Last updated 1/10/10

I bought this bike in '07 when I decided to get back into riding dirt bikes.  They've got a solid reputation going way back, (I had previously owned an '85 model), and I figured the lighting coil might come in handy.  I rode it for the first year at an off-road site my buddy and I frequent here in central Florida.  Then in '08 I spruced it up a bit, added some equipment and got a tag for it.  That's when it began a new life as a dual-sport adventure bike!, (said slightly tongue-in-cheek).  I've done a 500 mile, 2-day d/s ride from my cabin in Blue Ridge to Deal's Gap twice on this bike.  Now it's kind of a buddy-bike up at the cabin, my brother rode it last.

The straps on the seat back are for a bag I fashioned to carry 2T oil and stuff on trips.  It has a USFS approved spark-arrestor, the OEM tripmeter, a headlight/tail-light/brake-light, and meets the bare minimum requirements to be tagged in Florida, although those aren't DOT tires it's wearing.

It's actually a fairly comfortable motorcycle, even on the occasional paved stretch, once you get used to a little buzziness.  That little 200cc 2-stroke is surprisingly tractable, and has good punch on top.  The wide-ratio 6-speed makes cruising at 60 mph on the road acceptable.  But where this bike shines is on the single-track, where its light weight and snappy power allow you to put some distance on those big 4-strokes like the DR and KLR 650's.

Me with the bike at Holopaw in Osceola County, Florida; in May of 2008.

My son and I.  I'm the short guy in the picture at left, standing on the equalizer on right.

My son is married and moved away now, but my buddy Steve and I still ride out there, but we've changed bikes, him on a '06 YZ450, me on an '01 CR250 now.  My son keeps his bike in Georgia, where he'll fly down a few times a year to fit in a ride with Dad.

The three pictures above taken in July of '08 on the Dixie Dual Sport Dragon-Slayer ride.  A great ride through the mountains of north Georgia and western North Carolina.  We spent the night at the famed Deal's Gap Motorcycle Resort, or for those that go back a little further in this area, The Crossroads of Time.