first long trip

[Corf]

hey

new to this site as guy recommended it as a resource. picking up a sv650s thursday morning (traded in nail of an er-5 which has put me on road since passing test 6 months ago). so hi all.

am going to north france in june as mate has sponsored a small race team and getting a cheap weekend out it. will be my first long trip and little bit concerned.

was wondering about the tank range on an sv650s (i have read few differing comments) and how many miles are then in the reserve if the light comes on for it. also whats the sv like on longer journeys? any thing to watch out for?

cheers

[Steve_God]

Hi Corf,

As your getting the 'S' version, the only things to look out for long distance would be:
- Riding position - (try and sit upright, and not slouched over the tank, with your legs gripping the bike a little, as this stops your back aching quiet so much after a long ride.
- Seat - the standard seat will make your ar$e go numb after roughly 2 hours (varies person to person), and if you'll be making a habit of long distance stuff, you might consider upgrading the seat for something a little more comfy. If it's a one off, you'll be fine just having a little stretch and a walk around at the same time as you fill up for petrol.
- Petrol Range - It very much depends on how much you like to twist the throttle, anywhere from 80 to 150 miles out of a tank. However if you're doing long distance, cruising at 80mph on main roads/motorways, you'll probably get to 120 miles before the reserve light comes on, and then you've got about 25 miles on top of that to find a petrol station before you need to start worrying.

Only other pointers would be to make sure you've done your usual checks beforehand like oil, tyre pressures, tyre wear (don't want to get to France only to find you've got a bold tyre!) and chain lube.

Enjoy! and welcome to the site :)

[Corf]

thanks for the advice. appreciate it.

bike should be in good nick. its only done 800 miles and had full service not long ago but i haven't really ridden further than a 20 mile trip. will be doing a few longer trips and maybe europe again - any good breakdown cover companies that cover the odd euro trip recommended?

am riding down with another biker (mate of a mate) and 2 guys in a lotus exige and elise so imagine petrol may dwindle quicker - will make them carry a jerry can too just in case.

[Alpinestarhero]

RE tank range: under the conditions of motorway riding, I have noticed that my MPG is really quite good; I managed to use l about 8-9 litres of fuel last summer for a run to brands hatch and back - a 120 mile round trip! Its possible to get 150 miles before the light comes on, if you are just using constant throttle and cruising.

The light on my bike (1999 sv-s) comes on after 13 litres of fuel; that leaves 4 litres left. Bargin about 10 miles per litre, so with the light on, thats another 40 miles to go

You should be fine riding the SV on long trips; my dad has toured france on his GSXR, and had no problems - he claims the SV is arm-chair comfy in comparison, so you should have no problems! If you get a numb bum, then find some twistes to get the blood flowing again!

Have fun, I hear france has excellent roads for riding

Dont forget to take pics and make a thread!!!!

Matt

[fizzwheel]

If your doing alot of motorway work or along time at motorway speeds, then I'd seriously consider getting a double bubble screen it really helps on a long journey by reducing windblast.

Also unbolt the clutch and brake levers and rotate the round the bars, so you can draw an imaginary straight line from your elbow, through your wrist and onto your fingertips, that'll reduce wrist ache as you wont have to contort into a stupid position each time you grab the brake or clutch lever.

[Corf]

yeah i think i will grab a double bubble when pay day arrives at end of the month (along with hugger and tail tidy). are these things easy to fit? are there threads on here with peoples prev experience ?(save you guys repeating your selves to what must be a common question).

Will do that adjustment as soon as i get it home. never did that on er-5. cheers

thanks for the help.

will post pics when i get back. mate sponsoring some small team using a honda. i am not sure what race series it is but its free tickets to watch 2 races and pitlane access etc so looking forward to it.

[simonthepost]

try this web site, got loads of info for first time euro travel :http://www.europeantouringclub.com/

[ThEGr33k]

Youll be fine mate. I did 1100 miles in about 20 hours of riding going up Scotland and back. :)

[Corf]

cheers. fooking didn't realise had to take all papers and MOT etc - good to know as was just going to take license. will be getting some sort of of travel/breakdown insurance so not to tempt fate.

[Corf]

1100 miles!! think i better get some practice in putting in some mileage before i go. bout time i took a ride through brecon and stuff, got out there and put some proper mile sunder my belt.

[yorkie_chris]

What race? I'm off to le mans (in a van with me mates though)

Other than that, dizzyblondes done some riding in france so knows about it.

Just make sure your bike is healthy, take some chain lube and use it, if you give it a burst every other fuel stop or something.

Fuel, if you plan your route around a fuel stop every 100 miles then you're safe pretty much however you're riding.

[Corf]

not actually sure. mate emailed saying check my company name on this bike - its racing in france in june fancy going. all i know is leave friday afternoon, race saturday afternoon and sunday morning then leg it back to catch ferry at 8. i watched le mans (cars) 2 yrs ago. dam long weekend that was.

bike should be fine - chain lube is something i never thought about cheers. 100 mile
blast between fuel seems like the right thing to do. one of the cars travelling with will have sat nav so will get on their case.

[Corf]

actually just been informed what i will be watching:
600 superstock, 600 supersport, EDI asia formula 400 (mates bike is in that), triumph speed triple, formula 1/2 side cars and thunderbike UK championship.

well far more than i was expecting - excellent. now all i have to do is make it there.