Kiwi Biker forums - Blogs - Marius Elvenwood

4. Motorbikes and fuel. What is there to complain about?

Marius Elvenwood — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:58:06 GMT

I know people have said that motorbikes are fuel efficient. In fact they always say that. And i've never owned a car or a larger vehicle to compare it with. But i'm pretty sure that getting <300km on $14 certainly does fit the description.
It's been 3 weeks now, 3 weeks of riding. I've got 314 km under the belt, a petty amount I know, but it's a start.
My bike has given me the opportunity to work more hours, earning more cash. It outshines the Dunedin bus system by a mile, which costs about $2.40 to travel no more than 15 km from predetermined point A to predetermined point B. That's $48 to get the equivalent distance that my motorbike has given me. I suppose the price must include the benefits of waiting for the next bus to arrive, often up to an hour at a time, sharing the bus with strangers and, on rare occasions, morons. And that doesn't include the walking to the bus stop! Now my little Genie is getting me from home to work, when I want, where I want, how I want.
And to think I doubted buying this little beauty in the first place.

3. What does a true Kiwibiker need? A bike, of course.

Marius Elvenwood — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 01:49:25 GMT

I've been away from the internet for almost a week. The only opportunities I get are at the library or when I burn the credit on my phone to check my emails. But what a week it's been.
I bought my first road bike, hooray! Brand new suzuki GN125H, Good for learners, good for concerned relatives afraid I might splatter my brains out as soon as it leaves the driveway. Comfortable seat (I wish I could say the same about the new motorbike pants I bought recently) and easy to control.
So far i've ridden 45k. The first couple of times I rode down the street were the worst, I was extremely nervous, but slowly and surely fear is wearing down to nervous caution.
I'm glad i can call myself a true Kiwibiker now at least!
See you on the road!

2. So close, yet so much to learn.

Marius Elvenwood — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 21:21:47 GMT

For a part-time worker i'm lucky to have raised as much money as I have over the last fortnight. I have been working tirelessly to save the minimum $1245 that I need for my first road-worthy bike. Luckily I am still young enough to mooch from my parents a little more; they have agreed to pay the second half once i've saved the first half, as well as giving me $400 to buy myself an extremely effective motorbike helmet. As they said to me in a previous email 'we just want to protect your precious head'. Thanks mum n dad, a more thoughtful gift there could never be.
So, current savings: $500
Estimated income next week: $400
which leaves another fortnight or so of more work before I reach my goal. Curses.
And as I was reminded in my last post, I am as experienced at riding as a monkey is at wearing a hat. So if I don't get some practice in soon i'll end up as smart as Gunter from Futurama. That poor, stupid rhesus.
So to recap. MORE MONEY, MORE PRACTICE, NEED HELMET.
To help me practice, it would be great to spend time with someone else more experienced. Anyone in the Dunedin area who is also looking for a biking buddy (someone incompetently experienced at riding mind you) can reply to this post if they wish, and once I have my bike we can arrange a team ride.

Signing off
Osc

1. Biker Blog! How original.

Marius Elvenwood — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 05:45:47 GMT

SO. First entry. The day I signed up to Kiwibiker and the day after I got my class 6 learner licence.
On friday (7th sep, 2012) I got my Basic Handling Skills certificate (BHS) from Warren Joyce who is a very good teacher, I would highly recommend him to anyone else. Seeing as he is the only BHS instructor in Dunedin I figured I better get my cert from him. The price was a bit steep though; I paid for a brief instructor lesson (seeing as though my skills on a bike were limited to off-road riding on less than 100cc) as well as the BHS test itself. $180 all up!!! Quite steep, considering the prices back in Australia.
Then Yesterday I went for my learner licence. $96!!! Sorry if I keep complaining about prices but I'm trying to save money for a bike and it's not enjoyable to see that carefully conserved cash being spent on something I can't ride!
I passed 35/35. Not surprising i guess. I had bought the road code for motorcyclists, made a quiz for myself on the computer and went through the quiz 5 times in a row until I had every single answer correct.

BUT. Kiwibiker looks like an excellent site for motorcyclists of all ages and experience. Seeing as though i'm 19 and have very little experience I signed up. Nothing to lose I guess.
I had a look at the buying/selling section of the site. Maybe there was something I could buy that wasn't listed on TradeMe or in MCR or Mciver & Veitch? Wow. There was! A body suit with armour for $50 dollars! Seemed too good to be true. Glimpsing through the comments it seemed that everyone was very pleased with their purchase. In fact, the post was only 6 days old and already there were only Youth Sizes left! Still, it might be possible that an XL Youth Size would fit me.
So after contacting the seller he planned to arrange a meet up with me. Right now I'm eager to have a look at this suit, try it on, and if the glove fits... we shall see.

So my current checklist of biker-related items to buy is:

Biker Clothing
Helmet
Biker Boots
Motorbike (Suzuki GN125H if all goes well, which it will damn it!)

Signing off
Osc