Dirt Rider Magazine

littlelady

Hello I just joined.
I am 52 years old, 4’11” tall and ride a 2008 Honda CRF 150 R. I love the bike but my hubby and I are
considering switching to enduros (he rides a Honda CRF 450R). I can’t find anything short enough. My 150’s seat height at 32.8” is a stretch
but has been worth it. I love the power
but don’t like the small gas tank and would really like to find something with
a seat even an inch lower, and definitely no higher. Any
suggestions on bikes to consider? I’m
more interested in comfort & security than speed, but I do want something
with enough power to not feel wimpy.
Thanks!

hairscrambledny

Welcome to the DR forums!

I think it's going to be slim pickings! I had a CRF 150F which is about the same size as the 150R and now I have a KX 100 which is a bit small for me, but I prefer the 2 stroke. It has a really small gas tank tho - smaller than the Honda. I don't think there are many other options. Maybe you could use a lowering link?

Which models have you looked at so far?

yz250f4ever

WELCOME! i dont know what kind of enduro (style or brand) you are looking for but from what you posted you want, I just picked up a TW200 yamaha its an enduro made for street and off road, Its a pretty neat bike its an inch shorter on the seat height than the 150R. Its definatley not gonna be as torquey as your Honda but its really easy to maneuver and pulls good for a 200. Plus having the option of going on street is always cool. The only down fall to the bike is its tank size is small but it gets 78mpg stock and after market tanks are available for $200. If you wanna see what one looks like scroll through my recent thread, towards the bottom are some good pics of what it looks like. The bike is electric start which is kinda nice having the whole push a button and go and you can add a kick starter for $185 and they are pretty easy to install for what i have read. I am 6'3 195ibs and it totes me around no problem and still pulls in every gear.

http://forum.dirtrider.com/discussion/9180377/it-happened-again/p1

NOTE: my TW200 has street tires on it they come stock with nobies.

littlelady

Thanks I really appreciate the feedback!

littlelady

BTW I have not really looked at anything because everything I've seen is WAY too tall for me. And I have thought of lowering my 150, which would really help. I am hoping to find something I can take on the road occasionally (for between trails, etc.) I used to have a Honda CB125 many years ago and it was great for running to the store, etc.

Anyway, thanks!

hairscrambledny

The only problem with spending money to lower the 150 would be spending more money to make it strret legal for enduros. Not sure where you live, but most states would want a horn, mirrors, headlight, taillight chain guard, and quiet muffler (esp for the 150R), etc.

yz250f4ever

If you get time littlelady, go sit on a TW200 at your local dealership i think you will like it alot. because like hair said modding your 150R is gonna be $$$

littlelady

I agree upgrading my 150 to street would be way too much $ and still wouldn't really be what I want. I'm going to check out that TW200. I've checked out the specs and my biggest concern is it weighs almost 300 lbs., which is OK for street but heavy for me to handle & pick up from a crash on the trail. I only weigh about 100 lbs. I'm starting to wonder if my best bet would be to pick up a Honda Rebel or similar for street and just keep the 150 as is for trail. My bro has an old broken down Yamaha 200 of some type - an old trials bike I think that could be great if it was in shape but restoring it would cost a mint. Hmmmm. Boy sometimes it's tough being tiny in a big person's world!

hairscrambledny

You should definitely check out the TW, but how will the Rebel help with enduros?

Don't feel bad - I'm almost 5'8" and my biggest concern when I was in the market for a new bike was the seat height, so it must be really difficult for you!. Not sure how much it would cost to mod, but KTM made a little 105 XC for a few years. I rented one when I went down to Georgia a few years back and absolutely loved it. Just thought I'd mention it.

littlelady

I also looked up a Yamaha XT 225 Serow. Thought that might be a possibility.

yz250f4ever

yeah thats another great bike to, my friend scott, his mom had one and loved it, never gave her an issue and she rode the heck out of it.

littlelady

I thought I had responded to hair but I don't see the post. Please forgive me I am a bit of a tard when it comes to writing these threads. Anyway, hair you are right the Rebel really isn't the answer I'm looking for. I don't know anything about the KTM's but I went to the website and did a quick look. I need to go back there when I have more time to really look. I could be making this up but I thought I saw the 225 Serrow was fuel injected. Or maybe it was a different one. That would be really cool. My hub loves his FI 450. I am getting more encouaged to find that even though the pickings are slim at least there are a couple of possible choices.

jake_p_3.

buy an over sized gas tank and shave the seat foam on your 150. it will save money, and be the best of both worlds. if you are going to trail ride i would suggest a flywheel weight.

hairscrambledny

I think littlelady has figured out that she's between a rock and a hard place. I just rec'd this months DR mag and it has a writeup on the Honda CRF250L dual sport, but it weighs in at a porky 320 lbs. and the seat height is 34.4". The TW 200 is 278 lbs and has a 31.1" seat height making Alex's recomendation much better.

Plus the reviews made it clear that it's not going to win any podium spots, so moving from a 150r will be a bit of a disapointment powerwise.

I think the only options are to spend the money to mod an offroad bike or settle for one of the stock offroad bikes.

yz250f4ever

I am on the same page with hair, for what my oppinions worth. Even though the TW200 is an air cooled 200cc 4valve 4-stroke motor. it still has plenty of power to keep you grinning, like i said before i am 6'3 and 195ibs your 4'11 and 100ibs pretty much half of me, so the bike to you would feel even more powerful than per say how I precieve the bike as far as power goes. What state are you in? I am in SO CAL and if you lived close i would have no problem letting you ride mine for a test run.

Kiwi450x

To be fair, Littlelady, I reckon you should stick with the CRF150r, it's far and away better than anything else for someone your size.

All the bikes mentioned are way bigger and heavier.

Like Jake said, try and find a big gas tank and think about a flywheel weight. You'll be away laughing. I know it's not road legal but short of a TM or some other specialist small volume manufacturer, you'll never find a decent dirt bike your size that can be road legal.

Maple Leaf MX

Agreed ^^

littlelady

Thanks for all the great thoughts guys. I live in Shelton, Washington BTW. I think the 150 is awesome for pure trail riding, and I've checked out getting the larger gas tank already, which would help a lot. I've also considered lowering the seat a tad, and installing a flywheel. I've never used a flywheel and am having a hard time wrapping my mind around how it would feel. But several people have told me that is the way to go for trail. At under 200 lbs I can pick it up from most unplanned dismounts, etc.

I sure want to check out a couple of the others mentioned in the thread though. Depending on what type of riding we might do in a day, we could be mostly on dirt roads and big, easy trails which (hopefully) I would be staying upright more often than not. No reason I couldn't keep my 150 for more adventurous exploring and a slightly heavier bike for cruising the back logging roads, etc. Besides, even tho I'm a pretty conservative rider, I love sailing over little jumps with my 150. The suspension is pretty sweet for a little bike. I think I will have to put my leg over some of the other bikes and see how they feel. Also, if I just HAVE to have a road legal bike, that brings me full circle back to the Rebel, or similar. Geesh it's never easy is it?

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