Gas up - Let's Go!

Cheers fella, I did drop the bike, in Sweden, got really bored with the looonnnnngggggggg roads, so I bailed out and used the gravel tracks that run alongside, took a wrong turn and Ccccrrrrrunnchh, bike went down - fully loaded Picked her up and inspected the damage (was doingsome footage for the tely too at the time so the bit before and the aftermath are on film!, sadly not the fall.... The damange - small scuff on the pannier, small scuff on the righ hand hand guard. I am really impressed with the hand guards on these, serious piece of kit. The Gel seat is actually an AirHawk - I've tried Gel and to be honest the AirHawk is way way superior, but a bit on the expensive side (circa £100), and yep, I think this was the best add on, after the rider of course!!!!

A few folk have asked for some pictures of my recent trip around Europe. To be honest, without a good few words around most of them they're pretty borning, here's a couple of my trusted steed in three different corners of Europe: This one was taken just south of the Arctic Circle in August, you can still see the frost from the night before, it was a cold ride south that day..... And in the mountains of northern Greece, I think this was about 1500 meters above sea level, it was a spectacular ride over some demanding roads - never seen such tight switchbacks with a 5 meter rise in the corner. mad! Some daft bugger, looking forward to riding from Portugal to Amsterdam in under 26 hours. It was a long way, and I wouldn't advise anyone to take on such a ride, buggered me for a about a week afterwards.....

I took a Fazer 1000 out last week for a day while my XT was in for a service. I also have a Fazer 600 so I was expecting the 1000 to be something like the same, boy was I wrong. The 600, I find is a bit of a busy bike to ride, that is, you have to push the bugger up the rev range to get any real performance, considering I can leave most things from the line on my XT from about 1000 revs it's a bit alien to me this reving thing! So, off out on the 1000, and it just felt right, loads of grunt even at lower revs, no need to get busy with the gears to make it go, no screaming motor - just felt right. Lovely bike, I'd seriously consider one, but I think my wife would divorce me if I got another bike!! and I've only have the Fazer600 for a couple of weeks.......

You don't need to, everyone on here knows it well, that's why we're all here! Good luck, remember never panic, stay calm and enjoy the ride

doesn't work with the model of wife I've got, perhaps I should upgrade.......

Used this method for years on my mountain bike, nice and slippy to get the grip on, then dries like glue. never used it on the Motorbike though Yep, me too - maybe not so much thought

Ok ok, so I'm late with a reply - been away, therapy is a realy bugger isn't .... There are some very good knobblies around that are road legal, michelin do a Enduro Comp 3 that is legal, but to be fair it's only just. I had a 'chat' with a VOSA inspector about it, he cliamed it wasn't due to the ratio of tread to the overall tyre, in the end the tyre has passed homologation so there isn't much they can do abou it. You could also go for the T63 which is a much more road friendly piece of rubber

On that basis, I think I'll be getting myself: * The most common bike on the road * The most common lid on the road * The most common jacket on the road Or, maybe I just won't ride like a pr!ck.....

Wow! If you're gonna ride like a dick, your gonna get screwed at some point! I've just wasted a good 45 minutes reading this thread, I must admit to having a good giggle in places - but I'm glad you're all happy now.

There will be a whole host of advice on this, and rider abilities vary as much as the advice you will recieve, remember you are a novice so read, consider and apply as you think is right - experience is gained, not give! As a rule I'm a fairly steady, calm, methodical, rider (but I do have my momments like everyone else). I ride year round with no let up for the weather - apart from black ice, wait till the sun's up if there's going to be ice! Here's my take on it, remember this is my way and may not be yours. Incidentaly I ride a mixture of 600's - Single off roader, Raider and Sports touring, the type of bike will help determine the correct course of action : It is dependant on many factors, road conditions, weather, tyres, rider, other traffic etc. To be safe you need to keep your bike under control, hands off the clutch and use the rear brake to stabilize the bike if you need to. with some revs and hand away from the clutch you are not going to skid. Keep to a speed you are comfortable with, you will only pick up speed with experience. Get in the right gear before the corner, hands off the clutch and use your rear brake to keep control. if you need to stop mid corner - rear brake only. If you hit the front the bike will stand up and you'll head for the gutter. Alot is down to your speed and tyre type. if you've got deep tread patterns then you aren't going to suffer this really, if you've got 2mm left then get some new tyres on. I've had loads of bikes and I make good progress on the road in most conditions, I've never had a problem with this. however I've hit bits of road where the surface water is deep. The key is not to panic, keep away from the front brake but back off the throttle a bit, but not enough to loose control. you want to keep some weight on the front wheel to help dispel the wet stuff. They can be as slippy as hell, try to avoid, but don't panic if you run over them, on busy roads it's not a problem as they tend not to gather, but on quiet roads just look out for the ones that are starting to rot, they are the slippy ones. You need to study the physics of it a little, you are going to get blown about a bit whatever. On a big bike the key is to keep pushing on, on a 125 you haven't realy got that option so, consider the direction of the wind and give yourself some safety space - if it's blowing left to right keep your road possition to the left of the road so you have time to react if you start to go, same on the other side. Watch out when passing wagons, you'll be in a nice quiet place until you get to the front and the wind will catch you. You need to give yourself space to react that's the key. This can be the single most buttock clentching experience of them all, slow down, don't panic and get the bike under control. Start to think much much more in advance and take extra time to make any changes, like a pilot - small and gentle corrections. Look at what the other road users are doing and plan for them. Wagons keep going whatever, dicks in 4x4's forget that they are heavy and will have more problems stopping than the average car, Idiots with ABS don't know that ABS makes stopping in the snow harder. You're already half way there as you are thinking about it - well played Some key factors; 1) Keep Warm, as you cool down your reactions will slow - including your thought process. 2) Drivers are half asleep in dark mornings, and aren't thinking on dark evenings - remember this and you'll start to think for them. 3) Good protection, every rider will come off at some point, just make sure you walk away from it. 4) Stay calm, alert, and never ever panic 5) Visor - make sure you've got some product to stop misting, Fog City are the best I've found in 23 years riding. 6) In the rain when it's dark you will see sod all but stars, be ready for it! And it's worse when there's salt on the road.. I would say that you can never call yourself a biker until you've riden a winter, when the spring comes you'll be as sharp as a button, you'll worry about nothing and enjoy the warm spring days, while the summer riders will still think it's too cold! By the way - There is a thread already about this one here: Winter Riding Thread If you want some sound advice, then read Roadcraft, The Police Riders Handbook - it will tell you everything you need to know. but don't just read it once, I re-read it at least once a year, and reffer to it often.

Must change when it crosses the Atlantic ! - no residue (apart from the slight haze you get when you don't polish it off right), just nice clear visor,,,, Then again I don't use anything these days, just let the rain blow it away.............. I find that any treatment fails over the course of a ride, just keep the visor nice and clean and don't go wiping the thing every 10 seconds. Polish - yes, don't spray the stuff with CFC's in it anywhere near your lid though, use the pump action bottles - or the wipes!

A great start to biking - one day you'll grow into a nice XT660, and you'll have reached the pinnacle of the biking world. You'll be able to go anywhere you so desire. Each to thier own I say. Shame you haven't gone for it though, there really aren't enough girlies riding bigger bikes. There's one or two 'up north' and I love to see the looks on the sportsbike guys when they get passed by a girl, it's just brilliant. Doesn't bother me, I get passed by all sorts when I'm on the road - but get me dirty and that's another matter all together

Good on ye.. congrats and all, what a honeymoon! Did you know you can register bikes here in the UK for daylight use only? don't need lights.... check with the DVLA.

Anywhere you can get a GPS lock and a Mobile Phone signal - here in the UK there's not many places you're out of reach. Used it all through Europe last month too.

I've used Mr Sheen on the visor, it works. As does Rain-X - but the key thing I have found is that once you start to 'wipe' your stuck with it. Try to find a possition around your screen where your visor is in a kind of jet stream, it will clear the water really well.

I could do with some paint for the Pickup Rotor Cover on my Fazer, sort of a silver colour (color for the 'mericans) - just the one tin.... I used to go through batteries on piece, invested in an Optimate, now I just give each bike a few days on it then move to the next. Never needed a battery for ages!

I was down at the dealers on Friday getting the XT660Z a service and they were just unpacking a MT-01, never seen one of these before, look great, but totaly mad. Anyone been on one of these, got one, or have any experience of them? Interested to know, that's all

Oh dear! I know a bathroom fitter who drilled some holes for a shower, only to go right through the pipework behind the wall. Wouldn't have been so bad if he hadn't spent the previous day putting them there! Poor bloke, trusting his mate, some mate!

Sorry to hear that Goff. My missus went through 6 Ops year before last (had a bit of an off in Africa - Long story) I worried myself more and more with each passing opperation. Thankfully my situation is infinitly better than yours is. You just never know what's around the next corner.

I wouldn't worry about that, I've been building networks for 20+ years, I can remember the first websites going live, I can rememeber when a 10Mb hard disk would run all the accounts for a large company, when 640k was all the memory you could use, when Bill Gates slagged off Apple for the use of GUI's (Graphical User Interface), then brought out Windows a few years later......... yada yada yada Anyway the point I'm trying to make, albeit long winded, is that TLA's are often just made up to confuse others (knowledge is power and all that) - sorry TLA - Three Letter Acronym. After all this time in the business, I still see crap that's clearly been made up - I don't like it. Admin - perhaps an area for TLA's, a Glossary where they can be expanded and explained (if needed)

Just what the girl says.

I never noticed the Adds - now I can't stop looking at the bl00dy things! Thanks Goff Never noticed the Feedback tab either! Sponsorship - It's a good idea, but you need to give something back the people who support the forum, maybe a VIP/Sponsorship/Gold Members/Supporters/whatever you call them, area. It can be as easy as a PayPal transfer then a change in user status. Doesn't need to be complicated in any way. Goff - I'm glad to see your gif has gone, way to distracting, maybe I can get some work done now

Me, Myself and I. To me, riding a motorcycle is the essence of being a free spirit whether it's on the 'highway' or the dirt track, no matter it's about being an individual. I am a member of the TRF (Trail Riders Fellowship), but if was being honest thats about preserving my riding pleasure against a large group of idiots, sorry Ramblers, rather than being part of a group. I sometimes ride with a group of friends, but even then I ride my own ride. If I want to stop and have a look around, or explore a different route, that's what I do (after a quick text to tell them I'm going). If I'm off on the trail I take a GPS/GSM tracking device so that my other half knows where I am (she just rings the number and it responds by text with my location, brilliant! £100 from Maplin), just in case something happens! As most bikers do (I find), I'll talk to anyone who is friendly - and having a bike that is a little less ordinary, that happens alot (mostly GS riders, who tend to dribble.......) I've never met a biker who doesn't like to have a chat in a cold petrol station, cafe, lay-by etc. I've never been one to follow the crowd, I think it's being an individual, my mother says I'm just stubborn.

Well said. It bugs me that we (all of use who pay taxes anyway) have to pay to have these people put back together. Me, never turn a wheel without full gear - I had had a low speed spill when I was 17 with jeans on, as I went down the denim gripped the skin on my legs and made a nasty wound as it tore. To this day (23 years later) I still have no feeling around my kneecap. funny thing is, it was the jeans and not the road impact that did the damage.

Must have been on a day trip from Carlisle, we have bloody loads of them up here. I've used up three sets of toe protectors on my MX boots this year already (they make a lovely deep score down the bodywork - and the idiots don't even notice it till it's too late!) on ChavCharriots. On behalf of us Northerners, I apologise for letting these idiots out, they normally get diverted into Barrow....... Sorry, but they are so stupid, all the bollocking does is make you feel better - it doesn't stop them. euthanasia - that's the answer, Chavism is for life, it's incurable so needs to be dealt with. I've had similar experiences with the Caravan towing, Transit van brigade - brains the size of a match head, must be the inbreading Good on you Goff for making a stand, the little f*ckwit will only laugh about it to his mates later, but that's the way these little tw@t's are. I've been away for a while - nice Avatar!