What Have You Being Doing With Your Non-triumph Today?

I can beat you on that partly due to the glasses issue I have bought a three in a larger size plus the dozen or so I already have I don't have one for each bike I have one for every outfit jeans and leather jacket jeans and textile jacket all leather or all textile short boots or long the variations go on and on

 

400four fettled,out for a wee run later .

 

This was two days ago, far too hot for this game but still enjoyable despite melting.

 

Out early on the Fireblade to meet up with a mate on his 2007 HRC Blade (IMHO the best paint scheme Honda have ever done for the CBR) at Garstang at 7:30.



Ended up heading over to Settle and Ribblehead before turning back for noon so as to avoid the hottest part of the day.

 

This weekend Helmut and I took our Ducatis to WSBK at Donington Park; we got tickets to the weekend in exchange for putting our bikes on the Ducati Owners’ Club display stand. We arrived on Friday morning, bright and early, set up our tent (in the outfield camping this year, the infield was sold out as I left it too late to book!). The outfield was actually very nice for camping and not too much of a walk into the circuit.















We had an absolutely excellent and extremely hot weekend, with some fabulous racing and entertainment in the paddock. Some British riders had some absolutely rotten luck, but some cracking results as well.











The only small negative was that something had been dragged past my bike on the stand I think as there was blue paint scraped across one of the panniers, but luckily no damage to the bike itself. I have to admit that we both had a little bit of anxiety about being so far away from our bikes, especially at night, but lots of people stayed at the stand camping all night so in reality they were probably safer than in the outfield camping.The photos were taken very early on - there were a huge amount of bikes on the stand by Sunday.

 

A little wander around Bawtry yesterday.

 

Out with a group of friends for a "gentle blast" around Central Scotland, north through Crieff, The Sma' Glen and Aberfeldy and back along Loch Tay to Killin then home. 148 miles of fun!

The Woodhouse for breakfast!
Ducati Monster, Honda CB1300, Triumph Bonneville T100, Honda CL500, BMW S1000R and BMW R12nineT at the Sma’ Glen.


One of a few coffee stops!

 

That CB 1300 has some real presence

 

Very nice always fancied one of those R12 nineT

 

CL500 and CB500F Hornet at rest after a morning coffee ride grew into a 134miles day ride around West Central Scotland!

 

Today I just had a nice little 77 mile whizz about on my Hyperstrada after I woke up from my night shift, with a stop at one of my very favourite cafes. I like my new tyres - Michelin Road 6s - which is a good job!! Before today, they had only gone to Donington which was mostly motorway.

 

I went seeking out more stamps for my Bike and Brew passport today, 213 miles done on my beautiful Blade flying about.....or crawling from Welshpool towards home with the sheer amount of traffic, all of it determined not to top 40mph it seemed .

 

Agreed, the wife hates my car driving when I get behind some dawdler.

Conversation usually goes...

If speed limits are to be so stringently enforced then why is this idiot doing 32 mph in a 60?



It really boils my blood that 80 mph in a 60, for example, is the crime of the century and must be controlled by any means.
However, when roads routinely fail to reach 90% of their posted limit then surely that is just as dangerous, or even more so for people who need to get somewhere, no?

Only yesterday we had a dawdler doing 28 FFS on a 60 mph country lane. On the first real opportunity all three cars following made a dash for it, the first was a really dodgy blind gamble, I was car two.

I've been driving over 40 years, and I'm sure we were told you HAD to make sufficient progress otherwise you would fail your test.

Rant over, what's your thoughts?

 

We have lots of twisty rural roads, Honda Jazz owners and garden centres round here, so it can be a frustrating and dangerous place to drive . Add the fact that indicators now (if used at all!) mean, "I am moving, it's up to you to take avoiding action" and driving is an activity which feels like a seriously hazardous occupation these days.

Going that slowly leads to people taking chances I think and increasing the risk because doing 35 - 40 mph for mile after mile on a NSL road in good weather, with good visibility, road conditions etc is so frustrating. All the idiots some way back in the queue also start to tailgate and it all just gets very fraught. You KNOW what the slow driver is saying to their passenger though "It's a speed limit, not a target" as they creep nervously on, slowing to 15mph for the gentlest of corners......

 

Totally agree, we are obviously on the same page on this.

'A road' slip roads are a classic " I can match your speed, but as I've got my indicator on, I can pull onto the main carriageway and it's then your problem!"

Err nope.

Some idiots on the main carriageway give way, others even coming to a standstill on a live lane to simply allow vehicles to join the main carriageway; this is just plain madness!
Where exactly are the painted Give Way road markings?

 

@Mrs Visor and @Eldon have to agree with all your points regarding bad driving. I had a spell as a driving instructor back in the 1970’s and yes you would fail your test if you did not make reasonable progress on the road. And joining a dual carriageway or motorway via a slip road is the drivers responsibility to match the flowing traffic before joining. Just sticking on an indicator does not mean you can just join, forcing others to take avoiding actions.
As ever the standard of driving today is dreadful.

 

I guess I'm slowing down with age, and sometimes fall into that "it's a maximum speed not a target speed" category!!

 

Yes I get that some may fit that slot, however, I feel it IS, OR SHOULD BE, A TARGET SPEED (not a maximum speed) as intended by the highways department IF you consider other peoples needs on the road i.e. tradesmen, parcel deliveries etc.
This is exactly the same, in my mind, as the opposite argument of a vehicle should be doing 30 in a 30, not 40, and not 50.
How can anyone contemplate that 30 in a 60 is evenly remotely acceptable unless other circumstances dictate?

 

I should have said, I would always let anyone clearly in a hurry pass if I am driving a bit below the limit! And I'd never defend anything near 30mph in a 60mph limit, I'm not that slow!!

Driving standards do seem to be dropping a bit, but a lot of that is related to this very subject - everyone trying to get somewhere as quickly as possible -

Some of my bugbears -

Drivers approaching roundabouts assuming a clear road ahead, then having to slam on the brakes when a car comes round... no anticipation at all!

Tailgating, or at least driving too close for a given speed, often at the actual speed limit - I know I'll get slammed for this, but it is often blondes in big SUV's! And I know a few parents who insist their daughters drive too close to the car in front, so its not just me.....

Drivers coming towards me, and glancing down - I know they are on their phones!

Drivers coming towards me on or over the white line at a corner because they are cornering beyond their, or their gigantic SUV's abilities.

Merging with or without indicators, just assuming I'll give way.....

Cars in front gradually slowing down and then speeding up again.... I know they are on their phones!

Jumping red lights - I see this more and more often, not slipping through on the yellow, but actually on the red.

Cyclists. Cycle lanes. Cyclists not in cycle lanes.

I remember reading somewhere that the best thing you can do to make a journey less frustrating is to allow a little more time than you think it will take.

Have a look at Road Morons on YouTube - countless examples of poor driving (are Uber drivers in London really as bad as he says?) and some funny commentary.

 

Had a wee tour around the Scottish Borders, pic taken just North of Moffat, near the devil's Beeftub. Lots of bikes out today....