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100,000 Kilometres
Blog Date - 10 April 2017
Oh if only I lived in a metric country! Wait...er...hang on I do...sort of...kinda.
While the UK government insists that food be marked with metric measurements (Weights and measures: the law) we still talk of our height in feet and inches and our personal weight in stones and pounds. Our government also still uses miles rather than kilometres to measure road distances and speeds. Go figure.
I'm not here to discuss the pros and cons of metric, imperial and mixed measurement systems. I'm here to report that if my Honda CBF 125 came from France or Germany or Spain then I would have just 00000 kilometres on my odometer! Imagine that - taking a squiddly little 125 right around the clock and back to nowt, nothing, zip and nada.
Regrettably here in the UK my odometer just reads 62137.1 miles. Hardly a stand out number amongst other numbers is it. No matter how much of an anticlimax 62137.1 seems I'm going to make the most of it by making a fuss about it. Any excuse to put another blog post up.
Yeah Go ME! Ahem, sorry.
Anyhow keep your eyes peeled dear reader. The next exciting, enthralling and must see blog post will likely involve a new crochet pattern for knitting your own kevlar motorcycle pants and a link to Gardening Monthly's guide to using vintage motorcycle pistons for potting plants.
As you can probably tell Ren has run out of interesting motorcycle anecdotes. If you have a better story (admittedly anything is better than this one) then do drop Ren a line. Otherwise he'll be forced to write about reaching 4 to the power of 5 miles...
Reader's Comments
Borsuk said :-
Only 98,400 ish more and I will catch up with you Ren.
10/04/2017 18:46:16 UTC
Stuart said :-
It is quite an achievement for such a small engine and no doubt you had a part to play in this milestone Ren.
I've signed up for the MCN ride 5k miles. I'm enjoying seeing where other people are going but most seem to be doing it on new big bikes with only a scattering of smaller / older bikes in the mix.
10/04/2017 21:21:39 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Borsuk - if you want to rack up some miles you could always try riding to work? I do understand that might take quite a while and be something of an adventure.
I do change the oil often Stuart and generally I'm gentle to the motor, but not always. Other than that it's just a case of throwing tyres, chains, sprockets and petrol at it.
You'll have to explain the purpose of this? 5k challenge. I'm guessing the idea is to encourage motorcyclists to ride more, but how?
11/04/2017 05:06:01 UTC
Andy Gray said :-
The 5k challenge is MCN's latest idea to get people to use there bikes more (and hence spend more money the cynical side of my brain says).
Not too sure how I'm going to be able to cut my mileage down to 5k. I suppose I could sit at home on the sofa all year!
11/04/2017 08:53:08 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
To be honest Andy Gray I support anything that encourages riders to get out there and enjoy riding their bikes. But yeah...for you and I 5k would mean a considerable reduction in the number of miles we usually cover hehe.
Perhaps I should start my own challenge - the BAT 30k challenge.
11/04/2017 09:25:16 UTC
Borsuk said :-
"Borsuk - if you want to rack up some miles you could always try riding to work? I do understand that might take quite a while and be something of an adventure."
Understatement of the week. I don't think my fuel tank has quite enough range and there is a distinct lack of petrol stations on the route.
11/04/2017 12:18:10 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Overland across Europe then through Russia. You'll need a short hop across the Bering Strait somehow then down through Alaska, Canada and North America. I believe the Darien Gap can be another issue that will require a boat of some kind. Then you're in South America and almost there.
Can't see any problem with that short journey.
11/04/2017 13:42:15 UTC
Mike said :-
Great blog! I really like your mainly utilitarian attitude to motorcycles! Apart from regular oil changes and staying on top of maintenance is there anything you'd attribute your high mileage to?
29/07/2017 20:27:43 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Cheers Mike!
There's 2 additional things I believe that help engines survive long distances alongside regular servicing.
1. Long journeys. Most engine wear is at startup so if a motorcycle only covers 2 miles each time it's started (from cold) then 1,000 startups equates to 2,000 miles. My most common distances are 10 miles, 25 miles and days out anywhere between 50 and 200 miles. So if I do 1,000 startups with perhaps an average of 20 mile rides that's 20,000 miles.
2. Sympathy for the engine. I have ridden this 125 for 100 miles across Ireland's central motorway at full throttle. I've done the same across Scotland and even the south of England. *BUT* that was into headwinds so I was still only doing 50-55 mph. I will give the old beast a damn good thrashing from time to time but for the most part I commute gently to work, my mother's place, Sharon's place and explore little back roads at 20mph. Engines shouldn't be mollycoddled but neither should they be bounced off the rev limiter all day long.
29/07/2017 21:23:27 UTC
Graeme said :-
Well done Ren on reaching 62137 miles. That's a tremendous feat on a 125. I have noticed that you are a bit of a software/computer geek so no doubt you will be aware that the next big significant target is "ONE WORD", which is 65535 miles or 0xFFFF or 1111111111111111 in binary speak. You can count the 1's if you like - I have double-checked and there are the correct amount. I think all motorcycling softies would be interested in a post showing your 125 at 65535 miles :)
08/11/2017 18:56:09 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
OH NO!!! Oh Graeme I hate to say this but I'm way way past 65535 miles now, I'm at 68,500 give or take. Yes a nerd like myself should have seen this but I don't really do binary. Dammit.
Next target 70,000 miles.
09/11/2017 10:30:53 UTC
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