KDXRIDER.NET

Hello! I am about to celebrate my 30th birthday and received a 2002 KDX200 as an early bird at present from my wife (lucky guy huh?). I had never been on a motorcycle of any kind up until a few weeks ago when I took my father in law's old Honda for a spin and enjoyed it immensely.

This bike caught me totally off guard and seems completely out of the blue, but I can't wait to get out and ride. My brother in law is an avid rider and I can't wait to learn the ropes from him and from this community. Any tips off the bat for a complete and utter noob?

welcome aboard

sounds like a great present the wifey got you
im sure you will enjoy riding
I just turned 30 this year myself and ive noticed im not as fast, nor as bulletproof as I was but at least the KDX is

Congratulations and welcome to the forum.

Ha, thanks diymirage, I'm am shopping for a helmet and boots as we speak... Seems like a good first step. Ha.

Wear your gear & don't be afraid of the front brake

good call
I was riding almost 2 weeks ago and I was cruising along at about 40 miles per hour
the trail I was on was pretty trenched out and only 3 foot wide
at some point I got the nose of my boot caught in a rut and my foot made a 180 degree turn

still hurts to walk but I am sure that if I wasn't wearing my boots I would have broken my ankle
here is the post from when I was looking to buy some boots , good info and insight on what others on here use

http://kdxrider.net/forums/viewtopic.ph ... ts#p126555


and as far as the helmet goes, this may sound silly but I always like it when everything matches, helmet, jersey, pants and bike
just something to keep in mind ;)

Congratulations on the bike! sounds like you found a great wife! Can you post some pictures of the new toy?

Helmet AND goggles, boots, chest protector. That is a good start. A "camel back" or some way to bring along some water is important too, you will probably tend to get thirsty.

An 02 is a 11 year old bike so you will want to go over it and make sure the bike is up to the task. Make sure the brakes, chain, suspension, engine are all in good shape. Tires are important too. The front is more important then the rear as far as keeping you up right so if it needs one get one.

rbates9 wrote:
Helmet AND goggles, boots, chest protector. That is a good start. A "camel back" or some way to bring along some water is important too, you will probably tend to get thirsty.

no kidding, I have a 64 ounce camel back and I will drain it on a 14 mile trail

ugh, i know i am missing something and can't believe i have to ask this, but how do i post a picture?

you have to upload it to a site like photobucket than click get links and copy the img code into one of these messages and voila!

here is a crappy phone pic but it'll give you a little idea...

Man looks real clean!

Yeah, my family has been planning this for a while I guess... My brother in law apparently picked it up about a month ago and has spent the time since working on it (unbeknownst to me) and getting it cleaned and fixed up. I'll get the details on the stuff he did to it but right now I have no idea.

I'm the brother in-law. :)
Its a bice bike i bought from a fellow rider in the Great lakes Dual Sport club. Came with a new clutch, Dyna Ring auto clutch (removed so he can learn to clutch properly), gear oil, brake fluid, coolant, tires are good, carb is jetted nicely by the PO, 30mm risers, pro tapers, TT computer, FMF Gnarly pipe, stiffer springs from FRP with a couple shims removed, lights work and ready to ride!

Great find! I wish I had a KDX when I was learning to ride I learned on a DR200 when I was in highschool it was a pain to start being an old 4stroke heavy and didn't seem well balanced the KDX is a great starter bike. Has great low end power so its forgiving while youre learning and its more than enough power once you get good that you never grow out of it.

great lakes dual sporters?
that puts you guys in my neck of the woods

let me know when you want to go riding, maybe we can meet up sometime

algreen wrote:I'm the brother in-law. :)
Its a bice bike i bought from a fellow rider in the Great lakes Dual Sport club. Came with a new clutch, Dyna Ring auto clutch (removed so he can learn to clutch properly), gear oil, brake fluid, coolant, tires are good, carb is jetted nicely by the PO, 30mm risers, pro tapers, TT computer, FMF Gnarly pipe, stiffer springs from FRP with a couple shims removed, lights work and ready to ride!

Nice of you to sign up to help your bro-in-law out! Welcome to both of you! Bike looks great! I assume you were instrumental in the bike shopping process. Looks like you did well!

Julien D wrote:

algreen wrote:I'm the brother in-law. :)
Its a bice bike i bought from a fellow rider in the Great lakes Dual Sport club. Came with a new clutch, Dyna Ring auto clutch (removed so he can learn to clutch properly), gear oil, brake fluid, coolant, tires are good, carb is jetted nicely by the PO, 30mm risers, pro tapers, TT computer, FMF Gnarly pipe, stiffer springs from FRP with a couple shims removed, lights work and ready to ride!

Nice of you to sign up to help your bro-in-law out! Welcome to both of you! Bike looks great! I assume you were instrumental in the bike shopping process. Looks like you did well!

Yes, very cool! Welcome, both of you, to the forum, and pegordon, welcome to riding! So much fun to be had especially when you have some good and knowledgeable riding buds.

Welcome, and congrats. Drop the Dynaring back in, your progression will be much quicker and with it the KDX is an unstoppable, unstallable beast. You don't spend a lot of time clutching a KDX anyway, doesn't require the feathering skills of a MX bike to keep power down. If you always ride with it you won't miss the clutch. And its' an easy skill to pick up later if you change rides. Gear is a good first purchase, but an even better one is a manual...your bike will thank you for it. KDX is one of the best to learn maintenance on, simple, bullet proof, and you'll find nearly every question you'll ever have answered on here somewhere. Now get out and get that bike dirty!

Thanks again for all the tips! bufftester, is there a free PDF version out there somewhere? I seem to only be coming up with manuals for sale.