Made my way down to S. Florida for some warmer weather. Took an 85 Honda Elite 150 and an 86 Honda Elite 250. The former was a bit of a basket case whereas the 250 was a daily that needed some TLC. Did enough testing with them up north to clock 58-59 mph on GPS for the 150 and about 72-73 on GPS for the bigger one. Doing some rough numbers and looking at the Florida Keys 1000, figured the 10 required fuel stops 100 miles away from each other would gobble up an honest hour, so a moving average in 23 hours would be 43.5 mph.
Both bikes could do that speed comfortably all day, at least in theory, especially with full synthetic in the engines and thicker 75w90 in the gearbox along with fresh coolant. Strapped em both down and made my way. Picked up a 61 y/o buddy who was closer to 200 lbs along the way so he could try his hand at it on the 250 while I figured I'd rough it on the 150 since I'm lighter. The 250 did get new rollers with near stock weights while the 150 got a new belt since it was pretty wore. Both bikes sported $6 milk crates on the back luggage racks so we could bring snacks, water, sunblock and an empty gas can should 2 gallon fuel tanks somehow not be able to yield 100 miles.
Looking at the 3 days we had to try it, it looked like the best we could get was a 12 hour dry run followed by projections from all over the Keys of significant rain for the next day or 2. Hydrated and ate, we got ready that morning to give it a shot with both bikes topped off. We had an initial start point at around the half way point, figuring if we ran into issues we would, at most be 50 miles from where we would want to be. Warmed up the bikes and went west to Key West.
Jim on the 250 is a very experienced rider, MSF instructor, Bonneville Land Speed racer, former roadracer, dabbles in many 2 wheel forms basically. He said it was smooth sailing for him, which it seemed to be as crosswinds over the infamous 7 mile bridge didn't seem to move him around as much as it did me. The 150, with a couple inches shorter wheelbase and about 50 lbs lighter danced a bit more. Even fully tucked in to get my head out of the wind it was what it was. Lively and really kept you focused on the task at hand, which was staying full throttle getting a best of 62-63 on longer downhill sections.....which was enough to not have the car in front pull away but not be able to shake the car behind me either. Some mental math told me if I could mantain close to 60 on the longer sections it would help compensate for potential traffic or congestion in the slower parts between bridges. Let me tell you, having it that topped out for majority of those 50 miles (certain sections dropped to 45 but 55 sections meant full throttle and some tucking) I was impressed with the engine not missing a beat.
Somewhere around the Key West section as we stretched and putted around in town I noticed my speedometer stopped working. Cable was still attached to the speedo drive so it was likely a problem with something coming loose inside the back of the speedo assy. I asked Jim how his situation was and he said the motor seemed more noisy. We checked oil level and it seemed ok. No smoking .... figured without a functioning speedo there is no functioning odometer for the 150....so we basically called it quits and just rode to enjoy the scenery.
Some interesting fuel consumption data we found was that given how often the 150 was pegged out we would routinely top off gas and note we were within 0.1 gallons of each other. So even though the 250 isn't as fuel efficient....at the top speed of a 150, its pretty evenly matched. Certainly the 250 is the better vehicle for attempting 1000 miles in 24 hours but I figured it would be more bragging rights and "gangsta" to tough it out on the 150.
Some thoughts on a probable 2nd attempt in the future:
1) Windshields. Approaching 24 hours of continuous riding wears you out. My previous iron butts was on a sport touring sportbike with a taller windshield. Does wonders for fatigue and just blasting around for an hour or 2 topped out I could see how fatigue could ramp up faster than initially projected. So long as the 150 doesn't lose much if any speed may give it a shot. I can't afford to have the 150 even lose 1 or 2 mph truth be told without holding up traffic though should the windshield steal aero. Sitting up sometimes and tucking in and logging how much/little speed dropped, I think it won't make much difference.
2) A 3 to 4 hour mini-tour on each prior to going to iron out all the little bugs. I think in the back of my mind so long as I was in the keys enjoying myself I didn't feel as pressured to complete it. But its a long drive back and I think next outing I want to ensure everything goes smoothly.
3) Shaving down the seat bump in the middle between rider and passenger section. The 150 already has a torn seat so it would be easy to justify trying it on that one. There were times when I wanted to stretch out and if I sat where the passenger sat then my right leg couldn't reach the rear brake pedal without scooting back up. I think over the long haul a touch more creature comfort will pay off big. Sitting ON the hump is doable but not super fun for longer distances. Jim said he could live with the 250's seat and its not all torn up so will likely leave that alone.
4) More stretching. While the run was short lived, if I had to do that for 24 hours I could see back fatigue setting in. There is nowhere to lean forward on like a fuel tank and you can't lean back against something like you can on the Honda Helix 250.
5) Blocking off a week instead of 3 days to try it. More days would in theory allow for cherry picking a dry 24 hour section. Also allows for more relax time before trying it. Driving 1200 miles to then try 1000 miles on a scooter isn't optimal.
All in all good times. Trying to upload photos but keeps saying they are too large.
A.
Both bikes could do that speed comfortably all day, at least in theory, especially with full synthetic in the engines and thicker 75w90 in the gearbox along with fresh coolant. Strapped em both down and made my way. Picked up a 61 y/o buddy who was closer to 200 lbs along the way so he could try his hand at it on the 250 while I figured I'd rough it on the 150 since I'm lighter. The 250 did get new rollers with near stock weights while the 150 got a new belt since it was pretty wore. Both bikes sported $6 milk crates on the back luggage racks so we could bring snacks, water, sunblock and an empty gas can should 2 gallon fuel tanks somehow not be able to yield 100 miles.
Looking at the 3 days we had to try it, it looked like the best we could get was a 12 hour dry run followed by projections from all over the Keys of significant rain for the next day or 2. Hydrated and ate, we got ready that morning to give it a shot with both bikes topped off. We had an initial start point at around the half way point, figuring if we ran into issues we would, at most be 50 miles from where we would want to be. Warmed up the bikes and went west to Key West.
Jim on the 250 is a very experienced rider, MSF instructor, Bonneville Land Speed racer, former roadracer, dabbles in many 2 wheel forms basically. He said it was smooth sailing for him, which it seemed to be as crosswinds over the infamous 7 mile bridge didn't seem to move him around as much as it did me. The 150, with a couple inches shorter wheelbase and about 50 lbs lighter danced a bit more. Even fully tucked in to get my head out of the wind it was what it was. Lively and really kept you focused on the task at hand, which was staying full throttle getting a best of 62-63 on longer downhill sections.....which was enough to not have the car in front pull away but not be able to shake the car behind me either. Some mental math told me if I could mantain close to 60 on the longer sections it would help compensate for potential traffic or congestion in the slower parts between bridges. Let me tell you, having it that topped out for majority of those 50 miles (certain sections dropped to 45 but 55 sections meant full throttle and some tucking) I was impressed with the engine not missing a beat.
Somewhere around the Key West section as we stretched and putted around in town I noticed my speedometer stopped working. Cable was still attached to the speedo drive so it was likely a problem with something coming loose inside the back of the speedo assy. I asked Jim how his situation was and he said the motor seemed more noisy. We checked oil level and it seemed ok. No smoking .... figured without a functioning speedo there is no functioning odometer for the 150....so we basically called it quits and just rode to enjoy the scenery.
Some interesting fuel consumption data we found was that given how often the 150 was pegged out we would routinely top off gas and note we were within 0.1 gallons of each other. So even though the 250 isn't as fuel efficient....at the top speed of a 150, its pretty evenly matched. Certainly the 250 is the better vehicle for attempting 1000 miles in 24 hours but I figured it would be more bragging rights and "gangsta" to tough it out on the 150.
Some thoughts on a probable 2nd attempt in the future:
1) Windshields. Approaching 24 hours of continuous riding wears you out. My previous iron butts was on a sport touring sportbike with a taller windshield. Does wonders for fatigue and just blasting around for an hour or 2 topped out I could see how fatigue could ramp up faster than initially projected. So long as the 150 doesn't lose much if any speed may give it a shot. I can't afford to have the 150 even lose 1 or 2 mph truth be told without holding up traffic though should the windshield steal aero. Sitting up sometimes and tucking in and logging how much/little speed dropped, I think it won't make much difference.
2) A 3 to 4 hour mini-tour on each prior to going to iron out all the little bugs. I think in the back of my mind so long as I was in the keys enjoying myself I didn't feel as pressured to complete it. But its a long drive back and I think next outing I want to ensure everything goes smoothly.
3) Shaving down the seat bump in the middle between rider and passenger section. The 150 already has a torn seat so it would be easy to justify trying it on that one. There were times when I wanted to stretch out and if I sat where the passenger sat then my right leg couldn't reach the rear brake pedal without scooting back up. I think over the long haul a touch more creature comfort will pay off big. Sitting ON the hump is doable but not super fun for longer distances. Jim said he could live with the 250's seat and its not all torn up so will likely leave that alone.
4) More stretching. While the run was short lived, if I had to do that for 24 hours I could see back fatigue setting in. There is nowhere to lean forward on like a fuel tank and you can't lean back against something like you can on the Honda Helix 250.
5) Blocking off a week instead of 3 days to try it. More days would in theory allow for cherry picking a dry 24 hour section. Also allows for more relax time before trying it. Driving 1200 miles to then try 1000 miles on a scooter isn't optimal.
All in all good times. Trying to upload photos but keeps saying they are too large.
A.
That said, Key West would not be my first choice. It gets slower and slower the closer you get to KW. Good luck on any future attempts! And watch out for the mythical Key Deer.