Tom - 12/28/99 21:46:00 My Email:[email protected] What year and model bike do you have?: 93 XR650L,84 IT490,75 TY175 What mods have you done to it?: XR: jet kit, pipe, 4gal.tank, rack, 2 sets wheels and tires, smog removal. What do you plan to do to it?: remove as much weight as I possibly can and ride more single track What would you do to it if you could afford it?: ride more!!!!!!

Comments: I've ridden for 30 yrs and this XRL is one of the best bikes I've owned. I do my serious off roading on my IT490 (which I've owned since it was new). The Honda is a very capable dirt bike until you get into serious single tracks. The coast range outsid of Portland OR has some pretty intense up and down hills with lots of mud and water. The XRL is just too heavy! On fire roads and pavement though it's a hard bike to beat.

Rex - 08/17/98 19:39:38 My Email:[email protected] What year and model bike do you have?: 99xr650l What mods have you done to it?: Stock What do you plan to do to it?: Pipe and the requisite rejet. What would you do to it if you could afford it?: A bit more power and beter carburetion would improve an already nice bike

Comments: My brother and I bought nearly identical bikes last month. He lives in Panama and got a 98. I rode in the mountains both on and off road. Very enjoyable bike. I expected it to be very good on the dirt but must admit I was pleasantly surprised by how well t handles tight asphalt mountain roads. I had a 98 on order at the dealer here in Norht Carolina and got a 99 instead. I did remove the seat strap on both bikes as it felt uncomfortable to sit on. The throtles also came with a lot of initial slack, which quick cable adjustment took care off. On my brother's bike we removed the decarboning covers on the muffler as "an experiment". This gave the bike a nicer sound though not too loud. It also seemed to allow it to wheelie more easily. He hasn't put them ba k on yet. Poor man's (or lazy man's) pipe. I do not endorse this as I have no idea what it does to the already lean jetting. His does seem to backfire more than mine but it did that before we took the covers off. I would love to hear comments and experien es from others.