Commuting to work on Motorcycle

Richard53

westwood68 wrote: »

In a car you are a spectator in a sealed cage but on a bike you are part of the elements and experience it all. I love it and most bikers do but it's not for everyone. I even sometimes enjoy the cold wet days in winter because regardless of what anyone says, you can get gear that keeps you warm and totally waterproof in even the biggest deluge. Biking for the sake of money saving will become tiring in the depths of winter but if you are an outdoors person and enjoy the freedom of being part of the bike then it's well worth it.

Couldn't agree more.

As othersd have said, unless you go for a tiny little 50cc scoot (not advised given the length of your journey), the economy argument doesn't really hold water. My daily ride will give me better than 60 mpg no matter how I treat it, but when you factor in tyres and the rest, it's probably no better than a small car.

But that really misses the point. You ride because you love it, and you won't know you love it until you do it. I do a 26-mile round trip every day, and unless it is proper icy or thick fog I will take the bike. Ice I don't like because I don't bounce so well these days, and fog makes me feel very vulnerable, but otherwise the bike is the first choice. Get good clothing (a textile suit isn't glamorous but will keep the rain and wind out), a good helmet, gloves and boots, and you'll find as Westwood says that bad weather is not an issue. In fact, I have lost count of the number of times I have been riding through some pouring rain with a grin on my face from ear to ear.

My bike is an enduro-style Yamaha. It's comfy, tall and torquey, it will cruise at 80, do 0-60 in about 5 seconds, and sips the fuel. It's a big single, which is a bit of an acquired taste, but but it carries me and my work gear (or camping gear, or whatever) without complaint, and it doesn't mind the odd off-road excursion if necessary. I can't imagine life without it.

westwood68

Oh and just another point. If you do go the biking route expect to take quite a while to become efficient and safe at filtering quickly through traffic. It's something that you learn and pick up over time. You learn to notice gaps that are safe and tell-tale signs of cars to look out for until it becomes second nature.

I'm now at least twice as quick through traffic than I was when I first started to ride but definitely a lot safer. You'll still be able to filter after passing your test but don't go beyond your experience and you will be safe.

To be honest, nothing p***es me off more than when it gets to summer and the power rangers with the fast plastic decide to take the bike to work after a winter of being in storage. They fly past on the motorway at 100mph then block my route through traffic because they're incapable of filtering.

eddie864

I used to commute from Aylesbury in Bucks to Uxbridge in Middlesex on a VFR800. I'm sure if I had kept my speed down I would've used far less fuel but with expensive tyres (BT020s) and a little less than 40 a gallon it wasn't any cheaper than a car. However, it was a much faster and more fun journey in to work and I could park for free close to my work. The new divvy 600s look fantastic and cater for low bhp conversion too. Now I would pick a cheap 500 just for the commute.

tykesi

bikermad wrote: »

Just thought I add my 2 pence piece when it comes to commuting motorcycle tyres. Obviously it does depend on the wheel size. For the big bikes that are ZR rated try and go for the sport touring type. There are even some on a budget like the Pirelli Diablo Strada, Metzeler Z6 or the Conti Motion. In the mid range bikes the british Avon AM26 Roadrider is a proper work horse. Other popular ones are the Bridgestone BT45, Conti GO, Dunlop Streetsmart, Metzeler Lasertec or the Pirelli Sport Demon.
Try a company called tyretectrading.com for many of these.
Take care guys.

Thought you'd add your 2p worth to a thread from four months ago? Or is it just a spam post for a sh itty tyre company? Well done, lamest attempt at advertising award of the day goes to you :T

Oh and a reported post too

mattyprice4004

Strider590 wrote: »

I'm not sure, but it's probably due to them being higher revving, an engine doing 4500rpm is using half as much fuel as one doing 9000rpm.

No it's not - it's nothing to do with RPM. If I plant my foot in my car in 4th @ 1200RPM it'll inject around 10 times as much fuel per injector cycle than holding the revs steady in neutral at 2400RPM.

marlot

bikermad wrote: »

Just thought I add my 2 pence piece ...

So you've only posted twice, but both are to promote your company

SPAM

oldtoolie

Also factor in 10-15 min at each end of your journey putting on & taking off your MC clothing, pushing the bike out and in the garage. Whereas my car was in in the drive ready to go. I did ride my bike but didn't really save time on a 30 min commute. London might be different but as said much more hectic. And you have to be really dedicated to go out in poring rain or winter darkness to mount your bike.

Rolandtheroadie

tykesi wrote: »

Thought you'd add your 2p worth to a thread from four months ago? Or is it just a spam post for a sh itty tyre company? Well done, lamest attempt at advertising award of the day goes to you :T

Oh and a reported post too

Not really, even if his spam post gets removed, sombodys probably quoted it.

westwood68

10-15mins to get M/C clothing on/off???? Really?

Takes me 2 mins at most and that's in the middle of winter. & it takes literally 2 mins to get it in and out of the garage (including opening and closing the door..)

fivetide

I'd agree actually. A good 10 mins or so. I always let her warm up a bit too.

Basically, trousers and boots on, bike out of garage and fire up.

Back in, pick up heated glove wires and putll jacket on.

Facemask on and zip jacket up

Backpack on.

Helmet on

Back outside to plug gloves in and ride away.