomfortable and it gets buzzy.

I have a hard time keeping it under 80 now... and by 80 I mean 100...

I wish he liked going 55. He tends to go around 70 or 75 on straightaways, which tends to push the Ninja to its limits. He may like going that fast because he's been riding dirt bikes his whole life though.

[choneofakind]

Originally Posted by Mocha Man

He tends to go around 70 or 75 on straightaways, which tends to push the Ninja to its limits.

75 is the limit of your ninjette? Time to clean and rejet those carbs. Sheesh.

[Mocha Man]

Originally Posted by choneofakind

75 is the limit of your ninjette? Time to clean and rejet those carbs. Sheesh.

I got it up to 80 on its first ride, but that was running off of only one spark plug. The guy I bought it from had no idea how to take care of it and it was running the Champion plugs. I'm dure I could get it up higher now, but just haven't really had the chance too. I'll make sure to update when I do