Aprilia Tuono Naked, is tiny, well the V4 is as I have one.

What do you want to use the bike for?

Is it comfort thats the problem or do you just think you look to big for it?

Are you the Couchy I met at a Euro trackday a few years back. You were not riding at the trackday but had a S1000XR at the time?

Once you have a CBT you could always hire a 125 for a weekend and get some miles in for practice. A mate of mine did that. I went out with him, was quite interesting going out for a ride with someone on a 125 🙂

Bad luck mate, but sounds like its mainly your pride hurt.

You will gain confidence as you get more miles under your belt. Next time you will just push on the bar and lean the bike a little bit more. Its actually quite surprising the amount of grip you have in the wet if you are not abusing the throttle 🙂

Don’t be hard on yourself, this stuff happens.

As Kyrton said if you can’t maintain the power for the interval then its not fine. Maybe re-do the ramp test to double check your FTP is sensible and you are not over reaching.

How many sessions a week are you doing? are you following one of the low volume plans on trainer road?

Also how old are you, recovery gets harder as we get older.

Only you will know if you are mentally bailing out or if its a physical thing.

Though if you tell me you are 30 and generally fit usually I would be saying go see your doctor and make sure there are no underlying issues causing the fatigue.

I am not a particularly sporty person I leave the house at 6am do a 9hr day at work with a 45min commute each way. I do 4 strength sessions a week at the gym and 3 trainer road sessions. I am 49 (this week 🙁 ) and I do get tired and I do have to force myself to do the TR sessions most of the time. I just tell my self that its still a lot less than Ironman training 🙂

Are you hitting the power numbers on trainer road when you do the sessions. If you are then surely everything is OK. Training is hard sometimes and it does not always feel fun.

Sometimes you have to ask am I prepared for the commitment to train to get better or do I want to have fun on a bike. If its the former then sometimes you have to tell yourself to toughen up and jump on the turbo.

If you are struggling to hit the power numbers on the workouts that’s a different matter and maybe look at your nutrition etc. Are you properly fuelled and hydrated. If you think you are probably time to retest FTP.

The longer TR sessions are hard and I often go into them thinking can I actually do it. Most of the time once I start I make it through. Its rare to fail and when I do its normally a mental failure rather than physical.

@Molgrips if you leave you hand out in front in a glide there is a tendency for your wrist to crack and the palm of your hand is sort of parallel to the pool wall if you see what I mean.

As I said before if people feel like they are having to frantically stroke then its generally because they are running out of air. Thats generally caused by not breathing out under the water. As soon as your face is back in the water you should be exhaling.

You want to increase you efficiency per stroke yes, but you don’t really want to reduce your stroke rate. Good stroke rate and good stroke efficiency is fast 🙂

@nedrapier yep the bubble bubble breathe drill is great for making sure you have exhaled properly ahead of taking a breath.

No no no no molgrips, if you want to learn to swim front crawl properly most definitely don’t concentrate on the glide. If you do you will have a palm up situation causing drag. There is no glide phase swimming front crawl. Yeah it might feel easier but its not efficient and will be slowing you down.

just get some lessons right away, they can build your stroke up properly rather than have to re-build it once you learn bad habits.

Most people struggle to start with due to breathing. If you are not getting enough air you will be knackered and its why you have to stop. Get your self signed up to a course, however be particular which one. If you truly are a real begginer then a course doing all strokes will be good, it will give you more feel for the water. If you just want to learn front crawl and maybe have some tri aspiration, join a club that has a coached swim session.

Bottom line is never too soon to start getting some coaching. Even more important than being coached on how to ride a drop 😀

I know its above budget but I use a Garmin Virb Ultra 30. Its 4K and has a built in GPS and accelerometers etc. So you can plot your journey on a map overlay.

Also has ANT+ support so if you use it on your push bike you can over lay data like power and HR too.

Do you need a podiatrist or a chiropodist?

I have seen a podiatrist for a running injury, I ended up with some orthotics in my trainers that helped with some ITB and Achilles issues.

Never seen a chiropodist, though could do with seeing one to sort out my nails from sking/running

Cheers guys, its not the actual parking I was worried about, just fitting in standard size spaces. The SWB is probably no longer than an E Class estate.

Work parking would be fine, its the odd trip into town to do shopping and that sort of thing, like visiting the parents and having to park on the street.

vmgscot, do you use your van as a daily driver? If so do you find the LWB any more of an issue parking etc?

I am very tempted by a LWB next after two SWB vans.

I have had a 2015 DCi140 Sport from new. Previously to that I had a 2013 Dci115 Sport with the old 2L single turbo engine.

I would say the older vans were built better, but the newer engine is better.

I have had the side door handle fall off mine, the bumper pop out and various trim bits pop off.

The old one was solid.

I would like a transit custom problem is my local Renault dealer seems to come up with deals that ford can’t even get close too.

On Her Majesty Service. They made bond dull.

Nooooo, that is by far the best of the early bond films 🙂

So a society where women aren’t subject to regular sexual harassment, sexual discrimination, a media which is obsessed with sexualisation, etc would not decrease feelings of vulnerability

LOL so Women are not watching this media and reading these magazines etc?

If they weren’t then people would be asking what they needed to do, to get them on board.

An EU citizen can’t drive a non EU (Swiss) registered car in the EU. So its illegal for someone from the UK to drive a Swiss registered car in France.

So if you travelling to France you need to hire it on the French side. EU registered car can be driven in Switzerland fine.

A Swiss non EU person is allowed to drive a Swiss car in the EU 🙂

Confused yet 🙂

One thing to bear in mind is what happens if you have a problem while you are away. Think of the dealer network. Aprilia you can forget it and I own two, getting parts etc is a nightmare. Triumph and BMW are brilliant and the Jap stuff is generally pretty good.

I have had 3 675’s one Street and two daytonas and they have been bullet proof. Only thing I have really known to be a week point is early rectifiers and some bikes seem to eat crank position sensors. Other than that pretty reliable.

I think getting camping Gear on a street is doable but obviously not as easy as a tourer or ADV bike.

I am just chuffed you and you son had such a good experience last time, despite what the naysayers thought 🙂

I did the factory tour at Bologna a few years ago. It was brilliant loved the museum.

Really worth a visit even if your not a Ducati fan. Only issue is Bologna is not that great an area to ride in 🙂

I have done big tours on a Tuono V4 APRC, 17L tank and it drinks like Oliver Reed. 80miles would see the fuel light on. Its doable but it is a bit of a ballache. Most of the trips on that though I took it down to Val D’Isere in the van and then went from there. So I avoided the long drag down where the range might be more of an issue. 80 Miles in the mountains and you are generally ready for a break.

I think a lot of it depends on if you want to waft along everywhere in comfort or get to the mountains and then have a bike that’s fun and easy to enjoy the twisties.

I am currently on a S1000XR for touring and its a really good compromise. However I do sometimes miss the simplicity of a really light small bike with a bag thrown on the back. Though not when I am slogging down a motorway in the rain 🙂

A Transalp might be a good idea if you are overland touring through Africa. Tarmac touring in the Alps its not going to be ideal, the front wheel is the wrong size.

Best options I have seen on the this thread so far are the VFR800, they are very capable comfy bikes with a great and engine and the tail end of Honda’s high quality days. Beware they do fry stator windings and regulators for a pass time, much like Blackbirds.

Or my suggestion of of a Street, throw some Kreiga bags on it and have a great time in the twisties. You can get an early one for your money and they are pretty darn reliable. As I said the lower rev limit over the Daytona makes them a lot more durable.

A lot of the other stuff is either big wheeled and compromised for a little off road capability or budget learner/commuter bikes.

At least the VFR or the Street will make you want to look back at them as you walk away and and be a little proud.

Just get a Street Triple 169kg dry 180KG ready to ride and has a little bit of character and soul. It is by far the best middle weight naked out there. MT-09 is nice but the suspension is not as good as the Street. There is a reason it won all the road test comparisons for years.

NC700X Jesus I would be falling asleep at the bars 🙂

Down side of Street for touring is you are looking for fuel at 120miles. Though that said my mate does trips with me and its no problem. We did a 3500mile tour last year.

An older Street Triple. All day comfort better power and lighter than a Bandit.

The lower rev limit means the engines last really well too compared to the higher revving Daytona lump.

I have yet to meet someone who has ridden one that didn’t think it was brilliant.

Well done mate 🙂

There will be plenty of low mile garage ornaments being sold privately this time of year. Buy something that has been loved, not that has been treated like crap by learners 🙂

I have a sweet spot for Street Triples and even older first gen models ride really really well.

Get planning that summer trip to the Alps 🙂

Chuffed for you.

Now that every man and his dog carry’s a mobile phone with a camera. How come there are no pictures of these strange events?

One explanation would be you can’t take pictures of things that are inside your head.

Ocams, Razor 🙂

@kcr I should have said statistically unlikely, however unlikely it is, it is actually possible for someone to bet on roulette every day of their life and never lose.

That’s not the case on a FOB it maintains the return on the amount of money put into it.

@kcr obviously the odds are calculated to make it very very likely the house will win. However real roulette is a game of chance though extremely unlikely it is possible for the house to lose. Statistically over time they won’t however it is possible.

FOB  machines on the other hand don’t payout until they have taken some money, the software is designed so its never behind. They can never lose money.

No one has to gamble, people can just do something else instead. The fact this woman has been successful because a lot of people enjoy gambling and a few people have gambled themselves into a hole and are daft enough to think the only way out is more gambling, makes her just cleverer than the people gambling 🙂

@matt_bl

IT would be quite easy to show though that they only got £800 back from the £1000 they have spent this year though 🙂 for the VAST majority of people.

The fact that the house CANNOT lose on FOB machines is different to the fact on other stuff its just UNLIKELY they are going to lose.

I think personally think calling people who lose more than they can afford (your’e safe binners) stupid, rather than addicted, would have better results in stopping it 🙂

@eat_the_pudding

I honestly don’t really care about the gambling industry, I am more bothered about the slide into protecting people to the point they can’t think for themselves. I am not trying to win a battle with you either so I am pleased you are anti the dumbing down of society.

PS If you think a quick chat with their parents will make children immune to pervasive advertising, I have a bridge I’d like to sell you.

A quick conversation no, but actually educating them properly would. We are all subject to the forces of marketing and advertising. That’s not going away any time soon. So preparing people to deal with it is the way forward, rather than trying to ban things. If you know how the trick works, its not magic anymore is it.

@eat_the_pudding How can a child get access to enough funds for gambling to be a problem?

If we tell someone they have a problem and they are addicted and can’t help it we, are basically saying there its beyond their control and they might as not bother.

If we tell them they are an idiot and just need to stop and show some respect for themselves and the people around them, we are telling the truth.

People gamble to try and get out of the hole they have gambled their way into, that’s not addiction. It would be better to educate people and explain how things like FOB machines work. Lets face it no one would play a game with me where they gave me £10 and I gave them £8 back if they knew that was the rules.

I think getting the message out “Gambling is a business to take money off you” would be better than pretending they have a medical condition.

What do the “its the responsibility of the gambler” types feel about this from the Grauniad?

Still relaxed about it?

No children are the responsibility of their parents, which is another thing people seem to be forgetting these days. As far as I can see there you need an iTunes account to fund the gambling, so one would assume parents should have some sort of control over the funding of that account.

Again its lets blame someone else rather than saying “What can I do to protect my children”

Edit weird my quoting seems broken

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/if-there-was-ever-a-reason-to-curb-online-gambling-its-this/#post-10347606

No children are the responsibility of their parents, which is another thing people seem to be forgetting these days. As far as I can see there you need an iTunes account to fund the gambling, so one would assume parents should have some sort of control over the funding of that account.

Again its lets blame someone else rather than saying “What can I do to protect my children”

Addiction is that a way of making it sound like people are not just stupid and selfish and they somehow have something wrong with them?

Why is everything someone else’s fault these days? Instead of saying poor you you are addicted to gambling, we should be saying stop being a nobber, stop being selfish and take some responsibility.

Obviously the other option would be for people to take responsibility for their own actions and stop wasting money they don’t have.

If they have the money and wan’t to spend it on gambling, why should they not be allowed to do it?

Though they should be less stupid and not do it on fixed odds betting machines and maybe try something that might actually be really a game of chance.

“The mistaken belief that juries aquitting an accused person are saying the complainer was lying is part of the reason real victims don’t come forward.”

Or of course the guy could have just as likely have been innocent?

I hit one the other day in the van on the way to work, It was horrible I slowed quite  a bit before I hit it and it still went barreling down the road. It just jumped out and I just caught its rear quarter.

Made aright mess off the van, bumper, both undertrays, intercooler shroud and fog light.

It really shook me up as I am a bit of a softy with animals.

Interested in this keep up the posting 🙂

So do you mean you were too close to the car in front while stationary queuing to go through a pinch point ?

How old is this compressor? They are not actually that expensive to buy. A 150L with a 3KW motor would only be a few hundred quid from Machine Mart.

I think you might be worrying about nothing, you are only looking at 150psi tops.

If it was an old dive cylinder with 3000psi it might be more of an issue.