I had a Continuing Education Seminar to attend in Bowling Green, Kentucky on Monday....and the weather was great so I rode the little Ninja.
I rode the back roads rather than taking the interstate, and I was able to turn a 3.5 hour trip into a 6 your trip! I took Route 68 from the Blue Lick Battlefield area down through Harrodsburg, then I took 152 over to the Bluegrass Parkway to 65 South - the trip was 243 miles. The Ninja and I got a room for the night that was about 10 miles north of Bowling Green - I am always a bit nervous when I have to park my motorcycle outside - but on this night we were warm and cozy in our room!
The trip was the longest I ever took on the Ninja with the goal of getting somewhere, and it did great. I got 71 mpg on the 60 mph back roads, and when I did the superslab the traffic mandated 75 mph to keep from getting run over, and the mileage dropped to 58 mpg. The only issue I had was the small windscreen deflects the air off my body and right at my helmet, and the warm weather seemed to bring a lot of small bugs out. I had to stop several times to clean the bugs off my face shield - they were so thick that I just couldn't see anymore.
This would have been a much more enjoyable ride if I didn't have to ride most of it in the dark - but unfortunately the sun sets too soon this time of the year. I left Bowling Green at 5:30 PM and didn't make it home until midnight.....so 4 of those 6 hours riding was in the dark. It was a really nice night as the sky was clear, the moon was big and bright and most of the time I was riding straight toward it.....it was really a pretty night to be riding. I don't know if we will get any more 70-80 degree days this year - but I sure tried to take advantage of the last 2!