If I had to have only one it would be the TW (well, maybe a WR250R.) because I like to ride on and off road. My other bike is a CRF230F which just does the sugar sand and whoops at Croom better than the TW. That very well may be true for so many lucky enough to have multiple bikes, it is for me.

I'm glad I have been able to share some of my genuine interests with them, it definitely creates new connections. There are people who know what it is like to ride, and people who don't. I always look forward to trail riding with the kids and it is incredible when it happens. There is just something about the TW that makes me appreciate it and think of it as a venerable classic. It definitely is a unique bike that offers a ton of versatility, especially for the price, but it is pretty small when I see it next to other bikes, which has advantages. I never thought of the TW as a minibike either before the conversation, thought it was an interesting perspective on his part. Sometimes I take a weekday off to ride with friends and we barely see 10 people, it is great! We camp there a bit as well and if you get out before 9am, you almost have the place to yourself. We try to go early Sunday mornings because it does get very crowded on the weekends. Yes, that is Croom, good eye! We are parked at the kids area. I do love those Tenere 700s though, maybe someday! Both in the garage would be sublime. I keep flirting with selling the TW for something I can ride at higher speeds on the road, but then keep pulling back since I know I would miss it. The kids all ride quads now, way easier in the sugar sand, no doubt, but my kids ride a little XR50 with an 88 kit around the house. Here is me on my TW (with my buddy on a TTR230) and our kids at a local OHV park. Oh boy was that a rush though!Īfter the conversation, now I find myself wanting to buy one of those Coleman minibikes I see out there! Anyone else out there start out riding on one of the old minibikes or have one still? I've never felt the need for that kind of power after that. I rode my neighbor's mid 80's CR250 as a kid and it basically flung itself right out from under as it bucked me off in the middle of a corn field. In a way I think his minibike comment was sort of accurate, the TW is the gateway for many people learning to ride since they use them in the MSF courses and the seat height makes it confidence inspiring for many. So this Tenere guy said he didn't own a TW but he had piloted a couple in the past and enjoyed it. That bike and the mid 80's XR80 that came next engraved a love for motorcycles into me and I will always enjoy riding until I can't anymore. All the kids I hung out with had some version of this and we rode them almost daily with little maintenance. My first 2 wheeled gas powered machine was a mid 70's, green minibike with a Tecumseh motor that just wouldn't quit, so I understood what he meant. He did not say it in a condescending manner and said he was trying to convey that the bike is fun, approachable, easy to ride, reliable and simple to maintain like the lawn mower engine powered minbikes so many of us started out on over the years. Recently I struck up a conversation with another motorcycle enthusiast riding a Tenere 700, and upon telling him I had a TW200, he referred to it as an 'adult minibike'.

Adult fat tire mini bike kit