khartung

So, I just got into riding dirt bikes a month ago, after 25 years of not riding a motorcyle, and only the Honda Trials, not a real dirt bike. I bought a CRF 250R. I love the bike, though it scares the shit out of me sometimes.

So far, I have been to 8th street, Renyolds Creek, Blacks Creek, and Pleasant Valley on the track, last Sunday. I do fine on the trails because I have experience riding them in Idaho. But....

Pleasant Valley...yeah, well, I thought that somehow riding the track would be easier and I could focus more on getting to know the bike vs. navigating techincal trails, etc...I was wrong. It kicked my ass. 5-6 laps and I was exhausted. That is the first time I have caught air, and it was nerve racking. There were some really, really good riders there literally flying off of those jumps and riding really fast. I don't know how they do it. I am not there yet, but I hope to be eventually.

I really need someone to meet me there this weekend and help me out, or at another place that has some jumps like a track but isn't an actual race track. The problem is that when I go off those jumps it the impact totally kills me when I land...my wrists especially, and like I'm going to knock my teeth out on my handle bars or something. It just feels like I am coming down like a ton of bricks. My techinque must be all wrong.

Or I started thinking about the physics of riding and wondered if taking jumps faster lessens the impact, becaues you have all that forward momentum when you land, vs. coming down hard more vertically. Maybe I'm not going fast enough? Going off those jumps reminds me of diving off the high board for the first time when I was a kid at the swimning pool. Cripes.

Plus it is nerve racking trying to learn this with these 20 and 30 something crazy MFs behind me and in front of me, riding like madmen. If I fall, I am screwed.

Any tips would be appreciated. I want to be able to totally fly off that last, long jump at Pleasant Valley before coming back to the entrance.

Cheers,

Kris

Back Of The Pack

Stop Jerking off. LOL sorry I had to Welcome BTW haven't seen you around yet. I'm sure someone will give you a real answer.

That is all.

IDAHOBALLER

The only things I will say about this is to grip the bike with your legs and try to use the core of your body and your legs to control the bike. Your hands should have a decent but relaxed grip if everything is going right. Your hands are there to run the controls not to man handle the bike around beneath you.

As for the jumping I say just ride the bike and let the air skills come to you rather than going out looking for them. Jumping is one thing that can really bite hard if you try to push yourself too hard too fast. Clearing a jump is one thing that just requires balls and the right amount of speed, clearing that same jump with confidence, control, and style is a whole different thing IMO. Forcing yourself to learn too quick is an easy way to develop bad habits that are often very difficult to stop later on. Let the speed come to you while riding within your limits. It is OK to push yourself, but you gotta know when to back off.

Also you should spend some time dialing in your suspension just for you (if you have not done so already...). It is amazing the changes in a bikes attitude that can be had with a few clicks of the clickers (assuming your springs and ride height are set up correct for you).

khartung

Thanks. In terms of jumps, is there a location within 60 miles of Boise that would be a good and relatively safe (not narrow trails with rocks) jumping practice area? I mean, rather than a track which has turns, jumps, and other obstacles, etc, just a straight away area with a couple of good jumps that I can run over and over again, working on my technique. It think this is one of those things where I just need to do it over and over again to experiment and build my confidence.

Kris

stubby

There are plenty of jumps south of Pleasant Valley Raceway. Will most likely be playing there on Saturday. They aren't big jumps, but plenty to help you learn control, speed and to get comfortable.

LckyTylr

That's where I first caught air. Have Liteone, Whitedevil, Stubby, and Waldo go out there with you. Those guys coached me for my first jumping experience. At first I thought anyone who willingly left the ground on a dirtbike was suicidal, by the end of the day I was making it just up and over the top of the step-up out there south of Pleasant Valley. It was fun.

khartung

Ah, this is funny. So I gather there are a lot of other places around Pleasant Valley besides the track with some good jumps for practice.

Anyone plan on going this Sunday? I will be there.

Kris

stubby

Will be there on Saturday, not sure about Sunday as I need to work and get then get the race bike ready for racing next weekend. Also Saturday will be the cooler day, and it might rain which will make it even better.

Ryan@IdahoSportBikes

The first thing that came to mind when you said landing had a lot of impact was that the issue is you're going over jumps and landing on flat ground. Would that be a correct assumption? Landing is soft when you land on the down side of a jump & with some speed.

I would try to find small jumps with real landings. Something you can do in 2nd gear while you learn. There are a few jumps coming to mind at OMC. I can't remember the jumps at PV's track.

theduckllr

And sometimes you have to bite the bullet, like I did, and realize this is a young mans sport that no matter how much fun it is, at the end of the day, your bike only wants to kill you. Getting old sucks.

khartung

I hear you. I am 42 years old and a late bloomer. I have a bad back and had surgury a few years ago, but I now go to the gym and do cardio and workout 5 days a week. I am in better shape than when I was in my 20s, with exception of a back that acts up on my every 2 months if I don't stretch.

After Pleasant Valley last Sunday, my upper body fealt more sore than any upper body workout at the gym...amazing.

Kris

Waldo

Check your suspension settings, body position then technique

khartung

Yeah, I'm going to do that. The guy who I bought the bike from was about my weight and races, but it feels awefully stiff to me.
Kris

Liteone

if he raced on a moto track, then it might be safe to assume it's set up for landings from a heigth ur not reaching yet. It's not hard to fix. gotta check the stroke of the forks to see how much travel ur using.

khartung

The last time to the track went much better. No wrist problems. I paid more attention to how I was approaching the jumps, but also rode faster, which made a huge difference..but added more risk. I had a few bad falls.

At this point, I just need to gradually ride faster based on my comfort level and ability to control the bike. There is a lot of multi-tasking involved that I have not figured out yet.

But all in all, after only four times on a dirt bike, in my entire life, I feel good about where I am now. I just need to ride more...A LOT.

Kris

IDAHOBALLER

Now this is a statement that I think all of us dirtbikers would agree on! I somehow feel that even if I was riding every day it wouldnt be enough to elevate my skills to a point that I would be happy with.

It looks like I am going to have to tear my YZ300 top end apart and figure out why it is detonating/surging with the throttle closed and is puking coolant but doesnt overheat and runs great. hmmm.... Oh well, it is time to do a thorough ring, bore, and powervalve inspection anyways...

whitedevil

Sorry, I would be of no help, I don't jump dirt bikes, it scares me just riding them...

Post up some days and times and there are plenty of places to meet up for some good ole fashion dirty fun!

As for the age thing, I recently had someone tell me you are never too old to live your dreams, they just may kill you. LOL

khartung

"As for the age thing, I recently had someone tell me you are never too old to live your dreams, they just may kill you. LOL"

Now that is funny. I love it. My friends are telling m that I'm going through a mid life crisis...I told them they are crazy. Riding a dirt bike, getting a tattoo, etc...these are all things I wanted to do earlier but never got around to to it.

Now I am seriously thinking of driving to California in Jan or Feb to attend a 6 hour motocross class so I can figure this sh*t out.

But I do really enjoy the trails. I have been loving 8th street lately. About a half a mile past where the road forks at the top fo the ridge, there is this small detour on the left - a nasty little hill with a sharp turn at the top - that goes up up and exits at the main dirt road. That SOB has been getting me everytime, and I dump it at the top invariably, losing control. I finally made it last weekend. I just kept on going up it over and over again, until I got it. The problem I am having on these really steep hills is that in order to keep the bike from lugging, I have to go fast, which makes it difficult for me to control it. I try feathuring the clutch a bit, which helps. Do you just have to take these things like a bat out of hell and get used to blasting through them fast? Next time, I will take a picture of the trail I'm talking about.

Kris

IDAHOBALLER

Usually the more speed you can get before you hit the hill the better because it allows you to bleed off some speed as needed for mid hill corrrections/obstacles. Momentum is your friend, especially if the surface is one that doesnt provide very good traction. You can always slow down on the way up the hill but it is usually way hard to speed up. It is the opposite for going down hill. Start slow and you can stay pretty slow, start fast and you go fast all the way to the bottom.