Rider in Wuhan Seeking Bike Advice

Hi All,
Myself and a couple of mates are planning a trip this summer and i was hoping i could mine your collective brains on which bike to buy.
I rode a Qing Qi 200 GY for a couple of years, when i lived n Shandong, but unfortunately i sold it to move here. That bike served me very well (apart from the spokes) and i can buy one here in Wuhan (though more expensively).
Im just wondering if there is something better or as good out there and available to buy in/near Wuhan.
Im going for a dirt bike as i like camping and my budget is from 7 - 12,00 ish RMB.
All ideas are welcome. And if anyone is near or planning to come to Wuhan please get in touch.

Cheers in advance

i may be biased because i have one, but i think the Galaxy XTR 250 is a great bike!

12,000 RMB will buy you a 2009 model which i strongly recommend over the 08 model (first year of production, engine forks and hubs often broke, all sorted now with better parts)

I bought mine in yizheng (near nanjing) from the jiangsu dealer and rode it home to suzhou. it'd be a bit further for you but still very doable.

I first had the dirt wheels but then swopped for the 17" motard wheels (come with taiwanese rubber) and don't regret it, they're so much fun around corners!

let me know if you want the contact for the shop or have questions about the bike...

Felix, you got any pics of you and your ride?

CC

yeah here's one!
http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/e.../R0010918a.jpg

i posted a couple more in the pictures thread:
http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...hp?t=97&page=3

i don't have any pics of me beside the bike, but it is pretty tall.

with the moto-x wheels i couldn't get both feet on the ground; now with the smaller motard wheels i can, but just about!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MGAlbion

Hi All,
Myself and a couple of mates are planning a trip this summer and i was hoping i could mine your collective brains on which bike to buy.
I rode a Qing Qi 200 GY for a couple of years, when i lived n Shandong, but unfortunately i sold it to move here. That bike served me very well (apart from the spokes) and i can buy one here in Wuhan (though more expensively).
Im just wondering if there is something better or as good out there and available to buy in/near Wuhan.
Im going for a dirt bike as i like camping and my budget is from 7 - 12,00 ish RMB.
All ideas are welcome. And if anyone is near or planning to come to Wuhan please get in touch.

Cheers in advance

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Greetings From Thailand,

I will soon be living & working in Wuhan on a long term contract. How is Wuhan & the surrounding area for motorcycling?

From 2008 ~ 2009 I was in Xinhui (Guangdong, Jiangmen) and had a Jialing JH600. Nice bike in some ways but wouldn't buy another one. I am considering QingQi 250 (Liger or Sport), a Galaxy XTR 250 or possibly a Lifeng DD250G-2.

I kind of like the dual sport and/or super motored types as I can go most everywhere rather than stuck on the street.

Any info and feedback will be most appreciated.

Hey, Bob, I had the feeling after you moved to Pattaya that you'd turned your back on China for good. How you are moving to one of so-called "three great furnaces" (the others being Chongqing and Nanjing)! I don't know much about riding in Wuhan, but it should be good if you can get out of town, since Hubei basically marks the westermost limit of the vast Yantzte River flood plain. This is why the Three Gorges Dam is just upriver from Wuhan. The word "gorges" alone should get your juices flowing, though of course those particular three gorges have all been inundated in a couple hundred meters of silt-(and pollution-)laden river water...

Here's part of the wikipedia entry on Hubei:

Quote:

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The Jianghan Plain takes up most of central and eastern Hubei, while the west and the peripheries are more mountainous, with ranges such as the Wudang Mountains, the Jingshan Mountains, the Daba Mountains, and the Wu Mountains (in rough north-to-south order). The Dabie Mountains lie to the northeast of the Janghan Plain, on the border with Henan and Anhui; the Tongbai Mountains lie to the north on the border with Henan; to the southeast, the Mufu Mountains form the border with Jiangxi. The highest peak in Hubei is Shennong Peak, found in the Daba Mountains and in the forestry area of Shennongjia; it has an altitude of 3105 m.

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What takes you there?

Keep us posted!

cheers


Lots of people say good things about Wuhan, which has a culture all its own and lots of revolutionary and strategic history. Very spicy food.

My wife is from Xiangfan which is in northwest Hubei. I've made a few trips to Wuhan and found it to be very polluted, much worse than other places I've been in China. We didn't ride the motorcycle there as many of her friends said the city is pretty strict about the no motorcycle law. Other than that, we have ridden all over Hubei, and can say there is some fantastic riding on the west side. Roads are not quite at the level of some of the eastern provinces, but they're advancing fast, so I'm sure you will find some lovely places to go. I would go for the JH600 again, you're going to need the speed to break free of the city and get to the good stuff.

Average pollution day, looking across the Yangtze from our hotel room. The water and air were absolutely disgusting.

http://www.contactdi.com/2011/CX12282.jpg

Western side of Hubei, somewhere between Wudangshan and Shennongjia. Stunning scenery, roads and villages. Loved this part of Hubei.

http://www.contactdi.com/2011/CX12609.jpg

Good luck with the move and welcome back to China!

Cheers!
ChinaV

By the way, Bob, what do you plan to do with the 1200 Sportster?

cheers

Hi Bob,

Its been a while since i was on the site. Thanks for dragging me back in with your post.

I'll welcome you to Wuhan in advance. Im still here and there are a few other riders here. Let me know when you get here and i'll be happy to show you around, run you through the place and have a drink. Dont let ChinaV's Wuhan pollution pic put you off; its only as bad as that on days with an A in them!!! Seriously, It can be bad, but its not always bad. And as he rightly said, there are some lovely places on the doorstep. Motorbikes are banned here, but Wuhan is fairly... unregulated, and ive never been stopped as i tooter about on my Zhongshan Sierra (6000km plus and no trouble).

It might, however, seem a bit boring compared to Pattaya!!

Cheers

Quote:

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Originally Posted by euphonius

By the way, Bob, what do you plan to do with the 1200 Sportster?

cheers

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I'll be keeping the XR1200... It's a classic & I got it 1 year old with only 1000km on the odometer for 1/2 the price of a new one. :riding:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by euphonius

Hey, Bob, I had the feeling after you moved to Pattaya that you'd turned your back on China for good. How you are moving to one of so-called "three great furnaces" (the others being Chongqing and Nanjing)! I don't know much about riding in Wuhan, but it should be good if you can get out of town, since Hubei basically marks the westermost limit of the vast Yantzte River flood plain. This is why the Three Gorges Dam is just upriver from Wuhan. The word "gorges" alone should get your juices flowing, though of course those particular three gorges have all been inundated in a couple hundred meters of silt-(and pollution-)laden river water...

Here's part of the wikipedia entry on Hubei:



What takes you there?

Keep us posted!

cheers


Lots of people say good things about Wuhan, which has a culture all its own and lots of revolutionary and strategic history. Very spicy food.

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Greetings Euphonius & Thanks For The Info,

I'm a contract worker with my permanent home in Thailand (house outside Pattaya & house/rice farm in Surin). I have worked all over the world but in the past 7 years mostly in Asia & The Middle East. Most recently I was Quality Director for Foster Wheeler building boilers for export to projects all over the world. I will have a similar position in Wuhan for 2 ~ 5 years.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ChinaV

My wife is from Xiangfan which is in northwest Hubei. I've made a few trips to Wuhan and found it to be very polluted, much worse than other places I've been in China. We didn't ride the motorcycle there as many of her friends said the city is pretty strict about the no motorcycle law. Other than that, we have ridden all over Hubei, and can say there is some fantastic riding on the west side. Roads are not quite at the level of some of the eastern provinces, but they're advancing fast, so I'm sure you will find some lovely places to go. I would go for the JH600 again, you're going to need the speed to break free of the city and get to the good stuff.

Average pollution day, looking across the Yangtze from our hotel room. The water and air were absolutely disgusting.

http://www.contactdi.com/2011/CX12282.jpg

Western side of Hubei, somewhere between Wudangshan and Shennongjia. Stunning scenery, roads and villages. Loved this part of Hubei.

http://www.contactdi.com/2011/CX12609.jpg

Good luck with the move and welcome back to China!

Cheers!
ChinaV

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Greetings ChinaV & Thanks For The Info,

Air/water pollution is a very serious problem in most of the industrialized areas of China The air in Xinhui on a bad day was sort of like sucking on the tailpipe of an old city bus. On a good day it was beautiful. I may try one of those scrubber units for my apartment once I get there so I get some air minus all the other "stuff".

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MGAlbion

Hi Bob,

Its been a while since i was on the site. Thanks for dragging me back in with your post.

I'll welcome you to Wuhan in advance. Im still here and there are a few other riders here. Let me know when you get here and i'll be happy to show you around, run you through the place and have a drink. Dont let ChinaV's Wuhan pollution pic put you off; its only as bad as that on days with an A in them!!! Seriously, It can be bad, but its not always bad. And as he rightly said, there are some lovely places on the doorstep. Motorbikes are banned here, but Wuhan is fairly... unregulated, and ive never been stopped as i tooter about on my Zhongshan Sierra (6000km plus and no trouble).

It might, however, seem a bit boring compared to Pattaya!!

Cheers

---

Greetings MGAlbion & Thanks For The Info,

I'll probably be there before the middle of next month & will be happy to meet with you.

Greetings All :clap:

I'm now living/working as Quality Director for Alstom / Wuhan Boiler Co., in South Eastern Wuhan out East of Optical Valley. I'm looking for a "good" dealer to buy a new Shinray XY250GY-4 Supermotard :scooter:

Attachment 4215

Any info would be most appreciated :riding:

Hi All,

I live in Wuhan and there is a bike market here where it should be possible to find. I also know of some Chinese contacts that could track something down easily. For 12,000 rmb I think its possible.

I know the comments here are somewhat old in some cases, hopefully you guys are still in Wuhan.

I have a KTM 450 exc bought used, it would be great to meet up somehow,

kind regards

Dear Bougie,

Greetings and welcome to the forum. Hope you are able to hook up with Bob S and perhaps other riders there in Wuhan, though one hears it's not the friendliest city toward motorcycles.

And how about posting up some pix of that KTM, an awesome bike and also a Chinabike by virtue of being in China. Were you able to get it registered? What's the latest dope on registration of motorcycles in and around Wuhan, especially larger displacement models?

Cheers!

Hi euphonius,

Thanks for the welcome. Yes I hope I can meet with them in Wuhan as well.

My bike isn't registered, and I don't have a stitch of paperwork with the bike (TIC) :icon10: I'm the third owner. It was probably smuggled in Guangdong area.
I imagine a hongbao filled with the red money might be helpful to find a way but I did not persue it yet. Maybe a granny riding a scooter could photocopy her documents to me ...

I will look for a link on a shanghai site which covers 2 ways to register larger bikes. The issue seems to be when it's time to reniew the registrations,

cheers


Attachment 6409

Hey Bougie

I am also based in Wuhan nice KTM!
I have been looking for bike shops or market as I'm after getting set up with a Chinese 150cc to get around on there
any chance of sharing the location with me.
also PM you good to know there is another biker in town

I was in wuhan for about 3 months. hated it, I ;lived on the 27th floor and normally couldnt see the ground.
you ask the children what colour the sky is and they say blue, but in 3 months it never once changed from grey. so i guess they see the photo shopped pictures of wuhan as see the blue sky that way.

and lastly, my employer was a cock, so I left (NDI).

My bikes perm home is north in anhui, but in 3 months i didnt even bother to bring it down as parking would have been a pain as I lived in a shopping complex, riding would have been a pain as police were everywhere and if they ever stopped filling motorbike tanks at petrol stations there, i would have been in a mess (i belive it has been threatened once or twice by wuhan government)

so i left there and went to..... hangzhou, just as anti bike a place as any. plan to go back to hefei in summer and just stay there for the rest of my time here (low pay but easy life)

Lightend

I agree with you about the Sky in Wuhan this's city should be re spelt (雾汉）Wu meaning Fog lol

Work wise things are kinda cool for me although I would not choose Wuhan as my city of choice I must be honest after a 14 months here now it's kinda grown on me ....in a nice way I add.

There are despite what people think some really nice places here I have discovered.

East lake is very nice in spring / summer
and some other nice tourist places too.
Also a few decent bars here too!


I had far less problem than I imagined getting a bike here and all at very reasonable cost including registration and plate.

The traffic like most Chinese cities now is a disaster although with the new Metro line opened and more to come travelling around is much easier for general folk but without my bike and riding to work each day I would have been resigned to Taxis to get around.

I also live in a shopping complex and park the bike in the B1 it's safe and easy for me.
as for cops here I found actually its super free I read Wuhan wasn't bike friendly sure you can't register bikes and officially there should not be many however reality is there is loads here mostly moto taxis

i registered my bike in an out city so it has hubei plate I can ride on elevated roads ring roads over bridges in fact anywhere the cops couldnt give a #%$# I only got stopped once since I got here (trying to turn left at no left turn junction in front of cop) played the only speak English trick showed licence and was waved on.

Cameras here but the take photo head on so can't see the plate I checked the traffic compurt system No recorded instances from my daily trips over the bridge the traffic rules here are virtually non existant so all in all my feeling is although on paper this city is anti bike in fact is actually a great place for bikes if you ride with the mindset no one will follow any kind of traffic rules.

Im also not a Hangzhou Fan visited many times

I may sound like a Wuhan PR guy it's not a pretty city but on biking terms from my year here it's cool but I guess it's kinda like any city you either like or hate it based your your own experiences living there.

Also met some great people here riding a bike in China is a challenge more so for a foreigner but one you get your bike and actually get on the road its worth all the effort!

Hows is Hefei you are riding there?

Bob

You have nailed it there Astroboy; the police dont generally give 2 hoots whats going on. And when they do have crack-downs, they always put their 'road blocks' in the same place.
Which part of Wuhan are you in? Im in Hankou, not far from the train station. What are you riding? Im just riding a Harley at the moment after my Sierra was nicked.

Hi MGAlbion

i am in Hankou near Railway Station if you have a Harley I may have seen you at some point I saw one near where I live not too long ago there can't be that many in Wuhan ;-)

Im riding something more local a Qiangjiang 150-C got on Hubei plates I use my bike most days to get to and from work and weekends and evenings (as long as im not planning drinking lol)

Had the bike around 9 months now beats taking taxis or squeezing on the Metro I'm just selling my Aprilia RST 1000 back in UK as not used it for three years and can't see me going back anytime soon gonna miss it :-(

But still I'm on two wheels here which is great Wuhan is kinda cool for riding bikes like I said anything goes here.

Im in Brusells quite often if you know it and fancy chatting over a beer sometime

Astroboy66, I know the Brussels very well and im there a fair bit. My name is Neil; lets keep an eye out for each other. If i see you on your bike around the train station/ Wanda area, i'll try and flag you down! Do the same to me.

Hi MGAlbion,

I too am in Wuhan. I have been here 2 years now. I hooked up with Astroboy from this site late last year and we have become good friends.. Often going out and drinking a few, well, sometimes many beers. hehe
Let's hook up sometime!

Greg

Hi Greg, your reputation precedes you!

I met up with Astroboy the other day in the Brussles and he spoke of you (all good things)!

The weather is getting good for bike riding and outdoor beer drinking, so lets indeed hook up. Ive got Bob's number, so i'll give him a text and see about getting together for a ride or something.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by MGAlbion

Hi Greg, your reputation precedes you!

I met up with Astroboy the other day in the Brussles and he spoke of you (all good things)!

The weather is getting good for bike riding and outdoor beer drinking, so lets indeed hook up. Ive got Bob's number, so i'll give him a text and see about getting together for a ride or something.

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Hehe - sounds good, I look forward to it!

Greg