What type of bike?

So the question of what sort of motorcycle is good for this game has come up. I have decided to put together a short list of the common machine traits that work well for what we do. Everyone has an opinion. With just a few exceptions, almost any off road / dual purpose bike will do for this game. I read an account online of someone taking a CB750 over some of the passes we do, complete with a windjammer fairing, but that was a little extreme. My opinions are a based on my experience and research; you may have different ones, which is OK, but following my advice will ensure you, and the people you are riding with, will have fun if nothing else.

So what makes a good mountain motorcycle? In senior order of magnitude;

1) You MUST have a USDA compliant spark arrestor. There is a huge fuel load out there. Aside from the legality of it would be profoundly stupid to not have a spark arrestor. I also think you should have an OEM or quieter exhaust system, but that not a requirement.

2) The motorcycle should have a license plate on it. We ride on public roads to and from the trail heads. The police in Colorado so far have been agnostic on the issue of mirrors, and tires, but without a tag you may get pulled over. Specifically, Colorado does not require turn signals for motorcycles. Many of the places we ride require fee based stickers to ride off road only equipment, but if it is street legal you do not have to buy the sticker. The money isn’t this issue, it’s the pain in the ass getting the sticker. The local shops are frequently out of them. Some guys have just run the risk of getting a ticket while riding without tags with the group, but I advise against it.

3) You should have thumb starting for a four stoke. We ride up over 14k feet above sea level in some cases. You will crash. After picking yourself and the bike up, talking about it to everyone, you will be gasping for air. Kick starting a flooded thumper up there ain’t gonna happen. I don’t care if it has a hot start lever, you just won’t have the cardio to do it. A two stroke can be kick only, mainly because they do not have the hot start issues a four stroke does, and because they have lower compression ratios, they are thus easier to kick start. Still, if you can get a 2 smoke with thumb starting that would be good. We stop often to take pictures and if you have to kick start a bike every time that gets to be old.

4) Your bike should have a functional sidestand. We stop on trails all the time and getting to a tree or another motorcycle to lean your bike against is a buzz kill for you. Also, when we move stuff around in the trailer or garage we do not want to deal with the hassle of rear or center stands.

5) A six speed transmission is preferred. There is an occasional need to be able to cruise 10 miles or so at 50 mph on pavement. This is the one that hurts all the Moto-X conversion bikes the most. They tend to have close ratios transmissions anyway, and with only 5 ratios you end up with gearing that is either too tall for mountain climbing or listening to the engine screaming at 50 mph while we ride down the highway.

6) If carbureted, try to have a CV carburetor. The CV auto compensates for the altitude caused loss of intake density on the needle and slide. This means that you normally do not have to rejet, or if you do, you only need to fool with the main and the pilot circuits. The newer bikes with FI are great if they have a feedback mechanism in the CPU, but if you rip the O2 sensor out of the exhaust, put the jumpers in the ECU so it rips at sea level, the system can’t compensate for the altitude, defeating the advantage of FI.

7) 2.5 gallon useable fuel tankage for a 4 stroke, 3.5 gallon useable fuel tankage for a 2 stroke. We have done 100 miles between fuel stops. Not often, but just incase. Normally this is going to mean an after market fuel tank. Another option is a aux fuel cell for peace of mind.

8) Very good idea to be as light as possible. Picking them up at 14k ASL is not fun. There is 40% less O2 with every breath up there. After you crash, get dusted off, you find it very hard to pick up your bike.

9) Full coverage insurance. If you do not have full coverage insurance you are assuming all the risk. For example, if the bike is crashed in an environmentally sensitive area and you are medically transported, you may be required to pay for its removal. If you have full coverage insurance the insurance company is obliged to pay the expense of recovery. Also, in the unlikely event my trailer gets run into by a semi-tractor trailer you will have insurance to cover the loss.

10) Extra heavy duty tubes. They are heavy and expensive but worth it.

11) Guards. Nice to protect the engine case, radiators and handlebars from all the rocks. More than one of us has put a hole in their crankcase, and breaking a lever is common.

12) Saddle bags. The best option to carry your kit is small saddle bags, low and rear on the machine. Tail packs hit your butt during pitch diversions. Tank bags hit your front. Also, with the mass mounted up high on a tail pack or tank bag its harder to pick your bike up. Low mounted saddle bags carry the gear out of the way and are closer to the center of mass. I like the Wolfman Daytripper or the Giant Loop MoJavi.

13) Regarding the kit, keep in mind that we are sometimes riding above the altitude Medivac can fly to. Hurt yourself up bad up there and you will be spending the night till the alpine rescue folks can get to you on the ground. It frequently goes below freezing at altitude at night, even in August.

14) A handlebar mounted GPS. I can give you GPX tracks for all the routes we take if you want them. The GPS makes navigation a snap.

While most of the guys have dedicated enduro machines set up for this, KTM 300’s with recluse clutches and the like, it is not required to spend $10k+ on a dirtbike to ride with us. Plenty of people in the group ride simpler machines including factory dual purpose machines. For example, I ride out there on older machines like TTR250’s or KDX200’s and they perform great set up properly at 1/10^th the cost.