125 cc and dual carriageways

[BrownTrousers]

Hi,

I need to travel from nr Cambridge to nr Leicester, a round trip of around 120 miles. I will be leaving on a Sunday morning and returning Sunday evening.

My options are
A-get the train. Takes 2 hours and is not cheap. Plus faffing at either end to get to/from station.
B-ride. This would be my preferred option except I only have a 125cc bike and the entire journey is pretty much on the same dual carriage way road.

So my questions are;

1 - could the bike handle it? Its as relatively new bike and can do a dizzying 60mph (indicated) but is it sensible to ask it to do so for as constant 60 miles? I imagine the engine would be working pretty hard.
2 - could I handle it? I expect traffic would be less on a Sunday but still will I just get bored and fed up of being tailgated, overtaken etc. And/or will I get to my destination with a knackered back, crushed junk, sore arse and generally annoyed?

There are no feasible back-road alternatives and if weather is super shite I will get the train.

TLDR; what are the limits of dual carriage riding on a 125?
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Ducati Multistrada 950 | Triumph Tiger 800 XR | Honda CBR500R | Yamaha YBR 125 Custom

[Northern Monkey]

It'll be un exciting and completely achieveable. It's only 60 miles each way

[Boris the spider]

Do it.

Tho be prepared for folk blasting past at 70 plus.
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[FriendlyEllis]

The dual carriageway experience will be useful.

Sounds like you're nervous of 'the big road'?

No feasible back road alternatives?

Spend 10 minutes on Google maps. There are dozens of intertwined roads between Cambridge and Leicester you could use. Just note down the village names and go from one to the next.

Huntingdon
Alconbury
Oundle
Corby
Market Harborough
Kibworth Harcourt

I would try the Dual carriageway (A14?) for a bit just for the experience, as it will slowly help to remove those nerves.

In bright weather with no rain you'll enjoy the (ahem) rush
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[BrownTrousers]

OK thanks guys it seems like the consensus is 'MTFU It won't be too bad'.

To be honest I'm not really nervous of the big road as such, just wondered if it would be too boring or a bit dodgy for the bike to be on full throttle for an hour+.

I just ruled out the back roads because they seem like they would add a lot of time to the journey.
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Ducati Multistrada 950 | Triumph Tiger 800 XR | Honda CBR500R | Yamaha YBR 125 Custom

[Whosthedaddy]

Remember not to ride in the gutter and hold your own in the middle of the inside lane.

Ease the throttle every so often as opposed to maxing it all the time and maybe a break after an hour to stretch the legs and ease the nads from the vibrations?

Most of all, sit back and relax and enjoy the tedium.
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Current : MSX 125 Past : CBR 900RR Monkeybike : c50 LAC : ZXR750 H2 : FZR600 : ZX7R P3 : YW100 : TRX850: Trophy 900 T309 : GSXR 600 L0: Monkeybike : XJ6S Whosthedaddy

[maximerto]

I thought id just put my two cents in too.....as ive got a CBR 125 and do 30 miles of mostly dual carriageway work both too and from uni 3 days a week, sometimes in lots of traffic and sometimes no traffic and as long as youre happy with the fact that youre going to be sitting in the slow lane alot of the time unless you get a hill to your advantage or no cars are in site behind you then you won't have a problem.

I should also just note that ive done the journey to my girlfriends before, which is just under 70 miles there and 70 miles back, on my 125cc as well which involes motorway as well as dual carriageway, and again even with heavy traffic although boring compared to doing it in my Cliosport is still easily achievable.

Ive got to admit that i was shaking a bit when i got to hers mind you due to the bike revving for that extended period. Lol that wouldnt really be an issue either if you take a quick 5 minute petrol stop mid journey, which i've decided to do how myself if i know im going to be riding for close to 2 hours straight.....but then again thats just me and you might not even have to do that yourself. Ha ha.

One more thing, i didnt think my 125cc was up to the task then id have a bigger bike already considering ive passed my test, but i havent for the exact reason of i dont actually need to and it can do everything that i want it to for pennies.....which is a bigger factor for me atm than having a bike that can do 180mph or whatever considering im only working part time due to uni for the second and don't have the funds for buying a new bike and running a larger cc bike as well as my 2 litre car. Lol
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CBT - October 2011 > 33 BHP Restricted License - November 2012
Honda CBR 125cc (07) - '11-'14 > Yamaha R6 - 33 BHP (51) - '14 - Present

[Flatbadger]

You will have to overtake now and again - wait for a downhill bit so it doesn't take 15 minutes to do

Also check mirrors to overtake - and then wait 2 seconds and check again. If anyone's coming up on you at high speed you'll see them, you might miss them if you glance once in the mirrors.
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[Dave70]

I rode from Heysham (well, the Isle of man actually but, the boat did the wet bit) to Liverpool recently for the first time and I was on a 125. I'd never ridden on big roads before, as we don't really have such a thing over here. Tbh, I was slightly concerned beforehand but, I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to do it again. I was also quite chuffed at not getting lost and ending up in Scotland or god forbid Birmingham .

My 125 will hit 70--75 on the flat but, I found that 60 was fine on the outside lane of dual carriageways. Just keep your wits about you, check mirrors constantly and shoulder checks are a must before changing lanes and on roundabouts.

If you can, try and avoid busy times of day like peak hours and lunch hours if poss too.

Good luck and I'm sure you'll enjoy it like I did.

Oh, and if you have waterproofs, take them with you. You don't want to be wet and cold on long journeys.

[adam277]

I used to commute to college via a long A-road both with a 125 scooter and a YBR. I hated it. Always in slow lane, always getting overtaken and if the wind isn't on your side your looking at 55mph.
Your MPG will be shit as well due to revving the fuck out of the engine.
I usually just waited for a big lorry to show up and stick behind it.


That being said, I hate going on the trains a lot more.
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Bikes: Previous Bikes: Piaggio x8 125: 2012/2013, YBR 125: 2013/2013 BMW R1150GS 2013/2017, Honda CBR600RR 2017/2017, Honda CB500 2018/2018, Suzuiki Address 110cc 2019/2020, BMW R1200GS 2021-2023
Current Bike: Honda CBF 125: current

[hellkat]

[hellkat]

OP: If you attempt this in even slightly inclement weather, make sure that you wear thin layers to keep the warmth in.

Even if it feels intrepid whilst you are doing it, you will look back and think "what a mad bugger I was at the time to worry about it" (or, in some cases: to even do it at all in the typically unprepared nooby way) - nobody is ever really properly prepared for a first "big" journey like this. Mine was London to Eastleigh return, in December, with a fairly catastrophic 8-hour return journey in 3" of snow and very icy conditions

But as pointed out further up, its really important to check really carefully before pulling out into the middle lane to overtake.

I wouldn't personally want to sit behind lorries, its very soul destroying : I'd rather risk overtaking them (on a downhill ) and getting covered in muck from their tyres ... but each to their own.

Have a great time
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[maximerto]

[MC]

[G]

60 miles at 60mph is the same as 80miles at 80mph.
The bike should handle it fine - 60mph is slow even for a 4 stroke, which makes me think it's a bit questionable quality wise.
However, 60 miles in one is likely better than 6 trips where you do 60mph for 10 minutes.

If you're just sitting on a boring roads, I'd consider headphones.

[Snorty]

If it's Chinese, don't. It will vibrate apart and you will die from vibration white body.

Otherwise, crack on. I used to do loads of dual carriageway miles on my TZR 125.
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Current: Yamaha FZ1 '07 | GSXR 750 SRAD

Past: CB125TDC | TZR125 | GPZ500 | CBR600F3 | ZX9-R | GSXR1000 K4

[Wonko The Sane]

I did Reading to Manchester over 3 days calling in Coventry and Buxton on my Varadero, the first long trip I'd done and included the Oxford ring road which was like being on the motorway.

It wasn't too bad apart from the thunder storm.

After passing my tests and finding a new job I was hammering the bike round the M60 at Motorway speeds and it was happy with it.
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[Sable]

I have ridden my 11bhp 125 4 poke on dual carriageways in and out of London scince I passed my CBT. I have taken long trips on her where I have sat on motorways. Never bothered me.

Unless you are in a hurry you can sit in the left lane, where eventually you will come up behind a truck / other heavy vehicle which is limited to 60ish. Give it a 2 secound gap and just sit behind it for as long as you need.

On long journeys I rarely stop for breaks. Only thing that makes me stop is if I see an attractive looking cafe and fancy a coffee.

You will be fine

[ScaredyCat]

[MarJay]

I used to regularly do Reading to Brighton on my NS125R. It wasn't a fantastic journey but it was doable.
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Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Kickstart]

Hi

Which 125?

Done long distance journeys on 2 stroke 125 loads of times (~150 miles each way), when sitting at 80 it was easy riding with a bit of easy performance in hand.

But sitting at 70 ish on a 4 stroke should be easy enough. Just take care not to pull out just as a hill starts and you have to slow down.

All the best

Keith
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[andym]

I used to use my 125 on the motorway every day from Chepstow to Bristol and it never did it any harm. The only times I wasn't at full throttle was when I got behind vans or lorries, then I only needed between 1/4 - 1/2 throttle

[BrownTrousers]

[Walloper]

The worst part will be the elements.
You'll need to layer up and prepare for spray.
Rag-in-a-Bag in your pocket can help when that white shite dries on your visor making it impossible to see out the cosy bliss of the helmet.
Riding with the visor up in cold dry air hurts one's fizog.

Good insulated gloves will help the piggies stay warm.

And plan for a couple of tea stops to recover lost body heat. Us Hardened Bikers don't stop every ten minutes for tea just to be sociable.
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[G]

Should be able to sit at 65mph on the flat unless you're really massive or there's a big head wind.

Bike should be fine for it - when you get down to 60mph it's typically a Chinese copy of a Jap bike that SHOULD be able to go the same speed, but everything's little off etc.