Most of us start out riding a 125cc when we first get on two wheels.
We love them for the city because they’re so nippy and efficient, and because they’re cheap to run and loads of fun! But what about when you want to venture a bit further than the city limits - or even make the trip all the way to Camp VC?
Loads of gals ride their 125ccs to Camp every year, and while it might seem a bit daunting at first, it’s totally achievable, a great way to meet your moto ride or dies and have a ton of fun.
Sarah Emma Smith is a core VC London and Camp VC team member and you can usually catch her snapping pics at our events, usually with at least 4 different cameras around her neck. She rode all the way to Camp VC on a 125cc in the first year she came and LOVED IT so we got her to put together some helpful tips and tricks for setting off on a long road trip, like the one to Camp VC on smaller bikes!
Read on for advice, encouragement and a few things she wishes she’d known before she set off…!
Riding anywhere on a 125cc when you have only had your CBT for a short while is kinda daunting. Riding 200 miles to Wales from London when you have only had your CBT for a short while seems an absolutely terrifying undertaking. When Roz and I first heard about Camp VC in 2017 (before we were a part of the organising team and attended just as punters), we were determined that we were going to ride there. It felt like doing so would be half the adventure, and boy, we were not wrong! Roz had been riding since she was 18 and so did the journey on a bigger bike but I was on my cute lil’ Yamaha SR125. I had only just started doing short journeys around London about 2 months before and had absolutely zero experience out on the open road. So, riding to Camp VC seemed like a brilliant idea!
Jokes aside, I was very nervous about it but was 100% sure I wanted to do it. And looking back, I don’t regret it for a second. The journey was pretty exhausting but I felt a huge sense of achievement when we finally arrived (about 7 hours later with stops, mechanical issues and detours) onsite. I was a much better rider at the end of those 200 miles than I was at the beginning; and an even better rider on the return journey to London. I know that a lot of the women attending Camp VC will still be on the ol’ CBTs and might be nervous about doing the journey so I thought I might look back and give a few helpful tips and tricks!
P// SARAH EMMA SMITH
Pre ride checks
One other thing to be mindful about is that once out on the open road and maintaining a speed of 55-60ish mph, your bike will vibrate all over the place. Don’t be unnerved by it as nothing should vibrate off but it’s always worth giving your bike a once over before you set off (i.e. make sure all your bits and bobs are tight and secure!). It also doesn’t hurt to check your tyre pressures and oil level for a bit of peace of mind.
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First things first: a good breakfast
In previous years, VC London has organised a breakfast meetup in London on the Friday morning of Camp, where ladies can roll up on their 125s (and any other size bike, we don’t discriminate) and find other people to ride with to Camp. In 2017 we went to the meetup at House of Vans in Waterloo, grabbed a coffee and a bap and met three other women who were flying solo and formed a little riding gang. The journey didn’t start particularly well, as Roz blew a gasket almost immediately (but luckily had spares and could change em’ over) and one of the girls with us broke down about 15 minutes into the ride. After seeing to it that the AA was on its way to her, the four of us hit the road again.
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Ride in a gang!
Riding in a group of four was good fun, especially when we stopped for breaks but we did find it tricky at times as people inevitably get held up and lost. We spent a lot of time trying to relocate our gang and it was a little stressful at times. Roz and I had had the foresight to hire some mics for the journey so that we could keep in contact but they were entirely the wrong kind and we heard nothing over the wind. Since then we have bought a pair of SENA intercom radios and those are brilliant so if you can get your hands on some of those, I would highly recommend. They don’t look very cool but what kind of a price can you put on being able to chat shit to your pal and point out the horses and sheep along the way?! On our way back to London at the end of the weekend we did the journey just the two of us and that was much more manageable.
Prep for the weather
The weather was bizarre on our way up and we had all four seasons in one day. My pro tip would be to get your waterproofs on before you set off, EVEN if it looks like the most glorious day. The rain WILL come and you will get a soggy bottom. Sod’s law meant that as soon as we stopped and got them on, the rain subsided and the sun was back. Classic UK. Waterproofs over wet trousers also ends up creating a strange damp microclimate - I wouldn’t recommend it!
Plan your route (even though I didn’t)
We hadn’t planned a route at all and rather just decided to see where the map took us, which worked out fine for the most part. We were riding along some pretty amazing A roads (two thirds of our group not being allowed on the motorway) which Google just happened to take us along. Unfortunately, we made the mistake of only entering in the name of the farm and NOT the postcode and guess what, it turns out there are two farms in South Wales called Berthlwyd Farm. So we ended up at a very nice Welsh cattle famer’s property (he insisted on showing us all his prize cows) and added on 45 mins to our journey. This wasn’t the best at the end of a day’s riding but we found the right place in the end. Lesson learned - plan your route a little bit better and use the damn postcode!
“Live for the ride! The journey is a marathon and not a sprint. “
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Live for the ride innit!
The journey is a marathon and not a sprint. It takes hours and is pretty gruelling but you will feel amazing once you get to Camp VC and the sense of achievement hugely outweighs the tiredness. Just make sure that you take a lot of breaks on the way up, have all the snacks with you and don’t get toooo distracted by the amazing countryside. A lot of people say that you shouldn’t ride a 125cc across far distances but that’s bollocks. People ride bicycles across countries and around the world! Yes, it is slow going and you can’t get much above 55mph but to be honest, you really don’t need to on an A road. And don’t ever feel pressured by other vehicles. If you find a long train of cars are building up behind you, don’t stress - just wait for a clear stretch of road and pull over to the left a bit and let them by.
P// AMANDA FORDYCE