Choosing my first motorcycle FOR KIDS

Choosing your first dirt bike:


We will start with the youngest age group and then move up all the way until the pre-teen age group. Choosing the first motorcycle depends a lot in how old you want the kid to start racing, since we are talking about minors here, it is all up to the parents decision to decide when is it a good time to start and then selecting the correct bike to help and enhance the learning process of riding a dirt bike.

2-4 years Old

My clear choice when I will be in the situation would be to let them start with a bicycle that would allow them to understand how balancing works and how to move in two wheels, this would be a great start for any kid not only for a normal kid growing up toy but also a great jumpstart in how to move with their first vehicle in their lives. I would recommend the KTM toy bike as it was specifically designed for this purpose or just about any kids bicycle for that specific age group.

A great way to start

  
4-6 years Old (Beginners)

Ok, your kid can clearly balance himself on the bike and he more or soo knows what it takes to move forward, turn, brake. So now is time for you to start looking at motorized options. The two best choices for the first motorcycle ever are the Honda CRF 50 and the Yamaha PW 50. They are both extremely mild at delivering the power and can even be limited to keep the speed low and therefore making it more safe for the kids. They both have automatic transmissions soo there is no gear changes in the operation of the dirt bike, they are also very reliable and easy to maitain as is expected from a brand name japanese manufacturer. They are very small and very light, these bikes are just designed to be used by kids soo the whole experience is relaxed, fun and safe for them.(As long as you are not screaming at them to go faster, please be patient, let them have fun, speed will come with time if you stress them out they might end up hating it and the chances of you going out riding with your kid will be destroyed). Both of this mini motorcycles have the options of attaching learning wheels that can be easily removed once you see your kid riding better, with more control and of course more balance. 

The Honda CRF 50 without and

with training wheelset

The Yamaha PW 50 without and

with training wheelset

Please stay away from the cheap chinese shit replicas, they look alike, are very cheap even brand new and will only work without giving you a headache for a very limited time. Then they will start failing and start giving you unlimited problems. Maintanence is a S.O.B and replacement parts are very hard to find, you will end up building a frankestein mini bike with whatever you have available like a cuban mechanic. I tell you this by experience as i bought a mini bike to mess around in my backyard and the pull-starter which I later discovered was made out of plastic ...wtf???? started  desintagrating, by the time it was 1000 little pieces, they had gotten completely inside all the important componets, requiring a COMPLETE overhaul which i ended up not doing it and just sold the remaining parts on ebay. DONT buy these replicas, they suck and they will become a pain in the ass for you. Look for a properly maintained used japanese name brand, used bike (I will tell you tips for buying a used bike on a future post) and save yourself the hassle of a chinese replica.

Exhaust valve breaks while running and impacts the piston on a chinese replica pit bike the thing with the whole is the piston

4-6 years Old (Intermediate and Expert)
Ok, your kid can ride, it is clear, he has complete control of the motorcycle and as much as he try to go faster, the beginners bike has reached its limit. Its time for an upgrade, there are several options on the market and please do not be mistaken, the motorcycle that i am going to show you are full race bikes just in mini size, they are fast, really fast and specially for your little man. Make sure that you know what he is doing before purchasing one of these bikes. My top picks are:

- KTM 50 SX Mini
- Polini minibikes
- Cobra minibikes

KTM 50SX Mini MX motorcycle

Polini mini MX motorcycle 

Cobra mini MX motorcycle

4-6 years Old ( Expert ONLY)
Ok, if your kids can outride his motorcycle by now, it is time to give him a more racy bike which still has an automatic transmission so that he can keep moving up on the racing pedigree before making the jump to a race bike with gears. My recomendation would be the following:

- KTM50 SX
- Husqvarna CR 50 

KTM 50 SX Mini vs KTM 50 SX 

Husqvarna CR 50 

The motorcycles are taller than the mini version and faster, the perfect step before the 65 cc bike.


Now that your kid has completely mastered the automatic motocross bike, it is time for you to upgrade to gearshifting and give him a motorcycle with a transmision. The motorcycles i am going to show you now are FULL-RACE bikes and they only differ from an adult competetition motorcycle because of the size and the price. Racing engine, race suspension, everything is strictly designed to go fast and race. My top picks are:

- KTM 65 SX
- Husqvarna 65 CR