Adventure Bike Rider Forum

bond_yzf wrote:the aftermath of that crash will stick in my mind for a long time

Bits of bike carnage everywhere and a body with a blanket over it...............shocked me too

AndyB wrote:Most of you have been riding bikes long enough to know what your body needs in the way of breaks to be able to maintain concentration and if you've been regularly ignoring them that's a bit worrying.

If I'm on a bike which can do 200 miles between fuel stops that's usually what I'll do

Andy, I don't mean to be funny, but I find those two statements totally contradictory. 200 miles even on a motorway is the best part of 3 hours riding. On A roads it's 5-6 hours riding.

That amount of time in the saddle without a stop for me is inconceivable (and I've never had a bike with a 200 mile tank range anyway), never mind mental state, my arse would be screaming to get off the bike and that in itself is a mental distraction.

You've got an iron butt and a concentration stamina I couldn't dream of if you do that safely.

-Ralph- wrote:

AndyB wrote:Most of you have been riding bikes long enough to know what your body needs in the way of breaks to be able to maintain concentration and if you've been regularly ignoring them that's a bit worrying.

If I'm on a bike which can do 200 miles between fuel stops that's usually what I'll do

Andy, I don't mean to be funny, but I find those two statements totally contradictory. 200 miles even on a motorway is the best part of 3 hours riding. On A roads it's 5-6 hours riding.

That amount of time in the saddle without a stop for me is inconceivable (and I've never had a bike with a 200 mile tank range anyway), never mind mental state, my arse would be screaming to get off the bike and that in itself is a mental distraction.

You've got an iron butt and a concentration stamina I couldn't dream of if you do that safely.

I've been doing it for years and I find it easy. I don't listen to music when I'm riding because it'd distract me and I don't have a bluetooth set up in my crash helmet because I prefer to just concentrate on enjoying the ride and anything else can wait until I stop.

I'll stop for longer if I'm riding with someone else and they say they want a longer break but on my own I'll have a breakfast then knock out 600 miles with only coffee/tab breaks and be fine. I just find it easier to keep going than to stop more often and then pick up the concentration level again, especially if I'm abroad.

AndyB wrote:I'll have a breakfast then knock out 600 miles with only coffee/tab breaks and be fine. I just find it easier to keep going than to stop more often and then pick up the concentration level again, especially if I'm abroad.

So long as you feel safe doing it I suppose, I'd be a wreck by the end of the second leg. Last time I rode full to empty tank on my bike (180 miles) it was in gale force winds and I bust my neck/back muscles holding my head against the windblast, spent the next 3 months lying on the physio's table once a week. It was that which forced me into hourly stops and then when I learned how much easier it was than putting myself through an endurance test! So I've just carried on doing it. I have ridden empty to fuel light (about 150 miles) many times, but I don't enjoy it, everything is aching, arse has gone numb, contact lenses have gone dry, and I need a drink.

With each leg of your journey at 200 miles you're basically covering 600 miles in 8-9 hours with two stops, massive contrast to what I do (I've only started doing it in the past few years and learned that I find it way easier) posted above which is 425 miles in 9 hours with 6 stops. I think I could do a 600 mile day, but I'd take 12 hours to do it in.

PS: It's the physical aspect of riding, wind, seating position, etc that makes the difference for me, I don't suffer the same fatigue in the car.

I don't do it anymore because I've applied the 'stop before you need to rule' to the car now and stop every two hours (getting too old and sensible LOL) because I've also found it makes the journey easier, but I used to drive for a full tank of fuel in the car (400 miles or 5-6 hours) without stopping without too much discomfort (so long as I'm wearing my glasses not contact lenses).

If you gonna go on the day destiny dictates, what a better way than doing what you love with your best riding partner. If I die when out on my bike, rest assured that I was out there because I chose to be, and was probably enjoying myself. Rather that too early in live than an incurable issue I have not control over.


We can all make comments about how far, how fast and how long we ride, but its all hearsay when that split second when your mind is on the sore bum,that annoying gap where cold air is getting in, or thinking a little too much about that last bend, the lunch you missed or the next brew stop.

We have all done long days we have all had near misses, and despite being well and truly knackered after a few hundred miles, 99.9% of us get home safe, the others will remain the reminder that shit happens and we all have to do our best to be in the majority.


Ride safe my friends and my *foes , for the road is hard but the pleasure is calling us there with tempting daze.
Harry Stottle:



There is a certain pride
To a biker from the South
His soul shines through in his actions
Also the words that come from his mouth

The people that he truly loves
They are often very few
But they all know who they are
They know for them the things he’ll do

He will be there for his children
No matter what the cost
He’ll also be there for his woman
When she needs him most

He’s there for his brothers and his sisters
With a quick joke and a brew
He’s also there when all they need
Is just someone to talk to

There are few men like this
Weather you search far or wide
It is a terrible tragedy
When a Brother like this, takes his final ride

But a man such as this
Even after he is gone
Has not left you alone at all
Cause his spirit will carry on

He’ll be there when you wake up
On a bright sunny, summer day
His memories will always make you smile
When your world has turned to gray

There’s pain in your heart now
cause you’ll never again hear him say
“Come on Cheer the hell up man”
Or
“Let’s roll some miles away”

But know when you roll out
To take off for a ride
He’ll be there beside you
His spirit riding by your side

Know that your father
On heavens roads will now roll
On his brand new Beemer
That he fabricated from heaven’s gold

Then just think of the day
That you will see him again
He’ll be at the gates to welcome us home
Wearing that Big Ol’ Southern Grin


Bob Bryant.

I use my bike for work and at one time used to go and do a day's work at a client in Dartford.

So my day would be:

ride motorbike from Gloucester to Dartford (one stop just outside Dartford to fill up for return trip and buy a second breakfast)

Do a day's work checking proofs etc

Get back on bike and ride home

Far quicker and less stressful to do on the bike than the car.

Initially I used to do the run on an Aprilia Pegaso, which needed a refuel enroute on both legs, but the KTM 950 could do each leg of the journey without refueling, so just needed to set off on each leg with a full tank.

Used to do this journey at all times of year.

Like most big V-twins, the KTM just takes big distances in its stride.

Top tip for fatigue-free riding is no loud exhaust and wear earplugs, they help you ride further and faster.