The forecast said twenty-four. It was thirty-one by ten in the morning, and ninety-one people had already committed to riding across Warsaw in wool.
This is the bargain of a gentleman's ride. You dress properly, you ride slowly in formation, you raise money, and for about four hours the city looks at motorcycles as something other than a nuisance. The dress code is not a gimmick. It is the entire mechanism. Nobody photographs a hundred bikes in textile jackets.
What actually turned up
More BMW K-series than anyone expected. Six of them, all brat or cafe conversions, which says everything about where the cheap-donor market has gone in Poland. Five years ago this would have been a field of Hondas.
Beyond that: three Thruxtons, a very correct Norton Commando that sounded better than everything else combined, a pair of W650s, several Guzzis, and one immaculate CB550 whose owner had ridden it four hours to get here.
The route
Forty-two kilometres, starting on the west side, over the river, a long loop through the centre and back. With an escort you run every light, which sounds like a luxury until you realise it means an air-cooled engine never gets a chance to cool down.
Average speed was under 30km/h. That is the part nobody warns you about. A bike that is perfectly happy on the motorway can cook itself in a slow parade, and several did.
A bike that is perfectly happy at 120 on the motorway will cook itself in a parade. Ours boiled at every single light.
What broke
Two bikes dropped out, both electrical, and both — pointedly — the newest machines present. One modern retro with an immobiliser that decided the key was no longer valid, and one that simply stopped charging. The forty-year-old bikes all made it home.
Our own K100 did not break, but it boiled at every light from kilometre twelve onwards, which is a fan problem we have since fixed and written about.
Worth doing?
Yes, and not really for the riding. Forty-two kilometres at parade speed is not a ride. It is a moving exhibition, and the value is entirely in who you meet at either end of it.
Three of the builds we have covered since came out of conversations in that car park.
The day in numbers
| Riders | Registered and started | 91 |
|---|---|---|
| Finishers | Made it to the end point | 88 |
| Distance | Full escorted route | 42 km |
| Average speed | Parade pace, every light run | 28 km/h |
| Temperature | Peak, in wool | 31 C |
| Breakdowns | Both electrical, both modern bikes | 2 |
| BMW K-series | The surprise of the day | 6 |
Common questions
Do you need a classic bike to join the Warsaw ride?
No. The dress code matters more than the machine. Modern bikes are welcome, though a cafe racer, brat or scrambler will feel more at home in the photographs.
How hot is too hot for tweed?
Thirty degrees is survivable while you are moving. It is the traffic lights that get you. A linen waistcoat instead of wool is a legitimate choice and nobody will challenge you on it.
Why do air-cooled bikes overheat on escorted rides?
Because you never stop moving but you never go fast either. Average speed sits under 30km/h, so there is not enough airflow to shed heat, and the engine never gets the cool-down a normal stop would give it.
When is the next Warsaw ride?
May. Registration caps at around a hundred riders and fills quickly, so sign up as soon as it opens rather than the week before.
Where can I see more of this build?
The full photo set for every build is on Instagram at @ironandgasolineofficial, and questions get answered there.
Got a question about this build, or built one yourself? The conversation happens on Instagram — the full photo set for this bike is up there, and I answer everything in the comments.
Join the thread on Instagram
