Month: August 2020

So you’re looking at dirt bikes but don’t yet have the licence? Sounds like a tough situation but it isn’t.

You can ride a dirt bike without a licence if you are riding on private property. This is also true if the motorcycle itself is registered, but your licence is yet to come – you’ll need to stay away from government land for now.

The exception to the rule is organized group tours. You’ve probably been on vacation and have seen signs saying ‘ATV tours’ and the like where the organizers don’t expect you to have a licence to ride these bikes in the tour. They have sought special permission from the government with insurance as well to cover you.

Riding Dirt Bikes with No Licence

There are certainly places where a licence isn’t necessary to ride a dirt bike. These include:

• Motocross tracks. Many MX riders aren’t licenced, including under 16s.
• Dirt bike parks. They generally don’t ask you to have a licence to ride.
• Private property. If you own a large portion of land, then anyone can ride here without a licence.

At the same time, there are some liability issues which come to the surface if you’re riding without a licence. Your health insurance may not cover you if you’re riding a dirt bike without a licence so do check with them prior to going on the trails.

Some people think that they can ride a low-powered motorcycle with a car licence. This is true as some states allow you to ride a 50cc moped without an actual motorcycle licence, yet dirt bikes are almost always much more powerful than these.

Children Riding with No Licence

Kids riding dirt bikes is an interesting issue as they can’t generally get a licence until age 16 in most states, with some states making the minimum age 17 or 18. This doesn’t prevent them from riding, however, if they stick to the 3 solutions we’ve provided above.

You can enroll your kids into a dirt bike school to help their skills development. In fact, most MX tracks provide coaching for children weekly to help develop their skills and this may be an insurance requirement.

In terms of riding on public land, the rules are almost universal. Children aren’t allowed to ride on government or public land with their dirt bikes, which includes roads, parks, trail bike routes and dirt roads. The only exception is teenagers and they need to have both a licence to ride and registration on their dirt bike.

While you may be able to claim recreational registration for a children’s dirt bike in some areas of Australia and the United States, they still won’t qualify for a licence. Therefore this can be an expensive process with no real benefit unless you want to ride your own children’s bike offroad which is unlikely.

The Solution

Often the best solution for kids who are in love with their dirt bikes is the parents choosing to move into the country. It’s here that children can ride as much as they want without looking over their shoulder.

Certainly, there is no need for licences or registration for dirt bikes being ridden at home. It’s your land and your rights. You’ll find that just about every pro rider in the world had open land that they could practice on daily. If your kids are committed – then this is a solid way to go.

Riding a dirt bike to school…sounds great in theory, but is it actually possible? Well, the rules are quite clear:

If your dirt bike is registered, you have insurance and you hold a licence – then yes, you can ride a dirt bike to school. Some schools discourage students riding a motorcycle of any kind to school, but legally there isn’t much stopping you as long as you park off school grounds.

The school principals don’t like dirt bikes because of the anti-social behavior they bring. There have been instances of teenagers riding on school ovals which rips up the grass and you risk striking a child.

Riding a Dirt Bike to School

It probably isn’t the wisest idea to bring your dirt bike to high school or even college/university. Some reasons we would discourage it include:

1. What if someone pushes over your dirt bike while you’re in class?
2. What if it gets stolen? Do you have insurance to cover a replacement?
3. What do you do when it’s raining? Riding wet clothes to school isn’t fun.
4. How will the teachers and principal accept it? Usually it’s banned.

In fact, riding any sort of motorcycle to school isn’t a good idea and isn’t worth the risks involved as we’ve outlined above.

Alternative Options

What are some good alternative options that will still give you a thrill? Well – you could get an electric mountain bike with a 1,000+ Watt motor which will be a fun ride. Simply disconnect the battery and keep it in your schoolbag.

Another option is to simply leave dirt bike riding for the weekend rides only. It can be too much trouble trying to bring a dirt bike to school. You’ll be spending too much time worrying about it being damaged or stolen rather than the school work.

In Summary

While a novel idea, we wouldn’t recommend it. Leave it for the Instagram or Snapchat feed for weekend riding and after school muck-arounds. School is a place for learning and inspiration.

So you’re looking to buy a new or used dirt bike? Your dealer could be a great talker and thus, here are some things you should ask them.

Because when you’re spending your hard-earned money, you’ll want to ensure you’re simply asking the right questions.

We recently published a guide for used ADV motorcycles and now let’s get into dirt bikes which are slightly different. Be sure to ask any dirt bike dealership these questions:

1. Is this the right offroad motorcycle for me?

Not all dirt bikes are created equal and you should be asking specific questions on whether this particular dirt bike will fit your needs as a rider. Are you riding tight technical tracks or wide-open savannah? Are you racing or simply going recreational? Do you need to have road-legal registration? There is a clear difference in throttle responses, bike weights and engine capacities.

2. Do they have a wide range of dirt bikes?

We generally discourage people from simply using a one-stop dealership unless they have their heart set on a particular color or manufacturer like KTM. Within each manufacturer, they have specific dirt bikes that may better suit you as a rider, though some have very strong similarities such as Yamaha and Honda’s dirt bike range.

3. What mechanical checks do they do on used bikes?

You can buy used dirt bikes at dealerships and so you should be asking about their comprehensive range of checks that they’ll do before selling you the bike. In some cases, it will actually come with a warranty though this will be limited and won’t cover accidental damage. Most dirt bikes today are actually very reliable and most problems are quick and cheap fixes anyway.

4. Do they also stock gear?

Chances are that this is your 1st dirt bike purchase. If so – congratulations and welcome to the world of offroad fun! Ask your dealership if they stock gear because you’ll need protection gear out there on the tracks. It isn’t just a helmet but boots, clothing, gloves and protection plates such as a neck brace. Expect this to cost you between $700 and $1,500 depending on the quality of workmanship you require from your gear.

5. Can you test-ride the dirt bikes?

Some motorcycle dealerships run test-ride days where you can try out some various dirt bikes and find that one that suits you the best. Others might actually have a short yet simple test track located behind their premises for potential customers to use. This is one of the best ways to pick a dirt bike yet most dealerships sadly don’t offer this, especially for riders who haven’t touched a clutch level for a while.

In Summary

Dirt bike riding is a heck of a lot of fun. If this is your first purchase, then we can highly recommend using a motorbike dealership over a private sale for peace of mind. Then again – you’ll want to throw them these questions either over the phone or simply when going in.

Also ask them for great local riding spots in the neighborhood which are legal. You should expect a dirt bike dealer of all people to know this bit of information…if they are indeed enthusiasts.

See you out there!