Out on the bike.

First time out for a proper ride down to work in ten weeks. The bike has
only had a short sixteen mile trip in all that time. Birth of my daughter
and a dissolving exhaust conspired against it.

Now have exhaust fixed and painted. Run to work has burnt the first two
or three inches of paint clean off the downpipe at the head. It's
also white with salt. Arse. Everything seized up almost solid in its time
under the cover and I think I should blow up my tyres.

Chilly, but lovely and sunny run to work and in in less than thirty
minutes as opposed to nearly forty five for the car. I think it'll be a
few weeks yet before it's being press ganged back into service every day
as the roads were as slippery as hell, especially the white lines when
filtering. Either the stuff they're throwing on the roads is damn slidy or
I'm just out of practice. You decide.

 

gazzafield wrote

WTF are you wibbling on about? The roads have been fine for a couple of
weeks now.

A dry roads only wuss, that is what you is, a poor example to
motorcycling.

 

You've obviously observed my riding skills then.

 

In uk.rec.motorcycles, gazzafield belched forth and ejected the
following:

I just got back from a 50 miles thrash of the GS.

Great, it was. First time for weeks I've been able to hold it close to
the redline for more than a few seconds at a time.

Yeah. I'm not quite sure about covers; they keep the shit off but they
also keep the shit in.

Ha! I was wearing a jacket that weighed 14lb! I thought it was heavy so
I weighed it![1] Not warm exactly but not cold either and kept most of
the wind off.

It's been a bit lethal round these parts.

[1] This included my mobike phone and wallet, but even so!

 

Same here. The roads were salted the other week, and still seem as
slippy as hell. Rear tyre spinning up a couple of times on the B6.

 

Aye, I haven't ventured out on the bike so far this year, but the shite
old Alfa did it's best to swap ends on a roundabout yesterday. Ooops

 

Well I haven't taken any days off this winter and I reckon they're
mixing the salt with KY jelly or something. I haven't dumped it yet but
I've locked up and spun the back (and you see what I ride)

The sudden urge by the local councils to relay the anti skid surfacing
and then not sweep up the residue has also led to some interesting
moments.

 

Mo Childs wrote

Only the other day, I put myself on the gravely shite next to the kerb
in the middle of a roundabout and when I put the brakes on had a merry
couple of yards with front wheel sliding sideways. I was just about to
start sticking a foot out ready to get off when we found clear road
again and continued on our merry way.

Great fun and all at little or no speed.

Come the spring rains it is all going to be gone. Enjoy it now I say,
while it is still there to be enjoyed.

 

SteveH said...

Did you take it out last year?

 

Ba-dum...... ching

Yes. Didn't do as many miles as I hoped to do, though. Somewhere around
the 4k miles mark, I'm ashamed to say. However, I did do over 1k miles
on a rented bike on holiday. Just waiting for the weather to improve and
I'll get some commuting miles done on it this year.

 

SteveH said...

I worded that badly, it wasn't meant as a pop at you. I just don't
remember any bike related posts of any significance from you, and that
observation wasn't a pop either.

I'm almost ashamed to say that my annual mileage was halved last year. I
have an excuse in that I was recovering from my TIA at the beginning of
the year which really knocked by ability and confidence, and long
working hours got in the way towards the end. I still managed to cram in
about 8K miles though, but I had to use the bike to go to work just so I
could rack some miles up and justify owning it.

 

I just never really got a chance to go out on it last year - worked
quite a lot of Sundays, on those I didn't work, I was too knackered to
get off my arse and ride.

Heh. I didn't feel like riding to and from Hereford - the road is a bit
shit and there's too much traffic on it for it to be considered 'fun'.
Going to and from Neath, however, and having a less physically demanding
job, means I'll more than likely use the bike more often this year.

On top of that, we're likely to be taking the bike on a fairly long
foreign trip again this year - last year we only popped over to France
for a couple of days.

 

In uk.rec.motorcycles, Lozzo belched forth and ejected the following:

My poor ratbike hasn't turned a wheel since October[1]

I really need to get it taxed[2]

[1] Except to maneouver it infront of the gate

[2] Because the GS has it's MOT&Tax is due next month and I know it
won't pass because there's no front brake light switch and the rear
tyre's borderline.

 

Whinging Courier
() says...

What year is it?

IIRC bikes prior to 1st April 1984 don't need a front brake
light switch. Certainly my bike (1978) doesn't have one and
doesn't need one.

--
<8P Wizard
Suzuki GS550 "I like that. Nicely shite" - TOG
BMW 520i (RIP- Ebay item 4601147727)
Toyota Nondescript 1.3 Mobility Appliance (on loan)
ANORAK#17b BOMB#19 BOTAFOT#138 BREast#5 COFF#24
COSOC#8 DFV#11 STG#1
Remove location from email address to reply

 

In uk.rec.motorcycles, Wizard belched forth and ejected the following:

1986.

There was one fitted but when the replacement I bought pinged its bit
out everywhere I removed it completely and still have to fir replacement
no.2

 

Finished my training in Merthyr, temporarily in Neath to sort the place
out for a less experienced manager to take over from me in a few months.

 

wessie said...

I was in a slightly different situation. I bought the Gixer because I
needed something that would make me think about what I was doing after
the TIA, kind of physio for my brain to help me recover. Unfortunately I
didn't get to ride it as much as I planned.

 

Bear said...

See my reply to Wessie

 

Bear said...

No. I could only really justify owning it if I used it to help me regain
the coordination and concentration I'd lost. I needed to ride it to do
that, which meant miles being racked up on it.

I like it as well, but that wasn't my only reason for buying it. I like
a lot of things, but don't buy usually buy them unless they have a
practical purpose or use.

 

Bear said...

No, your reading chip needs a reset. I did the miles to justify owning
it by taking the bike to work instead of the car. I still own it because
I have grown to like it lots.

Shall I make things simpler for you by writing in block capitals?