My Bike History
I wrote this after seeing a similar history by Kev Quirk. I loved reading it, because every biker goes on their own journey and has different bikes they've loved (or not). I'm keen to read more!
Starting Out
I grew up in a rural area of the UK, meaning most of my friends did not live particularly close by: we were in different villages, a few miles at least between us. Once we were old enough to ride our pushbikes around we did just that, but upon turning 16 we were allowed engines. Not big ones, granted, just 50 cubic centimeters of glorious petrol power, but what a difference it made. What was half an hour of pedalling before was now a mere ten minutes or so, and it felt amazing. When I turned 17 my parents purchased a car to stop me buying a bigger bike, and it worked, I didn't ride again until my mid thirties, but getting back to it never surprised me. For the 20 or so years I didn't ride, I knew I wanted to do it again.
1990(?) Honda MT-50
My first bike was a Honda MT-50, a rebrand of the MT-5, and it looked like a dirt bike though was clearly not built for such shenanigans. It was a two stroke, and I was convinced removing the baffle from the end of the tail pipe meant it made more power. It was a great introduction to vehicles in general though, it cost a few quid to fill up (under four if I recall) and would do 100 miles on that. I had a top speed of around 36-37 mph, and it took 5 gears to get there; I soon learned I could go faster down big hills by pulling in the clutch and freewheeling, not something I'd consider these days, but hey, 16 year olds aren't know for making the best decisions in general.
I don't have a picture of the bike itself, but hopefully one day I'll find one in my parent's stash, not least because it's the only vehicle I've ever owned that I don't remember the number plate of. I know it was a J registration, but that's about it. It was identical to the one below though, and I'd love to ride one again just to see what it feels like. I can't describe just how much I can relate to Richard Hammond talking about his first bike.
Getting Back Into It
2016 Honda CBR300R
I started riding again in my mid-thirties, in Australia, and had to start from scratch, which made perfect sense to me because I couldn't remember much other than where the controls where. I had to get a LAMS bike, didn't have a huge budget, but wanted something with ABS and didn't want to go too powerful. Somehow I set my heart on a CBR300R, not the bike I'd choose today perhaps, but that didn't stop me enjoying it. In two years I racked up 24,000 KM commuting on it, and enjoyed every moment. Riding through Melbourne at night, to learning about twisty roads in country Victoria. It was all so good, and it felt like coming home. I felt like I was me again.
2014 Honda CBR500R
The thing about doing that distance on my 300 in two years was that it was then due for a valve clearance check, and the cost for that was going to be a significant proportion of the bike's value at that time. Passing an independent bike store one day I swung by just out of curiosity (something new to me then, now basically another hobby) and saw a CBR500R in bright red that was at a decent price. A quick test ride and I was hooked, the parallel twin and extra capacity making for a reasonable jump in power, and the changeover price making sense to me. The next day I swapped over on my way home from work, and while I didn't keep it too long (see later) I really did enjoy it, and to this day often think about Honda's 500 range of machines as viable options.
1997 Suzuki Across GX250F - Current
I bloody love this little bike. So much so, that I brought it back to the UK from Australia, leaving it wasn't an option; especially when the cost to ship it was quite cheap (along with our other stuff) and it only cost me $500 (AUD) to begin with. When I bought it it had been sat in a garage for something like 4-5 years, the owner couldn't even remember. It had about 10,500 KM on the clock, and this was when it was already 22 years old; basically nothing. I'm pretty sure it was still on the original tyres.
It's insanely fun to ride, being one of the 90s Japanese 4-pot 250's. It doesn't rev as high as the CBR250RR from back then (the MC22) with it's gear driven cams, but a 17k redline is still pretty mad, and the sound is hard to forget. I don't think these get the love they deserve in Australia, which is a shame as they were only ever sold there and in Japan.
2019 Husqvarna Svartpilen 701
This was the first non-LAMs bike I owned in Australia. They were on a crazy good deal (like 40% off good) and to secure one I traded in my 500 a few months before I'd gruate from LAMs and be able to ride anything. In the mean time I used the Across for commuting, and then picked the Husqvarna up the first day I could ride it.
I thought the 500 would have prepared me for the increase in power, and in some ways it did, but I'd not factored in the lightness. The 701 was immensely fun to ride - the big thumper made heaps of torque and the bike was super light at the same time. I had to sell it to fund some of the move back to the UK, and though at the time I didn't think I'd miss it, I was wrong. It was excellent for just getting lost in the middle of nowhere: the only real gripe I had was that there was no way to disable ABS, which was a bit of a pain for dirt and gravel roads.
2016 Triumph Sprint GT 1050 SE - Current
After moving back to the UK, sorting out somewhere to live and getting the Suzuki on the road, I realised I needed a more modern machine once again, and something a bit more comfortable for longer trips. In retrospect I should probably have looked at some ADV machines, but I've always had a soft spot for VFRs and so I was looking at Sport Tourers. In a B&Q carpark one day I got chatting to a guy who was just kitting up to get on his Sprint GT, and he basically sold me on it within a few minutes. Some searching later and I ordered one online, having never even sat on one. Again, not sure I'd do that again, but I don't regret it.
I do find for long distance it's not the most comfortable, lower pegs and a bigger windscreen would be ideal. I've fitted a deflector to the screen but the wind noise is still considerable - air goes over my helmet, but to each side around my shoulders there's a lot of buffeting. What I do love about the bike is it's low-tech: no rider modes, no traction control, no TFT. A big analogue tach in the middle, analogue speedo to the left, and the other information you need on a standard LCD display on the right. The engine is fantastic, and has a good bark when wide open, and makes for a nice balance between the smoothness of a four pot and the torque of a twin.
Recently (as of late 2025) I'd been thinking of swapping this for something smaller and later, but I've since started riding for South West Blood Bikes, and after moving a few BMW R1200RTs around the garage it suddenly feels a lot lighter and more manageable, though the Beamers have shown me what good wind protection can be.
1992 Honda CBR1000F Hurricane - Current
I've never ridden this bike, and I don't know if it even works. I bought it off market place as a project: it had been sat in a guy's garage for years, and apparently the person he got it from had left it sat for a while too. He didn't even have the V5C (UK equivalent of a title) but thankfully I do have one now. Currently it's in pieces liberally scattered around my garage. Some bits came apart easily, others required more persuasion, including one engine mount that I had to saw through. The engine does turn over by hand, so there's hope. One day I might find out what it's like to ride, hopefully prior to it's 40th birthday.
1954 Ariel NH 350 Red Hunter - Current
Vintage bikes, while cool, were not really on my radar, but my great uncle was selling this bike and the rest is history. He had got it back in roadworthy condition after it had sat in his garage for the better part of 40 years (if not more). I've got the original V5 document, hand-filled with him being the fourth owner, and I'm reasonably sure he dropped it back in the 60s, because the last tax disc (still on the bike) is from '66, and the rear fender and left hand foot rest are rather bent.
It's clear already that owning this is going to be quite a different prospect to even my 90s bikes. Parts rattle lose, things break far more often, and puddles of oil are apparently to be expected and perfectly normal. The controls took a little getting used to (rear brake on the left foot, gears are 1 up 3 down on the right) but it's an absolute joy to ride. I don't ever see myself selling this, and if time/space/funds permit in the future I can definitely see myself owning more machines from this era. It's got a good patina, a fair dose of rust where chrome should be, and my garage stinks of petrol and oil, but let me tell you: 40 mph never felt so fun.
To Be Continued
If you've been counting, I currently have 4 bikes, though it looks like 3 in my garage due to the Honda mostly being on (or under) shelves.
I'll update this page as and when updates are necessary, which I doubt will be as often as my dealership visits and marketplace browsing would suggest. Any biker will tell you that like many other hobbies, the ideal number of items to own is n+1, where n is what you have already.
Two particular areas of interest right now are dual sports (or light ADVs) and classic scooters. Watch this space.