I’m 50 years old, and started riding a dirt bike when I was 8, if you include an old minibike with no brakes and a Briggs and Stratton engine. I then moved up to 60cc then 100cc 2-stroke dirt bikes, then a 1978 650cc XS-650 Yamaha from 1980 to 1985. I have a 600cc Honda Shadow VLX cruiser from 2002 until now. Maybe next year I will buy a used 2008 Kawasaki ZZR 600.
I may be of some help to newer riders- I have crashed many times in the dirt, and one big crash on the street (just bruises). I broke three bones motorcycle riding in the dirt, and broke four bones in various other ways, including bicycle racing. I do some of my own mechanical work. I go with a group to the Tail of the Dragon (Deal’s Gap) near Gatlinburg, Tennessee every fall for twisty, steep roads.
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