My next bike and learning correct moto techniques

TroppoRider
Edited Date/Time 2/11/2014 12:58pm
Hello everyone, I have a few questions and would really appreciate some advice… Apologies for the long post..

Firstly some details - 29yo, 185cm(around 6'1?) and 180lbs. Not a new rider, rode peewee's growing up on the farm and I had various 60cc & 80cc motocrossers. I never the opportunity to race growing up and once I had grown out of 80cc, unfortunately, due to my family situation I never got to step up to a 125 and ended up racing cross country mtb through my teens and early twenties. From time to time I had the chance to ride friends mx bikes, KX125, YZ250, YZ426 etc and always missed it…

Last year I picked up a 12’ YZ450F. This ended up being a poor decision for a number of reasons; didn’t research properly, I wasn't (at the time) so interested in racing - just trail riding and followed the salesmen’s advice… I don't regret it, just put it all down to experience and learn from it.

I ended up regularly attending local track practice days, at first I struggled but persevered and became really confident. I befriended a few racers and they encouraged me to enter races to gain more experience. Also commenting how surprised they were given my time away from it. I absolutely loved the moto’s and have become hooked!!!

While I did get better on it, the 450F was simply too much for me… I ended up putting 40 hours on the bike and kissed her good bye..

I really want to continue racing and become as good as I can. So now I’m looking at either a 14’ YZ250F or a 14’ YZ125. I got a chance to test ride the 14’ YZ250F(and 14' YZ450F, crazy power!) recently, yet to try the 125 but will soon.

I have read, reached and asked my ass off and understand the differences and characteristics between these bikes.

I have been told and understand that the 125 will teach me better moto skils and technique? Can someone elaborate on this please?

Because If that is the case, even though I’ll be at a weight disadvantage and grow out of it quickly, I will happily go for the 125 in order to ‘learn’ with a ‘back to basics' approach.

Your thoughts?
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TrailDigger 1/20/2014 8:22pm
1/20/2014 8:22pm
If racing, you may be at a disadvantage on a 125. They're awesome bikes, which is why I'd want it over a 250, but the four strokes generally do better than 125s due to their power delivery and torque around the track. They don't have to stay at high RPMs to make power, which is why they are dominating.

For sure, you could win a race on a 125, but it requires a lot of skill and effort put out to reap what is easier to achieve on a 250f.

From my point of view, I think you may have more fun on a 250. They are good all around. Good on trails, good on track, good in sand.

But man, I would love to own a '14 YZ125...
brandonm
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brandonm 1/31/2014 1:28am
1/31/2014 1:28am
Personally I think 2-Strokes are a hell of a lot of fun I haven't gotten to throw full races down but i have gotten to rip one on a practice day, but i would never make it my full time bike. I'm not talking down on 2 smokers at all but the R&D is in my opinion pretty dead, the bikes from Yamaha have virtually gone unchanged the last 7 years. People say they are reliable and cheap to fix and don't have as many problems. That may have been a good argument 7 years ago. Stick to changing your oil and oil filter on a regular basis as well as cleaning your air filter and your bike will run excellent. These are small things you can do to increase the life of your bike. I change my oil and clean my air filter every other ride, and change my oil filter every other time i change my oil. I replace my topends every 30 hours and I'm always aware of worn parts. Stick to a 4 stroke if you want to race a lot and put plenty of hours on it. I'm only thinking of getting a 2 stroke because I'm sick of racing and just think a 2 stroke would be a fun change.

As for riding ability that's nothing the 4 strokes are close to being just as light and sure a 2 stroke you need to carry your momentum more but you learn that on any bike. The type of bike you get (newer bikes) wont really improve your skill as much as having good seat time on it and improving. So if your looking at '14s I'd say stick to a 250 and maybe instead of buying A 125 now and a 250 later buy this 14 250 and find a couple years older yz125 fix to your preference and have a second bike!

Hope that helps!
Socket946
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Socket946 1/31/2014 2:58pm
1/31/2014 2:58pm
A 125 will force you to learn corner speed, and be consistent. The moment you aren't one of those two, you're getting passed or hitting the ground. The measure to be truly fast on a 125 is very narrow.

If you're racing other 125's, then you'll have fun. If you're racing 250F's or Vet's (I'm your age) you'll be gobbled up and spit out.

125's are great, but I personally think they aren't good as a "single" bike to someone beyond the schoolboy class. They make great second bikes for people like us.
ToolMaker 2/11/2014 12:58pm
2/11/2014 12:58pm
Socket946 wrote:
A 125 will force you to learn corner speed, and be consistent. The moment you aren't one of those two, you're getting passed or hitting the...
A 125 will force you to learn corner speed, and be consistent. The moment you aren't one of those two, you're getting passed or hitting the ground. The measure to be truly fast on a 125 is very narrow.

If you're racing other 125's, then you'll have fun. If you're racing 250F's or Vet's (I'm your age) you'll be gobbled up and spit out.

125's are great, but I personally think they aren't good as a "single" bike to someone beyond the schoolboy class. They make great second bikes for people like us.
X2, but for all practical purposes, you won't find 125 class to race against,
and you'll pretty much find yourself always racing against the 250 4 strokes.

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