For me this year it was extremely much! Southern France, Italy, Montenegro, several times to Bosnia and Herzegovina and numerous other destinations. Of course, my almost daily commute to the office was also included. I was surprised, when adding up, how much I was on the road this year. Overall: TIGER 1200: 9,000 km from January to July. BONNIE T120: 10.000 km from April to December Honda NT-1100: 14.300 km from 23 July to 18 December This makes a total of 33,300 km for 2022. I don't even want to think about the cost!
Certainly not as many miles as I would have hoped for as I usually like to do a few camping trips away and roam freely. At home I had a pretty major flood which took seven rooms out and this killed any available free time to go away, what with organising contractors or doing diy myself. When I then did have the time my heart wasn't in it. I have four road bikes with individual mileage limits of 3000 and not one of them has hit that target so pretty poor effort really but hope 2023 will be more fulfilling.
I did about 5000 miles in total. That seems to be about right looking at the last few years - I work flat out during the week so generally only manage short rides, and I don't always have people to ride with over the weekend. I returned to biking a few years ago after about three decades on four wheels, so don't have the benefit of growing up being surrounded by mates who ride.
8.500 kilometres/5.300 miles this year. Trips to Belgium, France and Spain. Next year a trip to Italy with mrs. V (trailering there), and a trip to Romania are planned. A bit more mileage than this year, I suspect. I'll be crossing Bosnia and Herzegovina from Dubrovnik to Romania, @Markus , any tips?
My long-suffering bride and I added about 4,000 miles on the Sprint GT this year. The highlight was carrying it (and a travel trailer) to Colorado and Utah, and rolling around the spectacular National Parks there (Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park, Arches, Canyonlands, Zion, Bryce, Mesa Verde and Grand Staircase Escalante), in addition to a couple of great state parks including Snow Basin. We rolled along the Colorado River in a number of places including Horshoe Bend, Glen Canyon, Lee's Ferry and Navajo Bridge. A little tumble on a 39 degree day with cold tires and a lot of paint on the pavement shortened my riding season while I patched the faring and replaced a couple of parts. I had hoped to ride some this winter (in NJ), but now the snow and salted roads have arrived.
With pleasure I have a few tips for you! If you have time on your tour from Croatia to Romania, make a detour to Montenegro and circumnavigate the "National Park Dumitor". Beautiful route and beautiful scenery! "Life-extending" tips: Drive only during daylight! - In the dark it becomes really dangerous! Bad road conditions (holes in the asphalt, stones, etc.) and numerous animals on the roads In bad weather drive only on "big" roads! - Sometimes small side roads turn into "swamp tracks" that you can only manage with a motocross bike! As soon as you see dirt from animal excrement on the road, get off the gas! - You might be immediately confronted with a herd of sheep, cows, donkeys, horses , ect. Always and everywhere you have to expect free-roaming dogs! - Especially near towns and at viewpoints. Attention danger of mines! - If possible, do not leave the paved roads when stopping and "pause" on solid, passable ground! Due to the war in the 90s, mines are always to be expected away from paved roads! When choosing your route, avoid driving through the KOSOVO at all costs! - Better to avoid large-scale than to be involved in an "unpleasant" scenario! Additional equipment: It is highly recommended to take a tire repair kit with you! Smartphone/cell phone usage: Customize your rate! Customize your rate while you're still at home! - As soon as you leave Croatia it gets really expensive! You are then outside of the EU roaming!!! If you do not use a "Balkan rate" check with your provider that your data roaming outside the EU zone is automatically deactivated by the provider! Some devices still use the data option in the background despite deactivated data option and generate incredible costs. In my case 3,2 MB data for EURO 50.- in Bosnia and Herzegovina!!!! Otherwise, I can only wish you a nice trip. Enjoy the countries you drive and enjoy the beautiful landscapes, the nice people and the wonderful cuisine there!
Thanks @Markus , that's very useful! Actually, having seen your tips I might skip Bosnia/Herz. altogether. From Dubrovnik it looks really interesting to ride to Kotor, the Southernmost fjord in Europe, and from there up to Durmitor National Park. Apparently the Tara bridge is not to be missed. I could then continue my journey to Romania through Serbia, and avoid Kosovo like the plague!
In the following my routes in Montenegro from Bosnia and Herzegovina and my round trip and a further trip to/through Croatia. I hope it works for you. https://maps.app.goo.gl/F8s7UZc8tkaV4Sa87 https://maps.app.goo.gl/6jskt5R36qJNMfCb8 https://maps.app.goo.gl/JxBK3dVufkYWw16GA
This thread got me to thinking that it would be kinda cool to track about how many miles I ride in a year. So tomorrow I shall note and log the current odometer readings on each of my bikes. I didn't do that for 2022 but estimate that I rode about 9,000-10,000 miles. About half of those miles were on my Street Glide Special (which I ride on all of our trips) and the other half I logged on my Speed Triple RS and Fat Boy combined. I think that @Markus probably wins the prize for most miles! I'd love to be able to put in that many miles in a year! Ah well, a goal to which to aspire....some day.
@Sandi T: Thanks for offering a prize. This is/was not my aim. I took all "useful" possibilities to ride my bikes.
Just over 6000 miles on the RP from getting it new in March. Probably around 1000- 1200 on the Super Tenere in the couple of months prior to that. I do know that it’s definitely not enough miles. I hope to do better this year.
I’m not a “big” rider, in that I only ride on weekends with the longest trip 2-300 miles, with most of them under 200. As leaningtofly mentioned, I’m recently back on a bike after 15+ years off due to everything, new house, couple of moves, new jobs, etc., in that time most of my riding buddies have either stopped riding or life had gotten in the way for them or moved on. Now 99.7% of my riding is solo and I prefer it that way, I ride at my pace, stop when and where I want, eat where I want, and I can turn around anywhere along the way. I have a little over 4k miles on the TTRS since purchasing it in October of ’21, I’m a fair-weather rider, sunny, temps above 45F, dry roads…little to no highway…all secondary or “back roads”.
That's awesome, Armando! And I've enjoyed your posts and photos about many of those miles. But you'd better watch out or you'll need a new bike soon.
I really did not ride much at all. What with the Covid thing, and the getting old thing, my attention tends to wander off. Instead of working on my bikes in the winter, I was getting a car I have had in storage running. Instead of riding all summer, I was back and forth to my summer home renovating that place. Bikes are fun but there is also a lot more to life than motorcycles. I plan to service my America this winter and get out there when it warms up, but my other 2 Triumphs are not licensed or insured currently. Attached is my project car at my project house. ...J.D.
