200, 250 or 300 ?

[HGaither1]

If you had your choice and weigh about 175# and do harescrambles which bike would you choose? A 200XCW,250XCW or 300XC?

[Hillcapper]

What class do ride in? What do you ride now or have ridden in the past? We have all 3 bikes but I love my 300.

[Dave mac]

300xc

[lardstax]

300xc

x2 ".....

[dhdrider]

Depends a lot on terrain and your riding style.

Tight woods, you like to rev - 200 or possibly 250

More open areas, not tight woods, you like to rev - 250

If you're a lugger - 300

I lug. I like my 300. A guy I ride with had a XC 250 but just switched to a 200 and he's faster than he was before (we weighs almost 200 lbs BTW)

Edited February 29, 2012 by dhdrider

[Hans Schmid]

Depends a lot on terrain and your riding style.

Tight woods, you like to rev - 200 or possibly 250

More open areas, not tight woods, you like to rev - 250

If you're a lugger - 300

I lug. I like my 300. A guy I ride with had a XC 250 but just switched to a 200 and he's faster than he was before (we weighs almost 200 lbs BTW)

The 300xc is a deadly combo. You can't really go wrong!

[GT04Mustang]

300xc= & WIN

[KTMrideR146]

250xc if u actually want to go fast

now before all u 300 guys get offended thats just a joke. But i love my 250xc. Id take it over a 300 anyday. Ive ridden 300s before and they r just too luggy for me. The 250 has a lot more gitup n' go. I race ECEA harescrambles and i think the 250 is a better all around bike because its as good as the 300 in the woods and better than the 300 in grasstracks and mx tracks. it has more "snap" if u will, while the 300 is more torquey/luggy

[gmoss357]

There is no right or wrong answer. There may be better models for certain applications, but ultimately all of the, will put a smile on your face.

Hgaither, Is this just for discussion, or are you looking for info on which bike to buy?

[zig06]

If you had your choice and weigh about 175# and do harescrambles which bike would you choose? A 200XCW,250XCW or 300XC?

What bike are you comming off of and did you race that bike in the same series that you are talking about racing this bike in?

If so, what did you like and dislike about that bike?

[HGaither1]

I am currently rebuilding an 06 RM250 that I harescramble with in the +50 class. However I am thinking about buying a spare bike. I noticed that there are a lot of KTM's where I race and I usually get beat by some. I did own a 400sx about 10 years ago ad never really gelled with the handling of that bike. So, being used to jap bike handling, the thought of going to KTM handling makes me a bit apprehensive. I realize that the 400sx probably would not handle exactly like the XC's and XCW's though.

[8675309]

I ride a 250xc and my buddy (300xc-w) who is more advanced than me normally, could not hang in the faster smoother sweeping corners last weekend on the gp course :-)... my other buddy on his 200 can pass me so Go Figure, they are all great. my 250 will lug pretty well btw. I recommend 200 or 250 considering your only 175lbs. leaning more towards the 200.

[gmoss357]

I am currently rebuilding an 06 RM250 that I harescramble with in the +50 class. However I am thinking about buying a spare bike. I noticed that there are a lot of KTM's where I race and I usually get beat by some. I did own a 400sx about 10 years ago ad never really gelled with the handling of that bike. So, being used to jap bike handling, the thought of going to KTM handling makes me a bit apprehensive. I realize that the 400sx probably would not handle exactly like the XC's and XCW's though.

If you are more used to the Jap ergos, the 08+ bikes became more jap like in the cockpit. I will say that in 05, the frame got ovalized and stiffer, which helped with the rear end performance of the bike. Susp got tweaks as well. I REALLY liked my 05 200. That chassis was very nice and handled very well for me. I still miss that bike and sometimes wish I had kept it, even after having this 08. It was dialed. I would like to try one of the newest ones, but won't go near them till I can afford one. haha

The chassis has come a long way in ten years, as have the engines. I am not the biggest fan of the design of my current bike. Much prefer the shape and design of the older plastic and the most current. The chassis on my current bike works better than my older bike, however.

[zig06]

I am currently rebuilding an 06 RM250 that I harescramble with in the +50 class. However I am thinking about buying a spare bike. I noticed that there are a lot of KTM's where I race and I usually get beat by some. I did own a 400sx about 10 years ago ad never really gelled with the handling of that bike. So, being used to jap bike handling, the thought of going to KTM handling makes me a bit apprehensive. I realize that the 400sx probably would not handle exactly like the XC's and XCW's though.

Based on this my recommendation is for a 250xc. The XC models have a linkage now so the handling will be closer to what you are use to. Also, the XC has more power than a W and it can hit hard like an RM250, but not as hard because it's a woods bike not an MX bike. If you wanted that then get a 250sx. But keep in mind that the KTM's that are beating you are not beating you because of HP, they are beating you because they are hooking up better and putting more power to the ground.

I use to own a '08 RM250 and I ride with a guy that has a '08 250xc-w. In a Hare Scramble we are very close in overall lap times, however in a straight or wider open section I always killed him. But in the real woods section I just couldn't hang. One ride on his bike taught me why. KTM's XC and XC-w models hook up really well on the bottom end and have lot's of midrange power, so they will always have an advantage hooking up in a turn and on turn exit. And for what it's worth only get the 200 if you like to rev and toss a bike around, with a 200 you can do that all day long.

Edited March 2, 2012 by zig06

[HGaither1]

zig06, I like your analysis. It makes sense.

[gmoss357]

yep, good post, but it really depends on how much you are wanting to invest in a "spare" bike. linkage won't matter unless you are looking at new. Also, the W can be made to run very well with just a couple of mods. 250 is a great bike, but if you are looking for a bike to compliment your RM, IMHO, a 200 would make you a much better rider on the 250. It will teach you how to maintain momentum, keeping you engaged all the time to what is going on. And, it will haul the mail, lug, and pretty much do anything the other sizes will do. Not saying it's the way to go, just another perspective.

Riding a small bore bike just has a way of teaching you things that take longer on a bigger bike where having to stay conscience of throttle, etc distracts you from technique. That has been the one thing with my 200's that I appreciate the most. I have learned more on them than my other bikes, because I can focus on the task at hand without having to worry about being spit off.

[Dumb_Fee]

I ride a "mellowed" 11' 300. I say mellow because I messed with the pv spring and jetting till I found a combination that work best for my style. A 300 will out-lug a 250 any day...and a 250 will out rev a 300 most any day. The key is you just have to be honest on where (in the powerband) you spend most of your time. I was coming off of a 450 so a 300 was a fairly easy transition. But I recently jumped on my buddies 250, and now that I have become reaquainted with a 2T characteristics, I felt comfortable on that bike instantly. Yes a 250 will make you more aggressive, and yes a 200 will make you even more aggressive. But the key to being a fast racer is being a smooth racer. For me that means putting the power to the ground in the most effective manner without having to light up the rear wheel out of every corner to get the bike to move. Soooooo, for me that means I ride a 300.

On the 300 I can make ham-fisted mistakes, but I'm not really too concerned about it because I know the motor will pull me. This allows me to concentrate on riding the terrain aggressively as opposed to riding the bike aggressively. Just my opinion from a fellow racer

[ajd187]

I'm close to 250 and I ride a 200 xc-w.

For me it is the perfect bike in the woods. But, I am a slow C rider and like to lug. I came off of a YZ250, and compared to that, this bike is lovely in the woods.