What is your avg riding distance?

[Red_bike]

Well we did about 160 miles today and the the GZ did great with my son on it. We ran about 55 - 60 most of the time on back roads and I think it was about 75 miles before we made our first stop. We had a great day being together and talking bikes. I was worried about taking it on anything over 50 miles but thanks to you guys I have found it will do it and more.

Duck.

[alanmcorcoran]

Sounds like a day well spent! Your son is a lucky young man.

[Red_bike]

I feel like the lucky one to have a 19 year old want to spend the day with the dad. He is a great kid and will be heading back to college in a few week.

Duck

[VTXorcist]

Glad I'm not the only one suffering from "GZ250-ass". I did notice that it's much worse if I try to sit back like I do on my 1300. If I lean forward and keep my back straight, the pressure seems to be more on my butt cheeks than my tailbone. I may look like an 80-yr old riding a Hoveround, but I care more about my butt than other people's opinions!

[dhgeyer]

For me, and I suspect for many others, the riding position is very important, along with the saddle, vibration and noise from the bike, weather, riding gear, riding experience, knowledge, and habits.

I am in my 60's, and only in moderately good condition at best. However, I do ride a lot, so the motorcycle specific muscles are toned pretty well. I have done 500 mile days on a sport touring bike and been none the worse for wear. I did a 265 mile day on a Honda Rebel, and to my amazement, I felt fine afterward. I have gone 100 miles on other bikes and hurt all over.

For me, the cruiser position is the worst for distance. The feet and arms all forward put all my weight on the saddle, and all the bumps and vibrations go right into my back, which generally doesn't last long. The best position for me, and for most distance riders, is the sport-touring position. Pegs under me, knees bent somewhat, legs carrying some of the weight and acting as shock absorbers, some (but not too much) weight on arms and hands for the most even weight distribution possible.

Proper gear is important. You need either a full face helmet or a tall enough windshield to keep the wind blast off your face. You need to keep most of your skin covered, even if it's with mesh riding gear. If the weather is wet, you need good rain gear to stay dry. If it's hot, you need to find a way to stay covered but cool. A wet T-shirt under your riding jacket is an old trick distance riders use in hot weather, as is a wet kerchief or rag of some kind around your neck.

You need to stay hydrated. And, very important, you need to take frequent breaks. Don't just stop long enough to gas the bike - walk around and stretch. Take an extended break every two or three hours.

You don't want to eat a lot of heavy food before or during a long ride, but you don't want to be uncomfortably hungry either. Just enough fairly light food, in small but regular snacks is the way to go. Did I mention keeping hydrated?

You want to move around on the bike at frequent intervals. Take each hand off one handgrip and turn your upper body around and stretch. Stand on the pegs once in a while. Arch your back and then lean way forward bending your back in the opposite direction. Put your feet on the passenger pegs for a while and lean forward. When stopped at lights or in traffic, take the opportunity to stand and stretch (keeping the bike in first gear in case you need to gun it out of someone's way to avoid being rear-ended).

This is just the barest intro. There are books written on successful distance riding. If you want to tour, or stretch your rides out, reading a couple of those books would be a good investment.

I just got the GZ250, so I don't know what its distance potential is for me. If I ride smart and do my part, I'm pretty sure I can get a couple of hundred miles out of it in a day and enjoy it. Maybe more on a good day. We'll see.

[Water Warrior 2]

Very informative post. I have been experimenting a bit with the best form of pants in the heat and have decided I just won't ride in extreme heat. So far nothing has been really satisfactory and I will not just wear jeans or anything that will not protect me in a fall. The rest of my body I can protect and cool but not the lower trunk which can be a real PITA.

[alanmcorcoran]

On the topic of light eating, I recommend something called "GU". It's a sugar gel that is extremely digestible and one package will provide you with about 45 minutes of "fuel" with minimal energy expended for digestion. I am particularly fond of the "Espresso Love" flavor, which tastes like coffee and has a little more caffeine than the other flavors.

I discovered this source of convenient, light weight personal fuel when I was training for (and running) marathons, and now I use it for any situation where I want to be covered in case I start to "bonk", including racquetball, music gigs and, long motorcycle rides. Always have a few in my pockets. If you have an REI near you they sell it in boxes. Also at runner's stores and, probably on-line.

[dhgeyer]

alan,

Thanks for the tip about GU. Does it all have caffeine? I can't use caffeine, as it causes an irregular heartbeat.

Water Warrior,

Have you looked into mesh pants? Off road riders use them a lot I think. Anyway, I know they exist. I ride in heavy jeans. Despite conventional wisdom, I have been down twice in my 13 years now, and on the one two years ago I tumbled and rolled 100 feet. The car knocked me off the bike at 55 mph or so - no time to brake, I swerved. Anyway, my Joe Rocket ballistic nylon jacket was shredded in places but kept me from serious injury, as did my full face helmet. I had one small patch of road rash on one knee where the jeans wore through, but other than that they held. On my other mishap 40 years ago I was going much slower, and the jeans held with no problem. Just one data point. I have a good pair of riding pants. But, if it's too hot to wear them, I'll go with jeans.

[alanmcorcoran]

They have two caffeine free flavors: Strawberry Banana and Lemon Lime. The rest have 20 mg. (Espresso Love has 40.)
Be aware that an 8oz (small) cup of coffee has 150 milligrams. A Red Bull has 80. A Dr. Pepper has 40. So it is not very much by comparison. Caffeine is not good for stage fright so I am pretty tuned in to the various dosages and their effects. I'm not a doctor - but mrlmd IS - perhaps he can weigh in on whether 20 mgs has any impact on the ticker.

I've gotten a little complacent about the riding pants, too. I'll still wear them on 3 digit trips (San Diego) but around town and out for the evening I've been going with the jeans. Even worse, now that it's hot, and I've gotten a little fatter, I wear Lucky jeans instead of the heavier Wrangler types. Tough call to decide how much risk you want to take, versus having some fun/excitement in life. It's all good until your luck runs out.

[Water Warrior 2]

Have 3 pairs of pants. 1st pair were JR Ballistic 5.0. They are heavy, waterproof, warm and breath as well as plate steel. Good idea at the time. Very secure feeling and great in really bad weather. 2nd pair are JR Alter Ego and much better with the removeable panel and zippers. Still not enough air circulation around the belly and crotch area to reduce heat build up. 3rd pair is the most effective. JR Atomic Jeans with a very light lining to hold knee and hip armor in place. Air does pass through the denim quite nicely at speed. If I spread my knees apart(no tank hugging here)for a minute or so there is a good amount of air flow on the inner thigh to cool things down. So yes I will probably wait for a bargain on mesh pants in the fall when they go on clearance. New Enough in Texas gets most of my clothing budget so I will just keep my eyes open.