[Closed] tell me about motorbikes - not a midlife crisis

It’s addictive 😇

rachel

Well maybe a wee bit of crisis...

I’m 52 and just passed my test (last Wed). Bought a Triumph street scrambler and picked it up on Saturday. Still very apprehensive on it but according to most folks more time and that will go away.

its always been a thing I have wanted to do and now seemed the right time. Get the DAS stuff done and do some homework on what is best suited for your commute.

how far is it BTW?

[url= https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1804/42406602444_eb77ccc392_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1804/42406602444_eb77ccc392_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/27BjVu1 ]Untitled[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/17059060@N00/ ]eastham_david[/url], on Flickr

You want something with enough grunt to easily keep up with traffic, 500-750cc is plenty.

a bike that is considered slow will easily outdrag any normal car, get your licence then go get some practice.

consider some sort of advanced training course, the police run courses in some areas.

and take it easy, don’t ride when tired, that was my undoing, the day after my test, i fell off wobbling round a corner at 45mph which could easily be taken at 70.

that was expensive.

but i loved my time on a bike.

My 2p.

Bikes are brilliant, but they are dangerous, I reckon you can mitigate about 60% of the risk by not riding like a nob, too many idiots on sport bikes treating the road like a track and then crying when they collide with something or someone and making it look statistically more dangerous than it can be.

<span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">You can mitigate a lot more by, as above, not riding when you’re tired, or have a bad cold, or had a few the night before or when you’re in a shitty mood sometimes.</span>

Sadly the rest of the risk comes from other road users and sadder still people who will risk your life to try to ‘teach you a lesson’ for ‘queue jumping’ it’s crazy but people do get killed by other road users almost on purpose.

It’s not always a massive time saver, yeah you can filter traffic sometimes and go to the front at lights if you fancy risking it, but you need to get changed either end that can eat all that time up.

Its also not an easy thing to get a license for - my DAS course took about 10 days and cost £800 from memory.

Theyre great though, it’s such great sensation riding a half-decent bike.

did my cbt last week (45 also not a midlife crisis), now the proud owner of a 125, it's terryfyingly exciting.

they rev a lot higher than a car so now i understand that it's supposed to sound like that i don't stall as much

indicators need to be turned off

like anything it's practice and confidence

that triumph looks lovely!!!

Knightrider, the first time you take it past 7k revs and it starts to pull is addictive eh, even on a 125.

my first bike was a 2 stroke, so it wouldn’t pull the skin off a coffee at low revs, but when you got to 7k it was like someone had flicked a switch.

wish I could afford it again, ktm duke 690 would be pretty high up my list.

with a fruity silencer, obviously.

martymac,

I'm currently pootling at about 30 on the backroads as i don't have the muscle memory to react quick enough, i might grab the front brake in a corner,

in a straight line 50 feels like i'm flying!!

How far are you commuting? There's a trade-off between the additional faff factor of getting all the motorcycle gear on and off, and the difficulty (and potential added time) of having a car. Of course, it's not much/any more than many folk choose to do when cycling either.

I really only reverted back to a motorbike because the parking restrictions in Inverness were making it difficult to commute. If I think I'm guaranteed to find a parking space then I usually end up taking the campervan anyway.

If you think you'll also enjoy the experience of riding a motorbike then definitely try it out.

I like motorbikes,been riding them since my sixteenth birthday as I needed a moped to get to work,I'm 56 now.

Here's the latest addition to the stable

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As a cyclist you should be able to adapt to a motorcycle easily enough.Before you spend lots of money have a look around where you live & see about doing your CBT or whatever they call it these days.If you enjoy it then price everything up & decide if it's worth spending a few grand on a bike or spending the money on a car for commuting.

If your married it might be wise getting your wife's opinion before you turn up looking like a Power Ranger,they're a marmite subject..Motorbikes not Wife's....

Unless you get a small bike, you're not really going to save any money. Don't forget the budget for protective gear os going to be the same regardless of what sort of bike you get.

The bonus is that if you do get a small bike, they are far handier for slipping through traffic.

Also getting the best out of them is more fun. A big bike, you just open the throttle.

And much easier to pick after they get tired in a corner and have a wee lie down.. They like to play that trick on new riders.

What you want is either a 2018 Kawasaki Z900RS or a Z900RS Cafe like these:   😀

I commute by motorbike. I'd suggest an upright bike, far better than trying to commute on a sports bike. Your vision is much better.  I use a Z1000, but a CB500 or Kawzsaki ER5 would be ideal imo.

You'll need decent gear. I use textile clothing not leather and 2 sets are good for when you gets really wet, and you will. Much easier than trying to dry kit overnight.

I leave trousers and shoes at work rather than carry them to and fro each day.

My commute is 11 miles. Allowing for getting togged up and changed at work, and the reverse on the home journey  I don't save any time compared to the car but its much more fun. I guess you'll save time compared to cycling.

I finish at 14.30 so the roads are much quieter going home than going to the office.

I don't ride through the worst of the winter. Sod that!

Bikes are ace

bikes can kill you

bikes are ace

How many cars are you going to pass on the way to work? Under 10? Buy a cheap car with a radio and you know weather proof walls

I too have felt the urge.  Might do my CBT just for fun this year.

Quite fancy a bike that can be used off and on road - what older people might have referred to as a 'scrambler'?  Are these utter pants on the road?  They look jolly comfortable.  And cool.

I did my CBT in April 2014 so I could commute to work, 16 miles each way - normally 1 hour in a car, 45 mins/35 mines on a bike. Did 7000 miles on a 125.

Then in October the same year I did my DAS and moved onto a 400cc bike.

Best thing to do is get your CBT done, get a 125cc bike (£1000-2000) and get a few months riding on that, before winter kicks in and see if you like it. Bear in mind commuting through winter isn't fun, but it can be necessary.

Decent kit (helmet, gloves, textiles etc) won't be cheap either, so you're looking at around £2k total to start if you do your CBT. Most 125's will get 60-90mpg so they are cheap to run. However, if you get hooked then it's not a cheap hobby to have!!! I've moved jobs now and have a 2 mile commute but since April 2014 I've done around 50k miles, with a big chunk of that commuting. I've had 4 bikes in that time, and was running 2 bikes for a long time, down to 1 bike now.

Bikes are awesome, if you have any interest in performance cars it will ruin that as a lowly 400cc, 50bhp bike worth £1000 will be as quick as a 300bhp car up to 90mph, and will get 45mpg. And if you get hooked they are not cheap to run. But touring through the Alps on a bike is one of life's experiences that will stay with you, and as a commuting tool they're hard to beat.

My first 'big' bike, Honda CB400, 16k rpm

[url= https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7335/27947102951_d8b230fa7b_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7335/27947102951_d8b230fa7b_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/JzAd3B ]IMG_20160630_161403712[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/tallpaul_s/ ]Paul Sims[/url], on Flickr

2nd bike alongside the CB400, Tuono 1000cc v-twin (my current bike)

[url= https://farm1.staticflickr.com/816/40972032012_8209373b4b_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm1.staticflickr.com/816/40972032012_8209373b4b_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/25qynF3 ]IMG_20180325_183824[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/tallpaul_s/ ]Paul Sims[/url], on Flickr

VFR800 commuter/tourer which i've recently sold

[url= https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1804/42854242911_ec6e07f79c_c.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1804/42854242911_ec6e07f79c_c.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/28hTcp6 ]IMG_20180617_124318[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/tallpaul_s/ ]Paul Sims[/url], on Flickr

For a commute I would always go for a scooter.   Weather protection. Easy cleaning.   Modern big scooters are plenty fast enough

DO IT!

You won't look back...

Recent returnee to motorbikes myself, did my DAS in 2002, for various reasons stopped riding in 2005, but came back to it last year after a 12 year gap.

VFR800 commuter/tourer which i’ve recently sold

Wish I didn't sell mine (same as yours)! Was my first bike back... Genuinely probably the best all round motorbike ever made! Can pick good ones up for well under £2k and it'll top 150mph and is comfortable to ride all day, yet also easy to ride in town, and actually handles very well if a bit soft in the suspension department.

Tuono 1000cc v-twin (my current bike)

Funnily enough, purchased a 2008 Gen2 RSV1000R as my next bike... Did 2k miles on that in 2 months before I realised the position was causing a real crick in my neck!

Fast forward a few months, I'm on one of these...

WHAT A BIKE!!!

I even commute on it (of sorts) sometimes...

Bikes are awesome, if you have any interest in performance cars it will ruin that as a lowly 400cc, 50bhp bike worth £1000 will be as quick as a 300bhp car up to 90mph

Quite... I get idiots in Golf TDI's or Audi A4's revving their engines at me at Junctions and traffic lights! It beggars belief... OK my bike has riser bars and an upright position, but it's got just shy of 160bhp, will wheelie on the power in 4th, will hit 100mph from a standing start about 5.5 seconds if you can stop the front wheel from going skyward! The tools in their tin boxes just don't get it...

Just do it... Pass your DAS, get a bike, have some fun. Just be prepared to pull back on the commuting, cos actually that is likely to dilute your enjoyment of the bike to be honest particularly when the weather is shite!

Can't you ride one of those three wheeled bikes with a roof on a car license?

You can tell I'm not a biker right?

That Yamaha looks like a pissed off Transformer...........I love it!!!!

What's the route like OP?

As for gear you can get textiles that go over your work wear so changing takes a minute or two.  I've also found that you end up buying loads of gear for different seasons (mainly gloves).

I'm not sure it saves me much time over a car or cycle but I don't have to have a shower twice a day so that's a good amount of time saved.  And parking at work is good rather than park and ride.

And filtering is satisfying.  But you need to be careful.

It felt like a good achievement passing my DAS and getting my licence so well worth doing anyway.

Looking forward to going on some tours on a bike but finding the time is hard!  Certainly feels more like an adventure than a car.

If you're commute isn't that long have you thought about an E bike though?

It’s addictive

This! Oh and cause yolo - buy a f off fast as you can get hold of bike.

buy slow buy twice 👌

Yamaha MT10 😁 I've' got one of those as well 👍😁

If all you want to do is commute cheaply just buy a cheap car, if you're using commuting as an excuse to get a bike cos you've wanted one for ages go for it!

I used to ride a bike as a means of transport. I didn't have a car licence or much money, so I saw it as cheap transport. The reality is that fuel consumption is poor, bikes can't handle stellar mileages (with exceptions), weather protection is awful, you end up spending a fortune on clothing and you arrive at your destination with a load of clothing, helmet etc. to take off and stash somewhere. And you can't carry anything of any size, and then when you arrive you have no security for any luggage. If you ride at any speed (30+) you can't really enjoy the scenery (same with car of course but you can at least be a passenger).

Getting through traffic and parking is the plus side. I used to know somebody who commuted to work in the theatre in London and he more or less had to have a bike because he travelled at times when there wasn't public transport, and he had to park in central London. For him it was perfect. For me, once I got a car licence it was the end of biking. My brother, who went the same route as me ended up with big flash bikes for fun on sunny Sundays and a car for actually going anywhere. Mind you he lives in rural Scotland.

Nico sums it up. There are many downsides, but the journey time is a huge upside. Would it really surprise you to hear that it's a bit dangerous or that regardless of you there is always 'the other idiot'? Equally would it really surprise you to hear that an urban commute through traffic is decidedly quicker on 2 wheels?

I just sold my motorbike after 25 years of commuting by bike. A 3 year old solider jnr convinced me that saving 30 minutes on a 1hr car commute just wasn't worth the risk. Miss the speed, miss the convenience. Don't miss the cold, the wet and the danger. It isn't a clear cut decision either way.

And don't be under any illusions that it's a cheap form of transport. Admittedly I rode fairly big bikes (my last 5 were BMW R1200GS Adventures), but service intervals are short, servicing is expensive, wear and tear on pads and discs is faster than a car and you'll be lucky to get much mileage out of tyres. Plus you need to spend a decent amount on protecting yourself.

My personal decision having never had a crash in 25 years of riding every day in all weather was that I had ridden my luck for long enough. With that, the bike went the next day (I didn't want to talk myself back into it and have the bog one the day after) and I now have comfort, safety, air con and a longer commute time. You can't have it all. On balance it took me 25 years to decide against it though!

Not  had a motorbike since moving to London but have fond memories!  Here's a much younger me super chuffed after swapping a cg125 for a gs500: 

i think 500 is the sweet spot for commuting- early 2000s GS500 or CB500 etc will be fairly cheap to run and scampers up to 70mph quicker than most cars.  I had a bigger bike (v-strom 1000) for a while and it was just a handful, and as other have mentioned slurps petrol like a car.

In heavy rain I found it impossible to stay dry even on a short 12 mile commute.

Passed test last year just before I was 50.

Been commuting 60 miles a day, three days a week since then.

On second bike now- started out with a Triumph Street Triple, and recently upgraded to a Yamaha Tracer 700.

Best thing in the world...

Usually cycle to work, but on the motorbike today. Its the quickest way to get to work but not by a huge amount. Can't drive as I work in Central London. Motorbike is good fun, most people love it. Get something fun and practical for the commute, depending on the journey you might want fairings

I have a fireblade which is pretty rubbish on my commute, my street triple r was much better. BUT, it's my toy that I happen to commute on. So only do it when I fancy it

Cheers for the replies folks.

Commute is 16 miles each way on rural roads. My two main motivations are saving wear and tear on the van and having a bit of fun. I understand the downsides but there are no issues with security or having to carry lots of stuff to work and in shitty weather I can just take the van. Really just fancied a bit of a change.

I had one of these gt300’s a few years ago for riding around town, didn’t use it much because I could walk to work in 10mins..

Anyway, I’m considering one of these now.. Xmax 400

I did my CBT a couple of years ago and didn't get around to passing a bigger licence - my CBT has now run out so I need to do it again!  But I will definitely get the bigger licence this year 🙂

Bike wise, I have a nice little Honda CB125F which is great learner bike and happily keeps up with traffic (at full throttle mind!).  But it's nice and nimble and happy to be chucked about a bit.

I've been eyeing up bigger bikes and very much like the look of the Yamaha MT-07.

That Yamaha looks like a pissed off Transformer………..I love it!!!!

They sound even better than they look!

Yamaha MT10 😁 I’ve’ got one of those as well 👍😁

Good innit?!?! 😉

Commute is 16 miles each way on rural roads. My two main motivations are saving wear and tear on the van and having a bit of fun. I understand the downsides but there are no issues with security or having to carry lots of stuff to work and in shitty weather I can just take the van. Really just fancied a bit of a change.

16 miles each way on rural roads...? WTF are you waiting for!!!

That is Motorbike commute HEAVEN!!!

16 miles each way on rural roads…? WTF are you waiting for!!!

That is Motorbike commute HEAVEN!!!

🙂 😁

Rural roads are great fun, but IME more dangerous due to unsighted corners, narrowness, country bumpkins in cars, potholes, and the wildlife running infront of your bike. I ride rural roads for a fun sunday out but not sure I would want to commute on them.

In terms of bike, I recently rode a Cabellero Fantic 500 and was very impressed.

A colleague of mine was killed this week on the way to work on his bike. Experienced rider and (I think) dual carriageway.

I'd like another motorbike but I wouldn't ride it enough to keep my eye in.

I too have felt the urge.  Might do my CBT just for fun this year.

This is the approach I took.

I did the CBT with the attitude that if I got on with it I could maybe look to getting lessons and taking the test, if I didn't then it was a "red letter day" type of day out.  Circa £100 for a day's scampering about on bikes, there's no obligation to take it further and thus really no reason not to do it.

I then sat on it for a while before thinking, y'know, I think I would actually quite like to get my licence.  I'd no intentions of running out and getting a bike, but if in the future I ever decided that I did want to then I had the bit of paper to say that I could.  I had weekly lessons for a while, took my test and passed first time - already having a car licence helped, I doubt I'd have passed so easily had I not already been driving for a couple of decades.  Someone here quoted £800 for lessons; I passed like 10-15 years ago but I didn't pay anything like that, probably nearer £400?

Having passed, I then ignored it completely for maybe a year before buying a bike.  I had a budget of £2K and was looking at something "streetfigher" in a 600 - Hornet / Bandit / Fazer sort of thing.  Everything I looked at was either ragged, dropping to bits, or Captain Kirk mileage.

I had a rethink and started looking at 500s and there were shitloads, ended up with a fairly mint CB500.  And it turned out to be a pretty perfect choice, fast enough to put a grin on my face and sensible enough not to throw me in a hedge if I looked at it wrongly.  The one thing I regret is that the lack of windscreen made motorway speeds challenging, I ended up using a tank bag whenever I did any real distance (even if it was empty) just to act as a wind deflector.

Sadly it had to go in the end, personal circumstances meant that it was laid up for a period of time and when I came to put it back on the road there was just too much work needing doing.

One unexpected side effect of all this: learning to ride a bike made me a much better driver.  I wish more people would try riding for this reason alone.

Bikes as a way of getting around when your on your own, it’s not too cold and haven’t got much stuff are simply the best way to travel.

Ive had bikes since I was 17 (now 35) but I no longer would want to have one instead of a car.  No fun when it’s cold or your tired.

Big engine bikes with torque are just wonderful, small ones tend to need revving which always made me more aggressive when riding.

Big lazy power and and I just glide along with a smile on my face. Hence I now have a Harley 883 Sportster.  I wouldn’t go back to sports bikes.

loving this summer!!!

That vespy and xsofa thing are not bikes!

for starters they dont grip the road. I started off on a 250 xmax, bloomin weird then onto the biggest thumper I could get, makes a massive difference.

Newly minted middle aged biker here too. Tremendous fun, takes me back to when I first got a car as a youth. Currently pootling on a CBF 600 which when reading the reviews was boring underpowered but it's more powerful than some of today's 600's.

One unexpected side effect of all this: learning to ride a bike made me a much better driver.  I wish more people would try riding for this reason alone.

Agree 100% I think the CBT should be the first step to achieving a full car license.

I have a Diavel ....

used to have a 998s, KTM 950 sm, 1150 adv, and Buell cyclone.  At the same time ...😁👍🥞

I did my CBT around 10 years ago but due to finances / work never went any further or bought bike. I did my CBT and theory test 2 weeks ago. I have my Mod 1 test on the 23rd. Having done the CBT and a morning riding I can't wait to get a bike, Currently have my sights set on a KTM Duke 390.