Which bike?

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f0zzy
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Which bike?

Post by f0zzy »

Hello!

I’m dithering over what bike to get for my first dip into the world of lanes and trail riding. Given it will be fairly tame and I’ll likely wuss out of waist deep ruts and rivers, would a WR250 or CRF250L be suited? Or if I could find one for the right price an EXCF350 would be perfect.

I also like the idea of some mild adventure rides GWT or TET next year if we’re ever allowed out of the country again.

Thoughts and tips from those in the know appreciated.

Ta.

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Jug
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Jug »

Yeh.. they'll do it. The WR250 could be the F or the R, though the R might be more useful for TET type trips and has more power than the CRF250L.
EXCF would be fine lane weapon but I wouldn't want do TET trip mileage on one, but you could.

KLX250S might be worth concidering also, I guess it depends what is available really.

I use my DRZ400E for trail riding & camping trips (in the UK). I've ridden it to France for a trail riding and camping holiday and also did a Croatia trip on it, though that time I did take it as far as the Austria/Slovenia boarder via van as that's some serious mileage otherwise.
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Tractorwackyracer
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Tractorwackyracer »

I have a drz for sale 😀👌
I also have a 350 excf for Laning people do use them for longer trips but they can be hard work
All of those bikes will do pretty much everything Honda and Yamaha Japanese reliability did think about a crf rally myself for a do it all
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Dan_RR
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Dan_RR »

I have a little ktm excf 250 great little bike for laning if keeping local-ish otherwise its chuck it in a van/on a trailer to go further afield as personally don't like riding it on the road more than 10/15 miles or so, might be because I've always had road bikes in the past but with spud tyres and 20 odd hp from a small cc trail bike its pretty dull and shaky on the road.... Something to consider if you won't be doing too much hardcore riding and possibly some road miles on it.

Plus remember with the enduro style bikes they are made to be lightweight but are not built for comfort as such, ktm's have hard-ish seats and your looking at 70/80 miles to a tank max, they have short service intervals too as only hold small amounts of oil so if doing a lot of miles on the road in between a drz or similar would be much better choice imo.

Maybe even a Yamahe Tenere or Triumph Tiger would be well suited?

Good luck, if you want to try mine and can meet us at a muddy ride or something your more than welcome to have a quick spin on it.

P.s Mark where is the advert for your drz, you keeping that yellow one you bid on?
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f0zzy
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Re: Which bike?

Post by f0zzy »

Thank you Dan, that’s really insightful, wouldn’t get that from mag reviews.

Maybe it’s WR for lanes and something else for longer rides. I don’t have the space for a van for transportation of said bike, so it may have to be a trailer for rides further afield.

A CRF450L seems to be the ideal size and has the right blend of service interval and ability. But they are way outside my budget.

Lots of people seem to use CRF250L’s for lanes and longer rides but I’m with you, the idea of buzzing along for long distances on a 250 single fills me with dread.
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billinom8s
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Re: Which bike?

Post by billinom8s »

I've got a Wr250f for lanes and playing in the fields etc.

Great Bike, goes well, handles nicely too.

I went for the 250 as not interested in doing tons of miles, in a day we probably do 80 miles on average and for that you don't want anything too big as it's knackering picking it up all the time.
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Tractorwackyracer »

Yellow drz will be advertised next week
I have known several people ride crf 250 very long distances from the uk to Morocco in fact Dave h on this forum did that a guy on you tube Wiltshire byways rides his everywhere
The 450l service intervals aren’t very good for very long distances
I have also seen people ride from UK to Spain and Portugal on drz400
I will be turning my drz into a everything bike it’s simple and bulletproof cheap spares
As long as you don’t mind doing 50/60 mph any single should be fine as long as you look after it
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DaveH
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Re: Which bike?

Post by DaveH »

Just today I was getting my CRF250 Rally ready for some green laning this winter, and indeed a couple of years ago I did ride it all the way to the Sahara to go camping ....
99F98E52-83F4-49A7-9C52-5EB3FB016BCA.jpeg
It’ll do a steady 65-70 on the flat (not so much up hill!) and was comfy enough with a sheepskin seat cover :-)
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Ruffian »

DaveH wrote: Sep 5th, '20, 20:58 Just today I was getting my CRF250 Rally ready for some green laning this winter, and indeed a couple of years ago I did ride it all the way to the Sahara to go camping ....

99F98E52-83F4-49A7-9C52-5EB3FB016BCA.jpeg

It’ll do a steady 65-70 on the flat (not so much up hill!) and was comfy enough with a sheepskin seat cover :-)
That looks amazing.
Slightly jealous.
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f0zzy
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Re: Which bike?

Post by f0zzy »

There seems to be quite a number of CRF250L’s available, could be a good option, for a first green laner.

Thanks for the input guys.
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f0zzy
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Re: Which bike?

Post by f0zzy »

I picked up a 63 plate CRF250L yesterday. Yoshi exhaust, ignition mapper and a few other extras. So now all I need is somewhere to ride it :)

Knowing my luck we’ll be back in lockdown in a few weeks.. 😬
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billinom8s
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Re: Which bike?

Post by billinom8s »

At least the lanes will be quiet then.
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Re: Which bike?

Post by Dan_RR »

f0zzy wrote: Sep 12th, '20, 15:27 I picked up a 63 plate CRF250L yesterday. Yoshi exhaust, ignition mapper and a few other extras. So now all I need is somewhere to ride it :)

Knowing my luck we’ll be back in lockdown in a few weeks.. 😬
Good on ya, should have lots of fun with a crf :-bd

There's a CORE event on weekend after this one which is an enduro style day around a farm, never been to one but looks fun. Can get more details if your interested.
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jer r1
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Re: Which bike?

Post by jer r1 »

Track n trail do good ones, like a 5 hour open pitlane so just ride as much or little as you like. Tend to be more Dorchester area . Well organised.
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