[justbreathe]

Hey everyone. I’m 17 and hopefully about to buy my first bike. I’ve ridden dirtbikes alot with friends, but never a streetbike. im stoked to get one.

Here’s the thing though: I live down 3 miles of gravel and dirt roads from the pavement. I really, really would like to get a Ninja 250. they look awesome and get amazing gas milage for my 80 mile commute twice a week. however, im concerned about how well it would hold up out here? I’m fine with taking it very slow each time, but even then….
thoughts?

[briderdt]

…why not? I don’t see an issue with the bike not holding up, just that you keep yourself in check and don’t drop the bike.

[Gary856]

A street bike should handle a smooth, graded gravel/dirt road reasonably well at a sane speed. It’ll just get dirty. Since you’ve ridden dirtbikes a lot I’m sure you’re comfortable with low traction situations. I’ve ridden my GS500 on dirt/gravel roads and it was really fun; I just didn’t trust the suspension to take the bigger bumps, so I didn’t go that fast. I say “lucky you” because where I live (San Jose, CA) there’s hardly any unpaved roads/trails that we could ride on within 100 miles… I’ve been wanting to get a dual sport but riding pavement 99% of the time (due to the lack off legal off pavement roads/trails) really wouldn’t do a dual sport justice. sigh…

Would you consider something like a DR-Z400sm instead of the Ninja 250? Too bad the SM version of the DRZ would cost more…

[TrialsRider]

No worries
Just take it super easy coming into loose gravel corners, do all your braking in a straight line before you commit the turns, road bikes are amazing fast on straight line, hard packed gravel. Watch out for spring thaw if you live in a cold climate, also deep sand, more so with heavy bikes; any road surface that does not support the full weight of the bike will affect directional stability badly, road tires sink into a soft road surface and will make the bike squirm and wiggle like you have never experienced on a full knobby equipped dirt bike with wide handle bars.
One last thing; watch out for rural wildlife. Country roads seldom provide a clear line of sight and a deer, dog or coyote is only one step from being in your direct path. Straight line brake, hard as you dare to avoid impacting large animals, but anything small is on his own, never, never, swerve to miss a ground hog, you won’t even feel it if you run over the poor little bugger.
That’s a sweet first bike, keep it clean, back off from the road dust and keep the air filter and drive chain clean.

[SantaCruzRider]

I don’t disagree with the posters who say that it’s entirely possible to ride a Ninja on dirt and gravel. But if I was buying a commuter bike, I would want something that could handle that road after (or during) a little rain and there’s a big difference between riding smooth gravel and riding in sticky mud. I’d also be gritting my teeth everytime a chunk of gravel kicked up and scratched my fender, fairing, etc.

I’d be thinking the same things in choosing a car for that route. I might lust for a low-slung Lotus, but the road is probably more suitable for a small SUV or Outback.

If I were in your shoes, I’d check out a nice dual sport like the DRZ400 or a LKR 250-650. That way you’ll look forward to hitting that dirt road, rather than crawling your way through it.

[CBBaron]

As you are probably aware there are many types of gravel/dirt roads. Well graded and reasonably well packed roads are no problem for a Ninja 250. My first motorcycle road ride on my Ninja I took it 1/2 mile down a dirt road and it felt very little different from a road ride.
However if the roads are deep loose gravel or even worse loose large rocks then a slick tired bike will be a handful. The Ninja is probably better than most due to its light weight.
As long as its actually a maintained road and you take it slow durability and suspension should not be a problem. Only if you are riding fast on rough roads or bottoming out the suspension would you have a significant issue.
If you don’t mind spending a little more the WR250R would be a great bike for your situation. About the same power and efficiency as the ninja 250 but lighter and better suspension. Should still be capable of longer commutes without a problem but more fun on gravel and capable of off road.

Craig

[Ixecapade]

I lived 3 miles up a dirt road… I wouldn’t take a ninja 250 on it… sheeeee’t thats why my dad sold the vet- it wouldn’t hold up to that.

Most 3 mile long dirt roads AREN”T well maintained unless they are fireroads or something a larger entity is paid to mantain it as such. If it was a properly placed DGA/RCA/asphalt milling/ road- yes it could be very well held up- even for a private road- but I doubt 3 miles of private road was so meticulously placed- its super expensive.

Most privately owned/shared roads (ours wasn’t privately owned- we all beat it to death and many of us tried to help maintain it so yeah “maintain” takes on a whole new meaning) …are not made of the finest materials- just whats there- and they aren’t super well maintained (if you’re’s is- then clearly this need not apply- but for sake of discussion) and NO it would not be an appropriate choice Could it- sure but you’d regret it immediately. Find a way to keep it off the road for the most part- (friends garage/storage etc etc) or get a dual sport- I think you would be wincing every time you took it out. and no one wants that!

[justbreathe]

yeah we have 160 acres, as well as a motorcross track 5 miles from my house haha though i never got into it.

but thanks so much for the input

[justbreathe]

thanks much! we actually do have alot of deer out here (North Texas) and wild hogs. i’ll for sure keep my eyes open

[justbreathe]

i will take that into consideration, and have actually thoughts about it quite a bit already. the thing is, i have a car already, a 95 Toyota camry…and the roads simply destroy it. so we are thinking about trading it in for a bike.
i won’t lie, the dual sports don’t look as cool. haha. but it may be something ill have to sacrifice for practicability

[justbreathe]

my price range is what i can get for my aforementioned Camry about 2500….so i really can’t spend much more.

and our roads are somewhere in the middle. when wet they get pretty bad, but during the summer the county does a pretty good job of keeping the gravel thick

[justbreathe]

gahhh. living out here sucks haha. we’ll see….

[SantaCruzRider]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and the Ninja is certainly a great looking bike.

I think the fact that the road destroyed your Camry is a red flag against buying something meant for road. You may want to do a bit of research around some of the adventure-style bikes. I’m thinking along the lines of the Honda Transalp or the newer Wee-Strom or Versys (price may be prohibitive). They may give you enough of the look you want and still have the suspension you need.

Another thought would be to see if you could try riding a dual sport on road. Many of them really are fun to ride and very versatile. They may not look as sexy as the Ninja, but the fact that you’ll have a bike that you can ride any time you want will be very attractive.

[Author]

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