London to Glasgow in a day?
Discussion
black-k1 said:
Rubin215 said:
black-k1 said:
Covering any distance quickly and efficiently is all about average speed and the only way to keep your average speed up is to stop as few times as possible and for as short a time as possible. This has been brought home to me on may occasions but none more so than when travelling up through France. I was on the AutoRoute and passed a UK registered truck shortly before pulling in for fuel. I did my usual 'splash and dash' fill up and returned to the motorway to sit at just under 100mph where the traffic allowed (and there wasn't too much other traffic). Again I passed the UK registered truck doing his restricted 56mph. 150 or so miles after my previous fuel stop I pulled in again and filled up before returning to my near 100 mph cruise only to pass the same UK registered truck again!
If you have a lot of miles to cover, get to a good cruising speed and ride for as long as you can. Make stops as efficient as possible by drinking your Red Bull and eating your Mars Bar while filling the bike and get back on the road as quickly as possible. Don't take stops just because it's been an hour/50 miles since the last one and remember that the odd high speed blast can be fun but using your fuel up quicker just makes for more stops.
bIf you have a lot of miles to cover, get to a good cruising speed and ride for as long as you can. Make stops as efficient as possible by drinking your Red Bull and eating your Mars Bar while filling the bike and get back on the road as quickly as possible. Don't take stops just because it's been an hour/50 miles since the last one and remember that the odd high speed blast can be fun but using your fuel up quicker just makes for more stops.
ks.Either you are making this up, or your "splash and dash" takes you an absolute age.
If you stopped after 150 miles at a near 100mph you have been on the road for at least 90 minutes, but for the sake of argument we'll allow you two hours.
In that two hours we can reasonably assume that the truck will have travelled 106 miles so he is still 44 miles behind you when you pull in for fuel.
Travelling at a restricted 56mph that is going to take him three quarters of an hour just to catch up with you, let alone pass.
Longest "splash and dash" I've ever heard of...
You're absolutely right if you can maintain your cruising speed or near your cruising speed for the whole 150 miles. But in my experience, when you're travelling faster than most of the traffic on the road, your on the road average is always significantly less than either your top or your cruising speed. There's always times when you have to wait for granny to overtake at 0.1 mph faster than the car beside her. Remember, most French motorways are only two lanes so it's not uncommon to have to ease off while someone else is overtaking.
With French AutoRoute service stations, splashing and dashing in less than about 8 to 10 minutes I find is pretty difficult. (It's pretty difficult in the UK!). For that I mean the time difference between riding down the exit slip road into the service station to riding up the entrance slip road, not the time it takes to pour petrol in the tank.
By the time you allow for 20 minutes total stop time for refuelling, my on the road average only needs to drop to just about 65mph. Try maintaining a real 65mph average between 2 points about 150 miles apart on any road with other traffic on it!
On my 14 about 85-90mph gets me furthest in a day, once I start pushing a ton the range drops so much it just costs me more to travel the same distance.
Further to that, it is very, very difficult to maintain an average speed of around 80mph even on motorways. Things -always- slow you down, despite peak speeds well over a ton.
If I wanted to go from London to Scotland in a hurry, it would be motorway all the way to help with a good average speed (perhaps with some Taylor Swift mp3 via my bike intercom
. Once you leave the motorway, it may well be much more scenic, but your average speed will drop way down. I find my average speed on NSL single carriageways is only about 40mph. Slow for bends, other traffic, stop to look at the map blah blah blah, it all slows you down. Scenic twisters can be the reason for being on the bike in the first place, but they much slower than motorways. Last long trip with minimal motorways was Lakes->N Yorks ->Peak Dist->Cardiff. About 450 miles, took 12 hours.
I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented. I think I'd want a 85mph cruising speed though for maybe a 65mph moving average, so if I do try for the Iron Butt 1000 I may do it on the continent where it will be within/close to the motorway speed limit. OTOH, micro-puff #2 is coming out soon, so Iron Butt may never happen.
If I wanted to go from London to Scotland in a hurry, it would be motorway all the way to help with a good average speed (perhaps with some Taylor Swift mp3 via my bike intercom
. Once you leave the motorway, it may well be much more scenic, but your average speed will drop way down. I find my average speed on NSL single carriageways is only about 40mph. Slow for bends, other traffic, stop to look at the map blah blah blah, it all slows you down. Scenic twisters can be the reason for being on the bike in the first place, but they much slower than motorways. Last long trip with minimal motorways was Lakes->N Yorks ->Peak Dist->Cardiff. About 450 miles, took 12 hours. I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented. I think I'd want a 85mph cruising speed though for maybe a 65mph moving average, so if I do try for the Iron Butt 1000 I may do it on the continent where it will be within/close to the motorway speed limit. OTOH, micro-puff #2 is coming out soon, so Iron Butt may never happen.
Edited by creampuff on Saturday 11th May 11:10
creampuff said:
I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented.
It's basicly motorway all the way then. The A90 isn't motorway but it is empty dual carriageway almost all the way to aberdoom.Hooli said:
creampuff said:
I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented.
It's basicly motorway all the way then. The A90 isn't motorway but it is empty dual carriageway almost all the way to aberdoom.Dibble said:
Hooli said:
creampuff said:
I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented.
It's basicly motorway all the way then. The A90 isn't motorway but it is empty dual carriageway almost all the way to aberdoom.The other advantage of Europe is it will probably be sunny instead of grey and raining
I did Aberdeen to Slough in 1999 on my Firestorm. It took 8 hours. Main issue was having to stop and refill constantly because of the 100 miles per tank limit of the Firestorm and me being made nervous all the way after having run dry at Perth , just 2 miles from the next garage. 
I was probably averaging about 60 miles between re-fills, so the trip became a mad 40 minute bat out of hell squirt of speed, pull in to re-fill and have a fag - than another 60 mile sprint.
I still enjoyed it.
I was probably averaging about 60 miles between re-fills, so the trip became a mad 40 minute bat out of hell squirt of speed, pull in to re-fill and have a fag - than another 60 mile sprint.
I still enjoyed it.
Dibble said:
Hooli said:
creampuff said:
I'm thinking of trying out the Iron Butt 1000 next year (ride 1000 miles within 24 hours). This is roughly London-Aberdeen return. Was thinking of doing this route, all by motorway, except the bits of Scotland where motorways haven't been invented.
It's basicly motorway all the way then. The A90 isn't motorway but it is empty dual carriageway almost all the way to aberdoom.
Hooli said:
I agree k1. I used to drive coaches & often got passed by the same car (or bike) several times on long motorway trips. I've seen it the other way since touring on bikes too.
On my 14 about 85-90mph gets me furthest in a day, once I start pushing a ton the range drops so much it just costs me more to travel the same distance.
Same to Hooli, I agree with K1.On my 14 about 85-90mph gets me furthest in a day, once I start pushing a ton the range drops so much it just costs me more to travel the same distance.
For French motorway keep an eye on the distances to the next services, they are often 50-60km apart. Know your tank range, and work out if you can make the next services, or have to stop at the one you are approaching (they have signs with the distance to the next one).
I find once I you start going over the tonne, your fuel economy starts dropping big time, and along with it your average speed (unless the distance you are going is less than 1 tank!) because of the said fuel stops.
Stops are fuel in, pay and get out (don't take your helmet off, that takes time!). When Tori and I am riding, we pull both bikes up at one pump, side by side and fill them up together, which only takes no longer usually as waiting to pay takes the most time.
No faffying around, just the mindset that you are going to get the motorway stint done as quick as you can, so you can get to the ferry/mountains/hotel with shower and beer. Motorway food it pretty dire, even French ones, and overpriced, so better to not bother having lunch at them at 1pm, if keeping on going for another 90 min means you are done with the motorway, and can stop for a coffee and snack at a lovely village by a river in gorge, rather than looking at trucks and buses in a rundown Total services that hasn't seen any paint since the 80's...
creampuff said:
And for long motorway journeys, pass the time by listening to music or entering a zen like state of contemplation about your life in general or do some 80mph filtering to spice things up
I know. I recently discovered RadioPlayer for the iPhone. Current fave is Ministry of Sound radio. 
I've just done Edinburgh to South London / Surrey today on a Tiger 1050 c/w 2 massive Givi panniers. i left EDI at 645 arrived Carshalton at 330pm - inc two fairly long stops (Red Rooster in Penrith and Norton Canes). Took a roundabout route from EDI to Selkirk then A7 to Carlisle.
That was less than 3 tanksfulls, I found that keeping around 75mph was the optimum balance of progress / boredom / economy.
I am fairly tired but then again it was the last leg of a 1176 mile / 4 ferry weekend riding 4 days and getting blootered in the middle.
That was less than 3 tanksfulls, I found that keeping around 75mph was the optimum balance of progress / boredom / economy.
I am fairly tired but then again it was the last leg of a 1176 mile / 4 ferry weekend riding 4 days and getting blootered in the middle.
Rubin215 said:
Crossflow Kid said:
Relax.......I'm back darn Sarf. All good.
Did you have pizza crunch like I suggested?Left home at 07:30, arrived at my mate Dave's place just before 18:00.
Couple of days out round the hills, me on the Tiger, my mate Dave on his Harley (no idea what it is, just that it's a Harley), then headed back yesterday via the M6. Left at 09:30ish, got home just before 18:00.
Weather was variable. Trip up was ok and I managed to just avoid all the really heavy rain. First day out began with heavy showers, day two was fine, trip back was overcast but dry with the odd sunny spell.
Having done the same journey by car several times I can safely say I felt fresher after doing it by bike than in the car. No idea why. More fresh air? More concentration? Better posture?
Either way, the journey was also made easier by RadioPlayer for music and Waze for nav, all on the iPhone.
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