7 Things I've Learned From Riding A Motorbike For One Month
1. Riding to the office saves me 11 days a year
I said a while ago that I couldn’t wait to ditch public transport in favour of two wheels. I estimated that it would take 30 minutes to ride 12 miles from Ealing to Farringdon, which would mean that I’d more than halve wasted time on my usual three trains and fifteen minute walk.
Well, I’m happy to report that I’ve very nearly achieved my estimated travel time, managing to get to and back from the office in around 35 minutes each way. For context, the time saved equates to 11 full days every year!
2. Many moped riders overstep the limit of safety
Ever since I started commuting on a 125cc motorbike, I’ve noticed something: the vast majority of full-sized motorbike riders respect traffic and err on the side of caution. The same can be said about most 125cc motorbike riders, but it’s the moped riders who worry me most.
Perhaps it’s the easy twist-and-go nature of mopeds - or the fact that many are time-starved couriers - that makes riders feel invincible, but there have been many occasions where they’ve ridden past at almost double my speed without knowing what was coming. If a car, bus or truck were to change lane, these moped riders wouldn’t stand a chance. It’s because of this that I’ve been told “everybody hates the moped riders.”
3. I get to park where the hell I like
Another benefit of life on two wheels that I’ve enjoyed taking advantage of is being able to park the bike wherever and whenever I like, free of charge.
In London this means I park in a motorbike-only bay 30 seconds from the office, while at home, I can head into town and pull up between rows of cars that all have paid parking tickets on the dashboard. As for me, I just jump off and get on with my day.
On top of the free parking, I also save time and money thanks to unlimited Bus Lane access, while the London Congestion Charge is also free for bikes. Bonus.
4. I'm not up to speed with 'bike etiquette'
My worry is holding up other bikers while filtering through traffic, so when there is another bike behind me, I tend to pull to one side to let him or her through. Inevitably, I catch right back up, but I’m currently fine taking their lead on pace.
The other bike etiquette part I’m struggling with is knowing if and when I should say hello to other riders. As someone who rides with L-plates (I’ll get my full bike licence in the next couple of months), I’ve no idea if it’s the done thing to tip my head to say hello to every biker I encounter or if that’s only reserved for proper bikers.
So far, I’ve only seen full licence holders greet each other, so I’d be keen to know what the unwritten rule is from anyone more experienced than me.
5. A Honda MSX is perfect for London
The MSX - or Grom as it’s also known - is doing me proud. I’ve got it for a couple more weeks, and since it got dropped off with 12 miles on the odometer, I’ve racked up over 200 miles. I’ve found it to be less comfortable than the squidgy Monkey we did a video on, but the trade off is that the narrower seat allows me to put both feet flat on the ground at traffic lights, which is more comfortable than having to lean to one side. That said, the seat gets uncomfortably hot (right over the battery) after around two minutes at 40mph, so I find myself having to stand up every now and then to cool it back down…
The lightness of the Grom - around 100kg - also means it gets to 30mph quickly, and because it’s super agile, it’s easy to duck through traffic.
I’m at a point now where I feel I’m ready to get on a bigger bike, and the thing I’m looking forward to most about it is being heard by other road users because the 125cc Grom is really quiet. A bit more power would be nice, too, but I’m happy stepping up to bigger bikes gradually.
6. Putting on motorbike gear is (currently) a PITA
Safety is key when riding, so it’s vital you have the right protection. In my motorbike closet, I have a bunch of cool Knox clothing, including Urbane Pro armoured jacket, leather jacket, carbon kevlar-lined jeans with knee protection, as well as their Handroid gloves. For my feet, I bought some protective boots, while my head’s taken care of with a very distinctive Shoei NXR ‘Stimuli’ helmet.
All of this takes way more time to put on and take off versus jumping in a car and making progress immediately, and this is not helped by the fact that I’ve often put my gloves on before putting my helmet on, which makes it impossible to fix the helmet strap on.
The most annoying thing though - and I’ve done this a lot - is closing my front door, putting my keys in my pocket or bag, then going through the ordeal of putting my gloves and helmet on only to realise that the Honda key has been safely stored away in my bag or pocket three minutes earlier. FML.
7. I can't recommend motorbikes enough
As a diehard petrolhead and lover of all things with four wheels (except for the Nissan Figaro, I hate that thing), it’s taken me 34 years to get into bikes. They’ve never really appealed, but because I had an opportunity with Honda that I couldn’t refuse, I’ve become pretty motorbike obsessed because the benefits, the fun and the cost savings cannot be ignored.
I know many of you will be thinking ‘meh, I’m a car guy’, so to you I say ‘just give a bike a quick go’ because I think you might be surprised by how much you like them and the fun you’ll have. As for me, I’ll be doing my ‘big bike’ theory test soon en route to a full license which will allow me to ride any bike and take a passenger.
So now that I’ve said my piece, have I convinced any one of you guys to take the plunge into life on two wheels?
Comments
Do you think a 125cc motorbike is also a good option if you have to do longer trips (~100km) regularly? A motorbike is definetly great for city traffic, but I’m a bit concerned about how it will fare on longer motorway trips. In a 125cc bike you’re usually flat out at 60-70mph which is decent, but definetly not enough for motorway trips in Germany where cars are usually going around 80-100mph.
125s in the UK aren’t allowed on motorways, so no good here. I’d be happy travelling around 100kms per day on a 125 to be honest.
On the greeting part: Everybody can. The only people excluded (who don’t commonly greet also) are mid-life crisising harley drivers (you’ll recognize the proper harley driver when you see one and can NOT keep up with one, trust me) and motorbike-ish vehicles you don’t need a motorcycle license for (piaggio mp3, can-am, quad, etc.).
As a veteran biker, I wholeheartedly agree with this. Alex - London is infested with bikes but out in the sticks you’ll get a nod back from 99% of riders. It’s just the Harley hero’s who think they’re above everyone else! Really enjoying seeing you explore biking - just wait till your first track day!! It’s epic!
Haha, noted. I’ll make sure I nod extra hard at Harley riders just to prove a point ;)
I can’t agree more on that “meh, I’m a car guy” point.
You gotta experience the motorbikes in your life to love them, even if that experience is a bit “remote”.
They never really interested me until my mum got one and started practicing for her license, now I’d kill for an opportunity to ride one xD (or at least sit as a passenger there)
On bike greeting: Everyone is included, it’s just people don’t tend to do it in Central London. Get out on some country roads on a Sunday and you’ll get neck ache from all the nodding you’ll do.
On mileage: 200!? You’re clearly not having enough fun 😉 I did 1200 miles in the first month of ownership when I got my 125, mostly from going out for the pure sake of enjoyment.
I highly recommend an app called CaliMoto. I’m not affiliated at all and I’m not trying to advertise, but it’s great for planning motorcycle friendly trips and favours twisty fun roads over boring a roads if you let it. You can also tell it to plan a round trip of any number of miles if you fancy going out but have nowhere to go.
Awesome, thanks for the tip on the app. I had a look at some over the weekend, but not come across this one. Cheers!
yeah all we need is another million to get this idea and you can have the streets of UK looking like India and Indonesia. Over flowing with commuter rat bikes with no nod to safety adding to congestion.
P.s. - Im all for recreational riding, but adding a million rat bikes to public roads is detrimental to the environment and general lack of space. Carpool electric cars, use public transport and save precious fossil fuel for cars/bikes that ignite the stuff artfully !
I would have agreed with 4. until I woke up in hospital with several broken bones, a splitting headache and no idea how I got there and no memory of the family holiday I’d come back from a few days earlier. Never again as far as I’m concerned but good luck out there and keep safe! I do miss it.