Do we ever learn?

[Dicky Ticker]

As I,m off work till the 4th Jan I,ve been reading through all the different sections and it seems we are still having a lot of "OFFS" me included
Luckily nobody is badly hurt,so far! We all know the consequences,or the more "mature",be it age or experience, should do by now
A bit of oil,diesel, crud, ice or greasy surface its all there but we still insist on riding or bikes why?why?why?
Are we,each individual,the words best rider or it will not happen to me,somebody else maybe but not me I don,t know the answer
If you have to ride be very careful, otherwise I think that leaving the bike layed up is sounding like a good idea,but having just written that I
know I won,t do it First bit of sunshine and I,ll be out there again

AM I/WE COMPLETELY BONKERS OR WHAT?????????????????? :?:
Whats your excuse?

[Jabba]

AM I/WE COMPLETELY BONKERS OR WHAT?????????????????? :?:

Probably :D

Whats your excuse?

Until (not when) I have my first off, I don't need one :wink:

[Valman]

I have to get into Central London so taking London Transport is something I hate doing, the trains and buses can be filthy and it can get so busy at peak times that I feel claustrophobic and have to get off. It’s also not cheap and so the bike wins for me even after 2 offs since getting the SV on the 2nd of December, unless I can’t ride in due to bad weather, injuries etc., which has only been about 5 days so far. I do take it very carefully though at the moment and never rush, I find that always helps.

[Dicky Ticker]

Jabba,don,t tempt fate!!!!!!! I would have written exactly the same for
nearly forty years till a fortnight ago
In all honesty I have never or can,t recall the roads being so greasy,I,m even slowing down on four wheels they are so bad

[Jabba]

Jabba,don,t tempt fate!!!!!!! I would have written exactly the same for nearly forty years till a fortnight ago

I know what you mean. It's just that if I tell myself often enough that I will have an "off" at some point (anything, even a minor "drop") then I won't be surprised or shocked and will just shrug my shoulders and get back on again.

I'm riding very conservatively at the moment, especially first thing in the morning. So far so good tmacsv650"]In all honesty I have never or can,t recall the roads being so greasy,I,m even slowing down on four wheels they are so bad

I've been meaning to make enquiries of our local highways chaps to see if the salt/grit formulation has altered in the last couple of years. Not only are the roads a bit greasier than normal (could it be the relative lack of rain recently?), but my car and bike get absolutely filthy even over a few miles - to me, the grime seems blacker than it used to do.

[Warren]

i think the bonkers part describes it all.

i mean the best bits of biking beat the low bits by far.

the roads have been extremely greasy - and they seem to be getting worse day by day.
i thought it was just me for some reason.

[Baldyman]

I've been meaning to make enquiries of our local highways chaps to see if the salt/grit formulation has altered in the last couple of years.

Haven't I read somewhere recently that they are trialling salt mixed with sugar which allows the salt to "stick" longer to the road surface?
Whichever way, it sounds like they haven't consulted two wheel users, which is the same story when it comes to planning the placement of "road furniture" (manhole covers etc) :shock:

[northwind]

For me it's purely neccesity, I have a 3 hour commute round trip on the bus vs a 40 minute round trip on the nike (around an hour by car) I'd sooner drive in wet weather if I a) had a car and b) could drive, but those 2 minor obstacles mean that instead I have c) heated grips and d) cordura gear :)

[Jabba]

I'd sooner drive in wet weather if I a) had a car and b) could drive, but those 2 minor obstacles mean that instead I have c) heated grips d) cordura gear and e) a spare bike that I've been building bit-by-bit care of eBay :)

:shock:

Why does an old Jonny Cash song come to mind?

"I built it one piece at a time, and it didn't cost me a dime......."




[Only joking Nrthwnd :wink: ]

[ArtyLady]

Well - having had a brush with death (illness variety) last year, my first reaction was - Im not going to ride anymore as I feel so lucky to be alive I dont want to spoil it !

But after a few weeks and feeling less vunerable I soon changed my mind until I couldnt wait to get back on the bike.

My philosophy now is - you could fall down the stairs at home and kill yourself, so if you number is up its up. You could sit indoors for ever more and never set foot outside in case you get run over!!

Life is for living and if you enjoy motorcycling with a passion (as I think we all do!) then you must do it - albeit as carefully as possible.

And yes I think we are probably all barking :wink: :lol:

[northwind]

:shock:

I'll have you know I've not crashed in, er, a couple of months? In fact, I just fixed the last bit I bent when I crashed it last time ;)

[Anonymous]

:shock:

I'll have you know I've not crashed in, er, a couple of months? In fact, I just fixed the last bit I bent when I crashed it last time ;)


only coz there hasnt been an ecosse posse rideout for a while :lol:

[lynw]

I had an off on my gpz... didnt get back on for months and the moment I did (to go take it to the guy who was buying it from me) I wished I had sooner....

I know I will have another one sometime... its a reality I have to face being on a bike... I try and minimise the risk but statistically it will happen sometime because no matter how much I plan for everything there will be something/one that I dont spot...

but for me being out there... partly its because Im completely nuts, partly its because I need to be on the bike and partly because I loathe the tube, and its a 5 hour round trip/day at £80 a week if I train/tube it vs a 3 hr round trip a day at about £40 a week without the sardine syndrome on the bike...

[fizzwheel]

I hate driving.. I can't stand it.. I'd just rather ride, simple as that really

[Stig]

Well - having had a brush with death (illness variety) last year, my first reaction was - Im not going to ride anymore as I feel so lucky to be alive I dont want to spoil it !



I too had a brush with death, most know about it on the forum, mine was an off though. I said (when I finally came back to the living) that I would never ride again for the same reasons that you mentioned. Errrr ummmmmm, as soon as I was physically able to ride again......... I did.

The whole experience has changed my riding completely. Can't seem to go round corners now faster than a crawl. That's probably a good thing I guess. :roll: :roll:

I think I really do need to do a track day and see if I can get some confidence back. At the moment my roundabout excursions are bordering on dangerous, I go round that slow. :oops: :oops:

[lynw]

I think I really do need to do a track day and see if I can get some confidence back. At the moment my roundabout excursions are bordering on dangerous, I go round that slow. :oops: :oops:

so do I in this weather... the roads arent good and theres an awful lot of diesel on most roundabouts... also I get nervous at people pulling out on me forcing me to brake on the diesel and leant over so Im doing the same but just because its not safe to do roundabouts like I do in the summer...

[ArtyLady]

At the moment my roundabout excursions are bordering on dangerous, I go round that slow. :oops: :oops:

Im like that as well at the moment BA - as lyn said the road surfaces dont give you confidence. Youll be fine once you get on some decent dry roads and get your confidence back :wink: :D

[Grainger]

I've been riding bikes in and around london for years and never had an off (touch wood), despite having to deal with appalling drivers and plenty of unexpected road features and conditions. My father has commuted on a series of bikes for nearly forty years and only had two offs (one as a learner and the other?.... knocked off by another biker who didn't even stop!!).
We both drive in all conditions. I'm fairly sure that this actually puts us at less risk than those who squeeze into flashy leathers and spend all summer trying to "get their knee down" - ie we have to ride sensibly. Otherwise we'd end up nicked or in hospital! I really feel for all those who have had accidents, but regularly see "macho" bikers who look like they're about to have one. It's a great way to get around: cheap, realiable (mostly), fun, quick - why risk it?

Happy New Year ya'll

[Twit]

I would tend to agree with this. I've not been riding long but the bike is now my only source of transport and it gets used everyday in whatever weather... Does help that it is a huge KTM and I sit at eye level with transit and LR drivers!!! ;)

I have been adopting the view that everyone is out to get me and riding accordingly, also, the roads are flipping awful - I have never known them like this and the weather hasn't even really been that bad! The washer is out everyday and it still looks filthy all the time.

Go easy and everyone have a cracking new year!!!

[northwind]

Winter riding teaches you skills you never pick up in the summer... On a hot day with good visibility you can throw it around like a madman, brake heavily into corners, hammer it back out... But riding on unpredictable slippy surfaces makes you work on smoothness, on preserving speed rather than brake-throttle-brake, and on surface observation... Or at least, that's how it seems to me, this far into my first summer on a real bike.

[Warren]

Winter riding teaches you skills you never pick up in the summer... On a hot day with good visibility you can throw it around like a madman, brake heavily into corners, hammer it back out... But riding on unpredictable slippy surfaces makes you work on smoothness, on preserving speed rather than brake-throttle-brake, and on surface observation... Or at least, that's how it seems to me, this far into my first summer on a real bike.


good point.

[wheelnut]

On my way home yesterday in my truck, I had to divert off the motorway because the A50 was closed due to an accident. I came off the M1 and was heading towards Coalville and Ashby. I came round a roundabout and nearly ended up going from whence I came :cry:

I was so bloody mad that the road was in such a state, I called the police and reported it, He said what do you expect us to do about it, Its Christmas and its icy, :shock:

The temperature was above 10 degrees and it was diesel not ice.

Go steady out there, the coppers dont care either

[northwind]

Earlier this year my mate binned his Vespa on a really big diesel spill, phoned the council to clear it but 3 days later, they'd not bothered to do anything about it... So he got a can of spray paint, circled the spill and sprayed "WARNING DIESEL!" in the road before it. Lo and behold, the council came along the next day and cleared off the paint and left most of the spill...