Any on here also run a Motorbike to work?

[Linford]

Nice bike you had sir. I may be miss reading the new rules but it seems that someone over 24 can still do a Direct Access course lasting only a week ? and its now being called Module 1 and Module 2 Module 1 contaning the CBT and Theory test. And Module 2 containing the full test and your age seems to determine what size bike you are able to ride.

I gather that the mod 2 makes more allowance for older people as they most likely have 'grandfather experience' from driving cars for a good few years.

The Gixxer thou was actually my mates bike. He was on the bike in my avatar at the time, a car driver (coincidentally another consultant from Southampton Hospital) did an illegal U-turn across his path when he was doing 60 after getting lost on a country road. My mate was very bust up, and was off the bikes for about 12 months, My bike was written off, and so I used the Gixxer for about 7 months as a daily ride (well you would wouldn't you)
It was 'slightly' modified to give full torque and BHP (178 on a wet weight of 200kg) in every gear (as they are electronically limited to make them more rideable at lower speeds and limit their top speed in top gear, but it is a common mod) and would lift the front wheel purely through the use of the throttle in 3rd gear when approaching the redline (140), and it is still about 15bhp down on that BMW SS1000RR
Performance of it was absolutely mentalist. It like the BMW is IMO too much for the road, and would be an accident waiting to happen in a very short period of time in inexperienced hands.
Mate has since gone to a 750 which is much more user friendly. When you have to do in excess of 100 mph to have 'fun' on a bike, they will never be right for the very vast majority of roads or circumstances in the UK (fun on the track though )

 

[Linford]

Yes your right (you never lose it and all that) however as in the link you posted the unfortunate Doctor lasted less than 2 hours and as the accident investigator said it was more a lack of knowledge of the area (as in the double bend) rather than speed that caused the accident.

Realistically, if there is nothing around or in front of you, and the road is straight, the vehicle is designed to do the speed, and you have the bottle, then even someone with little experience can max it out. Motorbikes need so much more consideration and skill than cars to ride quickly though the bends as you have to consider tyre temps, tyre loads, lean angles, and where the centre of gravity is. If it is all over the front wheel, you have bottomed the forks out and near to locking it up, the only stable thing to do is is sit up and to go straight on. If you have to do this mid corner, it is because you haven't planned your way through it given the information you have in front of you. He should have done all his braking before he hit the first corner, and then carrying through them on either a neutral or very slightly positive throttle to pull that COG back over the back wheel where there is a much bigger contact patch of rubber.. Nearly all have done it at some stage and run wide, some on the track (oops), some on the roads. He didn't have the experience or training to carry him, and that is why they parted company.

 

[Boris Bajic]

I would argue that someone who has previously ridden a performance bike 10 years ago would rightly feel a bit wobbly for a short while, but they would have an appreciation from the off for the performance they deliver - caveat, a 1000cc bike like the BMW is a world apart from the 1000cc bikes of 25 years ago (which are actually slower than my current 600, and have handling which is a lot more iffy)

I was a keen (very) motorcyclist in my youth. Road and track and some hapless bimblig off-road.

When I started, the big guns were the GS1000, Z1000 and the Italian mob that everyone pretends their mate had one of, but few people ever rode, saw or heard: Laverda Jota, Guzzi Lemon and Ducati 900. These things had around 70 or 80 real-world bhp and the tear tyres were 110/90 or similar. They were not just slower than a modern sports 600; they were significantly slower, had lumpier power, stopped and slowed amusingly and even the Italians cornered as the wanted to and not as they were supposed to.

I stopped riding in 1992. If I got onto a 1000cc sports bike now, I wouldn't get to the nearest A-Road before I killed myself.

Yes, I understand the nature of power delivery on a motorcycle, but 20 years off bikes would be the death of me if I got back on.

 

[mark st1]

I would love a Gixxer 600 750 tops but the 1000 id doubt id be able to handle. My brother who i never thought in a million years would go near a bike took his direct access and having a far better job than me this opened him up to the world of the Superbike very early on. He let me have a go on his R1 and with my biggest bike ive ever owned being a 600 Hornet the difference was un real fighting to keep the front end down in 4th when opening it up. Hurtling through the highest speed limit in this country in 2nd gear is lethal but does bring a slight smile to your nervous face . I applaud anyone who can handle modern day Superbikes to there full potential. I just dont see how making the test any different changes the way people think and act when they get hold of a bike if you have been restricted to a 47 bhp for 2 years the first thing you would want to do is see how much different a 100+bhp machine would perform. IMO the 2 years restricted riding could give them a false sense of there ability. However i suppose the fact the problem has been recognized and is trying to be tackled is a good start.

 

[Teuchter]

I'd echo a lot of what's been said here previously - for a commuting motorbike I'd recommend a cheap 125 which would give good economy, be easy to handle and inexpensive for the necessary training (£100 CBT evey two years). Factor in a couple of hundred for kit on top of that.

As for better in the cold weather... I used to commute 100 miles a day all year round by motorbike but it was tough going during winter and I wouldn't choose to regularly motorbike that sort of distance this time of year any more. When it's icey, I can often still cycle on days when I probably couldn't even get my motorbike out of my (ungritted) street because of ice. It's a heavy old bugger (1995 Yamaha XJ900 Diversion) and if I dropped it. lifting it up again while slipping everywhere on ice would be a nightmare.

I used to live for motorbiking, even worked for a bit as a courier and as a CBT instructor but these days I cycle twice as many miles as I motorbike. Unless traffic or parking are major issues, you'd be better off getting a cheap car (and you've no idea how much it pains me to say that!).

 

[Stromtrooper]

I also run my Suzuki DL 1000 to work if the winds too bad or I have to carry large/heavy stuff about. Strangely it takes the same amount of time door to door now as the cycle due to the new 'faster' road layout at the dockyard gate and the increased number of traffic lights. If I cycle in the cycle path misses most of them

 

[Electric_Andy]

I would consider myself a "career" 125er, i.e. not that interested in getting a bigger bike because my reason for getting a motorbike in the first place was cheap motoring. Insurance (0 no claims) £150 but will get less year on year, fuel consumption 100mpg if ridden sensibly. i understand that a 1000 cc bike gets around 40mpg so not much more economical than my car.

 

[Teuchter]

I would consider myself a "career" 125er, i.e. not that interested in getting a bigger bike because my reason for getting a motorbike in the first place was cheap motoring. Insurance (0 no claims) £150 but will get less year on year, fuel consumption 100mpg if ridden sensibly. i understand that a 1000 cc bike gets around 40mpg so not much more economical than my car.

I had a loan of a mate's YBR125 for a few months last year under the pretext of looking after it and giving it an occasional run while he was working away from home. Rode it to work a couple of times. For a typical rush hour commute through heavy traffic, it was barely slower than my 900 and like you said, gets close to 100mpg vs about 50 for my 900 (which is quite economical for the size of bike).

I removed the L plates (like you, my mate doesn't have a full license) to allow me the option of nipping onto the motorway. Filtering down the M8 on the 125 must have raised a few eyebrows and I left a sportsbike behind in the process... silly commuter racing!

 

[Teuchter]

All this gibberish about 125cc bikes is just that... Gibberish.

Many years ago I rode a borrowed 850 T-3 California

We'll have to agree to disagree about the 125s, at least for urban commuting (wouldn't much fancy doing any real distance on one) but I will admit to always having had a hankering for a Cali. Closest I've ever had to a Guzzi however was a CX500... a nice cross the frame v-twin shaftie cursed by terrible, leaky water cooling.

 

[Boris Bajic]

We'll have to agree to disagree about the 125s, at least for urban commuting (wouldn't much fancy doing any real distance on one) but I will admit to always having had a hankering for a Cali. Closest I've ever had to a Guzzi however was a CX500... a nice cross the frame v-twin shaftie cursed by terrible, leaky water cooling.

The T-3 wasn't mine, but it was regal. A gear change like a 1965 Bedford lorry and all the better for it.

I had a couple of V50s over the years, which were miles away from a T-3 in character but quite beguiling as machines. I think the V50 was close to the perfect do-it-all motorcycle. Fast when they have to be and docile when they have to be. As good in snow as on hot, sticky tarmac.

With both the T-3 and the V50, you tended to know what the bike was thinking. Dropping the clutch and feeling the tail rise slightly and hearing all the mechanical gubbins getting to work was wobbly, shuddering perfection.

While I was a courier, the age of the Plastic User76 was beginning to end and the VT500 was starting to take over. From the number of CXs one saw out and about with top boxes and radios, I always imagined it was a reliable old horse.

But then I rode a Guzzi... I couldn't even spell reliable.

 

[Linford]

The T-3 wasn't mine, but it was regal. A gear change like a 1965 Bedford lorry and all the better for it.

I had a couple of V50s over the years, which were miles away from a T-3 in character but quite beguiling as machines. I think the V50 was close to the perfect do-it-all motorcycle. Fast when they have to be and docile when they have to be. As good in snow as on hot, sticky tarmac.

With both the T-3 and the V50, you tended to know what the bike was thinking. Dropping the clutch and feeling the tail rise slightly and hearing all the mechanical gubbins getting to work was wobbly, shuddering perfection.

While I was a courier, the age of the Plastic User76 was beginning to end and the VT500 was starting to take over. From the number of CXs one saw out and about with top boxes and radios, I always imagined it was a reliable old horse.

But then I rode a Guzzi... I couldn't even spell reliable.

The User76 is probably the worst handling bike I think I've ever ridden.
In terms of comfort, I had this Triumph 900 for a couple of years

the whole thing was covered in chrome, and the only way to clean the yolks and around the headlight was to take off the fly screen. The bike was great on the motorway with it, but unpleasant at 70 without, and so it went straight back on. The plastic panneled sports bikes on the other hand are great at 70 in terms of comfort, but not nice at urban speeds as the uper body weight is on the hands.

I had 2 years of that upright barge (and it actually handled very well for that type of bike), and since then 11 years of plastic bikes with 170/180 wide back tyres. Give me the latter every time if I could only choose one bike (which I have). The bike ultimately has to handle and go well in my books - and and IMO an Aprilia RS125 would really surprise you

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I had bikes for over 30 years only just recently packed in due to time/money although I do have a borrowed SV650 in the garage but never use it. For many years I only had a bike for my transport as the wife had the car when the kids were small, my commute was always around 20 miles, I would not even consider a 125 for that kind of distance. My main hack for quite a while was a GSX550ES pretty darn sensibly really. I also had a Yamaha Super Tenere 750 I think the later ones were/are 850 this was a good commuting bike, you were sat high up, you could glare at van drivers who were thinking of pulling out. I rode in all weathers 48 weeks a year, cold/rain never bothered me with the correct clothing, but dark morning with black ice were the worst.

Alan...

 

[Linford]

I was on a Suzuki GT 185 when they brough the 125 law in. I'd been riding it for 8 months before the date, and already had my part 1. I had to wait a week before my 2nd part which fortunately I went straight through on . The Aprilia 125 RS certainly doesn't hang around I tailed one from a roundabout got about 300 yards up the road, thinking we were doing about 65, looked down and I clocked him at 85, and he wasn't even prone - they are putting out 33bhp in standard unrestricted form and also weigh absolutely nothing.

 

[Teuchter]

Trouble with 125 learner / commuter bikes (and I wouldn't class the aprilla in with them) for this forum's audience is that on any journey for which they are well suited, a bicycle would be even better suited.

That said, I tend to enjoy almost any motorbike. Last summer my Dad and I hired a couple of Royal Enfields for a weekend. They're slow and quirky but with the right choice of route we had a great time on them. At the time I had a VFR800 sitting at home but I didn't miss it... horses for courses.

 

[Linford]

Trouble with 125 learner / commuter bikes (and I wouldn't class the aprilla in with them) for this forum's audience is that on any journey for which they are well suited, a bicycle would be even better suited.

That said, I tend to enjoy almost any motorbike. Last summer my Dad and I hired a couple of Royal Enfields for a weekend. They're slow and quirky but with the right choice of route we had a great time on them. At the time I had a VFR800 sitting at home but I didn't miss it... horses for courses.

I think it depends on the type of terrain you have to commute. If it is all done at sea level, then cycling all the time - why not !, however, if the terrain has a lot of hills, then cycling become impractical unless you are very fit, and commited. The hills between my town (Cheltenham) and Stroud rise about 130 metres above the valley floor. This is the most direct and shortest route, but you'd not want to do the 35 mile round trip every day on a cycle unless you were training for some sort of event, and even then you'd want some days off from it. Even a moped could do this day in and day out - although it would be taxed on some of the gradients.the riders would not have to be super fit to ride one.
Not everyone is super (cycle) fit at the end of the day.