Picked up a bike for the wife

[Greg]

Catherine has been talking about getting a bike, so she can join me when I go out riding. Apparently she was getting a bit jealous when I'd go out for a ride and then return, telling her how great the ride was. She mentioned this a few times and we started talking about getting her a bike. She grew up riding 4 wheelers, so she has some good experience with the controls and such. We have been looking for a good deal for some time and recently found a beat-up '99 Yamaha TTR-250 on the KSL classifieds.

The timing was good, as we would be in SLC visiting family and friends for the Holiday. We made arrangements to see the bike before leaving Colorado. Seeing the bike was the first thing we did when we got into UT and was in pretty poor shape. The bike had been wrecked recently, you could see that all the plastics had been bent pretty badly, the number plate was broken, the grips were tore up and the owner had replaced both levers, since they had apparently been broken in a wreck. The bars are slightly bent too. There were a few other issues, both tires were nearly flat, one of the fork seals was leaking, etc. After a quick test-ride we made an offer and he took it, so we loaded up the bike!

Here's the pics from the ad-

 

[Greg]

After picking it up, we gave it a much needed pressure washing, adjusted the clutch and put some air in the tires. We rode it around UT, Catherine was getting some good practice using the clutch and balancing on 2 wheels and riding. We brought it home today and changed the oil, peeled off some of the leftover and scratched up stickers, and cleaned it up a bit more.

We're working on getting all the riding gear for her, she already had a helmet, we found some used riding boots, a womens pressure suit and put in an order with Rocky Mountain ATV for some gloves, socks and other clothing items. I also ordered a new pair of bigger bars and hand guards, to prevent any more levers being broken.

Eventually we will add a horn, brake light and DOT tires, so we can plate it and be legal to ride on the street. We may even add a bigger tank, from what I've read Honda XR250/400 IMS tanks will fit on the bike with minimal work. That will give the little TTR well over 300 miles of riding range, perfect for keeping up with my DR650.

The bike is a great beginner bike, electric start, smooth and easy power delivery, somewhat light weight, etc. The 6 speed transmission provides deep gearing for offroad use and higher gearing for cruising down the highway. It should be a great bike for Catherines needs and from the bit of time I have spent on it, it could be a great small/light bike for those technical single-track trails that my DR650 is just too big for. Just don't tell my Wife that I want to ride it too!

Here's how it looks now, I'll see about updating this thread as the other mods come long.

 

[Herzog]

It already looks like a completely different bike. It seems to be cleaning up well.

 

[Greg]

It already looks like a completely different bike. It seems to be cleaning up well.

Yeah, a bit of work and it's fairly noticeable already. It looks much better now. I'm going to change the spark plug and air filter this week, which should help out a bit. From the shape of the bike when we picked it up, I'd say the PO didn't do much maintenance. Sad, but it made for a good deal on our end.

New handle bars and hand guards will help out quite a bit, I hate riding with bent bars!

 

[LT.]

Sounds like you have the making of your own Baja team here. Bike looks great, and I can't wait to see some of the pictures of y'alls adventures.

LT.

 

[Greg]

Sounds like you have the making of your own Baja team here. Bike looks great, and I can't wait to see some of the pictures of y'alls adventures.

LT.

It may be awhile before we are 'race ready'... We've got to get her used to riding in difficult terrain first. I just hope she enjoys this as much as I do. Hopefully we can get the bike prepped for riding and street-legal by Spring, ready for some big trips.

 

[benjy]

Sweet! I test rode a few ttr250s while I was searching. Great bike for sure...

 

[Corban_White]

Very nice! I question your use of "beat-up" though!

 

[Greg]

Sweet! I test rode a few ttr250s while I was searching. Great bike for sure...

Catherine is very happy with it, she let me ride it at the little practice track out at Rabbit Valley today and it hauls my 220# carcass around quite well! We're both quite pleased.

Very nice! I question your use of "beat-up" though!

Trust me, it was quite abused and neglected... I think the tank is the only piece of plastic that isn't broken or doesn't have white marks indicating that they've been severely bent. With the work it needs and the mods we want to do, it will make a great winter project. Hopefully a low-buck winter project.

 

[Corban_White]

Abused and neglected, sure. Not beat up. This bike was beat up. Especially when I got it with no seat.

This is what the above bike should look like:

The TTR looks like a great bike. Should be a quick, easy and cheep project and then your wife can come on the rides with you! That's why I got my wife her bike................then 4 days later we found out she was pregnant! Needless to say I have ridden it more than her. Hope to get her on it some more next summer tho. Happy riding!

 

[rholbrook]

If you want an easy kit to make it street legal, let me know. I used it on my sons TTR230 and on my WR450.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Congrats Catherine Looks like a great bike. Keep us updated on how you like it.