Andre Ming here. I live in eastern OK.

I'm not older than dirt... but I'm old enough to remember when dirt was new. Been ridin' dirt bikes since 1969. Most of my offroad miles have been spent in the Ozark and Ouachita mountains of Arkansas and Oklahoma.

I have also ridden in dirt events hither and yon. (Furthest was Dalton, MA. Will be going to McArthur, OH for a two day event this October.)

In no particular order, my interests in riding are:

Trail Riding
Dual Sport events
Trail Riding
Vintage Enduro bikes (hence "Vinduro")
Trail Riding
Road riding (cruiser type bike)
Did I mention Trail Riding?

Alas, my favorite riding areas have almost been completely shut down over the past few years. Thus, I am considering getting more into organized Dual Sport rides.

I currently have about 6 bikes in the garage... but the newest dirt bike is a 1990 model XR250R that I made street legal in OK (LOOONG ago). This has been my go-to bike for trail riding and Dual Sport events.

I am seriously considering thinning the herd and adding a good DS bike. Current front runner is a the DR-Z 400S.

Reasons for joining this forum:

1. Figured any info on regional organized Dual Sport rides ought to pass through here.

2. Good place to learn more about the DR-Z 400 from those that have them as well as look at, and learn about, what types of bikes others are riding.

So... here I am... warts and all! :p

Welcome.

Your post really belongs in the regional discussion area, south.
You'll find some to ride with there, and thats where info about things in your area will pass thru.

I've been able to meet and ride with a few new people, have really enjoyed it.
Congrats on being able to ride off road for 40 years, I've been doing it for around 18 years, and will continue to as long as the rubber band stays wound.:thumbsup:

Howdy. It's nice down in that area. I live in Missouri but been up and down hwy 69 and hwy 71 and a few other hwys inbetween hundreds if not thousands of times. If you look at the Suzuki forum you'll find a bunch of info on the 400's. I've never ridden or had one but seems like a very popular bike. I had a DR350 and loved it and now have a DR650 and like that very much as well. Anyway ride safe, talk to you later.

South of Tahlequah usually ride Gruber, Mill Creek in AR or Scipio my whole family rides with OCCRA www.occra.com and with AHSCS folks. We MX race in Watts OK and near Ft.Smith with Ascot MX at Dora OK.

Welcome. I am a DS rider over in OKC. I have rode on the east side a couple times. Welcome to the site.

Thanks for the welcome.

I figured there were lots of DS riders in Okieland.

I'm hoping the Arkansas Dirt Riders will put on their DS ride in Mt. Magazine area again this year. It's a great ride. Unfortunately, I think they were getting into land use issues with the USFS. (What a surprise.)

Andre Ming

wow, 40 years, i hope my back holds up another 5 years! That would give me half as many years as you. Welcome to the site!

Yup, lots of us ds riders here in OK.

You want a good ds for SE OK and AR? Go give the WR250R a good look-see. I'll even let you take mine for a test ride if you'd like.

Be sure to check out the big October ds event in Clayton this year. Oct 15-18 at Clayton State Park.

At runmikeyrun:

Well, I haven't been off road riding as often as I used to for at least 3 years. (In contrast, over the past 1 1/2 years I've put about 15K or more on my cruiser bike, including a round trip to Tucson, AZ.)

HOWEVER... at the yearly Vintage ISDT event I attend: Last year I earned a Gold Medal and won my class aboard my '82 Can Am 175! :banana:

:worthy: Yay me! (You're supposed to be impressed.)

Anyway, I've been very, very blessed to have avoided serious injury aboard bikes. I realize at 57 years of age, I don't have a lot of decades of off road riding left... so I want to pick up the quanity and go out with a bang! (I DO have an off-roading friend that is in his mid-70's and is STILL so stinkin' fast I can't touch him.)

At Krabill:

I learned about the Clayton last week ride via Youtube. At this point I fully intend to make the it. Is it an organized event, or an official "unofficial" event? Darrell Williamson wouldn't happen to be involved would he? :smirk:

As for a small bore DS. I have that now, and they are really great for the woods. However, I'm hoping to get something large enough to allow me to commute to/from the woods and ride it to work every now and then. 250cc's and 65 MPH hiways speeds don't gin well. At least, mine doesn't. Yes, the XR250R CAN run 65 and faster... but I don't want to run it that hard for several miles. No way to ride it from Poteau (where I live) to Ft. Smith (where I work).

BUT... the WR250R that I saw at Corgill's Yamaha here in Poteau was an awesome little scoot. Frankly, I was tempted to investigate it.

Andre

The WR250R is nothing like the little XR. Don't discount it because it is "only a 250". It is directly comparable to the DRZ400 . . . but better. It handles better on the pavement, much better in the dirt, weighs less, and has longer maintenance intervals. Like I said, you're welcome to take mine for a spin. I've ridden it from Tulsa to Clayton twice,over to Arkansas, and will be exploring all over Michigan for the next couple of weeks.

Check out a few of the ride reports over here - www.wrrdualsport.com

Anyway, the Clayton event is an un-official event put on by James Pratt of Ride Oklahoma magazine. http://www.rideok.com/ He's done it for quite a few years now and I've made to a few of them. I will be there this year for sure. Always a great time.

Thanks a bunch for the input Krabill.

Believe it or not, I just got back from Corgill's Yamaha here in Poteau.

I needed to take the wife's DR-Z 125 down for some work... so used it as an excuse to take a quick spin to Corgill's. :smirk:

While there, I went in and oogled/asked questions about the WR250R.

Wow. It IS an impressive little scoot. I love the lighter weight and better suspension in comparison to the DR-Z400S. :thumbsup:

The additional weight and lack of quality suspension was my biggest negatives about taking the DR-Z 400 plunge. I have ridden 250's since the early 80's. They're my favorite size. (My last big bore was an '80 IT425.)

I will be doing some homework and looking at the links you have provided.

A WR250R could be my next direction on a bike. :ride:

Really appreciate your sharing your experiences with me.

Andre Ming