Motorcyclin'
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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"
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2022 Honda CBR1000RR-R FIREBLADE SP
Saw one of these yesterday at my Honda dealer - actually sat on the thing. 218 HP but easy to ride due to the electronics (apparently). £24,000 of hand-made, blueprinted engine, titanium exhaust worth about £3k, 14,000 RPM redline, DLC (diamond-like carbon) layer friction-coated mechanics and just jaw-droppingly gorgeous.
Art on two wheels.
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I have been watching a YouTube thingy called Itchy Boots. It's a Dutch girl recording her solo travels while living my dream on her motorbike. She is a natural in front of the camera and I am finding it quite addictive. Highly recommend if you like travel shows. You don't even have to like motorbikes.
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Long weekend so did ~1000 km with a couple of mates. 10% of which was the Bonang:
Basically no traffic, but that might have been in part to it raining and being 4° at midday when we left Delegate.
Still a great way to spend a few days.
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@antipodean fuck I love seeing signs like that.
105km though... that's awesome. -
@Kruse said in Motorcyclin':
@antipodean fuck I love seeing signs like that.
105km though... that's awesome.Depressingly those signs are often accompanied by an 80km/h sign or worse, a 60km/h sign nowadays.
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This post is deleted!
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Long, 160m ride on Sunday up thru Dartmoor (Hound of the Baskervilles territory), up and along the Atlantic coast to Truro and back home as the sun went down. One of those magical rides we never seem to have enough of.
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@Victor-Meldrew said in Motorcyclin':
Long, 160m ride
This is what a need to impress on my brother when he takes me for a short pushbike ride.
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The crankshaft on the Royal Enfield went after only 8,000 miles from new, 6yrs old so out of warranty moral of the story is bikes manufactured in Chennai don't do well on UK roads in winter.
Gave me an excuse to upgrade to a Triumph Bonneville Street Twin. So much smoother with a ton more power, am loving it.
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@antipodean said in Motorcyclin':
@Victor-Meldrew said in Motorcyclin':
"just like"
I'm getting the Zinzan Brooke one.