SRJ999

My Shoei X-Spirit Byrne rep is old and battered now, so I replaced it with a new HJC FS-10 Infinity. The Shoei was (for me) fantastically comfortable but also really noisy (all those vents, I presume). The HJC is a little heavier but it's quieter, it has a built in retractable anti-glare visor and cost a third of the price of the Shoei.

My other half's ex is a copper who gave the same advice. Unusually, I didn't see rocket man this morning but I'll keep looking out for him every day. I'll keep y'all posted.

The course is run at South Kent College in Dover and is the nearest one to me. There are no such courses in Sussex and only this one in Kent. It's a 36 week course (one evening per week) and covers quite a wide series of topics including: Motorcycle maintenance Steering & suspension Lighting & electrics Sparked ignition systems Wheels & tyres Transmissions Fuelling systems Diagnostics etc, etc. It's a beginner's course but I can go on to do an intermediate and advanced if so desired. Cost would be an issue, of course. Anyway; any takers on giving LC advice?

I couldn't cope with Caberg lids personally. I tried them but the chin bar was always too close for me. Then again, I do suffer as much as Jimmy Hill/Grinner in the chin stakes. However, I did buy an HJC FS-10 Infinity in red. This also has an intergrated, retractable sun visor. It also has a bit of a noise problem, although not as bad as my old Shoei X-Spirit, which cost three times as much..... Like a few others in here, I have my MP3 plugged in to drown out the wind noise. If that isn't connected, then it's earplugs for me, too.

Sadly, as Photobucket removed it, neither do we.....

Ditto on the Scottoiler. All my recent bikes have had them fitted. however, the previous owner of my old TDM had fitted the reservoir under the seat with the outlet pipe ABOVE the filling point. That explained why the chain was rusty. I repositioned it onto the frame so it was almost upright (with the outlet at the BOTTOM). Don't forget to check it each week too. And keep it topped up. It's not quite "fit and forget"; I've seen loads of bikes with empty Scottoiler reservoirs, which rather defeats the object. The standard kit is about £60, I think.

OK folks; I've enrolled on an evening motorcycle maintenance course in order to exorcise my mechanical klutz demons. We start getting our hands dirty as of tonight. Coincidentally, I saw a 1981 RD250LC up for sale this weekend. It's an ex-proddie racer being sold as a runner in need of work. The shop owner said that he is assured that it runs and he's turned it over but not fired it up. bodywork is good and the bike looks OK on first cursory glance. I know that the exhausts have been opened up and gutted but not of anything else that's been done to it as yet. I was wondering whether it would be a relatively easy project and whether it would be worth starting on. I don't intend to put it on the road but turn it into a track bike. If I do it, I would take it to the college to strip and rebuild, as there are loads of facilities there. The guy is after £500, no offers. Your thoughts appreciated, including any questions anyone thinks I should ask.

.....who scares the cr*p out of me most mornings. Flying past at feck knows what speed along the single carriageway sections of the A21 (whether there's clear road or not) is no way to ingratiate yourself with drivers. Or me, come to that. So far, you have almost clipped my bike's mirrors twice on your intercontinental-rated journey. Slow down, man or you are going to kill yourself. Or me and that would be far worse. Yours sincerely, Boring old fart Steve.

Looks like there's good general advice all round there. However; this rear brake lark. Although you have an older machine with presumably less powerful brakes than a current bike you really don't want to be using that back brake unless you have to. As has been stated, throttle control is what you want to be learning, rather than trailing the back brake. Bear in mind that doing so works against anything you try to do with the throttle. It's also distracting for other road users if they see your brake light continuously going on and off. Use your mirrors a lot and be aware of what's around you but don't worry about doing lifesavers each time you breathe. As your riding hours increase, you'll learn when best to do those. There is so much that goes on in your head for the first few months but, having got through the CBT, you'll need to be learning how to ride as well as how you pass the test. Hopefully you have friends who also ride but if not, just get out and do it. Often. Don't be tempted to charge along all the time - stay comfortable with it. In no time, you'll be riding like the biking god we all are and will wonder where all that fear went. Enjoy and welcome to the fraternity. No offence, ladies.

Have you tried looking under the sofa? I often lose stuff there.

I got my copy of Motorcycle Racer magazine this weekand read Larry Carter's editorial with interest. Specifically, it referred to the current spate of recently moved-in residents complaining about noisy facilities that were there before they were and wanting them stopped. The article then gave a link to the petition to the PM asking for "Grandfather rights" for such facilities, suggesting that objections be rejected so long as the activity has not increased significantly. The reason I bring it up is because of the threat to racing circuits, which would fall under such proposed protection. Castle Combe is restricted in what it can do, as is Croft, apparently. Lydden Hill in Dover has already stopped bike racing. How long before Brands gets the chop as a result of all the new housing being built around it? OK, so that's unlikely - but is it? The petition address is: Go stop the NIMBYs When I signed, there were already over 12,000 signatures. The deadline is 17 September, so hurry up, girls and boys.

As many have implied, it's personal preference. However, I tend ro shy away from using a rucksack if I'm carrying anything hard like a camera or lunchbox. This is purely my paranoia coming out of course but I had a friend who broke his back after coming off his bike and landing on his rucksack. Many months of traction later, he made a full recovery but it taught me a salutary lesson. I've used tank bags and tail packs. Personally, I prefer using the tail pack, as I found the tank bag restricted my view and movement. However, so long as I wasn't carrying sarnies in a box, a rucksack would suffice. There you go; absolutely no help at all .

General rule tends to be get the best you can afford. Different lids suit different heads. I currently have an HJC; not a lid I would ordinarily go for but I liked the design, plus it has a built in flip up dark visor insert, is very comfortable and was a decent (£130) price. I also have a Shoei X-Spiirit, probably the most comfortable helmet I have ever worn but I couldn't afford the near £500 replacement cost. The same rule applies to all clothing, really. When you consider it's the only thing protecting you, spending wisely can mean the difference between severe bruised pride and traction. Having said that, I have also bought a lot of my stuff from Hein Gericke (lots of good quality, reasonably priced gear) and from J & S, a bargain bucket shop. I wouldn't buy much from J & S but did buy two pairs of Alpine Star boots, reduced from £200 to £99, as they were last year's model. Like I cared about that.

Hi Stuart. Welcome aboard. Personally, I really like the FZ6, especially in its faired guise. I've not yet ridden one but will get a loan one next week when the TDM gets its first service. I'm looking forward to riding it and getting the chance to compare its performance against my old R6. As far as location, I am as far away in the UK from you as I can be. Any further south and I'd have wet feet. However, there's a lot of people in this 'ere forum.

It's always encouraging to see this level of enthusiasm. Riding motorcycles tends to do that for people. There's certainly no half-way measure that I've been aware of; people either say "It's FANTASTIC!" or "Never again" (poor, misguided ones). I've never heard anyone say, "Well, it was OK, I suppose." Welcome to our world, Maria. Get that test, get that experience and learn the joy of freedom that only biking will give you.

(English/US translations mostly included) Waiting in a traffic queue/line at Daytona last year, an R1 pulled up next to me. The rider had a bandana and shades, t-shirt, shorts and trainers/sneakers. His pillion had nothing but a bikini, shades and slingback high heels. However, what concerned me more than that (with my seriously-clothed Brit biker head on) was that the rear tyre/tire was worn through to the canvas. We had rain later that day; I hope those two were tucked up safely at home before it hit.

A little old lady is walking down the street, dragging two large plastic rubbish bags with her, one in each hand. Unfortunately, there's a rip in one of the bags and every once in a while a £20 note falls out on to the pavement. Noticing this, a policeman stops her and says, "Madam, there are £20 notes falling out of your bag." "Really? Oh, dear!" says the old lady. "I'd better go back and see if I can collect them. Thanks for the warning." "Not so fast," says the cop. 'How did you get all that money? You didn't steal it, did you?" "Oh, no", says the little old lady. "My back garden is right next to the the football stadium car park. Each time there's a game, a lot of fans pee through the bushes onto my flower beds. I go and stand behind the bushes with a big hedge clipper and, each time someone sticks his thingy through the bushes, I say, '£20, or off it comes'" "That seems fair." laughs the cop. "OK, good luck. By the way; what's in the other bag?" "Not everybody pays."

....whereas all new riders will be stubg by the DSA. I'll get me coat.

I understand the principle but not everyone can cope with balancing on a bike. As an alternative, I'd suggest that ALL car drivers are restricted to (say) an 1100cc/limited BHP car for 2 years before being allowed out in daddy's M5. In addition, all drivers should undergo a day's bike experience (as a pillion) to get a true indication of: a) the additional dangers faced by bikers the risks some bikers take and how to avoid increasing that risk and c) seeing the general road conditions & hazards from a motorcycling point of view. No bike day certificate, no car licence. 'Tis merely a thought.

So many forums, so little time. I started one up a while back but got next to no interest. It's still there but the will is lacking now. I tend to nose around here most days, just to see if anything interesting has been posted. I also post in a couple of the bike racing forums. That's more than enough for me to contribute to, thanks all the same.

Well done that man/lady. Looking at what hoops you guys have to jump through to get a licence these days, I'm really glad I did mine as a spotty-faced yoof back in 1979. Back then, all I really had to do was make sure I didn't run the examiner over when I did the emergency stop. Having said that, it was even easier for my dad, who took his test in the 50's. Apparently, the examiner was in a bit of a rush and, when dad arrived, he was asked if he had his licence and his fee. He handed both over and was given his certificate of competency there and then. Nice.

I don't know whether it's considered appropriate to post here but I just wanted to add my condolences to the Jones family following Craig's death this morning, as a result of his horrific accident at Brands Hatch yesterday. He was such a promising WSB prospect but we have lost yet another bright, shining talent. Rest in peace, Craig.

If you really want to carry a laptop on a bike, I think a top box is the most secure method available. Make sure you have the PC suitably wrapped up, mind; you don't want to damage it in transit. Whilst it's not cheap, the Givi system for hard luggage means that if you change your bike, you can retain the top box and just replace the rack because all top boxes and panniers fit using a common, modular connection system. I wouldn't worry about the height issue, unless you intend mounting the bike à la cowboy films, i.e. leapfrogging onto the bike from behind. My other half is 5' 2" and can get on my TDM (which is considerably taller than a YBR 125) with not much effort and the top box fitted. Go into a bike showroom and ask if they have any bikes with top boxes on for you to try to get on. Another alternative is a tank bag. However, I'm not sure you'd get one that a would easily contain a laptop. My Oxford humpback tankbag expands a lot but I've not tried getting a laptop in it. Oxford also makes another tank bag that may fit the bill.

This morning, as I trundled along the A13, I had my own little Karl Harris moment. Following a car and van, I saw something in the road, ahead of the van. As it passed over, the object got caught in the back wheel of the van. The car behind swerved to the right and the lump of timber (for that's what it turned out to be) met me at head height. It bounced off my lid just above the visor and continued its aerial journey towards Lakeside. I tell you something; a bit of 4x4 wood banging into your crash helmet whilst you're doing 70 mph (officer), is a highly focussing moment. Fortunately, there was no loss of control (apart from the sudden, brief smell of adrenaline ) and the helmet has only a rub mark where the wood slid across the top.

Then you'll fit in well. Welcome