Beginners Questions. first bike, long distance.

olliebennett

I'm 21 and looking to buy a bike once i have finally passed my test, im about 6,2 and 190lbs and compleatley new to riding, hence why im asking, im a completely clean sheet here people, and i need your help.

ive been reading alot of posts and everything overlaps and contradicts so im looking for any advice on people oppinions for a first bike.

i would be using it to travell to and from home at a weekend as i work away it would be a hefty trip of 300 - 330 miles, so about 5+ hours in a 1'er. The main thing i would be hoping for is good for fuel usage and as comfirtable as possible, with a good power but not too much for a beginner.

thank you for any comments.

Lilliput69

to be quiet honest a bike isn't gona work out any cheaper than a decent 1ltr or 1.3 ltr car.

On the bike depending on tank size ur gona have to make at least 2 petrol stops, if the weather is bad it will slow you down a good bit, 300 miles in 5 hrs is very unlikely to happen, my mate regularly does 230 miles and it takes him anywhere from 4.5 hrs to 5.5 hrs depending on the weather and time of day.

Don't forget u have to buy bike gear, insure the bike and tax it (my bike insurance is the same as my car insurance) maintenance, tyres are expensive.

As for what bike, what style were u thinking of, cruiser, tourer, sports......

CourierCollie

Pretty much agree with what Lilliput has said.
To be honest I rarely do more than 200 miles a day. And if I was going for a 300 mile spin, I'd want to be taking at least one half hour break midway for coffee or whatever. I also find my observation level seriously deteriorates after more than 90 mins or so flat out, thus necessitating a break.

colm_c

300 miles in one day? in Ireland? That's the length of the country!

I've only done that kind of mileage in europe, and on non-motorways it took pretty much the whole day - well 6 hours of it anyway, with breaks and 1 fuel stop.

I wouldn't recommend it for beginners - it'll make you hate biking because you'll be doing it in all sorts of weather and being a beginner you'll have to have a relatively small cc bike which aren't great for touring - tourer's and cruisers are the only types of bikes which you could do that kind of mileage on without breaking your back!

As for bikes - I'd recommend something like a deauville, comfortable, a bit of fairing, a bit of poke and it's a honda so should be reliable.

Pigeon Reaper

In Summer it would be fine but once the weather turns bad I wouldn't recommend it. These days anything more than 30 mins starts to get cold. For comfort and doing the journey on icy days I'd go for a car.

carsQhere

Ideally, you'd need to build up a bit of experience before taking on a long haul trip of any sort. That said, a Deauville would be cheap enough second hand, cheap to insure, cheap to run, and big enough/comfortable enough to do your weekend trips. I think Deauvilles are learner legal too, but don't quote me on that. So basically, I'd suggest a Deauville

Edit: Just saw the "I'm 21" bit. Insurance will be your biggest hurdle. http://www.quinn-direct.com/ click "motorcycles" and get a quote before you buy anything at all.

Alkers

Insurance is going to be a big no no for you. I'm just coming to the end of my first years no claims bonus and just turned 22. This time last year I was a 21yo beginner. A quote for even a 125cc scooter was over €2.5k. I bought a 50cc for €700 and spent €750 on insurance. Now my renewal on the same bike is €275 and I can get quotes on proper bikes for in or around the €500 mark (Hornet, Bros, Bandit etc...)

brian plank

the insurance will be crazy. even if you pass the test your restricted for 2 years or something so a bike with decent power and comfort will be expensive to buy and worse to insure.

far better off getting a car for that sort of mileage.

colm101

Agree with the others about the Deauville, its perfect for the job, Get some training and do an insurance assesment, this will help with the insurance.

300 miles a day is not a problem if you've a few years under yer belt, but as someone else said you may end up hating biking after it.

check out www.irishbikerforum.com