Motorcyclin'
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Oh - fuck, BTW... did I mention I tried the Napier-Taupo with its new 80km/h speed limit for the first time last weekend?
That's a fluffybunny.
Long-story short... in the process of passing a 40-vehicle long convoy, one of the vehicles I passed was a cop. Initially - quite hostile "it's 80k, didn't you know it was 80k, why are you passing everybody doing 80k, ... ?" - until I get off the bike, helmet off, become a human being, etc, etc... eventually - just a warning. Probably what they're doing with everybody with the new limit.
I'll probably be going via Gisborne to travel back to Rotorua next weekend. -
@antipodean said in Motorcyclin':
@Crazy-Horse minor damage, mainly cosmetic. Track bikes and dirt bikes, while you'd rather not drip them, it's not as bad as a road bike rumage sale. 😂
There's always stickers for "personalisation". This one hid a number of incident evidence on the Honda Rally....
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@antipodean said in Motorcyclin':
@Victor-Meldrew oh I'll definitely be back on the bikes as soon as I can bend my knee.
Here's some inspiration...
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Tempting....
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@Victor-Meldrew That is beautiful! See quite a few running around here in Japan. About 3 three years ago, I got my training wheels, (Honda CB 250 R) and with some friends have been discovering the areas around Honshu. Need to upgrade once the kids education is done. Yamaha XSR 700 or one of these.
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@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Motorcyclin':
@Victor-Meldrew That is beautiful! See quite a few running around here in Japan. About 3 three years ago, I got my training wheels, (Honda CB 250 R) and with some friends have been discovering the areas around Honshu.
Probably a bit too heavy for me. But I just love the way the Japanese companies are honouring their heritage.
This was my first bike (not the actual bike):
And this is the "heritage" version - there's alo a gloss paint job.Need to upgrade once the kids education is done. Yamaha XSR 700 or one of these.
I have a CB500X - brilliant all-rounder which I absolutely love - probably the best bike I've ever owned. Recommend it highly.
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Motorcyclin':
@Old-Samurai-Jack said in Motorcyclin':
@Victor-Meldrew That is beautiful! See quite a few running around here in Japan. About 3 three years ago, I got my training wheels, (Honda CB 250 R) and with some friends have been discovering the areas around Honshu.
Probably a bit too heavy for me. But I just love the way the Japanese companies are honouring their heritage.
This was my first bike (not the actual bike):
A CB750 K2 just went at auction for $42.5k dollarydoos (GB£24,000).
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BTW - I did one of the "Ride Forever" courses that NZ ACC is pushing at the moment...
I've been meaning to do one for a while, just to figure out what bad habits I've got - but really struggled to find a booking over summer. I figured out - it's because ACC had restarted their campaign to PAY attendees - rather than just subsidising it. If I can be arsed figuring out how to go about it - I think I get $100 off my rego this year, and another $100 off it next year.
Anyway....- Turns out all the bad habits I was worried I had... are actually good technique. Or at least - not bad.
- I'd looked up "trail braking" before the course, therefore had already realised... "oh... I'm allowed to do that... it's not actually a bad thing, it's an "advanced technique".
- And yeah - increasing brakes while cornering - probably not something I want to do too often, if I've judged the corner correctly in the first place... but not the end of the world if it does become necessary
- Sacrificing road position/view-through-the-corner - vs "I'm taking the line with the safest looking footing" (I'm thinking SH43/Forgotten-Highway - where typically my choice of line is based solely on how the gravel lies) - actually valid/correct "according to the book".
- My choosing a line dependent on oncoming-traffic vs cliffside vs ditch vs how-big-is-the-oncoming-traffic... not explicitly stated, but valid. There was some bullshit about a "bubble" - and I'm choosing to interpret my bubble as being more scared by some shit than others.
- Learnt one small trick - tracking the telephone poles... as a clue to where the road might go, beyond that ridge ahead where you can't actually see the road any more, but CAN see the telephone poles curve off to one side. Maybe not particularly useful 99% of the time, but...
- I'm still shit at u-turns. Just... really shit.
And as a bonus, at the end-of-day review at a petrol station picnic table - observed some gang violence. Involved, in chronological order: a fucking large machete, attempted vehicular murder/grievous bodily harm, successful vehicle-on-vehicle action, and a heap of chaps with red bandannas covering their faces coming to rescue their mate who seemed to have instigated it all.
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@Kruse said in Motorcyclin':
BTW - I did one of the "Ride Forever" courses that NZ ACC is pushing at the moment...
I've been meaning to do one for a while, just to figure out what bad habits I've got - but really struggled to find a booking over summer. I figured out - it's because ACC had restarted their campaign to PAY attendees - rather than just subsidising it. If I can be arsed figuring out how to go about it - I think I get $100 off my rego this year, and another $100 off it next year.
Anyway....- Turns out all the bad habits I was worried I had... are actually good technique. Or at least - not bad.
- I'd looked up "trail braking" before the course, therefore had already realised... "oh... I'm allowed to do that... it's not actually a bad thing, it's an "advanced technique".
- And yeah - increasing brakes while cornering - probably not something I want to do too often, if I've judged the corner correctly in the first place... but not the end of the world if it does become necessary
- Sacrificing road position/view-through-the-corner - vs "I'm taking the line with the safest looking footing" (I'm thinking SH43/Forgotten-Highway - where typically my choice of line is based solely on how the gravel lies) - actually valid/correct "according to the book".
- My choosing a line dependent on oncoming-traffic vs cliffside vs ditch vs how-big-is-the-oncoming-traffic... not explicitly stated, but valid. There was some bullshit about a "bubble" - and I'm choosing to interpret my bubble as being more scared by some shit than others.
- Learnt one small trick - tracking the telephone poles... as a clue to where the road might go, beyond that ridge ahead where you can't actually see the road any more, but CAN see the telephone poles curve off to one side. Maybe not particularly useful 99% of the time, but...
- I'm still shit at u-turns. Just... really shit.
And as a bonus, at the end-of-day review at a petrol station picnic table - observed some gang violence. Involved, in chronological order: a fucking large machete, attempted vehicular murder/grievous bodily harm, successful vehicle-on-vehicle action, and a heap of chaps with red bandannas covering their faces coming to rescue their mate who seemed to have instigated it all.
Great post. Love the telephone-pole tip - you never stop learning, do you?
When I got back into motorcycling about 10 years ago, I booked a few hours with an advanced motorcycling instructor - I wasn't going to be one of those silver-haired bikers who wrap their new Harley around the first lamppost.
What I found invaluable and stuck with me was:
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The changes in biking and the roads over the previous 20 years - performance, handling, protective gear. Car drivers have so many aids they don't slow down in bad or slippery conditions like they used to.
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Get your feet on the foot-pegs as soon as possible - even if it makes you take-off wobbly initially. It's still a lot safer that sliding your boots.
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Do what works for you as an experienced rider, but always observe the key rules; assess the road surface, ride smoothly, aim to get out of any situation within 1/2 of the road's vanishing point, watch for cars behind you and, above all, keep an eye on your physical and mental state.
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Shift your weigh carefully - particularly if you're an older biker. Sharp movements can bite back very quickly
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Think about your riding always. Take a few notes after a long ride and jot down what you did wrong and did right. This really worked/works for me and I'd go out riding and practice, say, sharp right-hand turns if I wasn't smooth enough.
I've always trail-braked going into a corner, except downhill where I find it makes the bike unstable. Just a single finger on the brake lever gives me a bit more control over lean-angle and the line thru the bend. I guess I picked this up when dabbling (badly) in racing decades ago.
Great post which has encouraged to me to look into an Advanced Riding course here.
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@Machpants said in Motorcyclin':
Ha, my first bike. It's still in a shed at dads farm somewhere!
I have something similar - a TS100 - in line for restoration. The things are unbreakable.
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Motorcyclin':
@Machpants said in Motorcyclin':
Ha, my first bike. It's still in a shed at dads farm somewhere!
I have something similar - a TS100 - in line for restoration. The things are unbreakable.
Yep it still worked last farm visit, almost everything has broken off, lights/indicators/mudguards/exhaust/plastic bits - bent bits all over. But got it cracking for the kids. Not bad for a bike I got 40 yrs ago
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@antipodean said in Motorcyclin':
A CB750 K2 just went at auction for $42.5k dollarydoos (GB£24,000).
And the K2 model was the most numerous. The original CB750 K0 is as rare as hen's teeth so god knows what they are worth.
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I know one vintage dealer who got a 50 yr-old TS185 from a barn, cleaned the carb to free it up, gave it some petrol and it started on the 6th kick. Didn't even need to clean the spark plug
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Motorcyclin':
I've always trail-braked going into a corner, except downhill where I find it makes the bike unstable. Just a single finger on the brake lever gives me a bit more control over lean-angle and the line thru the bend. I guess I picked this up when dabbling (badly) in racing decades ago.
Downhill corners still give me the shits some-what, but I think I'm getting better.
One thing I asked about - having ridden with some rather quite experienced guys on the London-Beijing... "a lot of the really good riders on that, all seemed to have come from moto-cross racing backgrounds. And from what I learned about riding offroad/adventure - that's all about steering with the weight via the feet, rather than upper-body... is there something in that?"- As I've been experimenting with that... and yeah, sometimes I just feel I get more steering by shoving a foot down, compared to shoving the shoulder over more.
- The answer: Nah. No matter how you get the weight over, it's all good - all down to how comfortable you feel. Whether it's leaning the bike with you more upright, or leaning over with the bike, or sticking the knee-down but with the bike more upright...
- which I'm not sure I believe. But... he's the guy trained and paid, so... not gonna argue
One criticism of the course - it did feel like a lot of box-ticking and formulaic "ask the guys casually about <Subject A>, and then follow up with 'Let's dig into that'". (He literally used that exact phrase about 5 times.)
After I'd heard that all the book-learning/theory actually tied up 99% with what I actually do in the "real world" - I probably just wanted to go balls-out on some twisties, and get some honest criticism about technique. Maybe that's a task for when my step-father gets back on his Aprilia Tuono V4.... sort out a ride with him and his mates, and invite the criticism. -
@Kruse said in Motorcyclin':
Downhill corners still give me the shits some-what, but I think I'm getting better.
Right-hand reverse camber turns are the worst. I slow down a lot and then accelerate into them gently. No braking at all in the corner. Never feel that confident though.
And from what I learned about riding offroad/adventure - that's all about steering with the weight via the feet, rather than upper-body... is there something in that?"
Never been able to do that well. Perhaps it's to do with the CoG of the bike?
I had a 250 Rally which I now realise I struggled with - the CB500X is so much better for my riding style. I was exploring some seriously narrow part-gravel country lanes with ditches on either sides and felt way more comfortable on the CB500 that I would on the 250, even though the 250 was designed for that environment.The answer: Nah. No matter how you get the weight over, it's all good - all down to how comfortable you feel.
This. What works for you. I learned a trick from the dealer last year about experimenting around with shifting the weight onto the front wheel. A little front shift works for me on slow turns.
After I'd heard that all the book-learning/theory actually tied up 99% with what I actually do in the "real world" - I probably just wanted to go balls-out on some twisties, and get some honest criticism about technique
I actually found the UK Police Riders Handbook (link here) really useful - not to follow slavishly but to check my technique against the real pro's to understand why they do what they do, and would it work for me.
I think experience and trying to get better is key (as well as being good fun). Muscle-memory & instinct can be life-savers. Not a great or fast rider by any means, but still managed to stay upright when I locked up the front brake on the '88 GSX when an old dear pulled out in front of me a year or two ago.
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@Kruse said in Motorcyclin':
Downhill corners still give me the shits some-what, but I think I'm getting better.
Out riding today and ended up chatting with a couple of riding instructors at a cafe. Mentioned the downhill corner issue and they gave me a good tip to try. They said it's the increase in speed going thru the corner which spooks a lot of riders as they often don't feel in control - particularly if they trail-brake. The trick is to have everything set up before you lean into the corner and only gently use the throttle to control the drive thru the bend
Suggested I try braking and/or dropping down one more gear than normal before the corner and changing up to the right gear for the corner just before you enter the bend to give more control and gently accelerate thru the bend.
Have only tried it once or twice but it does seem to improve things for me. The trick is to remember and re-learn your riding style, which is easier said than done....
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@Victor-Meldrew Cheers for that. Yeah - I've thought about it a bit over the years, and came to the same conclusion - it's that little bit of extra momentum/speed/acceleration that gravity is giving - which isn't under MY control.
I feel like I'm already braking too much going into them, and it's more a matter of sorting out the mind.
But - if nothing else - I guess that tip is just another reinforcement that I'm not doing anything wrong, just a matter of not beating myself up about it. -
@Kruse said in Motorcyclin':
But - if nothing else - I guess that tip is just another reinforcement that I'm not doing anything wrong, just a matter of not beating myself up about it.
It's the old motorcycle saying:
Newbie: "I was riding over a bridge and didn't realise it was icy, so I slipped all over the road but still made OK. What did I do wrong?
Experienced motorcyclist: "Nothing"