Suddenly...
 

... there's nowhere I can't go.

Why didn't I buy a dual-sport YEARS ago?

I've been riding forest roads and single track almost every day this week, but finally managed to take a few photos today. Would have taken more, but I didn't want to stop riding. I'm neglecting chores at home because I'm becoming an addict.

Not quite ready for primetime: this mud hole was about forty feet long and of unknown depth. No thanks.

Views from the top of Horn Mountain. Entrance to the peak blocked by boulders? No problem...

This water crossing was a little deeper than expected. Almost biffed it in the very middle when I fell into a hole up to my knees. She's the little Yamaha that could, however...

A meeting of machines.

Awesome pics man. Exactly why I bought mine. I'm a mountain biker at heart, so a DS just makes sense.

shit is fun ain't it!

And, there's another! Great pics!!

Sweet! I'm headed there eventually

You won't regret it. I'm almost as fast through paved corners on this as I was my sportbikes, and I can go virtually anywhere. Boulders? Fallen trees? Mud pits? No longer barriers, but merely obstacles. I've lived here six years now, and it feels like I get to explore the place all over again.

awesome pics

Truth. I'm actually more comfortable on my DS in paved corners, even on knobbies, than I ever was on a sportbike.

I was full throttle into the wind today at a whopping 90 mph. My ZX-10R would do that in 1st gear. Do I miss the power? Not for a second.

Nice pics, but that bike looks waaaaay too clean. :D

I feel the same way about comfort in corners on a ds vs sportbike, but I totally miss the HP. I think it has to do with the body position and wide handlebars. I feel pretty damn comfortable on the FZ1 too.

If you are more comfortable in paved corners with knobbies, you were doing something wrong on the sportbike. LOL!

Not knobbies, 80/20 street tires.

Edit: you were probably referring to their earlier comment not mine

Eh, I do miss the horsepower, which is why I'll probably keep the SV1000S in addition to the WR. Off-road and in the tighter twisties the WR is fine, but you have to plan well in advance if you intend to overtake another vehicle anywhere above 50 mph...

First off, I was never terribly fast aboard a sportbike to begin with, and second, I said almost. The tight hairpins climbing the previously pictured Horn Mountain, for example? The WR flies. Light weight, wide bars, and I'm way more comfortable kicking out its ass end than that of a 450+ pound sportbike. If this was the X version with street tires, I'd outrun myself aboard the SV for sure.

Fast sweepers that get the Yamaha's long-travel suspension wallowing like a two-wheeled water bed, however? Definitely faster and more confident aboard the sportbike.

Well if ur slow...then sure. redflip

Nice pics...that is beautiful country over there....

Couldn't deal with a DS for highway trips of more than 30 min

I can't touch what I could do on a sportbike in the corners on my DRZ... but I will say that I enjoyed riding it 100x as much.

I could ride decently through the twisties on 70/30 tires... however they didn't last long and were literally tearing apart because of the speed. Though I didn't set any land speed records, I did impress myself with how I could at least keep the sportbikes in the same zip code during the rally last year.

also learned that I have to carry a lot of speed through the corners as there is shit for acceleration out... lol

Looks like a ton of fun man, love the pics.

Some dunlop D606 tires on that bad boy will make a world of difference in the loose/soft stuff compared to the stockers.

http://i55.tinypic.com/bfkp2.jpg

I've heard good things about the D606s. I don't think they come in my size, though. I've been using Pirelli MT21s with good success.

What size are you running?

606's come in 17 and 18.

90/90x21
140/80x18

the 140 may be the problem... cause my DRZ has 90/90x21 and 120/80x18 on it right now

also try the TKC's.... they're what the bigger bikes use for knobbies(KLR,GS1200's ect) they'll probably last forever on a bike as light as yours... I'd throw a D606 on the front


also there were a set of mich's that a buddy used at the last rally I went to, worked awesome, I'll find out exactly what they were and let ya know. course he had them on a DRZ too

Those TKCs cost a fortune! More than double the cost of the MT21s.

The biggest size I see for the D606 is 130/90x18 for the rear.

I have a stack of MT21s in the garage that should get me through most of the season. I'll look into the mileage on the TKCs and see if the longevity makes up for the price.

At my skill/experience level, the stockers feel fine. I'm not having any traction issues off-road and they grip good enough on the pavement. I've put about 1,000 miles on them and they don't show any noticeable signs of wear. I don't know what kind of longevity to expect from dual-sport tires.

I'll burn these up before I try something new.

to be honest it's just the opposite.

the bike handles much better off road with knobbies... it's a lot harder to maneuver on stockers... you may not think you're having any issues, but throw a set of knobbies on and you'll see how the bike is SUPPOSED to handle off road. I guarantee you, do that and switch back to stockers... and you'll see the difference we're talking about.

Depends on what he is doing. You don't really need knobbies unless you are playing in some hardcore stuff. Hell there is people that play on the forest service roads on pilot powers around here that will beat the shit out of most people on knobbies.

There's nothing wrong with wearing out the stockers first. I did, but only because I put lots of miles on my bikes and go through a lot of tires. I figured there was no sense throwing out new tires when they'd be worn out soon enough anyway.

The stock rear wore out on me really quick. Like bald at 2,600 miles kind of quick. The front still looked darn near new, but since I was changing tires I changed them both. I still have my *almost new* stock front tire hanging in my garage as a matter of fact.

The reason I didn't wait for the front to wear completely down is because in the loose stuff, the stock front tire is you enemy. You can trudge through a lot of nasty stuff with the stock rear, but the front will want to slip out from under you every chance it gets. That doesn't happen with a knobbie on the front.

that speaks to their talent... not saying they're needed... just saying that Knobbies don't require extra talent to be used... in actuality to ride off road with street tires even on dirt roads or gravel is HARDER on street tires than knobbies...

yeah, but if he is fine with riding it, he will learn to control his bike better and not waste money on ditching a pair of tires early. Win win

5,000 miles on them and they're pretty shagged. Time for replacements and I'm tempted to buy another of the same set. They took me through everything I put in front of them and I have no complaints.

Nearly bald down the middle and I still burned a tank of gas on the trail with them today.

A year with the Yamaha now and still the most fun I've ever had on a motorcycle.

Let's talk more about the WR!

I love my TE630, but there's always this sinking feeling that I'm putting too many miles on it.

It is higher maintenance and I can live with that, but I have a feeling that these are not high mileage bikes. If I have to check valve clearances every 3000 miles, am I going to be rebuilding my engine at 30,000?

I just turned over 9100 miles on mine. That was a season and a half of riding.

The Husky sure does bring on the grins, though!

The only complaint I have about the WR is the shift action. It feels crunchier than other bikes I've owned and I hit false neutrals all the time. It's just something I've adapted to and otherwise the bike has been excellent. The suspension handles everything I throw at it, throttle response is about the best I've sampled, and while power on the street is pretty anemic, out in the woods it has taken me up and over just about everything. I conquered a hill yesterday that was easily the steepest grade I'd ever attempted, and the WR didn't break a sweat.

I will probably buy another bike in the next month or two, however. An addition to the Yamaha, not a replacement. As much as I love the WR, I want something bigger for commuting duty.

Ideally, what I want is a lightweight DS that will take thousands of miles of riding and not bat an eye.

There really isn't much available that'll do that and still be fun to ride. The TE630 was only made for one year (and as of right now, I'm worried that I'm asking too much of the engine), the DRZ400S is pretty dated and has a narrow transmission. The WR250R fits the bill, but I'm concerned about the lack of power.

Who knows, I could be worried about nothing. All I can do is keep riding it and find out.

BMW G650, Honda XR650L, Kawasaki KLR650, Suzuki DR650L.

All make more power than the WR, they're all nearly indestructible, and you already said you don't mind the frequent maintenance.

None of them will perform off-road as well as the WR or your TE630, of course.

For your area, temple, I can't see why something like a 800 adv bike may be the way to go. Its not like you have big hill climbs out there. Do you go mud bogging a lot?

What Honda needs to do is take the XR650R and modernize it. That XR line is damn close to what I want, but they've been making that same bike since when, the 80s?

G650, KLR, DR650, all too heavy for my liking.

I don't go hunting around for mud to roll around in, no. But, I don't avoid it, either.

I don't want a big heavy bike. I know that something like a KLR, 800GS, KTM990 or the like would be just fine for most of the riding I do. But, it's still not my style.

What I want doesn't always make sense. :D

What I'd like to see is more 400-600-ish, lightweight, 6 speed EFI thumpers to choose from. Right now, there are none.

I want to be able to do a 500-600 mile weekend trip and not have to wrestle a 400+ lb bike around off road.

I want to have my cake and eat it too, dammit.

Did you ever just look at bikes, and say to yourself you have the technology!?! just use that frame, with this engine, with that stuff and this stuff and you have what I really want! But alas they make what the masses want, not what you need

I know, right?

To keep it ultra simple, Suzuki just needs to update the DRZ400S. Better tranny, EFI (optional), better suspension. Do that and I'm in!

I wouldn't put the KLR in the same weight class as a 800GS. GS has 60 lbs on the KLR dry... I don't think the KLR would be that bad for what you are doing honestly. It's got pretty much what you want, except being new design.

I don't see the DRZ as ever being a reliable 500-600 mile bike ever. I know ebbs did it, but the bike is just not meant for that kind of distance. Which is why his went kaput. It's also why I sold mine. It's a crappy dirt bike and crappy dual sport. It just does everything mediocre, it doesn't really excell at anything.

I think your best hope is for Yamaha to bring over the 660 Tenere. It's heavier like the KLR, but it's not V-strom/800GS heavy. I think you would actually enjoy this one for the type of riding you want to do...

I did do a 2500+ mile trip through Colorado last year on the Husky and couldn't have asked for a better bike for it (aside from the wind blast while riding across Nebraska, that sucked). But, like I said, 2500 miles is a lot for this bike. If I had to guess, at 9100 on the odometer, I'm 1/3 of the way to rebuild time.

It's a new engine design on a bike that was only made for one year. So, right now, nobody really knows. I have one of the highest mileage TE630s on the forums. I'm kind of blazing a trail!

This would all be much simpler if I'd just go back to street riding. :D

That's why I like the bigger bikes, you can still street ride and not be lacking on power on the interstate.

I guess it's a non-issue right now. I have put too much money into modding the Husky. I have to keep it until it dies, if I want to stay married.

Who knows, maybe it'll last a good long time. If it does, then this is the bike I want, anyway.