Of course. There was no road snobbery implied in my post, as I fully acknowledge that the pleasure is first and foremost in the riding.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
Here are the UK MOT regulations for lighting.
I didn't see anything about minimum height? Just beam pattern
Probably missed it.
I suspect the MOT regs don't state what the regs are, just that the regs have to be met, so as to avoid replicating the information in detail every time it changes
The lighting regs 1989 are fairly tricky to follow. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/.../contents/made
That section that appears to be relevant - schedule 5, part I, para 2 only suggests that a single lamp is required and must be centrally mounted, or if there are additional headlamps they must be fitted in matched pairs symmetrically about the centre.
There does appear to be a lot more stringent rules regarding positioning of fog lights, position lamps (side lights) etc. though for fog lamps for example there is no minimum height but there is a maximum of 1200mm. That's quite a range.
That makes sense - the ones that are there to allow others to see the vehicle are strictly controlled, whereas the ones that allow the driver to see where they are going are a little more flexible, but their operation/position must adhere to regulation 27 whereby it is prohibited to be "used so as to cause undue dazzle or discomfort to other persons using the road"
Anyway, this little little wander into the Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations has convinced me that my additional head light set, which is fitted in a matched pair around the centre line of the vehicle, and dims significantly when the vehicle is on dipped beam meets the regulations. :-)
All I need to do now is use the bike when it's dark rather than just grabbing the car keys
If the worst comes to the worst?? How very dare you😈😈
Ill have you know that a weekend spent with Enoch will include rides over the best roads that North and Mid Wales have to offer,
All rides will include coffee stops in the many biker KAFFFS around here and the company of Enoch and probably Cinnabull.... its a win win for the forum bikers, especially our southern shandy drinking friends🤪🤓
Hi Tony, if you were referring to my post re not using those roads, then absolutely no disrespect or upset meant. I get not everybody has daily access to what I term good biking roads. But Im sure there are alternatives to those narrow poorly surfaced ones somewhere down there. Its just a case of finding them. I use google maps as a source of new and exciting roads, doing a virtual drive down them. I have dismissed many recommended routes by doing this, because of some of the features similar to your route. Anyway, if it was my post I still stand by it, but soz for any hurt feelings, not my intention at all.
Hey but something else I thought about late on last night that may help Mark. Maybe on the curves try shifting your body across the saddle slightly, Im not talking hanging of MotoGP style here, try just a half a butt cheek toward the way you are turning. I think that may help get rid of the the rigid upright stance. As you get better and faster and confidence builds, you will find you can shift further.
However despite all the suggestions made by everyone, if you have lost the backend as stated, its probably either too much throttle, dodgy road surface or knackered tyres IMO. It can make you nervous and lose your mojo. The tyres thing is an easy fix, too much throttle is rider experience, and the other, well lets leave that there
But yeah like another poster has said, get up here and lets do a flirt round some top tarmac in North Wales, when allowed obviously. Im sure Enoch would be up for a little meet, I certainly would.
Stuart
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Last edited by cinnabull; 15th October 2020 at 09:56.
Haha, top stuff Enoch. Yeah we are truly blessed with some good roads round here. Its not just the actual tarmac either, some of the scenery is just beautiful. The stretch from Bala to Barmouth has to be a good example of this. Anyway Tony/Mark and whoever else as Enoch has said, get your asses up here and try it. To be honest though, with the nights drawing in, wetter weather likely, and now covid restrictions, maybe better to wait till next year in the sun?
Stuart
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Last edited by cinnabull; 15th October 2020 at 10:15.
p.s. I don't want to start a game of 'Road Top Trumps' but...
every sunny Sunday I reckon 100+ bikes go past my front door and those are the ones not using the Cat & Fiddle road which starts about a mile away.
Not done the Cat for years now, no reason actually just never got round to it. Has it been camerad now? Sure I saw something about it having av speed cams on it, or was that somewhere else?
Stuart
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AMEN to that bro!
Stuart
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It now has a 50mph speed limit on most of it and average speed cameras. I might be wrong but they weren't working for years but I think they are now. I think the issue was that there is a shortcut (past the Stanley Arms) which is also a 60mph limit which rendered the average speed calculation inaccurate.
Its a shame that. Mind you. I suppose they are there for a reason, it was a good road to get a bit of a scoot on as I remember. Wasn't there also an issue some years back with some dodgy farmer putting diesel down on the bends to slow the bikes down, or again, was that somewhere else.
Stuart
Thanks for all the great advice and positive comments guys, really appreciated. (big thumbs up to those that PM'd me too )
Some further clarity on some of the points raised.
The route - can't blame about anyone else as I plotted that route . It was done in a bit of a hurry, but as it was literally on-my-doorstep, I am very familiar with those roads as both a motorcyclist and cyclist. Maybe that familiarity, coupled with knowing what they would be like after the recent weather contributed to my tentativeness somewhat.
I do quite like those mixed lanes too......probably why I have a scrambler.
My tyres - these have only done 1,500 miles so don't need changing yet.....I like the dual purpose nature of the Metzeler Tourance too so don't fancy more road biased tyres really. It is a scrambler after all. (in my head I see myself as Steve McQueen in 'On Any Sunday' and not Valentino Rossi).
Me - the two back end losses I referred to were both due to loose surfaces (gravel) on corners, on lanes just like these.
Going forwards, taking onboard a mix of the advice I have received I intend to do the following;
- get out more often, on my own, in good weather on better roads.
- book onto an off-road riding course, to help with my flexibility on the bike and comfort on loose surfaces. And because I've always fancied it too.
- book onto a Bikesafe course.....you can never stop learning.
- take Tony up on his offer of riding more......you can never hear enough of that Thruxton R.......and he can film me being a 'Riding God' after I've done all of the above
I get that, but I was responding to the skmark who asked for tips on building his confidence and it's always going to be difficult riding a 200+KG bike on lanes more suited to a horse. To build confidence he's going to need to put the miles in on decent well surfaced roads first and avoid the mud covered lanes where possible. If that makes me a road snob then so be it.
It might say Scrambler on the tank and have tyres that vaguely resemble knobblies but that doesn't mean it's suitable for green laning. You'd have far more fun doing that on something with half of the weight and a third of the power along with proper off road or dual purpose tyres.
The off road course is a good idea and will give you a good feel for what a bike does when it breaks traction. You'll be exhausted by the end of it and hopefully not have too many bruises, but it will give you some valuable experiences.
The Bikesafe course is also good but in an IAM way, so also consider joining the local IAM club if that's your thing.
And of course, just get out and ride more, preferably when the conditions are good
@ skymark and anyone else keen to improve their on road riding, can I most strongly recommend these guys
https://www.rapidtraining.co.uk/
I just did a single (full) day a few years ago now, tailored to making me safer but not (much) slower. I learned a lot. The instructor called me a hooligan but said he'd really enjoyed the day too.
Last edited by andy tims; 15th October 2020 at 15:39.
Andy
Wanted - Damasko DC57
I have a pair of Denalis - fantastic lights ! Mine are attached at about axle height - they are wired into a delay relay so don't start for about 30 seconds (same as heated grips to keep load off the battery when starting) and have passed 2 MOTs now. That said my HID conversion (full projector inside the lamp) also passes so I think they are less pedantic than some might be.
I definitely enjoy riding my bike on smaller roads and lanes, and a bit of grass on the centreline is always good. :D
As for cornering and confidence, I'd definitely recommend having a look at the IAM course - but I would say that. The course and IPSGA system strips it back to the bare essentials and builds it up from there. I definitely get a lot of confidence from using positioning, limit points and keeping the bike smooth by getting it set up before the corner - speed, gear, open throttle and all that.
Meanwhile, this afternoon on one the Peak Districts major highways...
They are Metzeler Tourance. They are pretty good, and looks-wise they suit the bike. For my needs (95% on road) I think I could happily switch to something more road biased as these definitely tend to follow road imperfections and I notice tar strips etc.
On my GS, I have just had a second pair of Continental Trail Attack 3's fitted, which I reckon are great tyres for heavy "adventure" bikes that spend most of their lives on tarmac.
I will consider fitting Conti's to the Triumph when I eventually wear out the Metzeler's - although hopefully, that'll take a while.
CTA3 do seem to be a current favourite. I haven't used Tourance for a few years, but notwithstanding the noise (compared to a road tyre) - they have remained front-line and can be bought quite cheaply now.
The original pattern German-made - could get 6,000 miles out of a rear, and stuck well on the roads
The Chinese produced original pattern- had the same grip levels, but I found they lasted around 5,000 miles. (some people claimed that they were noisier, but I reckon that was just posturing)
BUT - get rid of those dual-purpose tyres, and fit a decent pair of road tyres........... and you reach another level.
I ran two pairs of Tourances on my F650GS, covering about 25,000 miles, the only criticism I had was they squared off a bit on the rear. I am now on my first set of Conti TA3s and to be quite honest whilst being a more road oriented tyre I cant discern any difference. Dont suppose this helps does it?
Exactly, get the buggers warm and they will all work. Its like riding in the rain its just in the head, 10% slower than in the dry is my rule of thought. Mind you none like hydraulic oil I tried.
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I thought this thread could use a picture of the first Deus electric caf racer:
After my less than successful afternoon out on the R18, the new R1250RT looks far more "me"
The only slight catch is, having checked it out in the configurator, the setup I'd like is remarkably close to 25k.
Or maybe spend half the money on one of these , link copied from UKGSER
https://www.rideapart.com/articles/4...ered-1250tr-g/
New boots on the Reaper, changed from HD Dunflops to Avon Cobra Chrome. 150mile round trip to Ladybower reservoir to help scrub them in.
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