Purchasing a KLX110 for my 11 year old son, any thoughts?

[Ack535]

OK guys, this is my first foray into the world of dirtbikes. I personally have always been a street rider myself, so the whole dirtbike world is foreign to me...

My Son: Turning 11 years old, pretty big kid for his age and growing fast, with very little riding experience.

Bikes I considered: TTR90, XR70 and XR80 etc...

Reason I picked the KLX110: Bigger than most bikes in its class, but still with a 3 speed auto trans for my son to learn on. The KLX gives him a year or two to ride before he gets bigger than me! Found one in Grand Rapids MI with low hrs, good shape, and good price.

Any thoughts/input greatly appreciated!

Pete

[twotrackhero]

Looks like you already did your homework Pete, the only advice I could give would ask yourself and your son what your ultimate intention is ( motocross, street riding, trail riding, farm fields, etc.), as long as he can touch the ground without too much trouble with a little room to grow into the bike he should be fine. If you already haven't I would go to a dealer or two and have him sit on as many bikes as possible in you catagory, then hit craigslist for something affordable that is close to what you guys think is best.

[SLK50]

  My advice: get one for yourself so you can ride with him. You won't be sorry.

[Ack535]

Looks like you already did your homework Pete, the only advice I could give would ask yourself and your son what your ultimate intention is ( motocross, street riding, trail riding, farm fields, etc.), as long as he can touch the ground without too much trouble with a little room to grow into the bike he should be fine. If you already haven't I would go to a dealer or two and have him sit on as many bikes as possible in you catagory, then hit craigslist for something affordable that is close to what you guys think is best.

Hey Pat:

My goal is to do some trail riding/farm field riding with my son, and get him into the sport. From there it will be all up to him (as I am not a pushy parent) as to what he wants to do.

Yeah, I am pretty much set on the KLX110 and found a nice one on C/L for $800 bucks. Of course, I will need to get a dirtbike as well to ride with my son!

Do you know of some good riding area in and around Livingston County?

Pete

[twotrackhero]

Hey Pat:

My goal is to do some trail riding/farm field riding with my son, and get him into the sport. From there it will be all up to him (as I am not a pushy parent) as to what he wants to do.

Yeah, I am pretty much set on the KLX110 and found a nice one on C/L for $800 bucks. Of course, I will need to get a dirtbike as well to ride with my son!

Do you know of some good riding area in and around Livingston County?

Pete

Unfortunatly there really aren't, unless you can get access to private property. I know of a few places that have private tracks that I used to be able to access, Ill check in to see if those places are still possiblitys. also you can always take a ride up to St. Helens (closest decent trail) for some trail riding on state or federal land.

[marc11]

My son started riding when he was three on a KDX50 and upgraded to a KLX110 two years ago when he was 8.  It is a very solid bike with tons of power available and an aftermarket that is nothing short of amazing.  That was the biggest reason I went with the KLX110, the ability to grow it as my son grows with suspension upgrades, big bar kits, manual clutch conversions and more.  I would expect him to ride this bike until he is into his early teens before looking for something bigger.  The bonus, my wife rides it!

[Ack535]

My son started riding when he was three on a KDX50 and upgraded to a KLX110 two years ago when he was 8.  It is a very solid bike with tons of power available and an aftermarket that is nothing short of amazing.  That was the biggest reason I went with the KLX110, the ability to grow it as my son grows with suspension upgrades, big bar kits, manual clutch conversions and more.  I would expect him to ride this bike until he is into his early teens before looking for something bigger.  The bonus, my wife rides it!

Hey thanks for the tip Marc. BTW, where do you live in Orange County? Reason I ask is that I grew up in Cornwall back in the late 70's/into the 80's... Great area to live.

Pete

[marc11]

I live out in Pine Bush; and Cornwall is still a great place to live. Fantastic town.

[buls4evr]

The longer you keep him from using a real clutch and gearbox the less experience he has when it comes to the street bikes he will inevitably ride in the near future! Why not teach him to ride one with a hand clutch? He will outgrow that bike very quickly and his friends with 250fs will end up being his CLUTCH TEACHERS! I would prefer to teach him how to shift one myself.

[Ack535]

The whole clutch vs clutchless issue was difficult for me to come to grips with. I decided to go with the biggest clutchless bike I could find to get him up and running, hence the KLX110...

Here is a pic of my son Ryan and his new bike!

[wibornz]

This is awesome Pete.  We will have to talk.  I have rode justg about every trail system in Michigan so when you are ready to head up north, let me know and we can chat on the phone.  If you need to give him some practice time, bring him on out and he can buzz around the farm.  Geoff also has a small track in his back yard if you want him on some jumps or bermed corners.  Nothing to crazy.

Now is the time for you to saddle up with a DR or something.  Also if you want to ride out of state in Tn, Ky or WV, I can point you in the right direction.  

[Ack535]

This is awesome Pete.  We will have to talk.  I have rode justg about every trail system in Michigan so when you are ready to head up north, let me know and we can chat on the phone.  If you need to give him some practice time, bring him on out and he can buzz around the farm.  Geoff also has a small track in his back yard if you want him on some jumps or bermed corners.  Nothing to crazy.

Now is the time for you to saddle up with a DR or something.  Also if you want to ride out of state in Tn, Ky or WV, I can point you in the right direction.  

Thanks Ted! I will hit you up on your offer to bring him out to the farm to ride around. So far he is pretty much interested in trail riding. I cut a small trail in the woods behind my house, but we need more room...

[wibornz]

I even have a couple atvs if you want to chase him around.

[karlfitt]

It is great you r are getting your son into your addiction   teaching your son to ride.

I went the other way getting my kids into it. I bought an old Yamaha IT for myself and realized that if I wanted to ride it a lot I needed to bring my kids along with me. At that time my son was 11, my daughter 13.
I went with bikes with gearboxes instead of clutchless, I wanted them to learn to shift.
First few times out we went to the local track which has a lot of open area for me to get them started on. Practice starting stopping shifting.

Get the bike for yourself, you won't regret it.

[Biking Sailor]

I know this thread has been quiet for a while but....

How's it going with your Son and his bike?

My experience with my two Sons was I bought a "rough" XR100R from a friend that was well used but ran good and was safe.  A newer nice bike hurts more when they will dump it.

Taught the boys to ride it (clutch/shift, power slide corners, small small jumps) and more importantly, tried to teach them maintenance and repair!  Nights in the garage showing them how to work on the bike was a nice bonding experience I wish I had done a lot more of.  Don't neglect that part, because if it sticks, they will be around to help you with your bikes when they get older, new technology and stuff!

Good luck.

[Ack535]

I know this thread has been quiet for a while but....

How's it going with your Son and his bike?

My experience with my two Sons was I bought a "rough" XR100R from a friend that was well used but ran good and was safe.  A newer nice bike hurts more when they will dump it.

Taught the boys to ride it (clutch/shift, power slide corners, small small jumps) and more importantly, tried to teach them maintenance and repair!  Nights in the garage showing them how to work on the bike was a nice bonding experience I wish I had done a lot more of.  Don't neglect that part, because if it sticks, they will be around to help you with your bikes when they get older, new technology and stuff!

Good luck.

Could not agree more with your assessment. I have already had my son out in the garage working with me on bikes in the past. Not as exciting as playing video games, but he is getting the hang of it all.

Pete

[fastdadio]

I bought my son and daughter Suzuki DS80's when they were 7 & 8 years old. We then proceeded to pound Michigan single track for the next 11 years. They're both out of the house now. We do the plated dual sport thing now, that is when they find time for the old man . The bonding and memories are priceless. Get yourself a dirt bike and join the Michigan Cycle Conservation Club. Family oriented, they have a summer schedule full of events. Family camp is alot of fun. You don't want to be out in the national forest alone with your kids when something goes bad, and yes it can happen to you. They are here to help. Under 16 years old requires a safety certificate from the DNR to operate an atv on state land. They have training and testing to get you going. The list of pros goes on and on. I live in Pinckney. so were close by. PM me if you want to talk more, I have alot to say. Dave.