Rob Johnson
Bakersfield, CA
Filling your handlebar with spray Styrofoam keeps rocks, dirt and water out of the bar. It can even help reduce vibration through the bar. Try the canned foam sealant used in construction and available from home improvement stores. Use the extension tube that comes with the can, and withdraw the tube as you spray. Trim off the excess after the foam has expanded and dried. This adds hardly any weight.

Tip And Photo By Karel Kramer
So many of the extended-cab trucks we like so much have a relatively short bed. Too short to accommodate a full-size bike straight in with the tailgate closed. The answer, when you only have one bike, is to pull the rear wheel to one side to allow the gate to close. The problem is that the bike will then tip to the side with the longest tiedown when you turn or hit bumps. A third tiedown to the side of the bar with the short tiedown span will end the problem. Run the third tiedown from the bar or even from the tiedown hook to the rear of the truck. Then the bike will be rock solid for those dirt road derbies when you are in a hurry to ride.

Many situations arise that call for shipping a dirt bike. Whether you've bought or sold a bike online, are sending it to a friend or relative or traveling across the country to ride, it's always a good idea to prepare your cycle before handing it over to a shipping company. The following steps will minimize the possibility of the bike getting damaged during shipment, as well as help you collect compensation in the off chance that an accident does occur.

By Ben Beckner
Monte Vista, CO

By John Wheeler
Tampa, FL

By Anthony Scontrino
Issaquah, WA

Of all the various forms your bike can take, a full-blown freestyle machine is quite possibly the simplest in terms of modifications, maintenance and execution. Your best bet is to begin with a light, powerful 250cc two-stroke (although thumpers are becoming more prominent in jumping circles) and then fine-tune the bike to your specific preferences. Get out that hacksaw, because here is a crash course in how to prep your bike for freestyle flight!

Are you working on your engine and trying to keep track of where all the bolts go? Well, putting similar bolts (like clutch cover, ignition cover, centercase) all in separate little bags can make reassembly a cinch. Just remember to label them!

I have four dirt bikes that I hose down when the grime becomes unbearable. Although I'm not totally anal, I am careful about not sticking the hose down the exhaust or squirting water directly on the sensitive parts. Call me too cheap to buy the trick exhaust plugs or whatever, but I keep a few slightly used surgical gloves around and, instead of throwing them away, I stretch them over the tailpipe to keep water out, finally tossing them when I'm done.

The loose end of almost all tiedown straps is sewn in a loop. I think that loop is to keep the strap material from unraveling and to allow a better hand-hold when you pull the tiedown tight. But another rider once told me that the loop is to slide off the main run of the strap. I don't believe that, but I use it. Simply run the bottom hook of the strap through the loop before you attach it to the hauling vehicle and the motorcycle. The loose end is no longer loose. You can still grasp it easily, but the end is captive now, and it will flap less in the wind.

By Jim Hartman, Pittsburg, PA
Most riders think of a light aerosol like WD-40 as a lubricant, and it is, but it can be a great cleaner as well. Nothing works better for removing chain lube fling from rims and swingarms. It works great for cleaning two-stroke drool off your bike, too. If you're cleaning anywhere near the brakes, spray it on a rag or paper towel instead; brakes don't like it.

When I used to wear cheap goggles I stuffed them in my helmet and tossed it in my gear bag. Now I have discovered higher-end goggles, and I want to keep them safe. After a ride I put the goggle back in a bag-the one that came with it-and insert the bag into a plastic bottle (mine originally held beef jerky strips). I drill holes in the lid to let moisture out, then toss the bottle in with the other gear. The goggle stays like brand-new.

If I know that a ride will be brushy, I wear a jersey one size larger than normal. I cut a hole for my thumb right behind the cuff. I put my thumb through the hole in the jersey and then put my gloves on. Brush cannot rake the sleeve up, and the new micro-cuffs of jerseys are so small that they don't bother my hand at all.

Tip
Riding a dirt bike at or near your personal limit would be hot and sweaty business in shorts and a T-shirt, but most of us are smart enough to wear a lot more air-blocking but vital safety equipment than that. Each layer of safety makes the job hotter, so it is vital that you be prepared. Here are some tips that have worked for us living and riding in a desert. Different climates may call for other tips, so check with local riders for tips that are specific to your area.

When Dirt Rider talks about the handling and geometry of a dirt bike, we often use words like "rake" or "steering angle" to describe certain traits. Manufacturer specifications usually list some other chassis measurement called "trail." Noted motorcycle designer and chassis expert James Parker offered our sister publication Motorcyclist a primer on these terms, and we thought they would be helpful for our readers as well.

"I don't like how much mud gets thrown up on my back with the '08 and later KTM off-road bikes. So I cut some curved sections from a one-gallon, oval oil bottle. I used nuts and bolts to attach the extensions, but you could use pop rivets just as well. The difference is huge in muddy conditions, and the cost is almost free. Lifting it gets even tougher after I've added my fender extensions. But all late-model KTMs have two holes in the right-side rear number panel to access the muffler mounting bolts. A length of nylon strap can be threaded through the holes. I put a washer on the muffler bolts, then run the blots through holes melted in the strap. Leave a little slack and you have a perfect lift handle."

A trailbike can start out as any type of machine, from a full-blown MXer to a playbike, but beginning with a trail machine in the first place is the safest bet. Bikes like KTM EXCs or XCs, Honda CRF-X models or Yamaha WRs come pretty trail ready but can be made a lot more capable with the right mods.

Jaquueline De Larrabure
Tayside, Scotland
If conditions are really cold and miserable and you don't have proper cold- or wet-weather gloves, try wearing latex surgical gloves under your normal riding gloves. Your hands will stay much warmer, but be aware that your hands will sweat and the resulting softened skin may blister easily if you are prone to that.

Sound
01 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 lot of power.

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.

Husqvarna technicians at an international press launch of the TC 250 had the ultimate cheap way to sort, store and organize the multitude of spare nuts and bolts we dirt riders accumulate: old chain lube and contact cleaner lids. They're virtually indestructible, free and short enough to fit in the top of your toolbox. Now, stop digging through that bolt pile and sort 'em out.

When modern four-stroke off-road bikes arrived, most featured some sort of shim-type valve adjustment. Screw-type adjusters at the end of rocker arms that we learned on are a thing of the past. Those adjust with a threaded tappet and a locknut. That is a dead-simple way to do the job, but not one well-suited to ultra-high rpm. Most performance four-strokes use a precision steel shim to manage the clearance between the valve stem and a metal bucket or tappet that slips over the valve spring. The shims can't come out, and they offer positive adjustment. The downside is that you need to have shims on hand, or make a trip to the dealer to get some. A single shim is less than $10, and shimmed valves generally don't need adjustment very often. We find it ultimately more economical and time-saving to keep a Hot Cams shim kit on hand. For the price of a few shims, you get all you will ever need. As we have lived with and worked on more varieties of four-strokes, we have learned of some tips and tools that make this job much easier. To check or adjust your bike, wash it thoroughly, clean and organize your work space and dig up your manual.

Tech How-To
I was relatively unfamiliar with the modern Husqvarna seven days prior to the first GNCC of 2008. Due to a delay in the production of the BMW 450s, I had a crash course in all things Husky, as Summers Racing rode them instead of the absent Beemers. The team ended the 2008 season with numerous class wins, a GNCC class championship, some regional overall victories and a National Hare Scramble overall win and the first podium at a GNCC. Those national results were better than Husky had done since GNCC legend Ed Lojak did the job in 1988. That says a lot about the capability of the modern Husky right out of the box.

Tech How-To
Many dirt riders groan at the thought of an afternoon burned changing a flat tire in the garage. But at least that misery is consigned to an area with shade, tools and refreshment easily at hand. What do you do when you get a flat on the trail or at the track? Do you let it ruin your ride? Or do you throw that bad boy in the dirt, wrestle in a new tube and fix that tire and your day of riding? You fix it and ride, duh! Fortunately (for you), Karel has more experience changing tires than most riders, with some 25-tire days, but Jimmy makes him look like a novice. On an off-road test one rider had a flat, and we had a pro photographer to document the process. Then we sacrificed an old wheel, and cut it in half to better illustrate what's happening when you change a tire.

Keeping a modern dirt bike in absolutely perfect mechanical condition can be a pretty daunting task. While most of us love the riding part of dirt bikes, only a lucky smaller percentage enjoys working on the bike, too. But even if you get a massive grin at the idea of wrenching, chances are your bike can still benefit from the 10 points covered here. Whether our personal bike, a test bike or even the odd privateer race bike, they all need care that often gets ignored until problems become obvious. None of these 10 steps will break the bank, especially if you do the work, and taking care of these potential problem areas will all but guarantee a fun and trouble-free ride. So hit the garage!