Just to clarify, by 'off pavement,' do you mean just dirt roads or narrow trails also? If you could find one, a Kawasaki KLR650 could likely handle much of this. But, as with anything, you will have trade offs based on focus. The more trail capable, the less road comfortable. Think of knobby tires for off road vs smooth tires for road riding. There is also weight to factor in. A lighter bike may be more nimble off road, but is more easily affected by winds at higher speeds on road. A heavier bike would handle higher speeds on the road better, but then not be as nimble off road. There are some that can do both decently, like a BMW R1200GS, but they are likely out of your budget. Even with this, the weight can be a restriction off road. A Suzuki V-Strom 650 can handle paved or dirt roads, but would struggle on trails. A Suzuki DR-Z400 would handle trails better, but would be less comfortable at highway speeds.
Another factor to consider is saddle height. They are not as adjustable as a bicycle. The larger, more off road capable bikes are often taller. The KLR 650 has a seat height of about 35 inches. Do you weigh enough and/or have an inseam long enough to put your feet down when stopped, especially on cross-sloped terrain? You might be able to slip off one side or the other to put a toe down, but it would not be as secure as having both feet flat on the ground. I started riding motorcycles with the BMW F650, which would be similar to the V-Strom 650. It is considered a dual-sport and has a decent blend of ability between paved and dirt riding. I didn't ride it in the dirt and did ride it some on the interstate. That let to me 'upgrading' to a BMW R1100RT and later to the BMW K1200RS. Does your location require a motorcycle endorsement on your driver's license? If so, do you already have this? If not, you may want to look at taking a course. The motorcycle safety foundation has courses throughout the US. If I were personally looking for an off/off road bike that didn't need to handle trails, I would probably look at the V-Strom 650 or a BMW F650. Other brands have similar dual-sport models in various sizes. Here is a list of some used dual sport bikes to help get you started. http://www.chaparral-racing.com/blog/2010/09/14/top-5-dual-sport-motorcycles/ Hope this helps. Tim On Fri, Sep 29, 2017 at 6:06 PM, drew <drewbeckme...@gmail.com> wrote: > So a while back, i bought some property in the mountains and it came with > 2 dirt bikes. They aren't street legal, or attractive, or very high end. > We've spent the last year semi renovating the cabin, clearing the land of > years of brush pile up, but we've finally gotten to the point where we are > starting to try to go through some of the stuff in the garage. I have no > use for 2 non street worthy, ugly yamahas, but after a little research, it > looks like i can get about 3500$ for the pair. > > after thinking about it, i think a (single) motorcycle would be useful and > fun to have up there. im trying to figure out what that type of thing would > be and, since ive never had any interest in motorcycles, the internet info > is overwhelming. i know some of you guys ride all types of bikes, so im > hoping to get some direction. > > here is what i'm thinking > -3500$ or less > -good on roads and dirt roads. not interested in jumps or anything crazy, > but it will have to be able to go off pavement comfortably > -reliable/durable/parts easily found and cheap. > -rivish... weird to say, but if anyone, you'll know what i mean. uniquely > pretty, versatile, not overly mechanically complex, able to carry a small > load and do more than one thing well > > So far i've been looking at late 70's/early 80's off road yamahas and > hondas. > > Anyone have any online resources, makes/models/years that would work, > thoughts, ideas etc. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
