I would dispise spending 3hrs of my day just commuting. Plus you have to pay the price of gas & wear/tear of vehicle
Has anyone else "given up" commuting on their motorcycle?
- Thread starter 油井緋色
- Start date
I have fun trying to balance the bike without putting my foot down while in traffic. It's a lot of fun at least for now. I commute from Richmond Hill down to around union station. When DVP is jammed I take don mills or bayview. On average I get to work in about 45 minutes, home in about the same since I leave around 6 pm. If I take the go train it takes me around an hour and 20 mins door to door. I spend at least 10 mins sitting in the go parking lot on my return trip. When traffic is heavy my rides takes about an hour. I find myself more awake when I get to work after my ride. It's almost like my morning exercise.
From a pure economy point of view taking the GO might be better. It's safer and you can sleep. Cost should be similar once you factor in the wear and tear plus depreciation on the bike. But commuting is the only chance I get to ride. I don't get a lot of other chances to ride on weekend etc. So I make the best of it.
My tires are Michelin Pilot 2s, it has harder compounds in the middle so the flat spot isn't so bad. Tires don't cost that much in the grand scheme of things, so I don't think about it too much.
I ride rain or shine, except when it's foggy in the morning, 'cus I don't feel safe riding in the fog. Also I hate the 401 and I try to avoid it at all cost.
From a pure economy point of view taking the GO might be better. It's safer and you can sleep. Cost should be similar once you factor in the wear and tear plus depreciation on the bike. But commuting is the only chance I get to ride. I don't get a lot of other chances to ride on weekend etc. So I make the best of it.
My tires are Michelin Pilot 2s, it has harder compounds in the middle so the flat spot isn't so bad. Tires don't cost that much in the grand scheme of things, so I don't think about it too much.
I ride rain or shine, except when it's foggy in the morning, 'cus I don't feel safe riding in the fog. Also I hate the 401 and I try to avoid it at all cost.
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kickstartt
Well-known member
haha +1 on the feeling awake after a ride part!
I haven't given up commuting on my bike yet, its still fun when the traffic is moving on the DVP
I haven't given up commuting on my bike yet, its still fun when the traffic is moving on the DVP
I don't use the bike to commute anymore always get to work and smell like exhaust and rush hour in the mornings is a SOB. I come from Mavis and rathburn to dufferin and king everyday and it's just annoying now. Converted the baby into a track bike only and maybe race bike. Will see how fast I can move up in intermediate.
I commute every day in my bike. I generally start in March and ride until there is snow on the roads or risk of snow on the roads. I used to live in Mount Albert and work at 407 and 400. My theoretical commute was 38 minutes/58 km but traffic on 400 got so bad I usually took secondary roads most of the way. As a result my commute to work usually took closer to an hour. I took totally different routes home so the distance home average about 100 km.
I moved to Port Perry in May. The commute is now 80 km. In theory the commute is 48 minutes but I generally take a lot of back roads to get to 407 and take about 55 minutes. I love my commute! I only took a car to work one day this year after March and ride in almost any condition.
I wear a Suit and Tie at work and have an Aerostich Roadcrafter two-piece. The Roadcrafter makes all the difference in the world for me! This riding suit goes on in about 15 seconds and is waterproof. In cold weather I put layers of fleece under it and I have commuted in temperatures down to -16 (that was a bit on the cold side!) In hot weather I will put my suit jacket in my top case, in very hot I will put my whole work suit in there and wear shorts under my riding suit.
I have hit some crazy weather on the way home. Here is my old bike after one commute:
..Tom
I moved to Port Perry in May. The commute is now 80 km. In theory the commute is 48 minutes but I generally take a lot of back roads to get to 407 and take about 55 minutes. I love my commute! I only took a car to work one day this year after March and ride in almost any condition.
I wear a Suit and Tie at work and have an Aerostich Roadcrafter two-piece. The Roadcrafter makes all the difference in the world for me! This riding suit goes on in about 15 seconds and is waterproof. In cold weather I put layers of fleece under it and I have commuted in temperatures down to -16 (that was a bit on the cold side!) In hot weather I will put my suit jacket in my top case, in very hot I will put my whole work suit in there and wear shorts under my riding suit.
I have hit some crazy weather on the way home. Here is my old bike after one commute:
..Tom
I go to York U, and while the bike is winterized for now... I couldnt imagine any other way of getting to school than to take my bike:
- free parking (car parking at York is RIDICULOUS - unless you have a fake pass
)
- the stares from the chicks
- faster, fun, and as mentioned earlier - the air rushing against me energizes me for early morning accounting lectures
That said, after I graduate - there is no way that I would ever take my bike to commute (especially working in downtown). I want to listen to the radio, drink/eat, and just chill out before getting to work.
- free parking (car parking at York is RIDICULOUS - unless you have a fake pass
)- the stares from the chicks
- faster, fun, and as mentioned earlier - the air rushing against me energizes me for early morning accounting lectures
That said, after I graduate - there is no way that I would ever take my bike to commute (especially working in downtown). I want to listen to the radio, drink/eat, and just chill out before getting to work.
My understanding is that the commute is an absolute waste of the precious time of a life, and it should be turned into fun, if possible, at any cost.
Driving in the city puts me straight to sleep (and I keep getting angry at the drivers for no reason), while the bike makes my heart beat. The decision is really not that hard for me. I could find a bunch of excuses too I think, which reminds me of this:
[video=youtube;2FiPgAMXZKI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FiPgAMXZKI&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/video]
Driving in the city puts me straight to sleep (and I keep getting angry at the drivers for no reason), while the bike makes my heart beat. The decision is really not that hard for me. I could find a bunch of excuses too I think, which reminds me of this:
[video=youtube;2FiPgAMXZKI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FiPgAMXZKI&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/video]
^
I know you both go to York, that's another reason why I don't want to commute. I've come out to some randoms sitting on somebody's Ducati once and asked them to kindly get the **** off after asking if they owned it. I didn't really care when I had my GS.
....also, I commuted thrice this semester on my GSXR to York U. All 3 times I was slower than the bus by 30 minutes because I took some retarded side route with twisties and did some ramping lol I'd rather not be late for classes <__<
I know you both go to York, that's another reason why I don't want to commute. I've come out to some randoms sitting on somebody's Ducati once and asked them to kindly get the **** off after asking if they owned it. I didn't really care when I had my GS.
....also, I commuted thrice this semester on my GSXR to York U. All 3 times I was slower than the bus by 30 minutes because I took some retarded side route with twisties and did some ramping lol I'd rather not be late for classes <__<
Do you not wipe out on snow/ice all the time?
homme de fer
Well-known member
Generally, the road is warmer than the air so it doesn't ice up unless you're on a bridge. That said, most people on this forum mistake cc's for skill; the key in inclement weather is smooth throttle and braking while making sure you leave plenty of space around you to manoeuvre. Those who lack situational awareness tend to find themselves in a bind when the weather disintegrates. This spring, I rode up to Barrie using gravel roads and got caught in a storm that kept changing from snow to rain and back again and I had less issues than the cars I came across; one guy, with his eyes on his phone, managed to put his car in a ditch behind me. That said, most of us bike commuters don't go looking for bad weather to ride in.
No, my only snow/ice wipeout was this January or Feb when I went out for a short ride after shovelling the driveway. I didn't shovel the very end by the road as it had an area of ice there. When I went out I realizied I didn't have my wallet. Turned around and went back home to get it. When I hit my driveway I hit the chunk of ice at an angle while turning in and went down instantly.
I led a small group of riders to Bancroft back on April 7th this year. Turned out there were two patches where the road turned to ice: Peace Rd approaching 10 from the west and the top of 507 where it was lightly snowing as well. I was pretty proud of the group as everyone just kept a cool head and did everything gently. I was especialy proud of my wife who was a new rider as of May of 2012 and only had about 20,000 km on her Gladius. She kept cool and had no problem. (BTW I did check with the group if they wanted to head back home or continue and in both cases they wanted to press on. The group was small enough and knew each other well enough that everyone felt free to speak up.)
..Tom
I don't commute every day in Winter but pretty much do from sometime in March to sometime in November. If there is a likelihood of a snowfall (not just some light flurries) I would take the car. I have been surprised a few times where the weather was way worse than expected. The freezing rain was one case where nothing in the forecast warned me of it. I found that in general could ride into December but would be more rare as the month went on. January often had some nice days, February not so much and my riding season tends to start in mid March. I moved to Port Perry this past May and I think (hope!) the lake-effect snow will be a bit less of an issue than it was in Mount Albert. (In General if Barrie got two feet Mount Albert got one foot while Toronto might get an inch and everyone is crashing all over down there.)
Keep in mind the tires on my V-Strom are much better in cold and sand/gravel etc than typical Sport Bike tires. I am also very impressed at the Pilot 3's on my wife's Gladius.
..Tom
Ok, so my commute is only 15 minutes (I live in south Riverdale) so I don't have as many issues as some. I only work downtown 2 days a week, but I haven't taken the TTC all season - starting in March - unless it was pissing rain in the morning. Only got caught in real rain once. It's a no-brainer financially, even with depreciation and maintenance it's way cheaper than transit (my insurance is less than $500 a year). Even if street parking stopped being free I would still ride. I would just find a free place to park. Plus it's way more fun than any other form of transportation - barring say, a helicopter - in traffic. It's also one of the only times I get to ride, so I'm never gonna give it up as long as I can still hold the bike up at red lights. I did bicycle to work every day before my work moved right downtown. You can't beat a bicycle in core traffic at rush hour, aside from the health benefits. When we go back to our old location I'll probably go back to it.
Jock
Jock
油井緋色;2098609 said:
Wtf dude what have I ever done anything to you ????
Joke aside, one time, I saw a group of girls in front of my bike when I went out to smoke. One of them was holding my windshield, or should I say, my windshield was holding her.. She was pulling with her full weight on it and swinging around left to right, right to left...
What did I do when I saw this ? I've lit up my smoke, waited for the windshield to snap.. that never happened. They've left, and I left after I finished smoking lol
You really can't fix stupid. Even if it's not her next time, it's her friend or someone else. It's not worth the headache, and that's not the purpose of owning a bike for me.
Also, I know from my good friends: some people can't handle shiny things. They do more time cleaning or researching how to "best" something, than they are riding/driving. I feel bad for them. Sure, their bike/car looks cute, but they miss on hours of joy, because the asphalt is not ready or something lol
Wtf dude what have I ever done anything to you ????
Joke aside, one time, I saw a group of girls in front of my bike when I went out to smoke. One of them was holding my windshield, or should I say, my windshield was holding her.. She was pulling with her full weight on it and swinging around left to right, right to left...
What did I do when I saw this ? I've lit up my smoke, waited for the windshield to snap.. that never happened. They've left, and I left after I finished smoking lol
You really can't fix stupid. Even if it's not her next time, it's her friend or someone else. It's not worth the headache, and that's not the purpose of owning a bike for me.
Also, I know from my good friends: some people can't handle shiny things. They do more time cleaning or researching how to "best" something, than they are riding/driving. I feel bad for them. Sure, their bike/car looks cute, but they miss on hours of joy, because the asphalt is not ready or something lol
Yeah....that came out wrong LOL I just mean Seneca and York, or any school in general, is full of self-entitled retards.
I got my bike at 6,000 last December and it's at 26,000 right now but I really don't enjoy commuting anymore. Full tuck trying to knee drag with a big laptop and lunch in my bag resulted in some pretty massive back pains lol If the riding position of my bike was standard rather than sport, I think it would hurt less.
I used to ride almost everyday I could to York on my GS but I found a lot more "fun" in my new bike through cornering (because going straight will risk HTA172). Also, the temperatures now, though fine if I wanted to commute, are taking away a lot of my cornering confidence =(
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