buy a honda xr 200....good, reliable bike for a beginner, and will take all the abuse you can give it and come back for more. if you decide you like off road, move on up to something with better suspension, liquid cooling, more power etc. perhaps a yamaha wr 250 or a honda crf 250. don't bother with two-smokes...they will be outlawed in five years, possibly sooner if you live in cali. i own three bikes at the moment...1997 DR350se dualsport, 1993 XR600 and a '96 RM250 that has been modded for woods racing, steahly flywheel weights, bark busters, scotts steering stabilizer and aluminum skid plates.