So why have I bought my first moto at the age of... well, let's just say mid-50s?
It's not a mid-life crisis. That came and went with little fuss and fanfare well over a decade ago. No, this is for purely practical reasons.
I spend a lot of time in Southern Spain. Axarquia region on the south coast, east of Malaga to be precise. When I'm there on my own, I use a bicycle to get around. When I'm there with my lovely wife, we hire a car. She has a "proper job", as she puts it, so she only gets there for the usual week-long holiday 4-5 times a year. But even so, we spend on average €1.5k on hire cars, which is nuts.
Using a bicycle is fine for my extended trips (usually a month at a time). We live in the mountains, about 5km from the coast, so it's a bit of a trek getting back home up the steep hills, but not too bad. Going further afield in the cooler months is fine, too, like a lunchtime trip to my favourite tapas bar in Nerja, but come the summer months, even getting home from the coast can be a killer. So it's neither practical nor safe to cycle distances in the hotter months (we're talking 40 degrees a lot of days!).
Plus, of course, we still need a hire car when my wife is over, as I can't really give her a backy!
Over the last year, I've looked at all the options.
Cars are expensive in Spain. For €5k at best, you'll get a 10-15 year high miler with a dubious history. For €2.5k, you are buying a money pit. And then there are the running costs, somewhere to park it when not in Spain, and so on. We quickly concluded a car wasn't an option.
Electric bikes. This is my first instinct. I have one in Ireland and love it. But storage is an issue, not to mention security when out and about. And then there is the cost. I suppose, given my long history riding them, I'm a bit of a bicycle snob. So I'd not be happy riding anything less than what can be bought for €3k. And we'd need two of them! And then, of course, my wife is not a keen cyclist.
I've never had a motorbike before, never even been on one. But my mind kept turning to them as the solution. After all, EVERYONE has one in Spain. The weather is generally great, they are super cheap to run, and the second-hand market is awash with them. So I started researching.
Not too popular in the UK and Ireland but massive across mainland Europe, the Piaggio Liberty 125 kept coming up in reviews. I asked around and no one had a bad word about them. I even got a try on one as it turned out a guy who lived nearby had just got one himself and he let me have a go. So, after chatting with him (a proper biker back in the UK) and trying it out, I concluded this was the bike for me.
It was time to start checking out the used second-hand market.
As luck would have it, someone in my village was selling one on behalf of a friend who had returned to the UK. I went, had a look, had a try, the price was right, so I tried to do a deal. But it didn't happen. I was not sure what was going on, but the owner was very reluctant to communicate with me, so I soon knocked that one on the head.
Maybe consider new? I'd not looked at new prices. Not sure what I thought they'd be, but I certainly didn't expect the low price.
A new Piaggio Liberty 125 has a base price of €2500. Add €300 for registration and then a few hundred more for a couple of helmets and a top box. And for under €3k you're on the road on a brand new moto, with four years ITV (Spain's version of the MOT) and a full warranty. Bingo! Order placed and deposit paid. I collect it in July when I'm next in Spain.
As mentioned, I've never ridden a motorbike before. But I've been riding bicycles, on and off-road, all my life, so being on the road on two wheels doesn't worry me, especially when it's only powered by 125cc with 11 horsepower!
What will be interesting is the first time we use it for longer trips, with me up front and my wife on the back. That'll be an experience. Hopefully a good one!
Expect more blog posts about it once I get it. Or, expect to see it listed for sale soon after!