Experienced bicycle rider but never a motorcycle. Since moving to the desert haven't rode much because of the terrain around here... lots of thorny/picky vegetation which makes any thin walled tires go flat fast. Need to get those foam inserts to put on my Haro to even think about riding it around here.
So I've been thinking of some other not necessarily street legal vehicles which can take such a hazardous environment with ease. First choice would absolutely have been a UTV (Yamaha Wolverine X2 850 specifically as it can both be recreational fun and actually a helpful work vehicle around the property).... don't have UTV money level to spend though. An ATV would been second choice, but the prices aren't that much better than UTVs for the ones which are more useful (fuel injected, selectable gearing, high towing capacity) and ground clearance is no better than a normal passenger car @ 5-6".
So I've decided if can't really have a smaller useful multipurpose fun/work vehicle (than my Nissan Frontier which suits both desert fun & work on property just fine) then I want to go the simple fun route and get a first dirtbike (plus can easily fit in bed of my truck). Pretty much know the specific one am extremely interested in and it's the Kawasaki KLX 230R. Have already ordered riding gear, a Step Ramp, and Trail Tech Vapor gauge cluster/sensors (not bike specific so could be used on any air-cooled offroad dirtbike). Once boots and ramp comes in will call up nearest dealer with inventory (currently Flagstaff some 220miles+ away) and see how I fit on one. If the fit works out reasonably it will be coming home. Will probably be end of next week before ready to look at bike.
I am open to other bikes... but in looking for a brand new, fuel injected, with decent ergo for a 6'2" tall 180lb weight 34" inseam rider, high ground clearance (11.8"), and lowest entry price level, the Kawasaki KLX-230R simply seems like the best choice I've seen.
Welcome (in advance) to the club!
Once you learn how to pop the front wheel up (not talking Wheelie Boyz, just the small practical wheelie) most dirt bikes have as much ground clearance as you want once you get the technique down. 
Short wheelbase and only having two wheels also gives you a lot of freedom vs. anything with 4 wheels.
Any of the Japanese bikes tend to be a little cramped for tall people (I'm very nearly exactly your dimensions) but it's not the end of the world. Fight the urge to put tall bars or risers on the bike; they screw with the handling and tend to cause some bad habits to form. The KLX and Honda CRF230/250 are both great, durable, fairly affordable bikes and can do the utility role as well as have some fun. They're pretty soft on suspension and power, which are both good things for what you're doing. The WR250R is/was the other option in this market, not sure if it's still available new. It's a higher spec bike than the other two so likely costs more, but is still a long way from the Euro bikes.
Cactus flats suck. Heavy duty tubes and avoiding cactii will get you a long way, but mousses are the foolproof option. They are expensive, though, and tend to be a bit more suited for racers since they need periodic lubrication and whatnot to make them last.
You will find from your bicycle experience that a lot of the skills transfer over (standing in rough stuff, attack position is very similar, steering with your feet while minimizing any input to the bars through your arms and hands, etc), but feel weird on a much heavier machine. Most MTB guys are more comfortable at downhills pretty quickly, but enthusiastic turns and other obstacles will take a minute because the throttle dramatically impacts cornering behavior, and that big comfy seat has a lot of "wrong" places to sit that will make the bike feel awkward vs. a mountain bike where you've only got one place to sit.
Welcome. Don't listen to the Shoulda Got a 600 fools.
Thanks for the encouragement!
After a bit more looking into I've changed my mind on the KLX 230R... want to go with the KLR 300R since front suspension is adjustable on it and better suited for a larger rider, has adjustable handlebar positions, and little bit longer wheelbase by a few inches and couple more inches suspension travel with more standard sized front tubes (43mm vs 37mm). Seen too many videos/riding footage now about 150-160lb riders complaining about 230R front suspension being too soft and bottoming out when riding fast in bumpy terrain. The 300R is about 28lbs heavier than the 230R, but has a DOHC motor that's been around for a while and is water cooled. I definitely could grow with it more and have a bit more fun in open desert terrain with it.
Also found a couple new '22 KLX 300Rs at a dealership which are going for just under $5k...
The KLX300R is a much, much higher spec bike than the 230 is. The 300R is more like the WR250 I mentioned, and while it's still a pretty forgiving bike, if you have any aspirations of riding enthusiastically, you're going to get a lot more life out of the 300R.
You also won't have to look at the 230's headlight.
Hear you on that bulbous headlight the KLX 230 comes with... muy feo! LOL
Though the 230R I was originally considering is the lighter, non dual-sport version with no headlight (much better looking) and 254lbs versus 291lbs (much of that weight increase on the DS version being in the ugly headlight assembly). The KLX 300R is what I've decided to go with, and should be going to a dealer within next few days to get one. Just first need to unload the firewood logged from Kaibab national forest today (Sunday) from bed of truck and then clean bed out and put ramp in bed to be ready for actually getting the bike. Las Vegas is closest with multiple dealers with 300Rs in stock and that will be a 320+ mile round trip.
Already have some parts incoming for one... a Ricochet Offroad skid plate, Pivot Pegz, and necessary water temp & wheel speed sensors for the Trail Tech Vapor dash display (since got the package originally geared for the 230R aircooled motor/non-inverted shocks). Wrap around hand guards, radiator guards, and a custom headlight (using a Diode Dynamics SSC2 light pod) will be added, and a slip on muffler (still keeping spark arrestor) would be nice to drop 4+lbs over the heavy stock unit and get the weight back closer to stock with all mods.
Welcome! You'll end up having more fun in the bike than just about anything else you do! I started riding in my teens, gave it up early, and came back to it my thirties, and it is one of the best decisions I've ever made, and one of the most rewarding parts of my life.
As someone about your height, I wish I could add to the discussion regarding bike choice, but my modern motorcycling era started on a Suzuki DR350SE (six-speed, but carbed, fit was very doable with some minor tweaks). I jumped to a Husqvarna 701 after several years, amazingly awesome bike, and also good fit-wise, but wouldn't necessarily recommend it for a first timer. My home state is very strict on registering factory enduros only, no converted dirt bikes, so there many options I discard right off the bat.
Let us know how the journey goes!
Went to Vegas and picked it up today @ Carter Powersports...
Will start dash install tomorrow, though waiting on the coolant and wheel speed sensors to come in to be able to finish it. But priority is getting my 16' cargo trailer conversion to a mobile living/working station powered (1200Watt of solar panels & 600AH of battery) and with working water system and diesel heater for an opportunity which came up to help a friend's son frame his large off-grid house in Colorado, on 50 acres @ 10,500' in early October before winter falls.
Didn't install dash but did do first ride just a while ago before sunset (the 20ish minutes, less than 1/2 throttle first break in ride per manual.) Pretty much okay clutching off the line (no longer stalling), balancing/positioning was okay along with slow tight turns standing. Not much work done with braking since going slow right now and low in the rev range, going down through the gears slows it down enough. Hardest thing is upshifting ... very hard to get my foot in position in the boots (Alpinestar Tech 3 Enduro boots, size 11), really need to work on that. I can downshift and hit neutral all day... LOL
Was nice first experience but really going to need to work on shifting as the weird ergo/feel for left foot is not a natural feeling position at all and very tight squeeze. Height of seat is just about perfect to ground when sitting, wouldn't want it any higher. Handlebar seems positioned okay enough for now, not going to bother adjusting it until get more riding time with it - seems ergonomically fine for now. Really smooth ride both in the yard (mix of sand & vegetation) and on dirt/gravel road around the property at slower speeds... glides right over the surface. Power level is good and not intimidating at all to learn with though I've not really given it any real high throttle input yet. Only thing could be improved with throttle it more sensitivity... seems to have a bit of dead zone and hard to just putt around right off idle and minutely adjust speed in first gear. I'm sure will get better at feel of the throttle when around idle speeds, but for any vehicle I'd rather as sensitive a throttle/steering input as possible. Throttle control was okay once in higher gears and going a bit faster.
Skid plate and the two needed sensors for dash display did come in just before went out for the ride, so have those now.
Can say definitely after that first ride I do like it... want to practice and get better whenever I can. The KLX300R seems a nice level of bike to learn on... not intimidating or too heavy and a very tractable motor that is fine at its lower rpms. Imagine it has more to give though if you will rev it out to its power band... will eventually get there once I get the basics down at lower speeds. Walking before running...
Now that you have it I'd do yourself a favor and sign up for a trail riding school. You'll progress 1000x faster than trying to figure things out on your own and you'll have a good base with good riding habits.
I'll second the school comment, though there are a lot of iffy ones out there who teach techniques that are....questionable. Jimmy Lewis Off Road does a great school out of Pahrump NV, for whatever that's worth.
Lever position, both feet and hands, is a big deal for ergos. Depending on who at the dealer set your bike up, they may or may not have done it right. There are several rules of thumb for positioning:
- look at the bike from the side. The handlebar levers should be roughly tangential to, or just below, a line drawn parallel to the ground and tangential to the bottom of the bar's diameter. Most people starting out adjust the levers too low. The correct position will also put the reservoir caps roughly parallel with the ground - they generally have some built in angle to them.
- For foot control position, set the brake lever so that it is roughly level with the foot peg. Most bikes have 2 adjustments: one sets the resting position of the lever (adjustable stop) and the other adjusts the length of the pushrod pressing on the master cylinder. Set the adjustable stop for the correct lever height, and then adjust the pushrod length so that you are right on the edge of taking up all the slop between the pushrod and the master, kind of like setting valve clearance. You don't want any preload on the pushrod.
- the shift lever on most bikes is splined, so you can rotate it up or down on the shift shaft. I generally run my shift lever one spline higher than factory so that I can easily upshift when standing. Stock setting works better when sitting in most cases. But this will probably continue to be awkward regardless until you get used to it.
Foot position should move around based on what you're doing - the training line is "how often should you reposition your feet?" and the somewhat cheeky answer is "always". Balls of your feet when riding, slide your brake foot forward when you need the rear brake, pick your foot up off the peg for downshifts, slide forward and lift for upshifts. It's not like a street bike where you just tilt your ankles; the boots usually make that very hard. Consciously pointing your toes inward, especially when standing, will help with all this, and will also help you hang on to the bike with your knees. Lower body connected to the bike, upper body stays loose, steer with your feet, shoulders point the direction you want to go.
A few things that can help with the throttle sensitivity feeling:
- Make sure you're not bracing your body against or hanging on tight to the bars. If you are, the on-off throttle feeling moves your whole upper body around instead of taking up the slop by bending your arms.
- Every motorcycle feels a bit sloppy on-off throttle in first gear because of the amount of chain slack that needs to be run with long travel suspension. Every transition has to take up the slack in the opposite direction
- Check the throttle cable adjustment. If there is slop in the throttle before it actually starts to do anything, adjust that out until you only have a few degrees of rotation before it does something. this will make it feel more consistent, but just like the brake adjustment, you still need to have a small amount of slop to avoid binding or holding the throttle open. Most bikes are too loose from the factory.
- Clutches on bikes, especially dirt bikes, are very durable and can handle more slip compared to a dry clutch in a car. It's not just for pulling away and shifting; it's a valuable tool for power delivery. What many riders do is use first to get moving, or only in very technical terrain, and otherwise will always at least be in second gear. clutch disengaged unless you need power, slip it as needed to apply power, etc. This smooths out power delivery, is generally less tiring, and will help get traction in tough spots, but takes some practice. You may need to slide the clutch perch towards the center of the bike to give a bit more leverage - generally only one or two fingers on the clutch.
Here's a short video I took riding a few weeks ago here in Indiana - you can't see my clutch hand, but you can hear how much I'm slipping it. If I wasn't using the clutch, I would have to be in 1st gear and it would really wear me out. Second gear and clutch makes it smooth and predictable, even if you aren't trying to ride aggressively.
