In my younger days

[The emperor has no clothes]

I could only dream of having this much skill on a dirt bike. Most of my tricks were to try to impress the neighborhood girls, and usually ended up with broken parts and a little blood loss. This guy has it going on though. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=GaGh00qvstM&feature=youtu.be

[Hook#3287]

Come on Rob, you're selling yourself short.

You could do that stuff.

Just suck down a couple cases of Red Bull and you're there.

You won't need the bike cause Red Bull gives you wings

I could find a better use for the cool old truck.

Impressive skills.

[Jess from VA]

The skills are remarkable, but:

Our dirt bikes of the 70s had nowhere near the suspensions they do now.  They simply could not take the landings from 30-20 feet that these machines do with apparent ease.  I did some pretty good 7-10 foot jumps, and had to be sure to land on the back wheel only, and still had to hold on for a hard landing which would shake your brains loose and arms out of the sockets. 

We were not somehow provided all the time and money necessary to spend years developing these skills, we had school, work and families to support.  We were lucky to even afford to buy a bike, and lucky to have time to ride it once in a while.

Whenever I see this skill and grace, I wonder how many horrific and painful landings, falls, smashes, dental work, etc went into developing those skills.  There are no born expert stunt riders.   

(I know, I know... the old I walked 5 miles to school through ice and snow, uphill both ways, is a commonly heard refrain from us old guys)  Nonetheless.....   

[98 T]

When ever I watch a video like this,  I wonder what Evel Knievel  could have done with one of these super moto-cross bikes like they have now.  I cringe every time I watch old video of him jumping with a heavy   XR 750 with almost no rear suspension travel and in slow -mo,  watch the frame crack and watch his body slam the seat.

It always works better when you have the best tools for the job and bikes have come so far since the mid 1970's  

[cookiedough]

4 wheels can be more fun and safer, well maybe?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxTvMaJBT3c

 that wall of death sure looks bumpy and terrifying at the end of the first clip.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Kdk7PFlQXg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rEbfteUIkYU

at the above 2:30 mark I want to see  him climb that UTV back up that steep hill.
I have done a few donuts like above 5:40 mark on ice while ice fishing 6-7 times in a row and darn near tipped atv over, get dizzy quickly for sure.

all is well until you do not get enough speed and come to a quick stop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I73lw-nHKYE

I tried getting some AIR ONCE while downhill skiing attempting a small jump, ending up not enough speed and front tips of my skis got buried, me tumbling over head first into shaved icy fake snow only doing say 10 mph.  did NOT end up well my entire skin of my face was GONE bleeding and scabby for weeks afterwards.   I prefer staying on the ground on 2 or 4 wheels or on my feet thank you.   I have not gone downhill skiing since being about 12 years ago in my early 30s.

[old2soon]

I raced Yamaha a LONG time ago on another continent. And as Jess pointed out-fork and shock travel were-lacking! If I had 3" travel in front and 2" travel in back THAT was a Lot-in the 60s.  And as I recollect the goin up never hurt. It weren't even the comin down. it WERE the landin back on terra firma.  And NOT even takin note of the fact I wuz givin away anywhere from 100 to 135 lbs to the young Japanese guys I was racin against. AND the young man DO have some skills BUT I'm like others wondering WHAT it cost him-body wise-to gain those skills. RIDE SAFE.

[The emperor has no clothes]

I raced Yamaha a LONG time ago on another continent. And as Jess pointed out-fork and shock travel were-lacking! If I had 3" travel in front and 2" travel in back THAT was a Lot-in the 60s.  And as I recollect the goin up never hurt. It weren't even the comin down. it WERE the landin back on terra firma.  And NOT even takin note of the fact I wuz givin away anywhere from 100 to 135 lbs to the young Japanese guys I was racin against. AND the young man DO have some skills BUT I'm like others wondering WHAT it cost him-body wise-to gain those skills. RIDE SAFE.

When Honda updated their Elsinores in '77 with 12" suspension front and rear it was a whole new world. I had a CR250 that I could fly thru the whoop de do's with. It was like stepping up to a Mazzeratti compared to my '72 YZ125.

[Hef]

Rode dirt bikes for over 40 years. Most was zipping through woods at unsafe speeds which was a challenge and a thrill. We had a bunny trail with about 20 four foot hills spaced approximately 100 yds apart. Great fun. Trails had lots of hills, sharp  bends, and creeks. Did some some jumping, but nothing like shown here. Great sport, but as I got older, I lost some the quick reflects needed to ride the way we rode.......and the spills I took began to hurt a lot more so I gave it up and now ride street only. Do have a couple of four wheelers which we ride once in while in the woods, but at a speed that most on this board would find boring. 

[Hook#3287]

CR250 

Those were awesome bikes.  I had a 1973 CR250, wish I still did.

Had a lot of good times with it, pretending to be a Motocrosser.

[The emperor has no clothes]

CR250 

Those were awesome bikes.  I had a 1973 CR250, wish I still did.

Had a lot of good times with it, pretending to be a Motocrosser.

Those were good bikes with strong motors. But when they increased the suspension it became a whole another beast.

[shortleg]

  I had a honda SL 350 that they try to sell as a dirt bike.
I tried to jump a dirt mound with it, on the other side was deep mud
that bike sunk up to the forks and stopped dead

[The emperor has no clothes]

  I had a honda SL 350 that they try to sell as a dirt bike.
I tried to jump a dirt mound with it, on the other side was deep mud
that bike sunk up to the forks and stopped dead

sorry to laugh at your expense. But yeah, those SL's were barely capable of gravel roads much less any serious off-roading .

[FryeVRCCDS0067]

The skills are remarkable, but:

Our dirt bikes of the 70s had nowhere near the suspensions they do now.  They simply could not take the landings from 30-20 feet that these machines do with apparent ease.  I did some pretty good 7-10 foot jumps, and had to be sure to land on the back wheel only, and still had to hold on for a hard landing which would shake your brains loose and arms out of the sockets. 

We were not somehow provided all the time and money necessary to spend years developing these skills, we had school, work and families to support.  We were lucky to even afford to buy a bike, and lucky to have time to ride it once in a while.

Whenever I see this skill and grace, I wonder how many horrific and painful landings, falls, smashes, dental work, etc went into developing those skills.  There are no born expert stunt riders.   

(I know, I know... the old I walked 5 miles to school through ice and snow, uphill both ways, is a commonly heard refrain from us old guys)  Nonetheless.....   

Agree. The last early CR we had was sold with a broken frame. That was after I drilled out and replaced the bent swing arm shaft. Sure was fun though. 

[rocketray]

google/youtube  "Rattlesnake Round up--Wynonna Oklahoma" it happens about this time every year...some crazy stuff there...

[Ramie]

Probably a good thing we didn't have anything like youtube when I was a kid.  I barely survived the way it was.  If I had seen something like that I would have tried it.

[hubcapsc]

  I had a honda SL 350 that they try to sell as a dirt bike.
I tried to jump a dirt mound with it, on the other side was deep mud
that bike sunk up to the forks and stopped dead

sorry to laugh at your expense. But yeah, those SL's were barely capable of gravel roads much less any serious off-roading .

Anyone remember the "SL 125 Turtle Chaser" review in Dirt Bike magazine?

-Mike