A lifetime in. Still not done.
We sat down with Alan Jones — rider, tinkerer, and the person behind Motorcycles & Legends — to talk about how it started, what he rides for, and why he never takes the direct route home.
Q&A: Alan Jones
This site exists because I got tired of reviews that read like press releases and route guides that never mention the potholes. Everything here is ridden, tested, and written up honestly — including, apparently, my own backstory.
Q How long have you been riding?
Since childhood, if I'm honest. As kids we used to take old mopeds and scooters and ride them along disused railway tracks in the neighbourhood, and go scrambling on whatever we could get running. We taught ourselves to fix them because we broke them constantly — I must have been around 13 at the time. That's really where it all started, long before it ever became anything more serious.
Q What got you into motorcycling?
I come from a motorcycling family. My father was a keen rider — he didn't even buy a car until he had three children, because the sidecar simply wasn't big enough anymore! My brother had bikes too, so loving them was just logical for me. For some reason my father didn't encourage it in me quite as much as he did with my brother — probably because I was a little more reckless. What he didn't know was that whenever they weren't home, I was out enjoying the open road on my brother's Honda. He never found out; he just couldn't work out why it used so much fuel! A little later, when I left home and got married, I got my licence properly — so my wife could use the car and I could take the motorcycle to work. It meant we could both stay mobile without needing two cars, and it turned out to be a far cheaper way to get around.
Q What's your riding style?
Sport bikes and super nakeds used to be my daily language — I like a chassis that talks back on a clean set of corners. There's the occasional enduro when the tarmac runs out, plus a classic or two sitting in the saddle for days I want soul over sense. I'm chasing the next pass these days on a KTM 1390 Super Adventure S Evo — it can be ridden like any all-road bike, or a super hooligan, depending on my mood.
Q Favourite places to ride?
Anywhere with switchbacks and no traffic. I really enjoy the Alps, the Dolomites and the Pyrenees, and try to get a few rides there each year. I also enjoy coastal roads like the ones in Croatia, for the beautiful views out to the islands and the inviting sea — where you can stop and just jump in, right there in secluded bays. The Ardennes are close to home and always deliver — the Belgium/Luxembourg Taster is basically my regular loop at this point. But coast roads have surprised me the most; there's a stretch on the Croatia coast road I'd ride every weekend if I lived closer.
Q What are you riding right now?
A KTM 1390 Super Adventure S Evo — it's actually this week's Bike of the Week, and no, that's not a coincidence. I've put more km on it in six months than some bikes see in their lifetime.
Q Advice for someone starting out?
Don't ride at someone else's pace. Practice the things you're weak at the most until they're second nature, put lots of kilometres on — every kilometre is a kilometre more experience. Don't trust cars even if they're indicating, and don't overtake near junctions or blind turns. Stay true to your feelings — if you're nervous or tired just take a break and regroup. The roads will wait for you. A well planned and executed ride should make you, not break you.
Q What do you ride for, if not the top speed?
Not the top speed. Not the badge on the tank. I ride for the feeling after a mountain pass when your heart is still beating strongly, and the stunning views and smiles of your riding buddies make it more than worth the while. Everything I write about — bikes, gear, routes — gets judged against that one feeling.