bavarian efficiency

The boffins at BMW have discovered that if you drop your bike sometimes your handguards get squished onto your levers. So they have helpfully written to warn me. But that might not provide me with sufficient technichal information to avoid disaster. So I've also got a new page for my handbook and some groovy stickers to go inside said implements of destruction. End of lever in the cross-hairs - good. End of lever outside the crosshairs - danger! Surely a nifty BMW cloth to rub them down with ought to have completed the set?

Praise the Lord and Pass the Heated Clothing

I have a fairy godfather - or perhaps Saint Nich - who has transformed my life with the loan of a Klan heated vest. (I am having trouble finding a link for this one, I have tried "Klan" and am looking at a link offering WhitePrideTV, which I shall forbear from offering for your enjoyment.) Technically it's a "Hot Sport Waistcoat." I've been using it for a week and have so far managed to unplug myself from the lead every time - my greatest fear and the reason I've been too anxious to buy one before has been the vision of walking into the pay kiosk at the petrol station dragging a whimpering 1200GS behind me. It is slightly disconcerting to have a warm glow starting at the kidneys and stretching round my chest (though not as disconcerting as those posh cars that give you a feeling of spreading warmth under the seat) - but it has meant that instead of being cold, getting covered in shite and being unable to see, I'm just covered in shite and still getting rained on inside my helmet. As Meatloaf used to say, 2 out of 3 ain't bad.

Stocking fillers

Going to have to buy myself one of these from Whitehorse Gear...

It's official - I'm not a wuss

I've been a bit worried by the heavy weather I've been making of the chilly weather - is it really that difficult to be an all-year-round biker? When there's ice on the roads and I can barely stand on my own two feet, going to work on my own two wheels was just too difficult. How is it that other people manage to keep going? Am I (whisper it) some kind of *lightweight*?

No! It's official - I just chose a really bad year to start my career as gnarly all-year-rounder. According to the Met Office this is the coldest start to Winter since 1976.

And the winner is..

Congratulations to BikeStop in Stevenage for winning the MCN Clothing and Accessories Dealer of the Year Award.

Not only my favourite starting point for the National Rally, because they hand out a free copy of Hertfordshire Biker to read during the compulsory rest stops, and my favourite meeting point for IAM observed rides (now temporarily on hold thanks to my losing the plot) on account of the free coffee, they were also fabulously helpful when it turned out that waterproof sidi boots aren't actually waterproof, and gave me a full refund. (Which I spent on my german army boots and had £175 change :)

Did I miss the Four Minute Warning?

In the light of the weather conditions, I offer you this helpful advice from the BBC.

Scares the hell out of me...

At the third attempt I finally got to see the Wall of Death show at the NEC. I know they do it five times a day, and have been doing it for years, but I still find it utterly terrifying to watch. The hippos on the BBC One ident might be CGI but the three bikes circling the wall at the same time are 100% real.


PS - if another post about this turns up later, I haven't gone mad - my mobile posts seem to be taking the scenic route.

at the Wall of Death :)