ATV Florida Forum

   Which has a softer ride, a Quad, or a Dirtbike? I've never ridden a quad yet with Elka's. I was wondering if maybe a Dirtbike might ride softer. There is a small thought going through my mind about trying one.
   Anyone ever switch over and like it better?

Dirt bikes have better suspension. Easier to crash.

I used to ride dirt bikes. When I did it was a matter of when I was going to crash. Now that I ride quads the question is if I'm going to crash not when.

Ive been riding bikes since october and I have gotten a bit sore in the ankles and knees from near mishaps and pushing off with my leg. But, much softer and much more fun I think!


Cheaper too!

   bikes   have better  suspension  by far !!!  the suspension  on my cr is  way better  than my yfz  [ elkas ]  front and rear  long travel .  but  keep in mind   that  the quad  is way heavier !!plus more  moving parts .  i been  riding  my bike more lately  than the  quad .  its so much  easier  to ride    for me at least.    but  if  you'r never  ridin   a bike   its  a different story.  you  would hate it  until  you learn  how to ride it .. ;D

   I figure quads are more technical because there heavier, so it's harder to maneuver. I use to get one hell of a workout when I would ride fast all day.  
   Considering the condition I'm in from the car accident I got into, I've been pondering the thought of trying one.
   I see Dirtbikes are cheaper and easier to transport also. But most importantly, they look like they give a softer ride. I use to race BMX and ramp ride when I was younger, I thought the two might correlate.

my buddy rides a dirtbike and can ride way faster over the whoops than i can on my 400ex [stock supension] main reason i got a dirtbike if i could only have one though itd be the quad

   I had a YZ80 when I was like 13, but I grew up in Homestead, everywhere you rode was hard packed. The only thing that does worry me is I do see a lot more crashes on bikes than quads.

youll change your mind when you get the CR runnin.

if i were you, id get a dirtbike. i rode bikes than tried a quad and hated it. im always sore in my back and all over from quads but ive never been sore from a bike. i can ride all day and not be tired (during the fall and winter when its cooler anyway) but im ready to die in bout 3 hours on a quad. ive had a 400ex, 300ex, and a yfz (mistake).

btw, im selling a XR400 right now. im askin 1500. its the same engine as a 400ex. its setup for 200lbs from factory connection which really helps. if you decide to try a bike, shoot me a pm if you want to see the XR.

Maybe its just because Its new to me, But I've always had a blast riding Racer x's old kx250. But man I can't ride it at all lol. Dirtbikes are alot harder to learn, but easier to ride once you get the technique down.

itsprobably safer for me to ride a dirt bike now because im so used to them. if i tried to ride a quad like i ride the bike, id kill myself.

wrecking a bike isnt bad in florida either. theres so much sand everywhere that its like landing on a pillow. i wrecked a cr85 goin 55mph through some whoops in ocala and i git right up. felt cool kinda. and a dirtbike wont run you over either. it falls when you fall. im scared to death to flip a 400lb quad.

   I had a friend with a CR250 who wanted to store it in my shed for a while. He told me I could ride it whenever I wanted. I was on it for about 10 minutes and slammed on the brakes, the front tire slid out from under me and I sprained my ankle and wrist.
   I sued him!!LOL Just kidding

There is a reason why you see us older guys jumping on quads, IMO it is alot easier on the body.  Now, when I had my Raptor I did not race or anything and I tried to keep all the wheels on the ground for the most part.  Now I have the plush ride of a King Quad  ;D

haha ya i've had the wind KNOCKED out of me more than a couple times and handlebars to the face once, through my helmet.

I really want to get a bike just for the free riding aspect.

dirtbikes are deffinately faster and have better suspension and a whole lot easier to wreck lol.  If your pro or not the sand can still make you fall.  Riding in sand on a dirtbike is pretty tough.  The faster you go the easier to ride but also the harder the fall.  I know of 2 people that used to ride dirtbikes, came down here to Croom and sad their buying quads and they did.  They dont regret it either.  I wish I had a dirtbike to mess around on.  With 12" of travel you can do almost anything lol

   I thought it might be easier to jump on than a quad. I use to ride ramps on BMX, so I thought it would be kinda the same.

best thing to do, just get some hours on a bike and decide, bikes are for some people, quads are for some people

Oops, just read what I wrote.  I did not mean jumping the quads over ramps and hills I meant, you see us older guys climbing on quads and riding them instead of the dirtbikes  :), sorry.

My son started out on a bike. He out grew it, went to a quad, rode it for a year, didn't care for it much. So after the quad he's had two other bikes and doesn't want to go back to a quad. And all his friends rides bikes as well.
Plus my brother in law he's about 50 years old and rides a CRF450. He'll only ride a quad if he can play around in a mud hole.
 Myself I've tried to ride dirt bike, I just don't like it I'll stick to my quad.

ANYONE can ride around on 4 wheels...............it take talent to ride on 2  8)

true but its easier to be faster on a dirtbike.  Once you start riding a dirtbike you pick it up real fast and most become good quick.  On a quad you can ride for 20 years and still not be great.

i prefer the honda elite 50 1987 style. straight out of vice city. ;)

I have both and if your not good on a bike picking it up all day long wears you out REAL fast.Two wheels are smoother

   I've ridden dirtbikes when I was 12 on hard pack surface. I thought it was a lot easier than a quad. But quads seem to be better in sugar sand. Quads wear me out faster I think because their more weight to control. That's the only reason I was thinking about a dirtbike.

once you get used to the dirtbike it easier in sand. i just go as fast as i can and ive only went down once. it literally feels like landing on a pillow. as for the wearing you out aspect, i get real tired fast on a quad. i can ride the dirtbike all day and be ready for more (if i stand up, my crf has the hardest seat there is).