Long distance? ish

[Gopher]

I better explain a few things... so you get a good idea of where I'm coming from....

I recently (ie- 4th Dec) passed my test, and was recently made redundant, and hence am moving home to my parents for a month or two (to save £££ while I find a new job)

I have also bought myself a Honda CBF600SA (before you say anything... the dealer sold the Fazer I was having, and as we all know, Yamaha have ran out, so I bought the closest thing!)

My plan is to ride my bike, "chasing" my removals van cross country from east sussex (thats the UK btw!) to cold, dark Wales... its a 320Mile trip which will take my van 7 hours. If ur wondering why I plan to follow the van, its because I'll end up in Scotland somewhere otherwise!

This means I'm in for a long ass ride (longest I've done so far is 1hr10min) at around 4oC... Besides the obvious regular breaks to defrost my knees... any advice? 90% of the trip is by motorway (freeway) at 70MPH.....

 

[Mattberkshire]

As long as it's not raining you should be OK. Thick socks are a must. Nothing more horrid than painful toes, they take an age to warm up at the services. Also, find some way of protecting your fingers. Heated grips or even those muff things. A pair of thin traccy bottoms under your leather trousers and 2 t shirts plus jumpre and winter jacket should be OK. Don't forget your neck/chin. Neck warmers are dirt cheap and you'll find them in any bike shop - wear 2 and pull it up to your mouth.

If it rains make sure what you are wearing is waterproof. Wet & cold is miserable and will become dangerous; as you tire your reactions will slow down accordingly.

Should be fine, I did 200 miles Friday with no probs. The hand driers at services came in useful for warming my hands and gloves up!

Good luck!

 

[Steph]

Bugs advice sounds great to me...but to add one thing. Make sure you take Advil with you. If you haven't rode that far before, your shoulders are going to start hurting at about 200 miles if you are anything like me. The first couple long distance rides in the season kills my upper back/shoulder area. If you don't need the meds great! but if you do need it and don't have it.....

 

[Mattberkshire]

Gopher, one more point- as a relative newbie just make sure you are MASSIVELY careful on the motorway. I don't know how old you are so don't know how long you've been driving but EVERYTHING is different on a bike. Stopping distances are longer, you are invisible to most drivers, sidewinds can really catch you out, fatigue arrives sooner and the consequences worse, if you don't wear ear plugs the wind noise will fatigue you after 50 miles, your muscles will ache, the vibrations through the bars will make your fingers tingle, your arse will ache, your back will ache and your legs will cramp.

Biking can be painful - but it's MUCH more fun than any other form of transport.:Flash:

 

[wrightme43]

I would advise against trying to follow any other vehicle that is not driven by someone that loves you and wants you to be ok. They will not be stopping when you need to. It would be very very very easy to become worried about losing the vehicle and blow a light, or do something that could make you very dead.

Plan your own route, ride your own, stop at your own times.
Just my advice. I promise it is good advice, and in your own best intrest.

On the ride take two aleive or advil or tylenol before you even leave that morning. Then swap up between the pain relievers so that you dont take to many of any one sort. I like Aleive and Ibuprofen. They dont interact and as one is wearing off you can take the other.

 

[Steph]

I would advise against trying to follow any other vehicle that is not driven by someone that loves you and wants you to be ok. They will not be stopping when you need to. It would be very very very easy to become worried about losing the vehicle and blow a light, or do something that could make you very dead.

Plan your own route, ride your own, stop at your own times.
Just my advice. I promise it is good advice, and in your own best intrest.

On the ride take two aleive or advil or tylenol before you even leave that morning. Then swap up between the pain relievers so that you dont take to many of any one sort. I like Aleive and Ibuprofen. They dont interact and as one is wearing off you can take the other.

+1 on that. Thats what kept me going on our 21 hours in 2 days ride, Tylenol and Advil.

 

[Gopher]

Thanks for the advice!

The van drivers' shouldn't be too bad as the removal men are my Dad and older brother! (Hand picked by yours truely for the reasons Wrightme was pointing out!)

Couple of things I like from your replies... painkillers Before riding... and earplugs! Dont think I would have thought of those! Like I say, my longest (continous) ride to date was just over an hour, and even then I really could feel the shoulders seizing... I dont recall when I regained the feeling in my ass!

Dont think i'll be too bad on the motorway (unless its very heavy traffic), did quite a lot of riding on very gusty three-lane dual carriageways with my instructor, (Someone in the highways agency cant count!) so got plenty of advice on that front. Wont be doing any filtering mind if the traffic backs up... think I'll save those lessons for a quiet day in town, I'd rather wait a bit longer for the next coffee/hand dryer break!

Right, just got to figure out the UK equivalents for Advil, Tylenol and Aleive now!

*EDIT*
Ones paracetamol, the others Ibuprofen... will be easy to find some good alternatives here in Blighty

 

[Ghost Weim]

I totally agree with the advil/tylenol thing! BTW - you can take ibuprophen and tylenol together (after advisement from a dr. after an awful sinus infection) for severe pain - I have done it from time to time. Max dose of each though should not exceed 1,000 mg.

I would also add those chemical handwarmer packets. They come in foot shapes and will keep your feet warmer than without them - I think they are called toasty toes in the US. I agree with the neck warmer thing too, but if it is really chilly you might want to add a balklava (spelled right?) since it goes over your whole head and will help with keeping you a bit warmer.

Good luck with the drive! Be safe!

 

[steveindenmark]

Get some motorbike raingloves to go over your bike gloves. They look like big nylon mittens. You will get them at Halfords or a decent bike supplier and they cost pennies.

Having dry cold gloves is one thing but wet cold gloves is a real bitch and there is no need for it. Once your leather riding gloves are wet you will not dry them under a blower at the service station.

Wear a neck warmer, a fleecy one and not a nylon one.

Buy a pair of really thin woolen gloves to inside your bike gloves. Again from the bike shop and again they cost a couple of quid.

Look at the map and tell them which services you will meet at if you get split up.

Make sure all your mobiles are charged.

Carry a small plastic bag on the bike with a wet cloth in it to wipe your visor when you stop. The clean visor may only last a few minutes but it makes you feel as though you are doing something.

Leave lots of distance from the vehicle in front if it wet or you will drown.

Have a good trip.

Steve

 

[ozzieboy]

I rode 550km to go camping in torrential rain in 0 degrees c (yes I know I'm an idiot...lol.) The point is if I did it again I would wear my "sharkskin" under all my gear and use some boots that don't leak.

The sharkskin is on a par with 2.5mm neoprene but is way thinner. Wind resistance and warmth and keeps doing its job under water without bulking up too much. The balaclava under the helmet worked a treat and decent waterproof gloves round it out.
Cheers
Mike

 

[GConn]

Decide up to which point you can go on your own without getting lost. I would ride alone up to that point, which be commonly decided with the van drivers. Follow them from there. Less painfull for you and the drivers. JMO though.

 

[Red Wazp]

Move around (on the bike). Sitting in the same position is good way to get tired and sore fast. If you are confident enough, stand up once in a while. Stretch your arms and legs, move your hands, rotate your wrists and neck.

A throttle rocker really helps to take the strain off your right wrist.

Have fun! Your mental attitude helps a lot. With the correct gear you will have a blast because someday this will seem like a quick ride around the block.

 

[Numpty]

Try to be as visable as possible mate get yourself a high viz vest to pop over the top of you gear only cost a couple of quid and worth every penny if it means staying safe.

Hi-Vis Vests, High Visibility Sleeveless Vest - Yellow, High Visibility Vests | Hi Vis Clothing | High Visibility Jackets | High Visibility Clothing | Safety Footwear

 

[Gopher]

Nice point Numpty, thats something else I have forgotten to get... off to the shops!

PS- I did my first test around Eastbourne... having learned around Hastings I found it bloody terrifying! Sooo much busier, and the drivers around there are insane, and the only safe drivers are on bikes! I think the reason I failed was because I tired my brain out so quickly whilst constantly scanning and planning so much more than I usually would... just looking out for all the drivers who have forgot what indicators are for was bad enough!

 

[Numpty]

That will be all the OAP"s we have living here mate :spank:

Where are you from Gopher are you local?

 

[Gopher]

Nah... from Yorkshire, lived in Wales for 15 year... then moved to Hastings after Uni to take my first job... 13 month later I got made redundant! Only good thing thats come from my living in hastings is getting my bike licence!

I'm a chemist by trade and there aint much to offer round here it that way, so I'm off back to Wales to live at the parents place until I find a new job... and contemplate a move to Norway (lots of chemistry job up there!)

 

[Numpty]

Fair play to ya. Good luck in finding a job and have a safe injoyable ride to your folks home. :thumbup:

 

[Gopher]

Cheers mate... Hopefully find a job in Reading, at least I wont be so far away from the UK biking scene... not much in the way of ride-outs where I'm going!

Well... back to the packing, cleaning and general boredom!

 

[necrotimus]

A lot of good points and I'm sure I will make many of the same. The best thing as far as clothing in cold weather is to dress for warmth and to dress for wind. You should first have breathable layers to keep you warm then a layer that is not breathable to break the wind. It was below freezing this morning and I rode with a dress shirt a fleece jacket my rain liners and then my mesh jacket and hi-vis vest (don't have the money for another jacket at the moment). This kept me warm for 30 mins at 75mph.

Pay particular attention to having overlapping layers at your ankles, waist, wrists, and neck to avoid cold air finding its way in and the heated air from escapping.

Even if you follow there is a chance that you will get lost. If you don't have an alternate plan to know where to go then chasing the truck can get you in all kinds of trouble. Your best bet is to have a plan to either get you there or to pull over and make a call to find a next meeting point. This will allow you to ride more comfortably because you wont be worried about missing an exit or making every lane change. You will be able to focus on more things (traffic) than just keeping up with the truck.

 

[Gopher]

Layering seems to be key to staying warm, but a fellow biker said that layering different materials is even better, for example - long sleeve cotton t-shirt, polyester jumper, thin fleecy jumper, followed by riding Jacket with thermal liner (anybody would think I was going to the north pole!)... this true? Or does layering work well regardless of what the materials are made from?