To the majority of road users the sight of this in front of them means the light is going to turn red, which means to slow down and prepare to stop, right?

I can’t believe the number of people who will simply put their foot down and gun it to get through the light, which is normally red by the time they go past it!  I see it happen every day on my journey to and from work, in fact I saw the driver with a bus full of passengers do it yesterday on my way home!!!! The light was red when he went through, not even amber anymore!!

How come nothing is done about drivers who do this?  We see the police and cameras targeting speeding motorists but how often have you see any kind of presence at traffic lights where the red lights are being jumped? Probably as often as I do….. NEVER!!!

Turina and 383mph speeding fine

Imagine this……..

There you are, eating your breakfast in the morning when the post pops through your letter box. You pick it up and when you see a letter containing a speeding ticket your automatic reaction is “Oh Bu**er!”

You open the envelope and immediately burst into hysterical laughter!!!

Well that would have been my reaction to this speeding fine

Apparently Paolo Turina, 26, has been charged with doing 383mph, yes you did read that right 383mph on his unfaired Moto Guzzi!

As you can imagine he is appealing the charge claiming the camera must have been defective, and he is also disputing the £200 fine the police have issued.

He says

"If I could go that fast I’d enter my bike in the MotoGP world championships. Valentino Rossi would not stand a chance. What did they think they were clocking – a jet fighter?"

"If the court rules the fine will stand then I’m going to send it to the Guinness Book of Records – after all if the court says its true then I should get the credit for this remarkable feat."

The bike he was riding has a top speed of about 115mph, which is nowhere near the 383mph claimed by the police.  The Italian Police say they suspect a ‘clerical error’ is to blame for the outlandish charge and Paolo Turina is awaiting the appeal courts decision on the matter…

Now, where can I get me one of those 383mph bikes

This is a bit of a handy find for those of you who own a Yamaha bike released since 2000.  The Yamaha website has a page where you can download the owners manual.  They are available in English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch & Portuguese.

Here is the LINK for the page.

Riding home for the first time after the clocks went back at the weekend!

I left work at half 4, the sky seemed bright enough but boy oh boy did it get dark fast!  I’d completely forgotten that the clocks had changed and it was getting quite dark by the time I got home!

I really must remember tomorrow

I’ve been running up and down part of the M40 for about 3 months now, going to and from work, and the attitude of some drivers has me amazed!

Tailgaters, for example, are a flipping nightmare!

Picture this.. I’m riding down the motorway, going with the flow of traffic, in the overtaking lane while passing the cars and trucks in the middle lane.  I’ve left a space between me and the car in front of me so I have some stopping room, just in case like, and some t**t comes up behind me, proceeds to drive 6 inches off my rear tyre and starts flashing their lights at me to get me to move out of the way!!!

Ermm… Like where the hell am I supposed to go?

I’m overtaking the cars in the middle lane, most of which are tailgating each other anyway so there isn’t really a big enough space for me to slot my bike safely back into.. There are other vehicles in front of me so I can’t go any faster.  Yes, I know there is a gap between me and the car in front of me but that’s deliberately left there so I have a bit of stopping distance just in case the worse happens.. and I can’t move to the right as I’ll be in the central reservation!

And still they flash their lights at me.. WTF!!!!

On the occasions it has happened I’ve pulled over as soon as it’s SAFE for me to do so, NOT when they want me to.  I’m not going to argue with a car six inches off my rear tyre as I know who would be the loser in the event of an accident.

But….. I just don’t get it!  It’s not like these drivers get much further ahead, normally just a couple of car lengths until they come up against the next car and then they are caught up in the traffic again!  Obviously people who drive like this have completely forgotten about stopping distances and how their lives are at greater risk if something happens and they can’t stop in time to avoid a collision.  I’ve even seen cars tailgating lorries in the pouring rain, and seen how the spray kicked up by the lorries wheels makes visibility almost zero in the car!

It just makes me wonder what, if anything, is going on in these peoples heads!

I got this news in by email (I just love mailing lists telling me of special offers and sales )

Infinity are holding an end of season clearance sale at all their 8 stores and on their new online store.

They have some great deals on all kinds of things from helmets and gloves to jackets and accessories.  They do say every store has varying stock and clearance lines but if you are looking for something in particular then give them a quick ring or pop in and they will try to help you

You can find more details, and a chance to win a R1 in a competition, on their new website

Bargain or what?

The normal cost is £69.99 but M & P (UK) have taken £20 off and are knocking them out at £49.99

I have one of these fitted to my Baby Blade, it’s a must on any bike for me now as it removes all the hassle about remembering to oil your chain away (and the mess too )

My O/H bought me mine on my birthday last year and it was fitted the following day and apart from filling up the reservoir every few thousand miles I don’t have to do anything to keep my chain in good nick.  My replacement chain, fitted a few months back, still looks like it was put on yesterday

He swears by them and has fitted them to every bike he has owned for the last 7 or 8 years, and now I’m a convert and recommend them to everyone as well.

SCOTTOILER Mk7 UNIVERSAL KIT

Features:

Simple installation

Increases chain life by up to 7 times

Improves performance

Fits all bikes including fuel injected bikes

Reduces maintenance

For on and off road bikes

Suits all types of chain including O and X ring
Revised design for improved summer and winter operation. The oil dispensing assembly can be bolted to the end, or glued to the underside of the swing arm and gives range of approximately 500 – 1,000 miles between refilling the RMV depending on the weather. The kit includes universal fittings and 500ml bottle of Scottoil (enough for approximately 5,000 miles). The Universal Kit over the past year or so has had over 20 technical improvements, Dynojet T100 testing and extensive retooling.

Apparently, in response to an online petition on the No. 10 website, Gordon Brown has stated that the UK Government will not be looking at reducing the power output of motorcycles to 100 hp, as happens in France.  The French Government is of the opinion that reducing the power output on any bike to 100 hp will result in fewer fatalities. 

Hmm.. A 15 hp 125cc bike will still kill someone if things go badly wrong!  

Thankfully it doesn’t look as if those in power in the UK agree with them.  In a statement, them in charge said that while it supported any measure to reduce deaths and serious injuries, "each initiative needs to be considered on its merits and the relative costs and benefits measured".

The statement went on to say "The Department for Transport is not aware of any evidence to support the introduction of a maximum engine power limit for motorcycle as an effective measure to reduce accidents, and so does not believe that limits on the maximum power of motorcycles are necessary in the UK.

What’s needed is better training, and I’m not just talking about rider training here, but car drivers as well.  How many of us have accidents which are solely the fault of a car driver?  How many of us hear the immortal words “Sorry mate, I didn’t see you”. 

We on bikes know how vulnerable we are and the vast majority of us try our damndest to make sure we don’t end up as a roadside casualty.  But car drivers are a whole other thing, cocooned in their metal boxes, they don’t really understand the vulnerability of less well protected road users. 

In recent years the motorcycle test has been overhauled in an effort to make us safer riders!  How about this for an idea, I know loads of riders think it’s a good one How about if all new car drivers had to ride a moped for a few months to teach them road awareness before they ever sat their bums on a car seat?  Would that make them more aware of us riders..

I can pretty much guarantee it would!!

Without experiencing the things we riders face, sometimes on a daily basis, how on earth will car drivers ever understand what its like to feel vulnerable!

Will it ever happen?  Probably not  

Bikers are in the minority and easier to target

I was recently in the market for a new helmet and after thinking about things and looking about had decided about getting the Caberg Trip… but… after trying it on decided it was way too uncomfortable and aside from that it didn’t fit properly..

So I had to play hunt the helmet again..

Here in Banbury the local bike shop shut down and while the closest ones aren’t too far away it’s still a pain if you just fancy popping in to have a nose round and possibly buy summat.  I really didn’t fancy buying a helmet online as it’s just a pain in the butt to keep returning things if they don’t fit properly!

So after work one vaguely sunny afternoon I decided to nip into Kings near Oxford and have a look to see what they had available.  I walked out with this one

The HJC IS-16 Type 0 Graphic

I’ve never had an HJC helmet before but this one is so comfortable and fits my head like a glove and at £149, from a retail shop, didn’t really break the bank either..

I love the internal sun visor, hopefully it will save me a small fortune considering the number of pairs of sunglasses I break every year when trying to wear them in my helmet.. My only complaint, and it’s not bothering me that much, is that it’s a bit of a noisy helmet.. Other than that it’s perfect

Oh, I did have one slight accident at the shop though and managed to buy another pair of gloves while I was in there!!! oops!!!

Oh well, gloves will always come in handy

Helmet Specs

Picture this.. You have found the Kawasaki of your dreams.. But there is a problem! You feel the ride height is either too low or too high for you. But don’t panic with a Hyperpro Ride Height Adjustment Kit you can make your potential new bike a better fit for you.

With one of their height rising kits you can make your motorbike 20 to 30 millimetres higher, with a lowering kit you can lower your bike by 30 to 40 millimetres. THese kits could mean the difference between being able to ride the bike of your dreams comfortably and safely or having to pick another one.

Made from high grade aluminium, the Hyperpro Ride Height Adjustment Kits are designed to safely adjust the ride height of the bike.

Full fitting instructions are supplied with the kits but if you are unsure in any way about fitting the kit, then it is best you take your bike to your nearest bike workshop and have them do it for you.

Please note that when lowering or raising the ride height of your machine you may need to adjust things such as the length of the side stand and also you may need to make adjustments to the front forks.

Check your local dealer, or an online store for prices, availability and ordering information.

If you are a female rider looking at adjusting the height of your motorcycle you may like to take a look at these posts which have more information about girls and the sizes of motorbikes we can ride

Girls and Modern Sports Bikes

Bikes Girls Can Ride

Choosing Your First ‘Big’ Bike

Also see the entries I have done for the different motorcycle manufacturers

Honda Models

Suzuki

Yamaha

BMW

And just so that you can easily find all the information you need, here is a link to the HyperPro website where you can find PDF files which show you by how much you can raise and lower each model of motorcycle by.  This link is for the Lowering Kits they supply, and this is for the PDF list of Height Raising Kits.

Hyperpro Ride Height Adjuster Kits are available for the following Kawasaki motorcycle models.

Please note, I do not sell these kits.  You will need to contact your local bike shop/dealer/garage to purchase one.

KAWASAKI GPZ 500 S (EX 500 D) – 94> (Lowering Kit)
KLE 500 (LE 500 A) – 91> (Lowering Kit)
ZX-6R (ZX 600 F) – 95-97 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-6R (ZX 600/ GG) – 98-00 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-6R (ZX 600/ JJ) – 00-02 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-6R (ZX 636 A/B) – 02-04 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-6R (ZX 636 C) – 05> (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZZR 600 – 95> (Lowering Kit)
ER-6 N/F – 05> (Lowering Kit)
VERSYS 650 – 07> (Lowering Kit)
Z 750 (ZR 750 J) – 04> (Lowering & Raising Kit)
Z 750 (WITH ABS) (ZR 750 J) – 07> (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-7R (Raising Kit)
ZX-9R NINJA (ZX 900 B/C) – 94-99 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-9R NINJA (ZX 900 EE) – ‘00-01 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-9R NINJA (ZX 900 EE) – 02-03 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
KLV 1000 (WV BS) – 04> (Lowering Kit)
Z 1000 (ZRT) – 03> (Lowering Kit)
ZX-10R (ZXT 00 C) – 04> (Lowering Kit)
ZX-10R (ZX10) (Raising Kit)
ZX-12 R (ZXT 20 A) – 00-01 (Lowering & Raising Kit)
ZX-12 R (ZXT 20 AB) – 02> (Lowering Kit)