While we considered all of the different tests and price while rating the bikes, the GP course opinions and times and the trail evaluation factored heavily in the final decision. During those tests the little thumper earned praise from riders as disparate as Vet pro Lewis, WORCS pro Ryan Orr and even Pete "I'd Rather Moto" Peterson.
Lewis: "The bike pulled like a 300cc four-stroke, and it was jetted perfectly, a big improvement from last year. The pull is long and forever, it never flattens.
Orr: "Good torque and a broad, usable powerband with plenty of overrev."
Peterson: "The little engine required a lot of shifting compared to the open two-strokes, but that just adds to the fun for me. Just when I thought I'd buried the little bike into a soft berm it couldn't tractor out of, the bike simply pulled right out without a bog or strain. The throttle response was nice for a 250F."
Jesse's moto test was a shorter, more intense test, but again: "Torquey with great power that liked to be revved as much as it could chug. This bike always seemed to be in the meat of the power and stayed there longer than most bikes, including bigger bores."
Handling and suspension are vastly improved for 2008 with a new chassis, fork design and shock angle, and the changes show up positively in the opinions. It didn't matter if it was a pro like Orr: "The suspension is plush. The bike tracks extremely well in . at corners, feels light and is fun to ride."
Or Lewis: "The suspension stood out as being really good when you're pushing the bike, especially in chop. It stays light-feeling, especially in the upper rpm where the other bikes get heavy. That's good since that's where you're riding this bike. The brakes are super strong and the clutch is simple to use."
Novice and intermediate pilots were equally impressed. Pete said, "This bike was more fun than the two-strokes because it handled better on the gas, and this little 250F lets me get on the gas sooner than with the other bikes. The front wheel got great traction yet did not ride up in the ruts or do anything grabby with all that traction. When a bump threw the back end out, there was no drama as the little F was controllable and easy to bring back in line."
Despite being a lot heavier, I agreed, "This is the most fun bike in the test. The negatives are a slightly soft spot in the power in the lower midrange and suspension that simply isn't plush on trail braking bumps or through rocks. The bike feels light and nimble, and it flicks easier than bikes that are even lighter." The bike wasn't perfect for every rider. Denison felt the rear was high in the EnduroCross, and Keefer was chasing the front end on the Escargot.
This bike is slim and narrow with a clean design, so it slinks through ruts, dodges rock outcrops and stumps and it isn't a mud magnet. The more rocky and ledge-filled the trails, the more crisp and firm the suspension feels. The suspension would definitely be overly firm for a light rider. Even though this bike has a close-ratio six-speed, first gear is plenty low for technical riding. Throttle control in tricky situations is magic. The exhaust note has more bite to the bark than we like, and the XC model is not green-sticker-legal for 2008. If we ranked this test solely on smiles-per-dollar or on a most improved bike from last year, this KTM might have won. But we tested race bikes regardless of class, and the 250 was always a bit slower on the stopwatch. -Karel Kramer
Precision Concepts is known...
Precision Concepts is known fo Honda off-road suspension, and this bike more than lived up to that reputation. Chris Barrett gets dirty.
#110 Precision Concepts/JCR
Honda CRF250X
Scaled-Down Screamer
We forget who it was who said, "You can't go back," but it's true. That roller coaster is never as scary, an old girlfriend found again doesn't match the memories, your first car isn't as cool revisited and neither are dirt bikes. And as we tested the Precision Concepts/Johnny Campbell Racing CRF250X, we thought "you can't go back" had struck again.