Earlier, I blogged about wanting a 4WD Jeep for my rockhounding trips. Our Official Artist suggested in the comments that I look at getting a dirt bike instead. The idea has merit. I just need something to take me from where I park my car or light pickup to where I want to rockhoud. Anything I find or bring with me ought to fit in a backpack. It sounds like a good idea.
Then I went and checked out prices of dirt bikes on Craigslist. Yowza! They're about $1000. Crummy, old Jeeps are $3000. You could probably talk people down from both, but I had expected to find beaten up old dirt bikes for about $300. I must really be living in the past.
Hmmm.
4 comments:
The dirt bike, or even better a quad option is significantly better. There are the safety concerns to be aware of though. A street drivable jeep is limited in what terrain it can traverse. The true off road machines usually are towed to the trail head. Some of them are so modified that they are no longer street safe. I see a lot of families out with the quads having a blast. A bike or a quad will also save you a lot on gas money there in Southern Cal.
Actually, knowing how those things have evolved I'm not too surprised at that cost. Most dirt bikes (I think) are made by companies like Yamaha that build high-quality products that retain their value. Seriously, besides changing the oil and keeping the chain maintained, most jap bikes I've dealt with require next to nothing when it comes to working on them.
your average dirt bike probably wouldn't weigh more than 300 pounds... you could easily drive it up a ramp and tie that down in the bed of your truck... I've done it with bigger motorcycles.
Just, if you get a dirt bike, take a course to learn how to ride it properly. It wouldn't take more than a weekend and you'll learn tons :)
Thanks for all the feedback. I stopped by a off road shop today and got an earful from the proprietor. He told me to buy Yamaha and a 250 would be plenty big.
Justin, I will definitely take the riding course. ALl I could see was having that much weight fall on me while I was alone in the desert.
I'm also looking at changing my cell phone company and I'm looking for the one that has coverage in the remote places I go.
Yea, I had a Yamaha 250 motorcycle after I got my license because Texas requires someone under 18 to have one no bigger than that your first year with a motorcycle license.
As far as cell phone companies, Verizon is everywhere around here.
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