Grown adults have been riding kid’s bikes for decades now, it’s not exactly anything new. Around ten to fifteen years ago the craze really went wild with races being held all over the country. We were even crowning State and Australian Champions with our top pitbike riders even heading overseas to race on the big stage in the US. Now, instead of racing pit bikes, adults are riding bike like this Kawasaki KLX110L.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?
Kawasaki produce two different models of the KLX 110. The L model has a higher seat, more suspension travel and a manual clutch. If you are intending on buying one of these for your kids then you should pick the one that would suit them the best. For an adult or teenager I would always suggest you go with the “L” model as the extra suspension travel will do a better job at soaking up any jumps you plan on hitting and will not bottom out as harshly meaning less stress on the frame.
TRACK TIME
It’s not easy to admit but riding the KLX110L was a whole lot of fun. The engine doesn’t produce an enormous amount of power but it is still plenty strong enough to throw some roost and get you over some decent jumps. The hardest part was riding the KLX with knee braces and boots on. The handlebars and seating position is quite cramped with knee braces on.
I would never recommend you ride one without protective gear, but a good set of knee guards instead of braces might make things easier. There are even pitbike boots available that are lighter and don’t come up the leg as high that would allow you to move on the bike a little easier. The suspension is not really designed for an adult to be jumping it but if you land smoothly on the down ramps it does hold up reasonably well. If you land on the flat or case out then you will expect it to blow through and bottom out with a loud thud.
Having the manual clutch means you can keep the revs up and fan the clutch to get you out of the corners. Surprisingly even with a 90kg adult sitting on the back of the seat the little KLX will still carve a tight turn. I’m big enough just to lay it over and man handle the poor thing but railing berms wide open without shutting of the gas makes you feel like you’re a superstar.
Before getting on the KLX I didn’t understand why a grown man would want to ride a pitbike but after cutting a few laps I could quickly see the fun in it. If I was riding around by myself then I would quickly grow tired of it and go looking for my 450 but if a group of mates were to join me then I could see us spending the day bashing into each other as we raced around on pitbikes.
WHAT BREAKS?
You have to remember that the manufacturers designed and built these bikes for children so if you are a teenager or adult riding and jumping one then don’t get upset if things start to break. If they were capable of carrying a 90kg adult without ever breaking then they would look drastically different and be worth five times as much. The engines are generally strong if serviced. The pistons, clutches and timing chains can be stressed quite a lot and wear out from time to time.
If you are regularly changing the oil and cleaning the air filter then they generally last pretty well. If you don’t change your oil then the oil will go bad and start to wear engine components out very quickly. The handlebars are thin steel and generally bend pretty easy in a crash and the standard chains and chain adjusters tend to bend or snap allowing the chain to smash into the engine cases.
The gear lever is prone to bending when it hits the ground and the spokes are known to break and the rims bend if they are put through a hard time. The foot pegs and foot peg mounts can bend from jumping or being bashed into the ground. The suspension and frame are generally pretty strong and handle small jumps well but if you plan on sending one over some decent size jumps then I would not be surprised to see the frame bend.
UPGRADES?
Upgrading your pitbike can be a whole lot of fun but it can also chew up your funds very quickly. Firstly I would start out with some higher, better quality handlebars. To do this you will also need to fit longer cables. I would also then fit a better quality chain and chain adjusters and fit some kind of protective guard for the cases to protect it from the chain.
Then I would look into a brace for the gearshift shaft to prevent it bending and upgrade the foot pegs to something stronger that won’t bend. Next I would upgrade the wheels to some stronger alloy rims with stainless steel spokes as these are much stronger than the stock wheels.
If I was getting right into jumping then I would look into a suspension upgrade kit. There are several different kits available that range from just spring kits to full suspension upgrades with upgraded triple clamps and swingarms and even kits that come with new hubs and disc brakes.
There are exhaust systems available that work really well once you open up the airbox and re-jet the carby. Ignitions are available that lift the rev limiter and even big bore kits if you are still searching for more power. There really is no limit when it comes to upgrading a pitbike. I have even seen people to go as far are fitting a supercharger just to really go overboard.
