Why I hate riding a moped, from a ped rider.

[Stu_666]

I hear what ya saying. I only drive a car at the moment (DAS pending *cough cough*) and there's times when I wonder whether it'd be easier to chuck it in with the amount of idiots on the roads. For some reason they think that the speed limit for the road they're on is something they've got to beat and b*llocks to anyone who gets in their way. Still, its a laff when there is someone right up my arse and I slow down deliberately to piss them off. You'd think they're going to sh*t their pants or something just because they can't get somewhere a few minutes earlier... I guess its different on a ped though as you feel that much more vunerable.

Anyway, my advice would be definately don't give up with it. Its not too long too wait until you get something a wee bit more powerful.

[Frost]

The most irritating thing about low speed is that you spend more time looking behind you at whats right up your arse or about to come past you, than you do looking where your going

[The Tot]

Hey i know all too well the feeling of riding a ped... It's far to slow for me to ride safely downt he A41 from Watford to Edgware, although 50 mph is dooable on speedo, and i presume that is the speed limit for the road, but you still have impatient drivers cutting you up, forcing to ride on the gutter. The only alternative is to ride on the cycle path . In dual carraigways, i always stick to the middle lane if on a 3 lane as you tend to get learner drivers around Edgware-Hendon on the A41, but i still dont find that it's safe enough.. Flyovers are a totally different story and is shit scary when you get hit by crosswinds at Brent X or Staples corner as so much is exposed. You bike has a measly 3 bhp to combat the force of the wind and your not moving quickly enough to make yourselves comfortable. The only alternative is to ride like a loony ped boy with chin on handlebars and feet or rear spoiler thus reducing my side and frontal cross sectional area. I hate riding my ped since it's far too dangerous but at the same time i understand that at 16, you restricted to a ped for obvious reasons. I wish my CBR could come quicly enough!!!
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[stinkwheel]

I have ridden peds, and even had a vintage honda moped to go to college and back after I had passed my test.

They DO make you a better biker, they teach you things like maintaining corner speed, anticipating and handling cross winds and any moped rider could draw you a detailed map of the wind vortexes round any one of six different types of lorry. They make you VERY good at defensive driving. A mate of mine did DAS straight off and has no idea about road positioning round HGVs, he also has a tendancy to sit in the gutter, it is only bacause he is on a reasonably fast bike that he doesn't get the same problem.

As for the tw@s that scream past you flipping the bird, I usually either screw-up funny faces and thumb my nose at them or sit bolt-upright with deadpan face and give them the world famous Purple Helmets salute of clenched fist on top of helmet.

A top tip for if someone is tailgating you is to nudge the handlebars, this makes the back wheel wobble across the road and gives the impression you are about to bin it, usually makes them back off.

Just think of it as revenge in advance of your full licence, they are probably the same plonkers who will in future sit in front of you at 50mph on your favourite twisties when you go full-bore.

For an extra 2mph when riding crouched over the bars with your feet on the rear pegs, simply make a fist with your left hand and place it in the small of your back for a full racing 'prone' position. Makes a noticeable difference!
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[santana]

So do you guys advise to buy a 'ped if i can't afford a real chopper, or it's waste of money and gives you only angry looks of the drivers overtaking you? I just wanted to buy a 100cc, and having read all this i already seriously hesitate whether i should wait a coupla years till i have enough money for a real bike
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[stinkwheel]

Go get one mate, they are a hoot. If you are thinking about getting a 100cc, why not get a motorbike style one. There are a few decent 100cc bikes out there. Most are fairly old now but that makes them cheap. You can have an excellent time on small bikes, I can heartily recommend the Honda H100, cracking little bikes, you can chuck them about all over the place and they will do 60mph. Very reliable, cheap to insure and you would get a reasonable one for about 300 quid

Make a mistake on a 100cc bike and you are more likley to get away with a fright and minimal damage to the bike than on a bigger bike, teaches you control and road awareness without having to watch what you do with your throttle hand. They hold their resale value well too so yes, I would get a 100 then move up as you feel confident and can afford it.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[JonB]

Get a ped, if you have the money to waste. They are a good learning aid. Be prepared to get really pissed off with car drivers and get frustrated with the lack of speed and power.

It would be advisable to keep it restricted as your insurance won't be void. Though it is really tempting at times to get it derestricted.
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Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[badlydamaged]

Honda H100's were good little bikes, and the others in the class are just as much of a hoot. To be honest, if you are sticking to the law while learning (12hp restriction on old bikes) then 100ccs are plenty, The Gp100's, Kh100s, KE100s and RXS100's all put out 12hp as stock (H100 is 11hp), the same as any other old 125 learner bike thats not been fiddled with. They will crack 70 just about (although it's not much good using them on fast dualies) and they are so cheap to insure it's unbelivable (mine was £65 to add to the policy on L plates with 1 yr NCB) and to buy (mine was £130). Also some 100cc bikes were just 125cc engines with a smaller barrel and piston, so theres nothing to stop you replacing the top end for a little more grunt if you are that way inclined.

Santana, I would recomend you pick up and old 100cc bike (the point of scooters seems lost after 50cc IMO) and buzz around on that for a while, trust me you will have so much fun, and if you do drop it, (from experiance here) then parts are very cheap and there's no expensive fairing to worry about.
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My bike: 1988 Kawasaki KH100 Status: Polluting Devon with two stroke smog and noise pollution!
"Its not your engine size that matters!, It's what you do with it that counts"
Add me to MSN if you want! badlydamaged@hotmail.com.

[Lee_367]

[WildGoose]

i had fun on my moped, try and enjoy it while you have it mate, its not for much longer

and there are some things you will miss when its gone....fuel consumption, 80mpg anyone? the big boot, helmet storage, warm and dry legs, knowing exactly how long it will take you to get somewhere cos you know the fastest you will go is 50

i always got less frustrated than i do on my bigger bikes, when i hit a congested motorway its always a buggerance, cos it means i cant cruise at 95 and get where i want to go, no such problems on a moped
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So in other words, he stopped you for being flagrantly in posession of a motorcycle in direct contravention of the Hippies, Darkies and People Whose Face I Don't Like The Look of (Police Powers) Act. 1976

[JonB]

[WildGoose]

hmm, id advise you to ditch the restrictor

i never physically touched mine, but my ped slowly got faster so im not really sure what happened, it was fuel injected rather than carbed, i was worried, so i wrote in to a bike mag to ask them, and they said as long as i havent tampered with my bike, then i am perfectly legal and insured

so just play innocent, and dont hoon around like a twat and you should be ok mate
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So in other words, he stopped you for being flagrantly in posession of a motorcycle in direct contravention of the Hippies, Darkies and People Whose Face I Don't Like The Look of (Police Powers) Act. 1976

[Kickstart]

[steve09]

I have a piaggio typhoon it dose 45mph its derestricted and tis ok A roads can be scary but i find if i just pull to the side when a car comes up behind they overtake and nothing else happens..
Best fun i have is on my Vepsa though lol..
Little vespa VMA 1 re-registered and my next door nabour helped me put a Rally 200 engine in it with 210 moslloisi kit ect...
Not many cars were i live and if u go out at about 6 on sunday ull be lucky to see any one...
its just great sitting there at about 30mph cars overtake up doing 45 then u over take them doing about 75 lolol look on there faces hehehe

I also have had bad experances..
i hate the way everyone u tell u drive a ped asumes ur a idoit tht cuts people up drives in teeshirt and shorts and has no consideration to other users of the road.. i wear a protective jaket and gloves and a helm and im a very curtouis driver and quite frankly after seeing my freind terry come off his scooter doing 35 with a teeshirt on i dont think ill ever ride with out a jacket..

secondly i hate the way chavs pull up 2 u in there nova and think there sooo kool because when the lights go green u get ahead of them up with aboput 35 then they go tearing past you feelin all big and proud because there 1200cc nova can just about beat a 50cc moped lol..

i also hate the way car drives hate u espeically chavs the other day i was coming rounf the ring road and i was on enrty slip to come onto the ring road (its more of an oval with about half a 1/4 mile straghts ne way i was comeing across the 3 lanes of traffic indicating and the main ring road traffic had been stoped by the traffic lights they went green just as i was going into my lane bearing in mind i was now a good 0.2 mile away from the main ring road traffic lights any way this Billy Bellend boy racer had floored this escort cossy tht he proaly stole from his dad or somthing and come about 1 meter away from my back wheel and cos i had blocked his "race track line" the horns started beepin lights flashing then he swung into the 2nd lane by this time i was getting ready for my turn off and lent out the window and hearld aload of abuse and hand signs at me which made me mad and i missed my turning lol then from no were this Vmax comes heering up the side of me and gets level with the escort and at the next set of traffic llighjts the biker has a right goo at the escort driver calling him a fucking nob and tht it was funny the driver near enuff cacked himself there and then lol...
then i turned off and went through town and parked up and the vmax was following me and when i got off he drove over and asked me if i was ok and tht and to not let nobs like the driver worry me or put me off riding becuase they see ur 16 and think they can bully you... Soo that just gos to prove bikers are very nice people

If your on this fourm and u drive a Vmax and live in south east kent Thanks for the help hehe

Steve

[carnislick]

[stinkwheel]

[RealNinja]

I have never ridden a 'ped (and hopefully never will) but i do sympathize with all the 'new' bikers on the road as i used to cycle to work.

It changed my outlook on some of the ped boys and will now sit and 'protect' them from cars that are bullying them down narrow roads.

They might think it's funny harassing a small 50cc ped, but they don't find the humour in a Akropovic'd ZX7R making them drive slow, sometimes they even get off their mobiles......
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