Generally for trail riding in the UK you would typically use a purpose made road legal trail or enduro type machine. For longer routes or trips an adventure style machine would be more practical. There is no right or wrong motorcycle for trail riding, the only proviso is that they are fitted with deep treaded road legal tyres.
Beta Evo300 MY2022 (Betamotor S.p.A)
Honda CRF300L
KTM 300 TPI
Royal Enfield Himalayan
BMW GS1250
The most important factors to consider are:
- Weight of the motorcycle – The trails can be demanding so having a machine that is lightweight becomes an important factor to consider.
- Engine size – Can be anything from 50cc to 1000cc, the lighter weight machines that tend to have smaller engines 250cc to 450cc are the most popular.
- Engine type – This comes down to personal preference. Either 2 stroke or 4 stroke. A properly silenced 4 stroke is often quieter and more suitable for the tarmac.
- Wheel types and sizes – Most machines will have spoked wheels as they tend to take more of a bashing than cast type wheels. Most popular bikes will have the standard 21″ Front and 18″ rear.
- Tyres – Most people will use off road “knobbly” type or trials type tyre. As trails and green lanes are technically still legal highways any tyres should be legal and approved for road use. Some knobbly tyres will state “Not for Road Use” or “Not for use on Highways” or something similar moulded into the sidewall. It’s the riders responsibility to check and make sure they are legal to use.
SWTRF hold many different types of group rides ranging from beginners on small trail bikes and enduro type machines to big bike rides for the larger “Adventure” type bikes. As the Adventure type bikes tend to be bigger and heavier the routes taken will be tailored to the bike type and rider abilities.
There are also a number of SWTRF members who have trials motorcycles and we also organise a number of trials days within the South Wales area at a few different trials venues (all off-road). These are useful to practise bike control skills on rougher terrain.
Here are some pictures of what the members of SWRF Group are riding.
