How hard can it be?
That was my initial thought as I threw a leg over the Yamaha TT-R125 for the first time. It was a sunny summer day in 2009 and my boyfriend, Alex, had brought me out for my first time in the dirt at Crowhill MX in Massachusetts.
With nearly a decade of street riding under my belt, I figured a little 125 cc trail bike would be no problem. With an overabundance of confidence, I putted out to the pee wee track only to be humbled. Deeply humbled. There was so much I didn’t understand — why did I have no traction, isn’t that what the knobby tires are for? Each bump on the track reverberated through me as I sat like a sack of potatoes in the saddle and every corner felt like the ground would just disappear at any second.
Then eventually it did. Bewildered and dusty, I picked myself up and then lifted up the poor TT-R. What damage had I done? Was Alex going to be mad? How much was this going to cost me? As a street rider all I knew at the time was that crashing was expensive, and escaping without injury was a grand stroke of luck. Alex was by my side in a heartbeat and as I started profusely apologizing and told him I would find a way to help fix it he just laughed.
Thus began my first lessons of the day: Dirt bikes can take a beating, body position is important, and if I fall off just get back on. Like in the Wizard of Oz when the black-and-white film transforms into a glittering world of wonder and color, I had discovered a whole new world of motorcycling. As it turns out, the trusty old TT-R had many tricks up its sleeve, as it not only ushered me into the world of dirt riding but also delivered me to the wonderful land of supermoto and beyond to the delights of flat track. This is the story of the TT-R Transformer motorcycle.
Dirt first
My boyfriend’s TT-R125 pit bike soon became my dedicated dirt bike. My boyfriend also coincidentally became my husband and when we moved to California we found ourselves immersed in Motocross Mecca. With five motocross tracks within a 1.5-hour commute from our home, MX riding became a favorite pastime. Alex had a childhood of riding dirt bikes whereas I only got started in my mid-20s, so I had quite a bit of catching up to do.
We practically took up a residency at Pala MX (now known as Fox Raceway) as their pee wee track had some decent jumps and obstacles to help me learn the basics of moto. The TT-R already had the bark of an aftermarket FMF pipe (don’t laugh, it was beefy) and we swapped out the stock fork for a YZ80 front end so I could hit some triples with confidence (joking, of course, but the YZ80 front end did make a big difference). The real stroke of genius came while sharing motos on Alex’s Suzuki RMZ450 motard at the go-kart track one day. Why not convert the TT-R into a supermoto too? Why not, indeed.
The supermoto transformer
The concept of the TT-R Transformer was all too tempting. Ride motocross one day and supermoto the next? Sign me up!
With some Google-fu and eBay stalking, we eventually found the 17-inch wheelset required for an easy swap with the stock moto wheel set. The TT-R125 Transformer was born and I couldn’t have been prouder of our little creation. I even hand shaped the front fender to fit the supermoto scene a bit better, and with the addition of hand guards the TT-R had pretty much achieved indestructible status in my mind.
As the TT-R Transformer leveled up in mods, my riding skills evolved with it. On our first supermoto outing, the TT-R and I gelled right away. The RMZ450 had been tall and scary to ride, but I had complete trust in the little TT-R and in no time we were carving corners and honking down straights with much gusto (but probably not very much speed). At this point in time I had done several track days and some racing on my big bikes, yet I still hadn’t dragged knee and the TT-R Transformer became instrumental in that mission to achieve touchdown. Each supermoto session I crept closer and closer to that satisfying yet startling first scrape on the ground. Riding supermoto in tandem with track days on my sport bike yielded fantastic results. The additional moto sessions in the dirt were just gravy, and my riding progressed in ways I had never dreamed possible.
With progression comes growing pains, however, and the TT-R Transformer and I had come to a tipping point. After enough angry scolding from mini-bike parents at the pee wee tracks and a few too many bottomed-out jumps, Alex informed me I was ready to graduate to a full-size dirt bike and start riding the vet track. I was reluctant to drift away from my TT-R Transformer — I had achieved so much on it — but we had no choice.
Due to restrictions in garage space and budget, we would need to sell the TT-R in order to buy a full-size dirt bike. After much anguish, we finally sold the TT-R Transformer. We held on to the supermoto wheelset, though, as a clear indicator of our torn indecision on the matter. A symbol of our regret, as I often look at the wheelset sitting in our shop and miss the TT-R Transformer terribly. Yet also a symbol of hope, because who’s to say we don’t pick up another TT-R and recreate the little do-it-all minibike? The thought excites me because over the past few years I think I may have discovered yet another transformation in the TT-R wheelhouse: flat track.
TT-R125, the school bike of choice
American Supercamp. Colin Edwards’ Texas Tornado Boot Camp. Rich Oliver’s Mystery School. J4orce Training Camp. These are just a few of the riding schools I know of that use TT-R125s. This mini flat track training is foundational to big success for a lot of road racers in both the amateur and pro national ranks. Even after my own personal little TT-R Transformer had left the garage, I attended a handful of these training schools and was ecstatic to be back on board the little blue bike.
With larger and more powerful bikes, I normally settle into the saddle with a solemn reminder to be respectful of the machine, but hopping onto the TT-R I feel nothing but boundless excitement and a playful attitude. I am willing to go a little faster, brake a little deeper, and try something different because I know the TT-R will be forgiving. This confidence on a smaller bike combined with expert instruction has been a winning recipe for the continued progression of my riding skills. At first blush, most riders only see the TT-R as a beginner’s bike, but now I’ve come to appreciate it from a whole new perspective. I would make the argument that the TT-R is the ultimate training tool for riders of all skills levels, not just beginners.
Though we had to part with the original TT-R Transformer, a serious case has been made for a Version 2.0 “Triple Threat Edition.” I have a hunch that the supermoto wheelset will have a flat track companion set real soon. The story is far from over for the Yamaha TT-R125 Transformer. A new generation is just waiting to be born.