Hi ladies and chaps, I've been riding since I was 8 years old. First bike was a 50cc Ital Jet (wish I'd kept that one). Then I had a DT50, DT125R, BMW R80, Suzuki TL1000S, DL1000 V-Strom, Norton 850 Comando and then the Honda CRF250L. I've still got the TL1000S (had it from new in '97) the DL1000, Norton and the CRF The Norton has been in the family since 1985 as it was my Dads. I've done track days on the TLS but had to stop for a bit due to having 2 kids and no time. I also tried taking the V-Strom out on lanes in Buckinghamshire of which there are very few, like hardly any. It was also very heavy and with road tyres very silly I moved 3 years ago to a different area, West Berkshire on the border of Wiltshire. It wasn't long before I noticed large amounts of KTM's appearing in my village. What's all this I thought, so I spoke to some of the brightly coloured people sat on these bikes and they informed me that riders from all around come to the area to ride the lanes. I went home looked on the internet and sure enough I'd accidentaly moved into byway heaven. Skip on two and half years and I suddenly couldn't take it any longer. I pushed and pulled and tesselated the garage until I was content I could fit just one more bike in, and still get to the fuse box at the back. Looking for a bike for a new hobby is always fun. I considered many asking myself what I really needed not wanted. I needed a bike that would run for miles and not need service intervals measured in hous, I needed a bike that would be fun as I was not going to race. I needed a bike I could ride on the road and in the dark. I needed a bike under £4K. I needed the CRF250L I picked up my CRF on my birthday last July. A 2017 model with 1200 miles on it. It's now done nearly 4000 miles and I'd say 80% of that is off road. I had the most fun I'd had in ages riding around my village and into Salisbury plane at times but as my time with kids takes up a lot of time I soon realised riding at night was my best option for getting out guilt free. I ride out around three times a week going out at 8pm and getting home around 12pm, even in below zero temps (oxford grips are my friends). It's great fun with the additional benefits thet there are no walkers, no joggers, no cyclists and most of all in my area no horses. I'm about to fit a new chain, 42 tooth rear sprocket and new tire. Let the good times roll!
