Author Archives : "karel kramer"

Tracks To Ride In SoCal – Dirt Rider Magazine

Riders in Southern California not only have a 12-month riding year, they have a wide variety of tracks to choose from as well. There is not one day, or even night, that prepped, moist moto-dirt is unavailable for their roosting pleasure. Whether you are a SoCal local looking for the straight scoop or one of [...]
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Budget Riding Gear For Big Guys – Quick Comparison – Dirt Rider Magazine

Troy Lee Designs GP Pant And Jerseywww.troyleedesigns.com$99/$42What’s Hot* Bright, attractive colors and a classy, timeless look.* Cut is roomy, and the legs are sewn with a curved shape that’s easy to move in. The leg is tailored where it goes into a boot. The jersey has a rubberized-type gel-print on the tail to help it [...]
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2010 KTM 250 XCF-W Champion’s Edition – First Impression – Dirt Rider Magazine

A large part of KTM’s current status as the Big Guys off-road has to do with value, arriving with the correct and necessary equipment and delivering on its “Ready to Race” slogan. Heading into 2010, the Champion’s Edition models-celebrating KTM’s 35 years building complete competition models-are more than ready to race. And this XCF-W will [...]
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1996-2007 Honda CR80R/85R – Used Bikes – Dirt Rider Magazine

Used1996-2007 Honda CR80R/85RPrice Range: $500-$3000When Honda redesigned the CR80R and CR80R Expert in 1996, it made a winner. Despite having no power valve and thus a pretty abrupt power delivery, the CR remains popular. The engine is highly reliable for an 80/85, and when it does break, parts are reasonable, available and easy to change. [...]
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2010 Kawasaki KXs Break Cover – Dirt Rider Magazine

The biggest news from the Kawasaki camp is the absence of fuel injection on the 250F. The rumors we’d heard claimed that every model 250F would have fuel injection, and that they were much more improved with the loss of the carburetor than 450s. In fact, budget was the reason given for carburetors being standard [...]
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Chain Care With Maxima’s Danny Massie – Pro Secrets – Dirt Rider Magazine

OK, I should have known that Maxima’s Danny Massie would know his stuff, but I was skeptical. Why would I want to wash all the lube out of my bike’s chain with water and degreaser? Because it works, that’s why! Since I wasn’t so sure before I tried it, I swiped Pete Peterson’s YZ125 Long [...]
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How To: Install A Big-Bore Kit – Dirt Rider Magazine

21 16 Loosen the head bolt or nuts a bit at a time working in a crisscross pattern. Note which bolts are inside the engine and which are out. On a Honda the washers must go on the bolt a certain way, so note how they’re oriented as the engine comes apart.17 On the Kawasaki [...]
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2009 Yamaha YZ450F – Long Haul Update – Dirt Rider Magazine

At 40 hours the trusty YZ450F is better suited to me personally than it was, but it also looks a lot less shiny than it did at zero hours. This bike has been ridden hard including multiple full-throttle MX-style starts, timed motos with pros in the saddle and sessions screaming its guts out in a [...]
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Outdoor Motocross Bikes Up Close – Dirt Rider Magazine

Sound01 Pro Racing sound regulations have been the same since the start of the SX season, but as teams work with exhaust companies to chase former power levels while still meeting current sound restrictions. The Muscle Milk KTM team was running these pre-canisters on the mufflers. The bikes were very quiet, but obviously made a [...]
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Glen Helen Hillclimb – Dirt Rider Magazine

Glen Helen HillNAHA Round 2Hillclimbing is considered the oldest form of motorcycle racing, but in areas of the U.S. and smaller parts of Europe, the sport continues to thrive.In the western U.S. the North American Hillclimber’s Association has the premier professional series, and it returned to SoCal in 2007 for the first time in many [...]
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Dirt Shimming – Shim-Type Valve Adjustment – Dirt Rider Magazine

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2009 Kawasaki KX450F, First Test – Dirt Rider Magazine

Life is all about timing, and unfortunately Kawasaki missed the timing when it released this 2009 KX450F a week after Honda released its ’09 CRF450R. Instead of surfing a wave of buzz, the Kawi is left knee-boarding in the foam. The KX450F is nearly all-new, but the look isn’t radically different. Our advice: Worry about [...]
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Yoshimura Larry Ward Trail Monster CRF500X – Dream Ride – Dirt Rider Magazine

As I understand it, Yoshimura built this bike for retired motocross and supercross star Larry Ward to ride for an industry ride in Colorado. In general, Colorado rides feature less air molecules than most rides, since trail days often start at more than a mile high and go up, so a certain amount of properly [...]
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Pirelli Big Buck GNCC: Round 4

Team Suzuki’s Josh Strang didn’t make life easy for himself at Round four of the GNCC series when he slid out in the first turn. He picked his 450 up quickly, but the pack was still a disappearing cloud of dust when he got going. The odd thing is that by the time Strang bulled [...]
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Randy Hawkins, dirt bike, late model, short track

Randy Hawkins is More Than a Dirt Bike Rider

Story and photos by Karel KramerAm-Pro Yamaha owner/manager Randy Hawkins is best known to dirt rider readers as a former six-time national enduro champion. Some may even know that he was a factory rider for Husqvarna, Suzuki and Yamaha. Over the years he has concentrated on the enduro series, Reliability Trials series and the GNCC [...]
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