I agree the cost of new bikes has gotten a little out of hand, and it makes it very tough to cultivate new participation. But the reality is, it doesn't have to be.
My youngest son injured him self pretty bad back in June(broken radius, ulna, collarbone and ankle). He just got back riding over New Years weekend. He requested we just hit the desert for a bit to get back into the swing of things. I thought that was a great idea for him to get back on the bike in and easy, safe way. My only reservation was, I really didn't want to take my very fresh KX450F out to the dez to get bushwacked and timed out. This motivated me to pull down a thrashed, neglected, basket case '98 YZ250 I've had in my rafters for 15 years and get it ride worthy again. I figured if a '98 CR250 is good enough to podium straight rhythm, then a 98 YZ250 should be enough for a desert fun bike. Luckily I have the know how and the tooling to repair any part of a motorcycle, so that saves a lot on labor, but I figure I have about $2,500 total in building this bike. I kept my costs down by scouring Ebay and picking cost effective parts. Plus I get great support from my local dealer John Burr Cycles. In the end I ended up with a great desert bike. 18" wheel, skid plate, FWW, etc.. And the thing is now tight and fresh from front to back. The real kicker, the thing is a blast to ride!! Don't get me wrong, I love my 450 and wouldn't trade it for anything as far as the Moto track goes. But this bike off-road is just a hoot! I for sure like it better than my 450 in that scenario. I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun I have riding it. Long story short, getting involved in this great sport doesn't have to be too expensive. And we as a community should do a better job of celebrating and promoting the fact that there are cost effective routes into the sport. Cheers