WW3 survival bike for an elderly(ish) 5’1” tall lady

[UKbiker2024]

This probably isn’t the usual type of question which normally gets asked on here so please bear with me rambling and try not to snigger too much. As I am sure you are all already aware, war between NATO and BRICS countries is looking like a distinct possibility. Hopefully the idiots in charge will behave themselves and this situation will de-escalate without things getting too silly.

 

However as a lady who is responsible for the welfare other people and animals I refuse to be beaten by anything Putin or Xi throw at us. I feel it would be prudent to put a safety net in place now just in case things were to get out of hand later on. I expect if a large-scale war were to happen petrol would either be rationed or become prohibitively expensive.  

 

At the moment I drive a thirsty Ford Focus but I intend prepare for the worst by learning how to ride a small, fuel efficient motorbike which would enable me to stay mobile if petrol ever becomes a limited resource in the future. Despite my age and small stature (5’1”) I am strong and fit so I’m confident I would be able to safely ride a bike provided that it was small enough for me to fit on comfortably.

 

I live in a small town in southern England and need transport to get to the local shops and to reach a local piece of farmland a few miles away where I keep some rescue horses and a few chickens. A small 125cc motorbike or scooter would probably suit me fine. I never travel far or drive on roads with a speed limit higher than 30mph (I wouldn’t feel safe going fast on a bike anyway). Most of my driving is on local roads and rural country lanes but every now and then I occasionally need to cross a muddy field or drive along a gentle dirt track to access certain places. Nothing too serious or bumpy but I would need a bike which is capable of coping with a bit of very gentle off-road riding from time to time (as you can tell I’m not your typical namby pamby old women hoho!)

 

My requirements for a bike are;
- It must have good reliability and be low maintenance.
- Be economical to run.
- Have a wide availability of spare parts.
- It needs to be small enough for me to fit on.
- It needs to allow the fitment of some kind of rack or box on the back to put things in.
- It needs to be able to cross a muddy field and ride up a horses bridle path.

 

After researching on the internet I initially thought the Honda CT125 would be ideal for my needs but unfortunately it is not available here in England. It is possible to get one imported but then I would be concerned about getting spare parts for maintenance and repairs. Getting replacement parts sent over from another country is be straight forward enough at the moment but if Putin and Xi start misbehaving international shipping may become very slow or even non-existent in the future. This has forced me to disregard the CT125 as an option.

 

Another bike which I think might be small enough for me to comfortably fit on is a Honda Grom. There are videos of men riding them off-road on youtube so I imagine it would be fine traversing a muddy field or bridle path provided that it is not too bumpy (which they are not). Maybe some fatter tyres or some sort of protection underneath for the exhaust pipe would help here? I could probably fit something simple like bolt on a luggage rack to it myself and I have a good mobile-mechanic chap who would be able to help with any more complicated modifications if necessary.

 

Hopefully I haven’t bored you too much with my apocalyptic ramblings and you haven’t split your sides laughing at me. So thank you to everyone who has persevered thus far without clicking off. The actual questions which I would like to ask you are as follows;

 

1. Would a Grom be suitable for my requirements?
2. Are there any other bikes which would be suitable for my requirements?
3. If I buy a Grom what specific modifications (if any) would you advise?
4. I have never rode on a motorbike before. Is there anything else that I need to know?

 

Thank you all again for you patience and I look forward to hearing your responses.

 

Edited May 3, 2024 by UKbiker2024
typo

[curlylegend]

Madame, you've come to the right place for advice.  Just stick around and more knowledgeable people than me will be along to advise you. 

You sound like a true daughter of the Empire to me !

[dynax]

A grom would be a very fine choice, I have been lucky enough to see one in action recently, and it is a fine piece of equipment.

 

 

 

[Old-codger]

Just buy a honda C50 stepthru they have been around for fifty plus years do 100 miles to the gallon can be serviced by anyone and you can hang your shopping on the hook on the headstock.

[UKbiker2024]

41 minutes ago, Old-codger said:

Just buy a honda C50 stepthru they have been around for fifty plus years do 100 miles to the gallon can be serviced by anyone and you can hang your shopping on the hook on the headstock.

 

I have not looked at any older bikes but I would be happy to consider them provided they are reliable, low maintenance and still have freely available spare parts. I have seen on the internet that Honda now make a new C125 SuperCub bike which which is closely related to the CT125 which I disregarded earlier. Do you think the new C125 SuperCub would be suitable if I put a luggage rack on the back?

 

Or here is another (probably wacky) thought as an alternative idea. If I get a CT125 imported from America would it be possible to use parts from a C125 SuperCub (which are available here in England) and use them for maintenance and repairs if genuine CT125 parts later become impossible to get shipped over in the future?

Edited May 4, 2024 by UKbiker2024

[UKbiker2024]

After having just taken a look at C50 Cubs on Autotrader I agree that they look like they would be perfect for my needs. Much cheaper and more characterful than buying a new bike too!

 

I assume that spare parts are still widely available for them these days?

Edited May 4, 2024 by UKbiker2024

[S-Westerly]

If you are going all end of days apocalypse may I point out that the availability of petrol is likely to be severely curtailed. Oil refineries are high priority targets and burn very nicely. I'd be looking for a mule myself.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Take a look at a Suzuki VanVan. Very easy to ride and maintain. Big fat sand tyres which make them ideal on poor surfaces.

[UKbiker2024]

Just now, S-Westerly said:

If you are going all end of days apocalypse may I point out that the availability of petrol is likely to be severely curtailed. Oil refineries are high priority targets and burn very nicely. I'd be looking for a mule myself.

 

I do actually have a horse and cart. Hoho!

 

More realistically I think petrol is likely to become limited and expensive rather than not being available at all.

[keith1200rs]

Electric bike - then you can charge from wind/solar.

[Nick the wanderer]

As above my first thought was electric, and have a C90 as back up.  Have you built a shelter? How do you see events with everything panning out?

[husoi]

40 minutes ago, S-Westerly said:

If you are going all end of days apocalypse may I point out that the availability of petrol is likely to be severely curtailed. Oil refineries are high priority targets and burn very nicely. I'd be looking for a mule myself.

Goats (no pun intended) are much easier to feed and can carry small loads

[Tinkicker]

1970s honda trail 90.

 

Nothing with modern electronics will survive the EMP of multiple nuclear detonations.

Edited May 4, 2024 by Tinkicker

[UKbiker2024]

1 hour ago, Nick the wanderer said:

As above my first thought was electric, and have a C90 as back up.  Have you built a shelter? How do you see events with everything panning out?

 

29 minutes ago, Tinkicker said:

1970s honda trail 90.

 

Nothing with modern electronics will survive the EMP of multiple nuclear detonations.

 

If nuclear missiles start flying then motorbikes will be the least of our concerns. A much more likely situation which concerns me though is multiple wars in Europe, the Middle East and China which would probably disrupt international shipping and sent petrol prices to the moon.

[UKbiker2024]

I think I will probably buy a Honda C50. That looks perfect for me. Thank you for your help everyone.

[RideWithStyles]

i dont think a grom is suitable for a luggage rack (due to the extremely tiny dimensions of the bike plus lack of fixtures) unless you want to sit on it in place of the seat.

also the cost of them old ( apprication) or new (over priced toy) is a premium id put as bluntly sunday toy for childish nonsense... also parts wont be as easy to source.

 

id say a 125, something like we had a honda cbf125, cheap to buy and insure, 100+mpg, 

parts new or used cheap readly available, light and easy to ride, luggage options available, simple and easy to fix.

gets up to 60mph easy enough and you can keep with traffic where as its far scarier on a 50cc when you can only do 30 at a push on a flat and everyone baring down or passing you at great speeds, then your a slow tractor on any incline....

Edited May 4, 2024 by RideWithStyles

[skyrider]

17 hours ago, UKbiker2024 said:

This probably isn’t the usual type of question which normally gets asked on here so please bear with me rambling and try not to snigger too much. As I am sure you are all already aware, war between NATO and BRICS countries is looking like a distinct possibility. Hopefully the idiots in charge will behave themselves and this situation will de-escalate without things getting too silly.

 

However as a lady who is responsible for the welfare other people and animals I refuse to be beaten by anything Putin or Xi throw at us. I feel it would be prudent to put a safety net in place now just in case things were to get out of hand later on. I expect if a large-scale war were to happen petrol would either be rationed or become prohibitively expensive.  

 

At the moment I drive a thirsty Ford Focus but I intend prepare for the worst by learning how to ride a small, fuel efficient motorbike which would enable me to stay mobile if petrol ever becomes a limited resource in the future. Despite my age and small stature (5’1”) I am strong and fit so I’m confident I would be able to safely ride a bike provided that it was small enough for me to fit on comfortably.

 

I live in a small town in southern England and need transport to get to the local shops and to reach a local piece of farmland a few miles away where I keep some rescue horses and a few chickens. A small 125cc motorbike or scooter would probably suit me fine. I never travel far or drive on roads with a speed limit higher than 30mph (I wouldn’t feel safe going fast on a bike anyway). Most of my driving is on local roads and rural country lanes but every now and then I occasionally need to cross a muddy field or drive along a gentle dirt track to access certain places. Nothing too serious or bumpy but I would need a bike which is capable of coping with a bit of very gentle off-road riding from time to time (as you can tell I’m not your typical namby pamby old women hoho!)

 

My requirements for a bike are;
- It must have good reliability and be low maintenance.
- Be economical to run.
- Have a wide availability of spare parts.
- It needs to be small enough for me to fit on.
- It needs to allow the fitment of some kind of rack or box on the back to put things in.
- It needs to be able to cross a muddy field and ride up a horses bridle path.

 

After researching on the internet I initially thought the Honda CT125 would be ideal for my needs but unfortunately it is not available here in England. It is possible to get one imported but then I would be concerned about getting spare parts for maintenance and repairs. Getting replacement parts sent over from another country is be straight forward enough at the moment but if Putin and Xi start misbehaving international shipping may become very slow or even non-existent in the future. This has forced me to disregard the CT125 as an option.

 

Another bike which I think might be small enough for me to comfortably fit on is a Honda Grom. There are videos of men riding them off-road on youtube so I imagine it would be fine traversing a muddy field or bridle path provided that it is not too bumpy (which they are not). Maybe some fatter tyres or some sort of protection underneath for the exhaust pipe would help here? I could probably fit something simple like bolt on a luggage rack to it myself and I have a good mobile-mechanic chap who would be able to help with any more complicated modifications if necessary.

 

Hopefully I haven’t bored you too much with my apocalyptic ramblings and you haven’t split your sides laughing at me. So thank you to everyone who has persevered thus far without clicking off. The actual questions which I would like to ask you are as follows;

 

1. Would a Grom be suitable for my requirements?
2. Are there any other bikes which would be suitable for my requirements?
3. If I buy a Grom what specific modifications (if any) would you advise?
4. I have never rode on a motorbike before. Is there anything else that I need to know?

 

Thank you all again for you patience and I look forward to hearing your responses.

 

we have a diesel ford focus and it runs on fumes 

[Bender]

I would go old,  just look see what bikes are being used by the masses in Asia and run on a shoestring.

 

Honda super cub

[Nick the wanderer]

The Honda you are looking at also comes in a 70 and 90 cc. More cc's give you more power and that small increase could be beneficial with carrying anything you may want to move. 

[Tiggie]

On 04/05/2024 at 09:02, S-Westerly said:

If you are going all end of days apocalypse may I point out that the availability of petrol is likely to be severely curtailed. Oil refineries are high priority targets and burn very nicely. I'd be looking for a mule myself.

 

Oh god, we all going to become cyclists 

[Bender]

55 minutes ago, Tiggie said:

 

Oh god, we all going to become cyclists 

No, no we won't, but solar panels and a small electric zero might be handy.

 

The world will come to an end and we will end up speaking russian or Chinese cause if anyone has to pin there hopes on today's tiktok generation we are royally screwed.

 

Wife has already told me I'm not allowed to volunteer for anything should things go pear shaped, I would say at my age they wouldn't want me but I will be there claiming I'm 25  

[Pie man]

1 hour ago, Tiggie said:

 

Oh god, we all going to become cyclists 

[Geordie Oldie]

For the miles the OP is traveling and the speeds they require, an electric post apocalyptic bike makes more sense to me.

 

You can make your own electricity at home much easier than you can make your own petrol.

[Bender]

2 hours ago, Geordie Oldie said:

For the miles the OP is traveling and the speeds they require, an electric post apocalyptic bike makes more sense to me.

 

You can make your own electricity at home much easier than you can make your own petrol.

Yes because if you have to brew alcohol to run it I'm afraid I would just be drinking that