Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II?

Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II/Have you Dumped a street bike??

Rider Experience:
OK - New season with some questions. Have you dumped a street bike? Pick a pole that matches your situation. Not counting driveway tip overs where your foot slipped.
As for me, I started in the dirt, am on my 3rd season and we haven't Kissed the ground yet. Admittedly, there were some close calls at stall speed, but nothing to report!

Ambition for the Poll came from SweaterDude! >> http://www.600riders.com/forum/trac...011-who-started-their-riding-career-dirt.html
Poll will close in 180 days ~ October 2013.

Re: Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II/Have you Dumped it??

Not sure how to answer this. I started riding dirt bikes when I was 9 and street bikes when I was 16.

Crashing on a dirt bike is just part of dirt biking. I'm pretty sure most dirt riders go down and don't really think much of it.

As far as street bikes, been riding for 34 years and went down twice both times doing stupid stunts.

Re: Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II, have you dumped a Street Bike??

^^ hopefully clarified it.

Agreed - Dirt bikes will go down! What I wish to know is does the Dirt skills bring something to the table like increasing up-time after transition to the street.

Re: Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II, have you dumped a Street Bike??

For me I'm sure dirt helped. Dirt riding is always changing, you encounter different traction, unexpected turns and all kinds of obstacles pretty much every minute you"re up. This makes you more relaxed and aware. Of course if I started on street bikes I may have a different view.

Started on mini bikes at 12, first enduro, a 1969 Yamaha AT1 125cc (POS). Dirt bikes and sanctioned MX riding (125's and 250cc, all Yamaha's) up on Long Island NY (Bridgehampton) until I was 18. Lots of trail riding in upstate NY, Ohio, and out on the Island.

Dirt bike riding was a definite help learning to ride (and wrench!).

First street crash was on my 1975 RD350, 9-30-77, 19 years old. An old man pulled a left in front me (I had the right of way). Just about died, broken right femur in 2 places (about an inch shorter now), broken jaw in 4 places, busted teeth, dislocated shoulder, in and out of coiscious from that Friday (coming home from college), lost all memory up until the following Wednesday.. Surgery was the following Friday for everything... That year sucked.

Back to dirt bike riding YZ250 for awhile until 1982 when I got back on the street Yamaha XS 650 twin. Many a street bike since then...

Re: Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II/Have you Dumped a street bike??

FinalImpact said:

Rider Experience:
OK - New season with some questions. Have you dumped a street bike? Pick a pole that matches your situation. Not counting driveway tip overs where your foot slipped.
As for me, I started in the dirt, am on my 3rd season and we haven't Kissed the ground yet. Admittedly, there were some close calls at stall speed, but nothing to report!

Ambition for the Poll came from SweaterDude! >> http://www.600riders.com/forum/trac...011-who-started-their-riding-career-dirt.html
Poll will close in 180 days ~ October 2013.

Click to expand...

OK, well i started in the dirt and played around for 8ish years before switching over. As ive mentioned before, the FZ is my first street bike, and im going on 3 years now, without incident. (we need a knock on wood smilie) FTR i need to get some sliders just in case.

*credit FinalImpact for the topic, in the first place...
And the poll is nice too.

Rode a quad and 3 wheeler in the dirt but never a motorcycle. So I answered no dirt experience. I crashed 2 street bikes within 2 months of starting riding.

I've knocked out 5500 miles in 3 months since the last one and just rode the "Snake" today without winding up in a rnickeymouse video.

The record for number of downs on a street bike I met today. The guy crashed 8 times on street bikes and is still riding the canyons. FTW (for the win)

I started on dirt at 7 years old. Continued on dirt till 16 years old when I got a road bike. I crashed on an icy hills corner at night within the first 6 months...but my bike was the same age as me and I didn't know the tyres needed air in them! I'm 41 now, I've had 25+ bikes (still have 4) and I've crashed a dozen times on the road, but never on the track! :thumbup:

I just posted in PosterFZ6's thread, but my dirt experience consisted of my 97 yz250. I owned it half way thru 97 until 2002. I pretty much went from riding my friends kx250 to owning and eventually entering local races on my yz. Three years ago, I bought my fz....much of what I learned on that yz, I feel carried over to the street and has saved my butt a few times:thumbup:

Friendly bump. . . . please Vote!!!

I'm none of those options. I started riding last year and have not dropped it yet. *Knocks on wood*

Re: Who Started Their Riding Career in the Dirt II, have you dumped a Street Bike??

FinalImpact said:

^^ hopefully clarified it.

Agreed - Dirt bikes will go down! What I wish to know is does the Dirt skills bring something to the table like increasing up-time after transition to the street.

Click to expand...

I started in the dirt and the way I looked at it was if you didn't crash you weren't going fast enough! Have toned it done immensely since switching to the street. Don't wanna go down on pavement - ouch! I think riding dirt helps immensely when transitioning to the street, both in tight turns and shifting - up and down. If you can learn throttle and clutch control while shifting up and down on the fly your a step ahead when going to the street.

Started at ~6yo on my dads 1979 honda z50. Rode the hell out of that (still do up and down the street on occasion), and dirtbikes once in a while. Crashed on dirt countless times. Been riding on street for 4 years now and have yet to take a spill.

had one drop and that was bad weather (sleet) on my way home from work, on a corner and the back went was only tootling about 20mph but that is luckily all my experiance apart from that into my 3rd year

Started on dirt when I was 13 and only rode for one summer (not my bike). Didn't start street riding until I was in my late 20's. In my limited experience of dirt riding, the only time dirt riding helps you on the street is if you lose traction or go off the road where dirt riding knowledge would help you stay up.

I have been down once in my 7 years of street riding. Happened in the second season after an 8 hour riding day when my senses were less sharp and hit some gravel while making a left turn at a stop light.

Rode my whole childhood/adolescence on dirt/mud. Yamaha Enduro. I couldn't vote in the poll though because I have only been riding on the road since June.

I did take my FZ6 off-roading though. My buddy's dad was selling his property which we have recreated on our whole lives and I wanted to get one last ride in. My old enduro is in disrepair, so the FZ6 was my only option. It was a lot of fun getting sideways through the grass and gravel. My friend watched me the whole time thinking I was going to lay it down but those skills apparently stayed with me.

I don't know how that transfers to the street other than in bad conditions. I did slide my front tire during my road test because some jackwagon was mowing his lawn into the road and covered it in wet grass. I was able to ride out of it without much drama.

Ragnar said:

Rode my whole childhood/adolescence on dirt/mud. Yamaha Enduro. I couldn't vote in the poll though because I have only been riding on the road since June.

I did take my FZ6 off-roading though. My buddy's dad was selling his property which we have recreated on our whole lives and I wanted to get one last ride in. My old enduro is in disrepair, so the FZ6 was my only option. It was a lot of fun getting sideways through the grass and gravel. My friend watched me the whole time thinking I was going to lay it down but those skills apparently stayed with me.

I don't know how that transfers to the street other than in bad conditions. I did slide my front tire during my road test because some jackwagon was mowing his lawn into the road and covered it in wet grass. I was able to ride out of it without much drama.

Click to expand...

its not just in the bad conditions where it helps. its really the ability to stay calm in the absence of traction.

you know what to do when:
the rear steps out
the front end washes a little
the front wheel lifts up
you hit a bump mid turn
you grab a little too much rear brake


ive gone down gravel roads on the FZ, but never hooned around in the slippery stuff. but i still have dirtbikes at my disposal, so i dont feel the need to do so.

SweaterDude said:

its not just in the bad conditions where it helps. its really the ability to stay calm in the absence of traction.

you know what to do when:
the rear steps out
the front end washes a little
the front wheel lifts up
you hit a bump mid turn
you grab a little too much rear brake

Click to expand...

I agree with this to some extent, but.... asphalt and concrete have the keen ability to lose traction and then SUDDENLY regain it. Dirt doesn't do that. Have you ever gone into a tank slapper or high side on dirt?

FIZZER6 said:

I agree with this to some extent, but.... asphalt and concrete have the keen ability to lose traction and then SUDDENLY regain it. Dirt doesn't do that. Have you ever gone into a tank slapper or high side on dirt?

Click to expand...

yep. ruts.

also, when there isnt traction and you slow the wheel-speed by braking that is generally when the highside occurs. slowly backing off the throttle while correcting your line is more likely to save you, not to say that its foolproof...

This is an interesting poll and it is great to hear experiences from other members. I too started riding in the dirt (age 12) and I think the experience has been beneficial to street riding. It is true that you will fall when riding in the dirt, but this all part of learning how and what to do when and having fun along the way.
I did have an experience a couple of years later when I was riding in traffic on a Yamaha 250 Enduro (shod with nobbies) and had a car move over on me. Fortunately I was able hit a driveway opening and continue on the sidewalk until I got in front of the car that cut me off. It all seemed natural sort of.
Thirty years later I found myself wanting to get another motorcycle. The FZ6 has been a great bike. This is my fifth year of riding it and I have not fallen, however it did fall in my steeper driveway when I left it idling.:spank: