Month: April 2017

From the Chair (April 2017)

Posted on | by Andy Slater

Well, I guess it wasn’t really a surprise that I found myself appointed Chairman at the end of the AGM last month. My past year as Vice-Chair supporting David Jacobi opened my eyes to all the great work that goes on within TVAM, and yet there still seems to be lots to do. The club is always moving forward and evolving, which is how we keep it fresh and interesting. 

I’m keen this year for the club to give more back to Full Members. They make up the largest single group within the club and, whilst ensuring that there is plenty for this group to engage in, that there is also help to retain and improve advanced riding skills beyond social runs. Sarah Chandler is taking over the Green Team and she has some great ideas for things she wants to introduce and I’m sure we’ll hear more from her soon.

One of the few things I expected within a couple of hours of becoming Chairman was to receive a letter of complaint from a member of the public about the riding standards displayed by one of our social rides. He’d been passed by 8 or 9 TVAM bikers who were apparently overtaking on blind bends and crests in the road. Not something he thought we should be doing as an Advanced Group.  And, yes, it was a TVAM run as the back marker was wearing a TVAM vest!

Having spoken with the run leader and knowing a number of the people on that particular ride I was somewhat surprised as none of them ride recklessly or unsafely, indeed the opposite could be said. What we determined was the particular road in question is undulating and has low hedges and banks down the sides. The height of adventure-style bikes gives a view from the saddle that is very different from that of the average car. Indeed, combined with the performance these bikes now have, an advanced rider could have the view and have completed a safe overtake before the car driver has even got a view of the road ahead. What we seem to have is a case of perception; that what was happening appeared to be unsafe, probably heightened by 8 or 9 bikes all roaring past with little separation.

The lesson here is probably that what is safe and perfectly normal for us on our high performance and, possibly loud bikes, can be perceived to be aggressive and unsafe by other road users. Our aim is to make progress without inconveniencing or upsetting other road users. Perhaps we need to have in mind how others might perceive our riding as we wind our way through traffic as a group on our next social run. Let’s be proud to be TVAM!

Enjoy the ride, be safe.

Andy Slater

Chairman

Lois Pryce and her Revolutionary Ride

Posted on | by Salli Griffith

Lois came to speak to TVAM on Wednesday 12th April in her usual ebullient manner and gave us a very entertaining and informative evening about her time in Iran, with the overriding emphasis on the wonderful hospitality of its people. A good turnout from the club, with a few partners and offspring attending. In fact, I brought my cousin who isn’t a biker but was fascinated to hear her stories and totally admired her spirit of adventure and bravado. For those who missed it, you can still get a taste by buying her new book Revolutionary Ride (which many of us did) and experience second-hand the country of Iran from the perspective of a westerner, a female and a motorcyclist. www.loisontheloose.com

Riders Ride (April 17)

Posted on | by Nick Tasker

This month we have Oliver King, one of our RideUp candidates, and his shiny red Yamaha.

So Oliver, what make and model of bike are we looking at here?

A Yamaha MT07.

And how long have you had this bike?

Since September 2016, so about 5000 miles.

Was this purchased new then?

Yes, brand new. I bought it through Yamaha finance, over three years, my first bike

And what made you choose that particular bike?

For a start, the size was quite a big thing. I’ve sat on larger bikes and always hated the weight of them, and so I chose that one because of weight and size. And secondly because it was less expensive than a lot of other bikes, like your Street Triple for example, which I did look at. I also looked at a KTM 390 but I went with Yamaha for reliability as well, it’s a good name. And it looked awesome!

Why did you decide to go new rather than used?

Mainly because of the finance. I couldn’t put six grand up front in one big bulk payment, and it would’ve taken me about two years to build up that amount of cash to put down on a first bike. I know I’m going to have it for a long time, so I thought if I’m going to be the first owner, all the mods I put on it will be mine.

So you weren’t tempted to look at something like a ten-year-old SV650, for example? Because you could probably get one of those for £2k…

No, I wasn’t tempted. I did look at second-hand bikes, but I thought, it’s my first bike, and I love the cool bikes that are coming out at the moment, and I didn’t want some knackered old thing. I’d probably buy a second-hand car, but a bike is my own, this one’s always been mine, all the things I’ve put on it are for me. No one else has done anything, they’re all my miles.

So which dealer did you pick this Yamaha up from?

There’s one in Ipswich called Orwell Motorcycles, they’re a Suzuki, Kawasaki, and Yamaha dealership. They do loads of bikes, but there is a dealer in Bury St Edmunds, which is actually where I live, who also sell Yamahas, but the customer service was awful. I was immediately put off and drove to Ipswich and bought a bike from Orwell instead. It’s the same bike, same offer, it’s just they were much friendlier, so I bought from them.

That’s a strong incentive to prioritise the customer service if there ever was one!

Yes, exactly!

You talked about making modifications to your bike, what have you done so far?

The first thing I did was add the LED indicators, to be brighter. I put them on the finance with the bike, and the dealer stuck them on before I got it. I changed the coloured side panels on the front mudguard, they used to be red, I changed those to be black so it’s just the tank that is red. Then I added the Akropovic exhaust, which completely changes it. I went straight home and pulled the baffle out and started it up. I immediately regretted the decision but couldn’t figure out how to put the baffle back in, so I just carried on! I’m glad I kept it out in the end, but going from a stock exhaust to an Akropovic with the baffle out was quite a big jump, so…

You may want to dig that one out for when MOT time comes!

Exactly…

Have you got any further modifications planned for the future?

A radiator guard, I’d quite like to get one to protect the radiator.

How come, why do you feel it needs protecting?

There’s a lot of grit in it, it’s a pain to clean it. Also talking to the guys here, lots of them say a radiator guard is a good idea, because it can get damaged quite easily. And then, a windscreen.

I take it you’re planning on doing some longer distance trips on it then?

Yeah, heading to Belgium with an Austrian friend who’s got a KTM, a 690 Supermoto. So I need to kit it out with touring bits rather than street stuff.  A windscreen is probably what I need for sixty-plus miles an hour.

Is there anything in particular you don’t like about your new bike?

I don’t like the pipes that run from the water pump to the radiator, because they corrode really quickly. It’s not even a year old and they’re really quite damaged. It comes with the price really but I know it’s a problem that Yamaha will fix for free under warranty. The dealer told me about it and recommended things like ACF50. I was riding it all through winter, even through the snow, and that’s probably why it’s started corroding. But that’s probably the only thing that’s bugged me.

And you say your dealer’s already agreed to replace those pipes under warranty?

Yes. They say it’s a known problem with the MT-07, and those pipes in particular. Often they’ll paint them for you, just part of the dealership service rather than direct from Yamaha. They said otherwise you’ll just keep coming back wanting them replaced.

But other than that you’re pleased with your choice so far?

Absolutely. It’s a first bike. I’ve ridden two other bikes; a 50cc supermoto which was awful, and the bike I learned on for my test, so I don’t have much to compare it to.

No plans to change it any time soon then?

No, absolutely not.

Nick Tasker was interviewing Oliver King

Nick Tasker was interviewing Oliver King.

April 2019

IN PURSUIT OF FUN – ANDALUSIAN STYLE (April 17)

Posted on | by Salli Griffith

January can be bleak in England, so in pursuit of fun and sun I flew to southern Spain. I have often wondered what trail biking is like – it looks so different to road riding. The bikes are different, and so is the kit.  The places are very different and the riding seems to follow different rules.

Tristam, my Observer 10 years ago (I was his first and only test pass), keeps a couple of KTM trail bikes in Spain for regular visits.  So I joined him in Mijas, near Malaga in Andalusia.

Down the coast I could see the Rock of Gibraltar and across the glittering Med the jagged profile of the Moroccan Rif mountain range.  The sun was warm by day, but there was a nip in the air and at night it was really chilly.

The coastal hinterland is ruggedly mountainous, but green in this season.  As if a giant bowl of noodles has been tipped on it, it’s a biker’s paradise of tangled dirt roads, trails, walking paths and animal tracks from one sierra to the next.  The mountains are scattered with rock, boulders, scree, scrub and gorse, bare red earth, varied forest and orchards of early-blooming pink almond trees.

This winter, the heaviest rains and snow in living memory have fallen.  River beds, streams, ditches, culverts and trenches cut through the landscape.  In places bridges and roads have been swept away.

There’s virtually nowhere a trail bike won’t go and you can get to places and viewpoints otherwise only reachable on foot or horseback.  Even so, wherever you roam, someone is usually within earshot.

The Adventure Rider Centre in Mijas, where Tristram garages his machines, was set up five years ago by Baz and Kaz, from Southport, Lancashire.  Baz is a cool and chatty dude who was an engineer, but lives to ride.

His partner Kaz has ridden bikes since she was six and is a UK SandAce champion. Her father started Southport’s Kawasaki dealership. She doesn’t ride enough now, she says, as she’s too busy providing an airport shuttle, managing the riders’ kit and doing the admin for their growing business. She gives the warmest welcome and kits out all the riders.

Tristram and I are booked into a comfortable local hotel with panoramic sea views and a fabulous outdoor pool, too cold to brave. At the Centre, Kaz kits me out with helmet, boots and full protective gear. All I needed to bring on EasyJet was an overnight case.

Baz and Kaz are supported by Dave, from Edinburgh, who takes care of a feet of bikes, mostly 250cc KTMs or equivalents. These may sound small, but they are really torquey and, just as important, they’re not too heavy if they fall and you have to pick them up again.

Baz takes Tristram and I out on the frst couple of days – a Swede called Andreas on days three and four. They have amazing skills and judge well how fast we are getting the knack of things.

Trail bikes cope brilliantly with this terrain, with long forks, soft springing, wide bars, huge torque and chunky rubber that bites into wet or loose surfaces. They will keep skipping along as long as you have the courage to keep up the revs and ride on.

I quickly learn to stand up on my pegs, gripping the bars loosely and steering through my feet. Gear changing not so easy, especially hooking up – down is a stomp. I try to keep my centre of gravity over the part of the bike that needs my weight most, going uphill or downhill. I use the clutch to manage drive to the back wheel when I’m most at risk of grabbing a handful of throttle, and brake hard going down steep inclines and slide if I must.

Above all, I try to look way in front, choosing my line through rocks, bushes, holes, trenches, water and roots well before arriving there.  You have to place your trust in the machine to deal with these hazards as it passes over them.

Falling off hurts – what’s down there is all hard!  Tristram had a heavy tumble on our first day out and he wrenched his shoulder.  As I write, he awaits surgery for a detached ligament and hopes he’ll be fit to sail in the Clipper Round-the-World Race starting in August.

Nick Houlton lent me one of his neat Helite airvests, and it proved itself a couple of times. In the end I put it aside – there are times when you just need to step away from the bike without an umbilical cord and those CO2 cartridges aren’t cheap! But for regular road riding or commuting the airvest must be worth serious consideration.

Trail riding with the Adventure Rider Centre can be pitched at any level from novice to expert, and you are in the hands of experienced tutors.  It’s addictively fun and I was really bitten. You just want to find out how much more you can do; how much further you can go.  But if you plan to sail around the world too, think twice!

Nick Caiger-Smith

The Adventure Rider Centre website is www.adventureridercentre.com

Baz (Barry Fleming) and Kaz (Karen Waind) run the ARC.  Flights to Malaga are cheap.  The riding is not, but your bike and kit are all provided. The Centre escorts and coaches riders in ones and twos or groups.  Insurance for off-road touring can be purchased through Endsleigh.