sr 500?? nklr

[Lynn Monsanto]

Hi all, I've owned my KLR650 for about 6 months (~3500 miles) and am really happy with it. It does really well on the twisties and pretty good on dirt/gravel roads. The "pretty good" is mainly because the only driving I've done on dirt roads is in old pickup trucks so I'm still low on the learning curve. At any rate, I took the MSF Dirt Bike school yesterday with mixed success. All the other riders had small bikes. Except for my KLR, the largest was a 125cc Honda. Needless to say, they could all make slower and tighter turns around the orange cones than I could. I know about using the clutch when going show but I found myself lugging the engine (a lot) pulling out of tight turns. I also ate it once making a u-turn up hill when I stalled the engine. I got better when I learned to stand up and keep the momentum up but the bike was still really a handfull at low speeds. How do you experienced riders do on your KLRs when you are riding with others on their small (125 - 250cc) bikes? The MSF instructor kept stating that we need to know the limits of ourselves and our bikes. Assuming an expert dirt rider, what do you see as the reasonable limits of this bike? BTW, the MSF class was really good if you don't mind the instructor and students (nicely!) shaking their heads about your big, heavy bike. Best regards, Lynn Monsanto San Francisco, CA

[Jim]

Think it's much more about the riders limits than the motorcycle... I've seen people ride street bikes through stuff I'd be hesitant to take my KLR over. I grew up riding 125's and 250's and am re-learning a lot of things on the KLR. As you yourself said - it's a big heavy bike and you have to remember that when getting ready to do something stupid I find I need to keep on the gas much more and power through stuff vs. doing something more agile on a lighter bike. I think gearing also plays a big part in some of this - I find the KLR to be geared a bit too high offroad, I'm sure a sproket swap would help - just depends on where you are going to do the majority of your riding street vs. offroad. jim

On Wednesday, September 18, 2002, Lynn wrote: LM> if you don't mind the instructor and students (nicely!) shaking their LM> heads about your big, heavy bike.

[david gay]

As an experience (old) rider, I find when I chase small bikes around, I tend to fall down a lot. Actually, don't feel bad about it. I live in an area that dotted with abandoned lead and zinc mines, so I had a great time learning to ride on dirt bikes. If your inexperienced, a big bike like a KLR can be a handful. But it sounds like your doing things you should like taking classes, so just hang in there. Learning to use the throttle to steer helps in the slow off-road stuff, but it takes time. I'm a firm believer that those with dirt riding experience make much better street riders, or at least it advances their learning curve. The last dirt bike I owned was a 1979 RM-125 in 1979, and the last big dual purpose was a new 1978 SP-370, so compared to those memories, the KLR fels like a GP bike to me. As for finding my limits, I find that gravity helps me find those when I least expect it. Dave Lynn Monsanto wrote:Hi all, I've owned my KLR650 for about 6 months (~3500 miles) and am really happy with it. It does really well on the twisties and pretty good on dirt/gravel roads. The "pretty good" is mainly because the only driving I've done on dirt roads is in old pickup trucks so I'm still low on the learning curve. At any rate, I took the MSF Dirt Bike school yesterday with mixed success. All the other riders had small bikes. Except for my KLR, the largest was a 125cc Honda. Needless to say, they could all make slower and tighter turns around the orange cones than I could. I know about using the clutch when going show but I found myself lugging the engine (a lot) pulling out of tight turns. I also ate it once making a u-turn up hill when I stalled the engine. I got better when I learned to stand up and keep the momentum up but the bike was still really a handfull at low speeds. How do you experienced riders do on your KLRs when you are riding with others on their small (125 - 250cc) bikes? The MSF instructor kept stating that we need to know the limits of ourselves and our bikes. Assuming an expert dirt rider, what do you see as the reasonable limits of this bike? BTW, the MSF class was really good if you don't mind the instructor and students (nicely!) shaking their heads about your big, heavy bike. Best regards, Lynn Monsanto San Francisco, CA Checkout Dual Sport News at http://www.dualsportnews.com List FAQ courtesy of Chris Krok at: http://www.bigcee.com/klr650faq.html Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! News - Today's headlines [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[quickthe]

Lynn, I've been riding since 1966 and currently own six bikes. Interestingly enough I own a 2001 KLR250 and a 2002 KLR650. The KLR250 is well suited for the tightest off road/trail situations (Peter's Mill/Taskers Gap Virginia). The KLR250 doesn't rip through like a motocrosser, but moves more elegantly (yea slower) like a trials bike. I can and will take the KLR250 anywhere, if/when I get stuck I can man handle it out of trouble. The 250 is a six speed, first gear is low like a granny gear, a true asset. Sixth gear will cruise smoothly up to 60/65, I've cruised at 75 mph on I81 so that I'm not run over, but the handlebars are a'buzzin. As soon as I got on the KLR650 it was obvious that first gear is very tall, too tall for the tight stuff. However, the height and weight of the KLR650 make it less than ideal for the tight stuff anyway. Where the KLR650 really shines is on the gravel/dirt fire roads. It'll rip through fire roads feeling light and well balanced. The 650 also does very well on the paved mountain roads, yea the tighter switchbacks require clutch slipping in first, but the available torque makes it easy to negotiate, even two up. Oh yea, on the interstate the 650 will easily run 80 mph two up. The key is the right bike for the right situation, I'll never take the 650 into the tight stuff, the last thing I want to do is wrestle with the 650 stuck in soft stuff on a mountain cliff. I really like both bikes but I really wish that Kawasaki gave the 650 a sixth gear......first would be lower and sixth an overdrive. thequick

[Jim]

q> Kawasaki gave the 650 a sixth gear......first would be lower and q> sixth an overdrive. Hallelujah! I always think that - in the dirt I'm always hoping I'm in second (I'm not) and on the highway I'm always looking for another gear! jim

[Bogdan Swider]

> ---------- > I know about using the clutch when going show but I found > myself lugging the engine (a lot) pulling out of tight turns. I > also ate it once making a u-turn up hill when I stalled the engine. > I got better when I learned to stand up and keep the momentum up but > the bike was still really a handfull at low speeds. >

Hi Lynn, Jim mentioned a lower gear. I agree; I bet the problems you had would have been mitigated by a 14 tooth front sprocket. Bogdan, who sure is happy he had the lower first gear from the klr600 installed when the bike was apart

[bkowalca]

Here is my story when it comes the the big green beast. I used to ride off-road, my last dirt bike was a 1982 RM250, in 1986. I decided after 10 years of no riding, street or dirt, that the KLR would be a good bike to commute with and do the ocasional dirt road with. I used to love riding the small light 2-strokes through some crazy places and I figured the KLR was way to big and heavy for such things. My first experiences with the KLR in the dirt where scary. I still had the 2 stroke trail bike mentality when I went blasting through some field or up a hill. I quickly realized that I had to re-learn how to ride in the dirt. The approach to riding a big four stroke is very different than a small 2 stroke bike. After a season of some serious off-road stuff, I can now safely say that the KLR is very capable in tight trails. No, you are not going to keep up with some guy on a KTM exec, but you can stay pretty close to a more conservative DRZ400 rider. The key to riding in the tight stuff is to ride fast enough. This is very much like down-hill skiing, where is it actually harder to go slower. The stock gearing in first is just about right for single track. Most riders are in second while you are motoring in first. If are slipping the clutch alot, you are riding to slow. Use the huge torque of the engine to slow you down, and power you up hills. One rider who was behind me in the woods, commented on how I never used the brakes. Thats the big single working for you, huge engine braking. Another tip, don't ride with a full tank off gas. I makes a huge difference on the response of the bike especially in the whoops. We don't need any extra weight. You might want to drop the front gearing on very rocky trails or water crossings. The problem is that the suspension quickly gets out of shape if you hit some rocks at the stock gearing speed. Bryan K A14

--- In DSN_klr650@y..., Lynn Monsanto wrote: > Hi all, > > I've owned my KLR650 for about 6 months (~3500 miles) and am really > happy with it. It does really well on the twisties and pretty good > on dirt/gravel roads. The "pretty good" is mainly because the only > driving I've done on dirt roads is in old pickup trucks so I'm still > low on the learning curve. > > At any rate, I took the MSF Dirt Bike school yesterday with mixed > success. All the other riders had small bikes. Except for my > KLR, the largest was a 125cc Honda. Needless to say, they could > all make slower and tighter turns around the orange cones than I > could. I know about using the clutch when going show but I found > myself lugging the engine (a lot) pulling out of tight turns. I > also ate it once making a u-turn up hill when I stalled the engine. > I got better when I learned to stand up and keep the momentum up but > the bike was still really a handfull at low speeds. > > How do you experienced riders do on your KLRs when you are riding > with others on their small (125 - 250cc) bikes? The MSF instructor > kept stating that we need to know the limits of ourselves and our > bikes. Assuming an expert dirt rider, what do you see as the > reasonable limits of this bike? BTW, the MSF class was really good > if you don't mind the instructor and students (nicely!) shaking their > heads about your big, heavy bike. > > Best regards, > Lynn Monsanto > San Francisco, CA

[Devon Jarvis]

The bike will always be a bit of a handful at low speeds. A half tank of gas helps, better tires REALLY help. Even the stock tires work a lot better if you lower the air pressures. The trick is setting it up so you can drop it repeatedly without inflicting anything more than some scratches. This helps your confidence, if you're not so afraid of dropping it then you'll ride a little more agressively (and then not fall as much). The trick is not to ride at low speeds. There's usually a speed, depending on terrain, where the bikes works a lot better, but you're still not going fast enough to overwhelm the suspension. A KLR can go nearly anywhere a DRZ or other more dirt-oriented dual/sport can go, just slower. Rider experience is the most important factor. Keep riding offroad, and try to ride somewhere challenging. It's especially important not to ride trails alone with the KLR, since if you get stuck it often takes more than one person to muscle it out. I got a KLR after 12 years of street-only riding. Getting accustomed to sliding around was the most difficult part, but it has made me a much better street rider. Keep at it. Devon A15 Lynn Monsanto wrote:

> > Hi all, > > I've owned my KLR650 for about 6 months (~3500 miles) and am really > happy with it. It does really well on the twisties and pretty good > on dirt/gravel roads. The "pretty good" is mainly because the only > driving I've done on dirt roads is in old pickup trucks so I'm still > low on the learning curve. > > At any rate, I took the MSF Dirt Bike school yesterday with mixed > success. All the other riders had small bikes. Except for my > KLR, the largest was a 125cc Honda. Needless to say, they could > all make slower and tighter turns around the orange cones than I > could. I know about using the clutch when going show but I found > myself lugging the engine (a lot) pulling out of tight turns. I > also ate it once making a u-turn up hill when I stalled the engine. > I got better when I learned to stand up and keep the momentum up but > the bike was still really a handfull at low speeds. > > How do you experienced riders do on your KLRs when you are riding > with others on their small (125 - 250cc) bikes? The MSF instructor > kept stating that we need to know the limits of ourselves and our > bikes. Assuming an expert dirt rider, what do you see as the > reasonable limits of this bike? BTW, the MSF class was really good > if you don't mind the instructor and students (nicely!) shaking their > heads about your big, heavy bike. > > Best regards, > Lynn Monsanto > San Francisco, CA >

[Lynn Monsanto]

Devon Jarvis wrote:

> The trick is setting it up so you > can drop it repeatedly without inflicting anything more than some > scratches. This helps your confidence, if you're not so afraid of > dropping it then you'll ride a little more agressively (and then not > fall as much).

Good point. I had (empty) Givi bags on the back, PD Nerfs on the front and Acerbis hand guards. I took quite a tumble with my bike sliding behind me down hill. The bike and I were covered with dirt but it only had cosmetic damage on the bags and hand guards. The trade off is the extra weigh of the protective gear doesn't really help the handling. The trade off was OK with me since I wasn't bummed about my bike being damaged. I took a much less serious fall on my old BMW 1100RS and it cost me over $1500 to fix. Lynn

[Dave Morrow]

In my experience the KLR will go (almost) anywhere the smaller bikes will go. You will just be slower and work harder to get there. I grew up on dirt bikes as well but many years ago. The last one I owned was a '73 Husky WR 450. Those old monsters were heavier and had much less suspension than modern dirt bikes (although a gob more power than a KLR). For me the KLR with a few mods isn't that much harder to ride in the dirt than that bike was. If you're a fairly large person muscling the KLR around is not too bad. I find most of the limitations are my own these days, not the bike's. -- Dave Morrow IS Manager R.E.Warner & Associates Westlake, Ohio 440-835-9400