319 Moth Balls in the Closet

Over the past couple of days, I've decided it's time to sell Old Betsy, my WR-250XX. :)

Even though I've had my WR-250XX since just this past December, I feel like I've had my fun with it and it's time to sell it while the weather is still warm and ridable for most people.
It's a fun bike to ride, and from March until one month ago, I rode it every weekend.
It seems that that 3-and-a-half months of riding (about 3,000 miles worth) was enough for me on the little motard, a fun bike for sure.

Also, since I'm now concentrating on riding the WR-250FY Firebreather in the Pachaug rock-n'-roll pile every weekend, now, I simply don't want to see the WR-250XX just sitting there doing nothing, collecting dust and spider webs.
No, I've ridden it, enjoyed it, and now feel like letting her go to someone else.
Someone will get themselves a fun little street bike, too. :)

Last weekend on the WR-250FY in Pachaug was a mixed bag as far as results and enjoyment went.
While the weather was good and I felt decent, I experimented with the fork oil level in the forks.
I lowered the oil level, wondering if I'd be able to make the fork a bit softer toward the bottom of their stroke since I never seem to reach full travel while out there on the trails.
Well, lowering the oil level did achieve this for the most part, but, as I should have known, the setup of the bike is a compromise, and lowering the oil level looking for a more soft fork action also means the front end will be riding a bit lower at all times.

Gee.

So, I reminded myself of what I'm sure I already knew in the back of my mind somewhere and felt the trade-off of softer fork feel in exchange for a lower front end ride height was not a good one for me.
I've always preferred the front of the bike have a firm feel for off-road riding, as having one that feels soft robs straight line stability for me.
This was once again the case on the WR-250FY, and although the softer and easier-to-compress front end helped with tight cornering, the lost stability was sorely missed out on the rough sections of trail, and there are plenty of rough sections of trail.
So, since I wanted the old stability back, come Monday morning, I reset the fork oil level to where it was before I messed with it:
110mm from the top of the tube.
There it stays.

During the work week, I also installed two new Bridgestone M22/M23 tires, the same tires I always use off-road.
Awesome stuff, these. :)

We'll see how it goes out in Pachaug this weekend.
For now, it's off to jerk for another Saturday morning freebee.

-John

Edit:

Well, I went for my Saturday Pachaug rock pile loop ride today, and the WR-250FY setup with the ol' 110mm fork oil level had the bike feeling like it's old self, again.
Stability over the rough stuff was good, and I was happy.

The ride was a good one.
No crashes, although I did have a couple of semi-clumsy bobbles from hitting rocks I didn't see coming.
Oh, well.
With the half-trillion of them out there, I'm bound to miss a few once in a while. :)

On the positive side of things, there were a few key spots where I felt I rode well and the bike felt very good, indeed.
The trails though the Green Falls part of the loop felt good and I rode fairly well.
After that, the pine needled section with the whoops was another good one.
And, of course, the new tires worked like magic, as they always have in the past.

The ride today was 59 miles, a few more than usual because I took a trail, which is part of the loop, that leads to a stupidly deep water crossing (mushy willy swamp is more like it).
I rode to the willy swamp crossing, turned around, and rode the trail back and carried on.
I have crossed that mushy willy swamp in the past, but now, I'd rather just skip it because it's not fun to me.
More like throwing your $6,000 dirt bike into a willy swamp.
No thanks, Homer. ;)

-John