history of dirt bike

History of Dirt Bikes

The History of Dirt Bikes Began in the “Land of the Free”!

The history of the dirt bike has a humble begging.  The history of dirt bikes started here in the United States in 1959.  That’s when a young man named Soichiro Honda opened up a tiny bike shop in Los Angeles California.  His bike shop and product where not well received.  You see here in the United States bike riders where known as crazed outlaws or racers.  There were no trail bikes or dirt bikes only street bikes and no “well respected” person road a bike!

Then came about the most famous ad campaign of all time, the phrase “you meet the nicest people on a Honda” became one of the most well known phrases in the country.  This bike ad campaign pictured smiling ladies on cute little bikes and men in business suits riding around on bikes with smiles on their faces.  Thus was born the dirt bike or at that time the trail bike.  You no longer had to be a thug to ride a bike.  Everyday people where using bikes to get around everywhere.  Honda had started a boom in the bike industry introducing the first trail bike.  What today we call a dirt bike.

By 1963 small Honda bikes started appearing on the backs of campers and RV’s.  People of all ages where buying these little bikes up by the truckloads.  Even retired folks who had never considered themselves bikers where using these little bike to get around campgrounds and to take through the woods to there favorite fishing hole.  Women where using these bikes to get back and forth from the market.  Children were using these little bikes to get back and forth to school. This is how trail bikes began and the rest is history!