Sell street bike, get dirt + track bike?

[Fenixgoon]

I have a 2012 Ninja1000 and it's a fantastic machine, but the more I ride the more I want to push limits and do track work - street or dirt. I'm thinking I could net 4-5k for my bike (i crashed/totalled it at willow springs, hence the low price) and then I'd be able to do dirt and tracks as I can.

The local dirt track around here is 25/day, while the local road course is 150/day or 200/mo for 2 weekend days and 4 mondays.

Or I could get a dual sport to do literally everything, but nothing super well

Am I crazy or just moving on to different things?

 

[Hail The Brain Slug]

Get a V-Strom, the ultimate compromise of everything: Good at nothing.

They are so damned lovable, though. I really miss mine.

 

[jaha2000]

Supermoto or bust!

 

[Kneedragger]

I think it really depends which kind of track you think you would enjoy more. Do you have friends that do track days?

Do you want to give up riding on the street and just go track only?

 

[herm0016]

gs?

 

[pauldun170]

I have a 2012 Ninja1000 and it's a fantastic machine, but the more I ride the more I want to push limits and do track work - street or dirt. I'm thinking I could net 4-5k for my bike (i crashed/totalled it at willow springs, hence the low price) and then I'd be able to do dirt and tracks as I can.

The local dirt track around here is 25/day, while the local road course is 150/day or 200/mo for 2 weekend days and 4 mondays.

Or I could get a dual sport to do literally everything, but nothing super well

Am I crazy or just moving on to different things?

I'd keep the Ninja for street duty and pick up a beater CBR600\GSXr600\R6\SV650\ZX-6r for track duty.
If you play your cards right, you could pick up a a beater dirtbike and a beater supersport and have the best of all worlds.

 

[jagec]

Get a V-Strom, the ultimate compromise of everything: Good at nothing.

They are so damned lovable, though. I really miss mine.

I had one. Too heavy (and top-heavy, at that) for it to be any fun at all at a dirt track. And not nearly powerful enough for a paved track. It was a surprisingly good freeway cruiser, though.

$4-5k should be enough for a beater dirt bike and a beater supersport.

 

[jdoggg12]

It depends on what you'd like to do... are you capable of pushing the Z1000 to its limits on the track? If not, I'd suggest keeping it since it's already a salvage bike. You don't need a supersport to be fast on the track - SV riders are the perfect example of that.

That said, if you're set on going a different route, here are some considerations.

Street/track: 2008-11 middleweight (R6, gixxer 600/750, CBR600RR, etc) area great all-round performers and won't break the bank at this point. If your local track is tighter/more technical, chancers are you'll be faster on a middle weight than a literbike.

Personally, I'd save the cash and put whatever difference you would have spent into an Ohlins suspension for your Z1000. The performance increase (and comfort) will be remarkable.


Dirt: It's a little trickier here. Are you going to ride ONLY dirt? If so, I don't have much input for you there, I've never been a huge dirt guy. If you're going to ride this on the street at all, I'd avoid a dual sport because they compromise too much. A KTM 690 SMC would be a blast - they're one of the most fun bikes to ride on the planet (especially if you're mechanically inclined since their electronics may be iffy). A supermoto is the pinnacle of fun, IMO. I have more fun on the street with my WR250X than I ever did with my SV650S or my R6's. Keep in mind that I have use of only 1 arm so I chose a 250 to keep my daredevil tendencies in check. I'll be stepping up to the 690 or Husqvarna 701 next year to do track days at Laguna Seca and Thunderhill.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I had one. Too heavy (and top-heavy, at that) for it to be any fun at all at a dirt track. And not nearly powerful enough for a paved track. It was a surprisingly good freeway cruiser, though.

$4-5k should be enough for a beater dirt bike and a beater supersport.

I love my Multistrada. It is plenty powerful and handles great. Definitely heavier than other bikes I've owned but once you are under way that weight all but disappears. It's a fantastic bike.

It is too heavy to be decent off-road but it is so good on the road that it more than makes up for it. I had no intention of ever taking it off road anyway so I put Michelin sport rubber on mine.

 

[rstrohkirch]

My humble opinion.

There is no such thing as a do it all bike when you play at the extremes. This applies dirt bikes, street bikes or even mountain bikes. I'm assuming cars too but my hobbies involve things with 2 wheels. If you compromise and just get one item you will be disappointed unless you end up only doing one of the things you intended to do. I've made the same mistake multiple times now where I'm trying to turn something into 2 things, it just doesn't work.

Personally, I've owned tons of different street bikes, track bikes and dirt bikes. If you want to try dirt then budget 2-3k and buy something from the mid 2000s or newer to try out and see how you like it. An actual dirt bike not a dual sport or a supermoto by the way. Dirt isn't the same as street and even though they're both motorcycles the skills don't transfer. It's much harder than riding street and some people just don't like it. If you buy something cheap then you can dump it if it isn't your thing. Riding a dirt bike is more similar to mountain bike then a street bike.

Dirt bikes also require drastically more maintenance then street bikes. Unless you're burning through tires at the track, a street bike maintenance is minimal compared to any dirt bike. I guess that is assuming you ride your bike and put actual hours on it.



The reward is that they're much more fun then riding on the street. Sometimes I don't even have a street bike...but I always have a dirt bike in the garage. If I were to rank how "fun" the activities are then I'd say:

Motocross --- Supermoto track --- Street bike track / offroad riding or racing ---------- Street bike

Nothing compares to flying through the air. Not backing in your sumo around a 90 or even flying down the straight doing 160+.

 

[DietDrThunder]

Just don't get an enduro (dirt / street bike). Back in the day I bought a Honda 650XLR. It was too much power for the dirt, and difficult to ride on the street (at stop lights I had to balance the bike on tippy toes).

 

[jaha2000]

My humble opinion.

There is no such thing as a do it all bike when you play at the extremes. This applies dirt bikes, street bikes or even mountain bikes. I'm assuming cars too but my hobbies involve things with 2 wheels. If you compromise and just get one item you will be disappointed unless you end up only doing one of the things you intended to do. I've made the same mistake multiple times now where I'm trying to turn something into 2 things, it just doesn't work.

Personally, I've owned tons of different street bikes, track bikes and dirt bikes. If you want to try dirt then budget 2-3k and buy something from the mid 2000s or newer to try out and see how you like it. An actual dirt bike not a dual sport or a supermoto by the way. Dirt isn't the same as street and even though they're both motorcycles the skills don't transfer. It's much harder than riding street and some people just don't like it. If you buy something cheap then you can dump it if it isn't your thing. Riding a dirt bike is more similar to mountain bike then a street bike.

Dirt bikes also require drastically more maintenance then street bikes. Unless you're burning through tires at the track, a street bike maintenance is minimal compared to any dirt bike. I guess that is assuming you ride your bike and put actual hours on it.



The reward is that they're much more fun then riding on the street. Sometimes I don't even have a street bike...but I always have a dirt bike in the garage. If I were to rank how "fun" the activities are then I'd say:

Motocross --- Supermoto track --- Street bike track / offroad riding or racing ---------- Street bike

Nothing compares to flying through the air. Not backing in your sumo around a 90 or even flying down the straight doing 160+.

This man speaks the truth. To me, riding in the street is not that exciting. When i sold my sportbike and bought a supermoto, i thought i could have something that "did it all".
Had a XR650R supermoto with a plate on it, still a dirtbike at heart. While for the most part it was bomb proof, it still required much more attention than any street bike would. Valve checks, frequent oil changes, it ate chains because it had no cush drive in the trans or wheel. It was good at everything but riding on the highway but not great at anything except getting pulled over by the cops who assume you are breaking the law by riding a dirtbike on the street.

If you were going to do track days, i would see what the supermoto track scene is like in your area and get a supermoto instead of a street bike. parts are cheper, tires are cheaper, track days are cheaper, and its slower which means less risk of big injury.

 

[jdoggg12]

Keep in mind, these responses are all "IMO"s. There is no "best" type of bike or type of riding. I did a bit of dirt riding on 2-strokes but my heart was never in it. My first track day on my R6 was amazing. I stated doing 2-3 track days a month, paying for it by working for one of the track day providers (dP Safety School).

Some feel sportbike track days are the greatest. Some feel dirt jumping is the greatest. The only person that can answer which type of bike/riding is best is YOU.

 

[CombatChuk]

Any of the Multistrada, VStroms, BMW GS1200 type of bikes are too heavy and annoying to ride on dirt trails. Those big engines need the cooling of 45+ mph riding and doing ~25-30mph on trails would just be a bear.

The old Kawasaki KLR650 (thumper) was always the defacto street legal dirtbike. But nothing will beat a dedicated dirt bike and track bike setup.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Any of the Multistrada, VStroms, BMW GS1200 type of bikes are too heavy and annoying to ride on dirt trails. Those big engines need the cooling of 45+ mph riding and doing ~25-30mph on trails would just be a bear.

The old Kawasaki KLR650 (thumper) was always the defacto street legal dirtbike. But nothing will beat a dedicated dirt bike and track bike setup.

My Multistrada is liquid-cooled, it has the 1198 Testastretta motor. It doesn't need air flowing over it to keep it cool like the older air-cooled bikes did. While it is fairly heavy at 520lbs that weight all but disappears once you are moving. It is very smooth and easy to ride around at slow speeds.

I haven't ridden it off-road but I would generally agree that it probably isn't a great off-road bike. It is simply brilliant on the road though.

 

[tortoise]

Include Zongshen in your research.

 

[CombatChuk]

My Multistrada is liquid-cooled, it has the 1198 Testastretta motor. It doesn't need air flowing over it to keep it cool like the older air-cooled bikes did. While it is fairly heavy at 520lbs that weight all but disappears once you are moving. It is very smooth and easy to ride around at slow speeds.

I haven't ridden it off-road but I would generally agree that it probably isn't a great off-road bike. It is simply brilliant on the road though.

I guess I should have worded that wrong. My Monster 1200 has the same engine, and if I'm not constantly moving at higher up speeds the heat thrown from the exhaust cooks my right leg. That would get old trail riding at slower speeds.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I guess I should have worded that wrong. My Monster 1200 has the same engine, and if I'm not constantly moving at higher up speeds the heat thrown from the exhaust cooks my right leg. That would get old trail riding at slower speeds.

The Multistrada doesn't suffer that problem. You feel a little heat coming off the exhaust near your right heel but unless you are wearing flip flops it is not enough that it would make you uncomfortable, especially if you have proper boots on.

 

[Phanuel]

It's either the rear cylinder exhaust header pipe or the cylinder head itself that's typically cooking you on a Ducati, regardless of air or water cooled.

I'm interested to see if/what heat issues they'll have in 2+ years when they switch over to V4 engines. I'd love to get a 899/959 in a few years, but the heat issue is a major turn off for low speed riding.

 

[JulesMaximus]

It's either the rear cylinder exhaust header pipe or the cylinder head itself that's typically cooking you on a Ducati, regardless of air or water cooled.

I'm interested to see if/what heat issues they'll have in 2+ years when they switch over to V4 engines. I'd love to get a 899/959 in a few years, but the heat issue is a major turn off for low speed riding.

With the Multistrada you are more isolated from the heat. My Monster 1100 EVO would cook my left leg at a stop light (and yes, it was from the exhaust header) but the Multistrada does not. It simply isn't a problem with my bike. The Multi is taller so maybe that helps isolate the rider from the heat pump between your thighs. It makes a BIG difference.

Air-cooled bikes definitely run hotter too.

 

[Phanuel]

No doubt. I've read that people don't complain about the supermotos as much. It's mainly a Panigale thing.

Even though they're running lean for EPA, enriching them doesn't really lower the temps much either.

 

[JulesMaximus]

No doubt. I've read that people don't complain about the supermotos as much. It's mainly a Panigale thing.

Even though they're running lean for EPA, enriching them doesn't really lower the temps much either.

The Hypermotard and Hyperstrada would be Supermotos.

I wouldn't call the Multistrada a Supermoto. It is more of a sport touring bike with a serious emphasis on sport. They call it an Adventure bike but really it is a sport touring bike.

Ever since Obiwan and his friend (and 3 18 wheelers filled with spares, equipment, camera crew and BMW support technicians) went motorcycling through Europe, Asia and North America it spurred the whole "Adventure Bike" craze.

Personally, I don't know anyone who takes their Multistrada off-road but there are some guys on the forums who do. Ducati has an Enduro version of the Multi coming soon which is more dirt oriented with a 19" front wheel, knobby tires and wire spoke wheels.

 

[Phanuel]

If there's some dirt on the shoulder of the road near a Starbucks, doesn't that count as off road?

 

[JulesMaximus]

If there's some dirt on the shoulder of the road near a Starbucks, doesn't that count as off road?

Um, no.

Nor does this.

 

[rstrohkirch]

The Hypermotard and Hyperstrada would be Supermotos.

I wouldn't call the Multistrada a Supermoto. It is more of a sport touring bike with a serious emphasis on sport. They call it an Adventure bike but really it is a sport touring bike.
.

You can't really call either of those supermotos. They're naked bikes with dirt bike inspired styling.