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cycled from lakes to settle yesterday, via sedbergh, dentdale, ribblehead.
nice ride until I got to newby head. on the 3 or so miles to ribblehead I was passed in both directions by very noisey and very fast motorbikes.
got to the tea van at the viaduct, loads of big bikes parked up, loads of blokes my age in riding clobber.
got in the queue for tea and heared a converstion.
on Saturday a 50 something bloke on a big motorbike was in a accident with a campervan he died. also there were 6 other accidents in the area involving motorbikes.
whilst stood at the tea van, I reckon 20 or so bikes came up the road from Horton, every one od them was deffo speeding, and by a large margin.
once they turned right to go up the road to hawes, again, full throttle and off like the clappers overtaking anything in front of them regardless.
lady in the tea van commented on middle aged men who ride motorbikes in the area, saying that they all seem to have a death wish.
bikes are very big and powerful now in comparison to the FS1E bikes of the 70's.
discuss.
bikes are very big and powerful now in comparison to the FS1E bikes of the 70’s.
Big, powerful bikes were available in the 70's too.
Whats to discuss, you nailed it.
It's easy to get more power and speed than you have the skills, reactions or training for. Roads are busy enough and riding outside of the law and what is safe will lead to more accidents.
I love the cheek of the 'look out for motorcycles' type signs and stickers. There should be stickers all over the bikes asking them to look out for other road users.
It's due to the inexplicable popularity of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers in the early nineties.
These middle aged guys are reliving their youth by dressing up as their childhood heroes.
If the lady in the tea van showed up to work dressed as Rita Repulsa they'd try to kick her head in.
As a middle aged man with a big motorbike I can say that the whole area, focussing on the a65 and Devils Bridge is well known for people being stupid on motorbikes. Personally I avoid it like the plague when out on my bike, and it certainly used to be heavily policed at weekends, though not sure if that is still the case...
It's endemic in that part of the Dales. Haven't noticed it quite so much on the A65 recently, normally there are little packs of dangerously over-biked idiots weaving in and out of the tractors and caravans.
Only had about half a mile on 'A' roads (A684 out of Hawes) yesterday, but got buzzed and dangerously overtaken several times.
Then, to cap it all, get onto the restricted byway at Cotter End and about 20 scramblers come roaring past chewing the hell out of it.
I'd hate to live in Hawes, the placed was absolutely crawling with bikers when I was there.
Speaking as an ex motorcycle instructor, it seems to be people who had small bikes in their youth, who gave them up for career and family. Kits leave home, bit of spare cash, want to get back on the bike. Buy a big one but are too confident in their own ability to take some lessons, see what they've forgotten in 30 years.
Similar happens each easter as moth balled bikes come out of hibernation and leather clad heroes wobble around like both wheels are loose.
It’s easy to get more power and speed than you have the skills, reactions or training for.
Its easy - and easier that it was in the 70s because we're a richer nation - but theres also a little bit of a pressure too. Theres an implied "you should only ride a bike like this if you know what you're doing" the flip side of which is "if you're not riding a bike like this then you don't know what you're doing".
Whats to discuss, you nailed it.
Indeed.
Freely available credit innit. Bike on 2yrs PCP costs peanuts and blokes our age can afford it.
I’m not keen on them riding like loonies and using the public highway as their own racetrack, I think that’s stupid and irresponsible.
But I reckon I’m in the minority with my view.
My big bro has a big bike. He boasted the other day of doing a ton (no pun intended).... with his 11 yo daughter on the back. I love him, but what a div.
Speaking as an ex motorcycle instructor, it seems to be people who had small bikes in their youth, who gave them up for career and family. Kits leave home, bit of spare cash, want to get back on the bike. Buy a big one but are too confident in their own ability to take some lessons, see what they’ve forgotten in 30 years.
Similar happens each easter as moth balled bikes come out of hibernation and leather clad heroes wobble around like both wheels are loose.
Exactly what I was going to say. I'm a biker but I passed my test 4.5 years ago, 37 now so technically middle aged, but no big accidents yet (*touches wood) in my nearly 50k miles on bikes, and none involving other vehicles.
The 'born again bikers' are exactly as Onza said, they had bikes in their 20's, got married and had kids and had to give up bikes. Now the kids are grown up and they've got a load of disposable income they go out and buy either the latest BMW GS adventure and trundle around Europe, or they buy the latest 200bhp superbike and jump straight back in like they're 22 again.
In spring you see it every year, I tend to avoid the first few warm weekends as you get the 'weekend warriors' out for the first time on their sports bikes, they have haven't ridden for 6 months but in their mind they're still as good as Rossi, come the first damp patch or bit of gravel or dodgy overtaking opportunity and they become just another statistic.
There's another common theme between these guys, they don't ride through winter, only in summer on dry days. The first bit of dodgy weather and they have no idea how to handle the bike. Saw it with the first bit of rain after the mammoth heat wave earlier this year, there were lots of accidents and they just don't realise how slippery the roads are after a small amount of rain.
When I was in my twenties in the 1990's, I had a seventies superbike, 900cc, now I'm a middle aged man and a born again biker, and have an eighties 400cc bike.
Never been into crotch rockets and I think the speed of them is ridiculous really, but as in all areas of life, you get idiots sometimes.
Not sure there's an answer.
Current 200bhp 1000cc superbikes are far too quick for the road, that's also part of the issue. You barely need more than 1st-3rd, and 1st gear will do more than the NSL.
My bike is also 1000cc but is an older generation so only 140bhp and a 'naked' bike, meaning no fairings and wide MTB style bars so you feel the wind, stops you going fast as you feel the speed you're going.
Rider education is one answer....oh, and track days - great for getting it out of your system I find
Big, powerful bikes were available in the 70’s too.
I have one. Its a very unpleasant place to be over 90mph if the road has any bumps or bends...allegedly, so I was told, when I was on the autobahn.
Used to have a fav back country road which I would regularly jump on my supermoto and man was it fun!
I imagine that a modern superbike is still safer to ride than something like a Z1
I imagine that a modern superbike is still safer to ride than something like a Z1
Have they improved the pilot yet?
I have just got one Ton, but I can assure you I'm riding it like Miss Daisey with no intention of riding like you describe.
and it is big (900cc) but only has 55HP, still enough to do some damage though.
Not all middle aged bokes on big bikes ride like that.
If you've ridden a MTB downhill quickly you have a grasp of the 'why'
It's adrenaline, endorphins, fun, pleasure, whatever you want to call it.
However as a rider you're in a bubble of semi invincibility, maybe only perceived of course, but it exists. You believe you're in control. It's all good, all safe.
You may not agree with any of that logic, but it's a motorcyclists logic indicative of that sort of biker.
Round my way it seems to be easy rider wannabes or middle aged hells angel wannabees all blasting around in homo erotic leather costumes with tassels and German army helmets with bikes that seem to have been designed without exhaust silencers.
Drives me mad. If I started making that racket outside their little castle in suburbia they’d be the first to report me to neighbourhood watch.
There must be some law that makes that level of noise wrong in some way.
And the same as someone above - what is it with those “watch out for bikers signs” - generally on roads where bikers are riding like idiots.
You may not agree with any of that logic, but it’s a motorcyclists logic indicative of that sort of biker.
I had colleagues who were full believers in the gospel according to MCN
Evil police stopping us doing what we want where we want to do it just because it's illegal, hiding those speed cameras just to catch us doing it.
One of them went off to Wales on a sort of protest to the Police State that was persecuting them for you know recklessly riding and speeding. Hit a wall and very happy when the police helped him up.
Some right ****s out there who are going to leave somebody mentally scarred as they bounce across their windscreen
I imagine that a modern superbike is still safer to ride than something like a Z1
Better frame, brakes, suspension, tyres, etc. But there is still only a contact patch about the size of a small spectacle case at each end with sometimes between 150-200bhp being fed into it, instead of around 70-80.
Put someone used to driving a little car with around 60-70bhp into a car with 200bhp, with no experience of using that sort of power and it’s likely that the result could be the same, however the bike has only two, and requires balance and forward motion to stay upright, combine that power, small contact patches and damp, greasy tarmac with possibly a poorly maintained surface, loose clippings and bare patches of tar where the chippings have come away, along with metal drain and manhole covers all compromise grip and handling, even in fine, dry weather. Which is how a mate of mine wrote off a two month old 600cc bike on his way home from work, at roughly 50mph. Also wrote off his brand new lid, his jacket and gloves. My brother barely survived clipping the rear tail-light of a car at barely 15mph with his knee, he hadn’t seen the brake light come on because the sun was shining from directly behind, he toppled over and was hit by an Alfa Romeo doing 50, hit his head, right shoulder and chest. Also wrote off his beloved 1200 Bandit. Only the local air ambulance and his partner’s medical skills stabilising him at the scene saved his life, or possibly his right arm, which they were going to amputate. There are a great many things can bit you in the ass, speed is only a component.
My big bro has a big bike. He boasted the other day of doing a ton (no pun intended)…. with his 11 yo daughter on the back. I love him, but what a div.
Someone* did the ton on their way back from their (passed) motorcycle test following their instructor.
In defence of such behaviour, unlike a car it doesn't take 30 seconds to get from the speed limit to a ton apparently, you can hit a ton and be back under the limit just with engine braking and wind resistance whilst the car driver is still wondering if they'd be quicker dropping down to 4th or staying put bogged down in 5th.
So yes it's partially dickish behaviour, but its also like cyclists and red lights and filtering, people like to get upset by others rule braking and perceived upsetting of their order.
If I had a bike it would be something old for plodding about well under the speed limits!
*definitely not me officer.
This phenomenon is also really starting to annoy me; and i'm a motorcyclist myself. I'm finding motorcyclists, particulary on far flung or mountainous/alpine roads a real menace. My particular hate is the bizarre way they seem to enjoy driving round in huge packs, making loads of noise and stopping every 100 yards to drink tea/coke/beer, before shooting off at mach 3 again and overtaking you on a corner. I'm not sure if the superbikers are even more annoying than the twits dressed for the dakar rally on their silly GS1200 setups; i'm really not sure why the cops don't have a huge crack down on anti social exhausts either way.
So yes it’s partially dickish behaviour, but its also like cyclists and red lights and filtering, people like to get upset by others rule braking and perceived upsetting of their order.
If I had a bike it would be something old for plodding about well under the speed limits!
How did they enhance the reaction times on the test? That is the problem, you can't speed up your reactions, the MCN bible tells you that you can through observation and all that but it doesn't really happen
I've seen some woeful riding in recent weeks.
On most of the roads up here in the Highlands, I reckon a competent rider on a good 250 could mop them all up.
However bikes with German plates seem generally tidily ridden.
Onza has covered it.
Ton, All that area around Hawes,Skipton & Ingleton has always been a mecca for bikers,especially on a Sunday.We used to go tearing around there,there's a big meeting point outside of Kirby Lonsdale at Devils Bridge
I love my motorbikes but I'm wary of going over that area on a Sunday.
It's not just middle aged blokes either.I was in the Isle of Man for last weeks Classic TT & the power rangers turned up there not all middle aged. The mountain was shut a few times...
i’m really not sure why the cops don’t have a huge crack down on anti social exhausts either way.
Aye, used to work with a guy who's bike was ridiculously off the scale loud. I'm pretty sure if I was his neighbour, I'd have torched his garage.
hell, theres some moaning gits on here. the bikers are just enjoying the roads like we enjoy flying down footpaths, walkers probably say the same about mountainbikers flying past them at speed as some of you lot say about the bikes. wasn't that long ago that i'd be out blasting around in fast cars on the same roads mentioned above, sometimes on my own, sometimes a group of us. after every drive you where wondering if you would get something through the post resulting in a ban so i did eventually make the car track only.
and whats wrong with load exhausts, love sitting in the garden and hearing someone giving it beans down the road, certainly much better than hearing kids playing down the street.
and whats wrong with load exhausts, love sitting in the garden and hearing someone giving it beans down the road, certainly much better than hearing kids playing down the street.
Not sure, is it legal? Did your neighbours ask you to rev it?
hell, theres some moaning gits on here. the bikers are just enjoying the roads like we enjoy flying down footpaths,
Is speeding legal or not?
doesn't really matter if speeding is legal or not, if someone wants to break a law thats up to them. personally i think there is quite a few roads out in the countryside that could be unrestricted. majority of people in performance cars/bikes will ignore the limit anyway on certain roads so why have one, if they cause an accident they can be done for something else anyway.
doesn’t really matter if speeding is legal or not, if someone wants to break a law thats up to them. personally i think there is quite a few roads out in the countryside that could be unrestricted.
I'm sure the people on bikes and horses have an opinion too, which ones I'd don't know many that are safe as it is.
majority of people in performance cars/bikes will ignore the limit anyway on certain roads so why have one
Probably rule one
if they cause an accident they can be done for something else anyway.
Maybe the idea is to get in before that happens and people die.
Competitive willy waving innit!? That awful phrase “I’m really competitive...” urggghhhhh bore off tubs! Up there with “my greatest achievement is my kids”... eh, a 5 minute fumble and spuzz is your biggest achievement!? High five!
I own one of the aforementioned 1000cc 200bhp bikes. Why? Coz I like it. Been riding 25 years (different bikes obvs) and I wanted a sportsbike this time. But the bike will only go as fast my input. I don’t use strava, don’t ride in groups (mtb or motorbike), don’t claim to be “competitive” (urgghh), I don’t behave like a knob (in my opinion).
However, knobs will be knobs whether they’re on a fast bike or shouting STRAVAAAAA or dangling bags of dog turd in the bushes. Peer pressure and image has a lot to answer for, don’t tar us all with the same brush.
However, knobs will be knobs whether they’re on a fast bike or shouting STRAVAAAAA
Yeah but strava and breaking the law ends badly, like doing a you tube of speeding ;( dickheads be dickheads
That’s what the police are for. Let them worry about it.
Ah that is OK then..... how are you on the drink driving thing?
Maybe the idea is to get in before that happens and people die.
like that really works
i did actually prefer drives out on my own as in groups you always did get the odd one or two who would take unnecessary risks to keep up, i preferred to wait then use a bit of extra speed to catch up.
I’m sure the people on bikes and horses have an opinion too, which ones I’d don’t know many that are safe as it is.
does it really make much difference to a bike or horse if someone passes at 60 or 90(not that you should pass a horse at 60 but its still a legal speed)
like that really works
Yeah I know like can really hope for that, ****ed up world isn't it where we expect people to die. You know how it'a just a normal thing.
Ah that is OK then….. how are you on the drink driving thing?
Never partaken. You?
Rene59 i Can assure you we are looking all around as we are targets on the road, same as on road bikes
Why do we constantly argue?
All of us obviously ride bikes, most of us drive cars, some of us for work drive lorries, Jesus, some of us drive trains and fly planes.
We are a crossover of different vehicular modes.
Cant we all just get along?
I used to ride fastish motorcyles. A modern bike is so capable that it feels bland at low speeds and also can suck you into to riding fast as it is so capable. A large part of why I gave up is that it was all going to end in tears - either with me getting hurt or jailed for speeding.
There are two issues here. The capabilities of modern sports bikes are so great and the born agains who don't have the skills to ride fast.
While out with a couple of pals and riding at a fast ( illegal) but not flat out cruising speed we had a group of born again power rangers try to keep up after we overtook them and one put his bike thru a hedge trying to keep up. We were not even going anything like flat out. Purely down to the lack of skills mixed with being competitive from the guy who crashed
I don't know what the answer is because they guys have full licences so are allowed to ride anything legally but clearly a lot of folk do not have the skills needed to ride a modern bike at speed. But rusty skills ( if they ever had them) coupled with a competitive attitude ( me and my pals were on fast tourers and wearing textiles so the bunch of power rangers mentioned above seemed to take it as an affront that we overtook them} seems a very dangerous mix.
If I got back on a modern bike now then I know full well it would take me thousands of miles to get back up to speed. Thats maybe the difference. Knowing your limitations
bigfoot
...personally i think there is quite a few roads out in the countryside that could be unrestricted....
Is this the same countryside where you can get sheep on the road, agricultural machinery crossing to the next field, a load of mud from a tractor's wheels on the corner, people walking from one village to the next, cyclists avoiding potholes, blind dips, and lined with ditches, stone walls, and barbed wire fences?
Or is this some mythical empty road - until it isn't.
The roads are public infrastructure, not a playground for entitled idiots.
(I have had motorbikes all my life)
The law breaking may be a personal choice when it goes black side up is when lots of people are involved.
Recent accident caught on his own go pro ended up with the crunch of bone and helmet as the rider slid along the road into and under an innocent road user. Footage showed he was doing 120 when he came off. Had he bounced not slid at least three people would have died.
(Last bike I ever rode was a cbr400 I knew on that ride that I would kill myself one day, so when I got home I never three my leg over a bike again, I was 26)
does it really make much difference to a bike or horse if someone passes at 60 or 90(not that you should pass a horse at 60 but its still a legal speed)
Yes, it makes a massive difference. I would rather they slowed down to 30 while they pass me - the speed limit is there as a maximum and not the speed you must ride at at all times.
It shouldn't be that surprising - the same bloke riding like a knob on a bike way too powerful for him is the same guy sat 6 inches from your bumper on the motorway in his company car; or punishment passing on country roads because you've held him up (in his perception).
I tend to see high speed motorbike accidents as one fewer idiot on the road. Sure, they suffer from cars pulling out without looking properly in urban and suburban areas, but that could be fixed by making everyone ride a bicycle for a year before being allowed to take their test.
What really pisses me off is the idiots on those R125s with the mentally loud exhausts. They’re not fast, or cool - just antisocial.
ive had quite a few fast bikes, the last one being a new fireblade. I’ll be honest and say it was the most terrifying thing I’ve ever ridden, constantly wanting to either wheelie or spin the back wheel. I sold it a while ago and now and again wish I had one, but I’d have a 600 next time which would be more than enough.
ive got mates who go out on a Sunday and regularly get their knee down on the road. That to me is mental and pretty irresponsible, I’m pretty certain it’s just a matter of time...
it seems to be people who had small bikes in their youth, who gave them up for career and family. Kits leave home, bit of spare cash, want to get back on the bike. Buy a big one but are too confident in their own ability to take some lessons, see what they’ve forgotten in 30 years.
We've got a bloke exactly like this at work - a real petrolhead who owns a trackday car, an Aston Martin, a non-running TVR & his 'daily driver' - I believe that's Pistonheads speak.
He's got no kids, recently split up with his long-term partner, no mortgage & an RAF pension on top of his decent salary, so the logical thing to do is buy himself a massive Triumph cruiser thing, bearing in mind he hasn't been on a bike since his early twenties.
Spent months poring over the spec of the bike he wanted, spent a fortune on it and associated kit but refused to take any refresher lessons - he's a petrolhead, so how can anyone else tell him how to tame the beast he's just purchased?
Ah.......2.5 miles from his front door at the first proper combination of bends he arrived at, he crashed. Nothing too serious, but needed to replace a few bits of bike, sore ankle & hip for a few weeks etc. Of course, the helmet that he walloped on the ground 'looks fine' so he's not replacing that because it was quite expensive.....
He rode it into work last Friday & looked less stable on it than my daughter on her balance bike (and she wobbles all over the place).
Apparently, even his friend's who are motorcyclists have recommended he get some refresher training but nope - he just refuses, even though he spends a fortune on track day tuition every time he does a track day....
Apparently, even his friend’s who are motorcyclists have recommended he get some refresher training but nope – he just refuses, even though he spends a fortune on track day tuition every time he does a track day….
Natural selection, innit? as long as he's an organ donor, and doesn't wipe anyone else out when the inevitable happens.
i’m really not sure why the cops don’t have a huge crack down on anti social exhausts either way.
1) the police can’t police every road and vehicle using the roads, mainly because this countries gone down the route of minimal policing.
2) the police don’t care about the noise motorbikes make, because they’d rather sit in ignorance.
Just a couple of ideas.
I’m not sure why or how aftermarket loud exhausts are allowed to be sold? If the exhaust doesn’t pass a loudness test then how come many of the aftermarket exhausts are being fitted to motorbikes?
If it was up to me then the law would be struck and enforced. If your bikes too loud it gets crushed in front of you. Bit dramatic I know but the message would soon filter through the grey sponge between your ears.
The A32 near me is a Mecca for Casey Stoner types, in the main because up near East Meon there’s a motorbike cafe and the road is an A road with 50mph limits on it. Not that 50mph means anything to the Casey Stoners who blat up and down it overtaking in the villages that are situated along there.
However, I do like bikes. I do see some really good riding and very normal sensible people going about thier business on two wheels. And if I rode a bike I’m sure that I too would find the A32 a nice road to ride along, because in a soft top car it’s pretty as England should be.
I have owned a couple of scooters, and ridden them down the A3 home from town, in the main both car drivers and other motorbike users were very courteous and sensible. In town it’s a bit of a lottery as to who you sit behind or overtake but still it’s a great way to travel.
I am jealous of Southern European countries who seem more tolerant and accepting of bikes on the roads, we just seem to get annoyed because mainly it’s deeply ingrained.
IMO
yep, knowing your limits is a rare skill.
i’ve had a big bike, (zzr1100), i will be honest, it was too fast for me, i was scared of it.
mine was restricted (to 125bhp!) and was a big heavy bike, more modern bikes are 30kg lighter and have close to double the power, yes they can be ridden safely, but I’d wager that plenty of riders don’t have the self control to be sensible.
Of course, you get idiots in all walks of life, that’s what we are really discussing here.
Driving down to the coast on the A32 which has become a bikers honey-pot - appears that Darwinian principles abound as they overtake on blind bends / summits and pose the greatest threat to other motorcyclists coming the other way - a few cringe-worthy moments.
The huge difference between me as a cyclist and a motorbiker is that if I get it wrong, its only likely to a few grazes, damaged clothing and maybe broken bones at worst. I'm not inflicting potentially life-threatening injuries on another member of the public and become a burden on my family and health service by needing to be fed via a tube for the rest of my life.
I tend to see high speed motorbike accidents as one fewer idiot on the road. Sure, they suffer from cars pulling out without looking properly in urban and suburban areas, but that could be fixed by making everyone ride a bicycle for a year before being allowed to take their test.
You win.
basically in the same way as push bikes have come on you can now get a motorbike that outperforms most supercars for less than a mountain bike.
rider education is important but its always a second thought for most people.
i miss my bike
Turn up to trail centres these days and its mainly middle aged men on over biked bikes going faster than their skill level or age would dictate is right.
The road from Hawes to Ribble Head is one of the best drives about
My initial thought was as FunkyDuncs, it's no different to what what mtbers do. Most would be better off on a decent hardtail or short travel fs but buy into the latest trend for 150-160mm enduro/trails bikes and bimble around trail centres.
Bikers buy these 1000+cc race bikes/touring/streetfighter style bikes when they'd be much better off on something around 600cc or less and around 50-60bhp. (I've always believed as a biker that any more than a usable 100bhp was pointless on the road - no matter how experienced you are). Problem with buying bikes that suit your abilities is that it only takes one rider in your group to be on a more more powerful bike and the rest feel they have to too. Their lack of skill means they can't keep up. So instead of learning how to ride properly they opt of the quick fix and get a bigger engine. Parallels again with mtb 😀
Shops also play their part. I remember i was in a local shop (maybe 15 years ago) and a chap in his 50's wanted to get back into biking. Plenty of cash but not ridden since his was a pup. Walked straight over to the salesman and asked for a Fireblade. He was filling out the paperwork as i left.
As for noisey pipes...i'm all for them
As for the donor card comments...Coming from a place were riding bikes fast on the road is our national sport, i find that kind of comment in very poor taste 🙁
How did they enhance the reaction times on the test? That is the problem, you can’t speed up your reactions, the MCN bible tells you that you can through observation and all that but it doesn’t really happen
You missed the point. My point was that doing a ton on a motorbike takes seconds and your back at 60. Not like the frustrated bloke in a company A4 1.9 watching his speedo creep up 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85 ..................Doing a ton on even a crappy CB500 with a loose chain on an empty DC with nothing to react to doesn't feel fast because it's easy. You could do a ton and be back to 60 quicker than a car driver changes radio stations. It's illegal and you shouldn't do it, but it's a long way from the most dangerous thing you'll see on the roads on any given day, and you'll probably see a car going just as fast before instantly forgetting about it.
My second point was that people will always find something to hate about other groups that somehow seem to be getting an unfair one up on them.
Cyclists - don't pay road tax, jump ques and scratch cars with their handlebars, kill pedestrians, don't give way to overtaking cars. Any sensible person can see that those are either untrue, nonsense, not actual rules, etc. All because they don't like being overtaken by our magnificent calves and sculpted glutes on cheap bikes when they've paid tens of thousands of pounds to sit there impotent with rage in traffic, it upsets their view of the natural order of things.
Motor cyclists - all have loud pipes, act recklessly. You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you're not sitting in their view of "normal".
Mountain bikers - yayda yada yada
Black People - ...................
You get the idea.
Oh dear....
Im a middle aged man with a 160bhp R1
I also turn up at trail centres with my 170mm gnarsled
I suspect I may be ticking all the wrong boxes
But I enjoy riding both and don’t feel any great need to change either!!! 😂
You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you’re not sitting in their view of “normal”.
Indeed. You'd be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
Oh dear….
Im a middle aged man with a 160bhp R1
I also turn up at trail centres with my 170mm gnarsled
I suspect I may be ticking all the wrong boxes
But I enjoy riding both and don’t feel any great need to change either!!!
Only if you drive your brand new S-Line Audi or M sport BMW to the trail centre 🙂
The roads are public infrastructure, not a playground for entitled idiots.
(I have had motorbikes all my life)
i feel sorry for you, being encumbered by a massive percentage of fellow bikers who are total bellends thinking the queens highway is their playground.
the ratio of nobhead/normal is the worst with motorbikes, all forms of transport attract weapons, unfortunately most choose a motorbike. at least they usually only kill themselves not other people.
Middle aged men on big motorbikes are a bloody menace. Middle aged women on big motorbikes, on the other hand, are completely virtuous... 😇
Rachel
You get the idea.
Nope. You've lost me with that one. 😆
What a lovely thread this is! Crushing bikes we don't like on the spot? Careful what you wish for.
Middle aged men on big motorbikes are a bloody menace. Middle aged women on big motorbikes, on the other hand, are completely virtuous…
Reminds me of the traffic jam this morning.
Tailbacks all the way from slough to Reading on the M4.
What's at the front?
A dozen young men with their shirts off picking and sorting veg in the field at the side of the motorway! Bestill your beating vaginas, foot back on the throttle and look where your'e going please!
it's probably apocryphal but I like the one about the transplant surgeon talking about the lack of organ donors and then it starts raining and he's says "not long now"
I was one of those bikers who gave up in their 20s, after coming off a few times but never damaging myself, and knowing a few guys who injured themselves badly.
Then in my 40s I went back to college, on a course with a dozen other people, We socialised with each other, & in the company of our partners - a total of 26. Two of the guys were bikers, Both reckoned they were ace riders, & had never had an accident. Both died within a year, both in their first ever road accident.
I'm not going on one of those things again, at least on British roads.
You could be a middle aged dentist on a bonneville with quiet stock pipes and obey all the rules of the road and people will find reasons to hate you because you’re not sitting in their view of “normal”.
Indeed. You’d be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
Which is just plain selfish and verging on the aggressive and totally pointless, IMO.
Let them filter, if they can pass without cause for concern then let em’ ride on by.
Motorists are our own worst enemy sometimes.
Noisy exhausts are unacceptable, there is no need for them in the slightest. Same as noisy exhausts on cars, unacceptable and happy to see them crushed too.
Interesting reading. I often look at the big bikes these guys have and get little envious. Would secretly like a gs1200 but a smaller bike would suffice.
Used to ride a fazer 600 straight after my direct access 14 years ago. It felt like a rocket when I first got it, but after while I wanted more speed. Then, a car turned across me on a wet, dark ride home from work on Fulham road. My crotch took the full impact from 30mph as I didn't have the skill not to lock the front wheel, and there was a huge dent in the tank in an odd shape. I was purple down there for weeks. Even though I flew over the car I was only mildly bruised elsewhere thanks to good clothing. Cringe when I see the shorts and t-shirt riders.
That really put me off and I've never ridden again. I still wonder if ABS would have saved me.
I've produced two kids since so those soft bits are quite resilient.
Indeed. You’d be amazed how many cars will pull out to stop you filtering past stationary traffic or traffic going very very slowly.
I get this on my road bike, 🙁 Including drifting to the curb or middle of the road to stop you passing them.
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test, but given the way they treat me on the road bike, I'm only expecting more of the same when on the motorbike, hence my reluctance to even start filtering.
I like the one about the transplant surgeon talking about the lack of organ donors and then it starts raining and he’s says “not long now”
Dunno about the gender or age bits, but come the bank holiday cometh motorbikers smeared along the North Wales A5. Always a case of where rather than if. Not pleasant.
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test
Now you've been riding a bit I would highly recommend joining the local Institute of Advanced Motorcyclist group and get some extra hints. Once you get passed the beards and BMW GS's some real good practical tips can be had.
some real good practical tips can be had.
what like how fast and close you need to pass a road cyclist to give them a heart attack ?
I have yet to have the confidence to filter on my motorbike, having only been 1200 miles since passing my test
Now you’ve been riding a bit I would highly recommend joining the local Institute of Advanced Motorcyclist group and get some extra hints.
I'm also in the same boat, I'd recommend buying the Police Roadcraft book, once your riding its easy to study and implement. Next year I'll be joining the local advanced rides too.
As for the OP, IMO the sports bike riders are on the decline either by natural attrition or the prospect of jail time. Looking at the current scene with maybe fresh eyes I'd say that the adventure/tourer market, then the HOG cruiser types individually make up a far greater number than the power rangers. And with the hipster/café/retro scene coming fast on its heels. Its too easy to tar everyone with the same brush, I'd say the decent law abiding (ish) riders far outweigh the knobbers, but its the knobbers you notice and remember unfortunately.
BikeBouy .- The white and blue police tape on the old railway bridge on 272 is from when a bike got it a little bit wrong . He was a friend of a colleague , married + kid . Probably out having fun , but accidents happen .
I also find alot of motorbikes close pass when I'm out on my roady. Its as they do not see pedal cycles as vunrable , but I would imagine being whacked by a motorbike is probably still going to hurt as much as if you get whacked by a car
IAM is for when you’ve had a bit of experience, I don’t think they will look at you for 6 months after you’ve passed your test (they push the improving, not teaching how to ride).
My main motorcycling buddy is an IAM instructor instructor so I ended up heading out on their club rides now and again. I learned a fair bit, mostly road positioning, but they helped me sort out cornering (keep the gas on, ‘positive’ steering) but I never joined... I think they just assumed I was an associate 🤣 I did buy and read and try to implement the Police Roadcraft book, it’s well worth the £12-15 it cost me.
Check out your local Police road safety offerings (usually a day or weekend affairs) or, god forbid, get post test training from the people you took your DAS with. Not everybody has their own personal instructor... 🤢
Someone* did the ton on their way back from their (passed) motorcycle test following their instructor.
On my direct access course they encouraged us to break the speed limit. Mainly on short 1 or 2 mile sections of dual carriageway, someone managed 100 as well.
The instructors actively encouraged excess speed routinely in the second half of the course.
Apart from during your test, but after that we could “play”.
Ex-motorcyclist and ex-motorcycle journo / road tester / track tester etc here from the era when the Honda Fireblade was still considered cutting-edge fast. I rode a lot of miles and a lot of quick miles and didn't die, so I must have been reasonably competent, though obviously not at TJ's level 😉
I totally get why people ride motorcycles quickly, it's the nearest thing to flying you'll get without actually, well, flying. And the easy access to brutal speed and acceleration is intoxicating. But you're also very, very vulnerable to your own and other road users' mistakes - which is why I stopped riding - and though people forget this, you can cause a lot of damage to other people if you crash into them and that includes car drivers.
Going back to the OP, motorcycle group riding is a bit of a nightmare. There's a tendency for people to stop making their own decisions and just follow the leader's line good or bad. Throw in other traffic and it often gets messy. The first bike makes a clean overtake, the second follows and just about makes it, then the third or fourth bike start making marginal decisions, cutting into gaps that are disappearing etc. If you miss the overtake, it's easy to get frantic as your mates ride off into the distance and make a bad decision yourself.
You can see it happen all the time on any popular 'biking road'. Throw in a bit of duelling ego stuff for good measure, and things can go very wrong quiet quickly.
I always hated riding in groups for that reason, particularly if you were back marker and were continually playing catch-up. I always preferred riding alone or with a like-minded mate.
But to go back to the beginning, I do think it's one of the main reasons that fast bikes ridden in groups often seem to be horrendously badly ridden. Throw in another group and things can get even worse.
I know not every riding group is like this, but the odd UK culture of riding race reps maybe contributes to it too. Personally I avoid driving / road cycling on roads which are popular with weekend motorcyclists, not because I hate or despise them, but because I have a well-developed sense of self preservation. And also, seeing people hurting themselves unnecessarily is just bloody sad. I stopped going to the Isle of Man TT for that reason.
I still sometimes miss my bike though.
Good post BWD, sums up my experience from my 20's.
I was riding with a group of very fast lads (club/national level racers and one who made it into WSB before a bad crash ended that).
Trips up to Devil's bridge got a bit out of hand for all of those reasons. Now I take it pretty easy on the roads and do track days, you can't get close to the track feeling on the road so there's no point.