Any on here also run a Motorbike to work?

[Hilldodger]

Yes, you won't believe how cold you get on a motorbike even with elaborate expensive kit. You will also get huge shock when you find out how expensive it is to run even a modest motorbike. I speak of which I know.

Blimey, what are you runing? My 750 Kawasaki was dirt cheap to buy, is utterly reliable and cost £126 a year to insure. My MZ 250 was even cheaper to buy and only £89 to insure.

 

[donnydave]

I used to have a yam TZR125 in an attractive yellow and purple colour scheme and used to use that occasionally to get to work, but if the weather is good enough to use the motorbike, then its generally good enough to cycle so I choose the latter so I don't die aged 45 due to being a fatty.

My mbike jacket and trousers with built in armour is surprisingly good for snowboarding

 

[Electric_Andy]

I gave up commuting by bike, too many close passes nearly every day. I thought about my 3 month old son and decided he would be better off with a living father, so got a motorbike instead. it's a 125 so still far cheaper than a car to run, though I had to bring the road bike into work today as the motorbike was in for the MOT. If it was icy then I wouldn't risk 2 wheels but it hasn't been that bad down here yet. And before anyone says motorbikes are dangerous - there no more dangerous than cars if driven sensibly!

 

[Acyclo]

Blimey, what are you runing? My 750 Kawasaki was dirt cheap to buy, is utterly reliable and cost £126 a year to insure. My MZ 250 was even cheaper to buy and only £89 to insure.

Nothing fancy - but I did the numbers including depreciation, insurance, servicing, petrol, other consumables, proper clothing etc etc. It all adds up and it's many times the cost of a low end road bike. Still cheaper than the bus though.

 

[thefatcyclist]

Yes I do both although the motorbike only saves me approx 10-15 minutes on my 13 mile journey through london so using it less and less.

 

[jonny jeez]

I do.

I've had a few bikes and as others have said the cost is not as appealing as you may expect.

I had a 1050 Triumph Sprint St that cost £600 a year to insure and was in the top tax bracket. worse still it (and all triple triumphs seem to be the same here) returned a little over 30mpg.

My car returns more and has a heater and an ac unit!!! so right now I'm considering the NC (new concept) bike from Honda (NC700s or x) as they return over 70mpg...most bikes struggle to return more than 50mpg.

Unless you go for a 125 (as suggested earlier) they will give anywhere from 60-80mpg regularly and cost £15 a year to tax and probably £100-150 to insure. In my mind they are pretty perfect for city commutes but not much else.

We have a 125 scooter at work and i still used my 125 Honda Varadero up until about 2 months ago, having sold the triumph.

But...I am considering selling the vara as well now as, frankly, I want to remove the temptation to take the motorbike and either cycle more or just drive. If I drive then its for business and the firm covers the cost of fuel, parking, congestion charge etc, so its daft to make myself cold and place myself in danger just to make myself more time efficient (and lie in bed for 30 more minutes) especially in the winter.

Not sure How I'll feel about that come the summer though, riding a motorcycle in the summer is a pretty attractive way to travel

 

[jonny jeez]

Yes I do both although the motorbike only saves me approx 10-15 minutes on my 13 mile journey through london so using it less and less.

ditto

 

[jonny jeez]

I gave up commuting by bike, too many close passes nearly every day. I thought about my 3 month old son and decided he would be better off with a living father, so got a motorbike instead. it's a 125 so still far cheaper than a car to run, though I had to bring the road bike into work today as the motorbike was in for the MOT. If it was icy then I wouldn't risk 2 wheels but it hasn't been that bad down here yet. And before anyone says motorbikes are dangerous - there no more dangerous than cars if driven sensibly!

this is interesting.

I feel far safer on the pushbike than the motorbike.

The motorbike is heavier, provides less peripheral vision and is prone to skidding in an emergency stop (due to the weight and long travel front forks...and lack of ABS). This probably has more to do with the fact that I've dropped the motorbike 3 times in 5 years (all low speed so no injuries to me, just some scratches to the fairings), never had any issues on the pushbike, and only ever the one close call when i first started riding, which I could have avoided with the skills I now have

 

[jonny jeez]

Yes, you won't believe how cold you get on a motorbike even with elaborate expensive kit. You will also get huge shock when you find out how expensive it is to run even a modest motorbike. I speak of which I know.

yep.

especially for the cold bit.

The best solution I've seen (and have experience of... somewhat vicariously) is the Gerbings gear
http://www.heated-motorcycle-clothing.com/gerbings_jacket_liner.html

it has a very "real" feel of overall warmth and doesn't create hot/cold spots. Plus the heated gloves offer 360 degree heat on every finger...right to the tips.

 

[Stonepark]

After getting in today after 1 hr. and 20, the guided bus way is flooded the roads are a nightmare and I am still shivering from the cold.

I have been out and about in 0 to -2 at nights and have been fine wearing compression layer under aldi/tenn outdoors winter top layers (and when raining a lightweight rain jacket on top), fingerless mitts and waterproof trainers and not found the cold giving me much of a problem once past the first mile or so.

If your shivering and dry, need more layers, especially a wind proof layer , if shivering and wet, you need a waterproof layer to stop the wet getting to your skin and increasing the wind chill effect as 20mph wind chill (bike speed) reduces temperatures by 12 degrees, i.e. 0 Celsius feels like -12.

 

[fossyant]

I gave up commuting by bike, too many close passes nearly every day.

You'll get fat on one of them you know. More likely to die of fat related illness than squished on the pedal bike. FACT

 

[Boris Bajic]

You'll get fat on one of them you know. More likely to die of fat related illness than squished on the pedal bike. FACT

Are you Rafa Benitez in disguise?

 

[fossyant]

Are you Rafa Benitez in disguise?

Who, you talking footyballthingy ?

 

[bicyclos]

If you were cold on your bike, you will be colder on a motorcycle especially legs and knees as you are not exerting much energy just sat on the thing as opposed to using physical effort cycling. Anyway, No such thing as bad weather only bad kit. Spend your brass on decent kit for winter, far cheaper than buying a motorcycle and KIT .

 

[kevin_cambs_uk]

Well thanks for all the replies people, very interesting.

I don't get cold on the bike, far from it, the lowest I have ever done the journey in is -11, but on the very cold nights when I get in and get changed, I get cold quickly. When I am on the bike even though it below freezing I will still sweat. So I don't think the cold is the problem. I get the shakes when I am sat down in front of the telly !!

I have the spiked tyres, Continental they are excellent, but I only tend to fit them when there is ice for a few days as taking them on and off is a right faff in the evenings, I should get another set of wheels, but that will have to wait. So there's no problem getting there and back to work, but....

I have been cycling to work now for 3 and a half years, coming up to 24,000 miles, its a long time on the bike, so I had toyed with the idea of getting a motorbike rather than take the car on the odd occasion. With the motorbike I can still park at work, but with the car that's a different story, there's not enough parking and you only get a space once every 6 weeks. In Cambridge parking at work is a disaster, so that's where the motorbike idea came in really. But its all just thoughts and so I was interested in what others thought.

But I certainly thank you all for the replies, its good to get the word from the horses mouth so to speak.