My Rides

[Steve Lynch]

The Hooligan Taming the Lions.
2015 Yamaha MT09. (Purchased S/H Aug 26 2017)

This is my favourite photo opportunity, Headley Hall.
Once the home of the legend, Sir Malcolm Campbell, of Bluebird fame And Land Speed Records.

Packing for the Pico’s

Kriega US30, 2 x Kriega US 20, Redverz Attacama Tent, Helinox Chair and Helinox Table.
It made a fantastic back rest but required sinching down quite often.

Bardinas Reales.

Ah! We sleep together.

Cornwall 5 day Tour taking in the whole of Cornwall’s coast line.

The 2015 Yamaha MT09 is indeed a Hooligan.
The 2015 model only had ABS no traction control.
In A mode the throttle is very snatchy and keeping the front wheel on the ground can be a problem.
The rear suspension is a bit wishy washy and can sometimes get you into trouble also.
Standard mode is quick enough for me to be honest and B Mode is definitely required if its raining as its very easy to spin up the rear in the wet.
The standard seat is a “plank” particularly if you are a skinny fella like me with not a lot of “meat” in that area.
I immediately got the seat refoamed at West Sussex Motorcycles.
Had to haggle a lot on the price for this as it was registered in 2016 and the dealer had it listed as a 2016 model which it was not.
In the build up to the release of the 2016 model, Yamaha started throwing in the Akro exhaust for free to try to shift the last of the 2015 models.
I made the dealer aware of all this and we came to an acceptable price.
The Akro sounds beautiful on this on the overrun and the gurgles and pops brings a smile to may face every time.

Summary: Fantastic Hooligan bike with a few dodgy foibles like the rear suspension and the snatchy throttle in A mode.

Honda CRF 250 Rally and Triumph Tiger 900 Rally Pro to be added at a later date.

[Jack van Tilburg]

What a good topic to add.
This is my BMW R1200GSA. I use this for most of the rides I ride.
I'm here at Hilversum airport.

And this is my second motorcycle. An HD Road King that I only use for the laid back rides. Here on a parking lot along the river De Waal.

And this is my most memorable motorcycle moment.

[Steve Lynch]

The Africa Single. (CRF 250 Rally)

Water Lane, Albury, Surrey Hills

Headley Hall, Box Hill Road

Taggs Island, Hampton Court Road

The Devils Punch Bowl, Hindhead

A Ford Crossing in the Yorkshire Moors

Purchased the Honda CRF 250 Rally new in January 2020.
Then lock down ARGHHHH!!!!

First Mods Barkbusters, Michelin Anarchy Wilds and a Rear Rack.

The IRC Stock Rubber was not too bad on the road but they were useless in the mud.
I’ve never actually dropped the 250 Rally Off Road to date, but that does not mean I’m an off road hero it just means I very rarely get above second gear.
I’ve been meaning to get some Off Road Training since the lockdown, that’s definitely happening in 2122.

The 250 Rally has about 24 bhp, it will comfortably sit at 60mph on the motorway with some limited scope for overtakes up to about 75mph at most.
You have to ring it’s neck on the twisty country roads to get the most out of it but the 10.1 litre tank can often induce fuel anxiety, as the gauge stays full for a long time then seems to drop rapidly.
I doubt that I will do any more mods to this bike as I doubt I will ever be doing any seriously knarley off road riding.
The ABS on the rear can be turned off but not the front.
The rear shock has a huge amount of sag when you sit on it, even with my skinny frame on it. As a 6 footer I can flat foot it but I often have to swing an arse cheek on any sort of camber.
On the road at over about 35mph you can hear the Anarchy Wilds give a little whine, you can also imagine the impact of travelling on motorway to the Yorkshire Moors and back.
The rear in particular was shot to bits but generally the Anarchy Wilds are pretty good on the road if its dry, front and back, but the rear can get a bit out of shape if the roads are wet.
In the dry on the roads you can really throw the bike around once you get used to riding a 21” front tyre.
Whilst the 250 Rally is not particularly light in terms Off Road bikes it carries its weight very well which is probably due to the small 10.1 Litre tank.

Overall the bike is great fun to ride on the road and Off Road and always puts a smile on my face, apparently this little thumper is bullet proof so hopefully it will still be running when by latest ride is a Zimmer frame.