371 Miles of Fun

Well, thank God that it didn't seem like tooooo long of a jerk week, and before long - POOF! - here we are at the weekend.  :)
I do think there is some truth to the old saying that time seems to pass more quickly the older you get.

I rode out on the Pachaug rock n' roll pile yesterday (Saturday) on the ol' CRF-450X9, and things felt quite good, all-in-all.
The sun was out brightly, and while that was a bother in the bright parts of the loop, I'm happy to say that was the only real pain in my ass for that ride, at least the only pain in my ass that I had no control over.
I felt good, and actually remember thinking to myself at a couple of spots well into the ride that I didn't feel tired at all, even after the pine-needled, whooped-out section that I really like but is also energy-consuming to ride fast.
The bike felt as good as it always did (with one side note) and I feel like I did a good job of riding the bike.
It was genuinely enjoyable.

The side note about the CRF-450X9 is that, in the six months I've owned and ridden this bike out on the Pachaug enduro loop, I've come to the point where I am now having the feeling of something I knew before I even bought the bike, but I still had to live through it to remind myself of this once again.
That is:
Big power isn't everything, and there are plenty of times where a bike that has a lighter feel while on the move is simply the better and more enjoyable choice, provided it has enough power so it doesn't feel like a complete dog.
Naturally, I don't want a bike that is light-feeling yet has little power, but there is a thing called balance which is basically compromising between a light feel and having enough power to satisfy.
And, folks, do any of you out there care to guess which bike I've had in the past met that balance?
Yes, indeedy-do, the ol' warhorse 2009 Yamaha WR-250FY firebreather was exactly that.
In hindsight (and another old saying says that hindsight is 20/20 vision), I feel I should have kept the WR-250FY for the day I got tired of muscling the CRF-450X9 around on the tighter portions of the Pachaug loop.
Well, folks, I do admit that that day has come, and while I do not yet feel like putting the CRF-450X9 up for sale (because it does have some fine and enjoyable traits of it's own like big power and torque, good suspension in the medium- and higher-speed sections, and excellent straight-line stability and a solid and confident feel in these sections of trail), I have reached the point, six months after purchasing the bike, that I now believe I've seen the peak of my interest in the bike and probably will either sell it within a year, or retire the bike to something like using it for back-and-forth to work and before-and-after work trail riding on the easier trails.

So, if I've reached the point to where I'm basically regretting selling the WR-250FY, and now feel that the CRF-450X9 is just a bit too heavy-feeling in the tighter stuff, what do I do now?
Well, I believe that means getting yet another bike that is around the 250cc range.
But, which one?
And when?
Well, that's the million dollar (or, at least a few thousand dollar) question.
I am very curious to see if Yamaha will be coming out with a new WR-250F for the 2013 model year.
If they do and it has the same kind of features that the new-for-2012 WR-450FB does (new frame based on the 2012 YZ-250FB motocross bike, new suspension, and new bodywork in the interest of making the bike feel better and perform better), then it would be very hard, indeed, to not consider it.
Another choice would be to keep my eyes peeled for a used WR-250F that is worth the price that the seller is asking (most of the time, these used bikes are waaaaaay over priced for the model year and condition they're in - you know, the ol' ask-way-more-than-you-really-want routine).
Lots of used bike ads feature asking prices that make me chuckle.

Then, there are the European brands like KTM, Husagerg, and Husqvarna, manufacturers that still sell two-stroke off-road bikes, something I haven't owned in 20 years because Yamaha and Honda quit making 2-stroke trail bike years ago, and the vast majority of the 1986 Yamaha IT-200S models out there have been long ago beaten into the scrap heap by some motorcycle retard.
A highly-qualified motorcycle retard, though.
A 300cc two-stroke European bike would be something I've never owned, although I am reading-up on these.
I would expect these bike to feel light with strong power.
The down side is that the motorcycle shop I work at does not sell KTM, Husaberg, or Husqvarna motorcycles, although there are other shops within a 45-minute drive that do (KTM and Husqvarna, anyway).

To be honest, it isn't as likely for me to go this European brand route, but, I can't completely rule it out, either.
One advantage about these European bikes is that, at least up until 2012, it is easier to street register one of these bikes because the manufacturer's Certificate of Origin (looks like a title, but isn't a title) doesn't say, in effect, NOT FOR HIGHWAY USE.
Because of this, I'm told that all I have to do is go down to the local DMV branch, show my papers and money, and walk out with a legit license plate WITHOUT having to go through the hassle of modifying the bike with the required parts and bringing it up to the Whethersfield main DMV office in order to pass an inspection before it can be registered, something that takes additional time and money.

Choices, choices.

Well, one choice I did make just a few days ago was buying a POS fixer-up special for $1,000:
A 1998 Honda XR-250R.
What's a 1998 Honda XR-250R?
It's basically a technological age older version of the Yamaha WR-250FY that I had.
It's air-cooled instead of liquid-cooled, the suspension tech is older, the shape of the bodywork, seat, and the overall ergonomics of the bike are from the mid-1990s (fatter and not as flat and sleek with the seat and fuel tank shape), and, overall, a bike meant for recreational trail riding.

What makes this bike a POS fix-'er-upper is that it is in poor shape - the engine and chassis need to be disassembled for an overhaul, so I have to put time and money into it before I can even ride it to see if I actually like it enough to want to keep it and ride it for a while.
Why did I spend a grand on a POS?
Because it has a Connecticut street title, and this means registering the bike to ride legally out on the Pachaug enduro loop or back-and-forth to jerk will be easy (if you want to think of doing anything at the Department of Motor Vehicles as easy).
We'll have to see if this bike is actually going to be fixed and ridden because I haven't even disassembled the engine, yet.
If things simply look to be worn out with the piston, rings, and cylinder wall, then I'll fix it.
If I find out it needs almost every part in the engine replaced, I'll scrap the project and just try to get some of the money back by selling the bike as used parts over the Internet (known as "parting the bike out").

Well, that's what's on my mind this weekend.
Not 100% sure whether or not I'll go for a second Pachaug rock 'n roll pile ride for this weekend today (Sunday), so we'll see.

-John