Supermoto/Motards

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K2e2vin

K2e2vin

Senior Member
I may end up working about an hour away from where I live and have been looking into small bikes for the commute; motards have caught my attention(I've always been interested in them); mainly the WR250X. From what I've read, they can do about 80mph which seems perfectly fine for highway, and the only larger bikes I've seen is from Kawasaki and Aprilia(pricey though!), and probably Husqvarna but I don't think there's any dealers near here.

Anyways, has anyone rode a motard and can comment on how well they'd do for a daily 1hr(mostly highway) commute? How would it compare to say a 250 Ninja as far as comfort goes? Main reason I like them is because I can play around with them on the weekend and they seem much lighter than sport bikes. Also, what are good alternatives to the WR250X?
 
that bike may do 80mph but it's gonna have to work to do it. Maybe a 400 or 450 would do better. But I think the motard bikes weren't built as commuting bikes. I think a purpose built street bike would be your best best. If it were a quick trip around town it would be a differant story
 
i dont currently own one... but have ridden several of them

look into a Suzuki DRZ400SM


most importantly
find some back roads and keep the highway use to the minimum... riding a single all revved out buzzing along at the same high ass rpm is not especially pleasant


also keep in mind that these are still "dirt bikes"... they are not designed for maximum long distance comfort...
the seats are narrow and hard
there is no wind protection

there are replacement seats available for most of the models out there... so that can be made a little better
but spending an hour on the highway sitting straight up with 80mph wind smacking you constantly kinda sucks

i have gone out on 4-5 hour rides on a supermoto and was fine... riding one all day long isnt really a problem... but this was twisty back roads... so i was able to have some fun... riding on main roads and highways is just boring as hell... so you find yourself looking for bumps and potholes to hit, curbs to hop off of, parking lots you can cut through to jump a speed bump or two, sections where you can ride in the grass, etc... realizing that you dont have to dodge bumps any more opens up all kinds of shit

some friends and i plan to ride supermotos/enduros to northern Maine using back roads, logging roads, and snowmobile trails... then depending on how that goes and what we learn on that trip, we eventually would like to ride them to Alaska


long distance rides on them is completely doable... you just have to cover that distance differently than you would on other types of bikes
 
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i probably wouldn't communte an hour on any of those bikes. 2 hours a day, rain/snow/sleet/sunshine isnt' going to be the most comfortable. if you are doing it on a bike you really enjoy and have a car for shitty days, then i say go for it.

i just wouldn't want to spend 2 hours a day on the freeway riding a bike. i've had a 250 before and it was a phenomenal bike. i just wouldn't do a long commute. under 30 minutes, sure it would be great. 2 hours a day, not so much.
 
the hypermotard is about as far from a supermoto as possible
it has way too much power to make it any use off road
it has street bike suspension with about half as much travel as a real supermoto, making it useless for off road, stairs, curb jumping etc...
its too heavy to be as nimble as a real supermoto
its basically a Ducati Monster with a dirt bike inspired front fender and a tiny 2.7gal tank that wont allow you to go more than 150 miles between fill ups

and when you dump the hypermotard because you were trying to cut down a dirt road or take it down a flight of stairs, its going to cost a fuck ton to repair... vs the real supermoto that you simply pick back up and ride away smiling at the new scratches that just add character

if it was strictly for street use, maybe... but there are better choices... get something with a fairing so your not getting your ass kicked by wind any time you are at speed, or get something more comfortable, or something with better range, hell even the 798 hyper would be a better bike for carving up twisties

all of these new "motard" inspired street bikes are just kinda silly... they take the worst features and blend them together into a bike that really isnt good at anything... and girls think they look dumb... so they dont even help there... its a poseur machine

if you want bike with too much damn power in a package that can still be used like a supermoto is supposed to be used, look at the KTM 690 SM

the Aprilia SXV 450 or 550 are both fucking beasts... but they are far too problematic and it is way to hard to get parts for them to recommend either for anything more than a track bike or really expensive really fragile toy

the Husqvarna 610SM is a good bike... makes decent power... looks good... and has reasonable maintenance... not as low as the DRZ or WR250X... but it is reasonable... does require more frequent valve checks/adjustments... dealers are spread out pretty far... that kinda sucks

check out supermotojunkie and thumpertalk... there is a lot of good info on those sites
 
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if i rode a motard, this is how id roll. horribly built and overpriced but soooo damn sexy. just like everything that comes out of italy.

DucatiHypermotardsTest_04.jpg
 
If you really want to go the supermoto route I would pick up a used dirt bike and buy a set of wheels for it, then you have 2 bikes in one. Ride it to work all week, then on the weekends swap the wheelset out and go ride in the dirt.
 
Well, it's needed for the commute but I also want to have fun with it. Not really interested in playing in the dirt with it.

Thing about a dirt bike is I'd have to convert it to be street legal(my commute is early in the morning so it's very important I have lights). My main concern was comfort so I may just put it off for now.
 
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