I went one better and filled the keyboard with red wine. I just used a USB keyboard after that but was never brave enough to try a colleague’s suggestion of removing the keyboard and cleaning it in hot water.

If you think about it the wheel survives fine with X stones of you effectively hanging from the spokes so the weight of the bike is not going to trouble it.

It is indeed something you have to experience at least once but, if you don’t manage to get organised in time, then try the Manx Grand Prix in September which is a bit less frenetic but with just as good racing (and, indeed, some “proper” racing motorcycles with its Classic racing).

I’ve been to both a few times and could never have imagined going without a motorcycle but the last Manx trip two of us took the car and the mountainbikes and it worked well. Alas the “uplift” to the Bungalow is the only public transport that does not take bikes but we rode the tracks instead then enjoyed a cracking descent.

I did see FER 51T in the village of Fersit. Though I suppose calling Fersit a village is a bit of an exaggeration.

I’d stake my pension on him having died of something else:-) .

When I were a lad in the Cubs we had to wear elastic garters on our socks in order to display the garter tags. Forget the tape, use some elastic.

The one at the ferry at Brodick was pretty good. Hooked and Cooked was the name.

As one who occasionally uses the Pentlands I do think the Landowners would “have a leg to stand on”. The key to the access rights is responsible usage. Mass riding as an expression of pique (or indeed for commercial exploitation) might not be seen as such.

For a fiver you can get a lens to convert the spotlighty ones to a spread beam. I haven’t used it off road yet with that lens but on road it is great and I see no reason why it would not be fine for off road, especially in conjunction with a lamp on hthe head. Several folk on the road run were dashing off to get a similar light after following me.

The chippie round the corner from the High Street does a good sit in fish tea.

“As a bonus the lights and indicators are unobstructed so there was no need for any electrical work, just an extra plate.”

How do you illuminate the extra plate? I suspect you’d get away with it in daylight but be courting attention from an awkward rozzer at night, not to mention breaking the law. And who knows what else they might find once they’ve stopped you.

I wonder if a small LED light would comply. I’m thinking of something similar on what might be my next car but want to avoid fiddling with electrics.

We all have our own, equally valid, criteria so fair enough. I don’t mind seeing a towball all the time but, if I did, a premium of £300 or so would probably dissuade me from the detachable type, if that was the only consideration (which it ain’t in this case). But then I’m like the proverbial duck’s rear orifice when it comes to that sort of thing 🙂

I’ve never seen the attraction of a detachable towbar. I always felt that a towball was a bit of an incentive for the guy behind to leave an adequate gap! More so would it encourage those parking behind to be careful or [/i]they ,rather than I, would suffer the consequences.

It seems that Les Flics are doing motorcyclists now for not having the regulation reflective patches on their helmets. I’m sure Google will reveal all, and there’s someone in Britain selling the required items.

Utter nonsense – if someone can’t see the headlight or reflective rear number plate then they are hardly likely to see a small patch on the helmet.

The aviation museum at Dumfries is worth a visit (it’s not Duxford but it does very well for being volunteer run) and has some interesting stuff.

The workie’s cafe next door does good breakfasts too.

Yeah, Bultacos were good for that, to the point where one guy had the tank badges made to read Ocatlub.

In between trials we used the bikes to ride to school and my Bulto did the running backwards trick as I left a give way – straight back in to my French teacher’s Toledo. No damage to my rear tyre fortunately:-)

Having suffered behind one I can say that you don’t need anything brighter than a Smart, naff or otherwise.

There’s a famous old long distance cyclist up here who used to cut an old innertube and shove one end out the tent (in the days before sewn-in groundsheets) leaving the other end inside to provide ensuite “facilities”.

John Otway’s show is free of charge.

I suspect that it won’t take the impatient long to work out that, after several miles in a 45 mph queue, they’ll be “Ok” for a 90 mph overtake of those three cars and a lorry in front, then settle to 60 without exceeding the average.

Much as now?

My bike’s a bit heavier than I would like – must see if I can get it struck by some of this lightening stuff.

Go for a front hinged box. I got a side hinge version off e-bay but it’s a real pain to fix to the roof bars (I don’t have it on all the time). I have a Berlingo so need to use a stepladder to get up there and it is really too much of a stretch to get across to the hinge side to reach the fixings.

Well you can get a tandem in a Jazz Tandem in Jazz[/url]

I just use steel levers on “plain” rims. If I’m on the bike with black rims then I carry one steel lever to get it started then use plastic to avoid damaging the finish.

This sort of thing Leversbut some are thinner than others so choose carefully.

That all seems reasonable enough to me if it is accurately reported and reflects the facts.

I would be the first to defend the right of cyclists to use the public highway – but there’s the point – it is the [/i]public highway and everybody has equal right to use it without others unreasonably impinging on that use. Events as described, races by another name, could well be seen as unreasonable in that context.

I daresay if another user group was to do similar and cause cyclists such a level of disruption then we would be up in arms about it.

We are fortunate enough to be alone amongst wheeled road users in that we are permitted to race on the public highway when no doubt many others would see it as inappropriate use.

Let’s not push things to the point where that privilege is removed?

Oh yes, I meant to say, no need to row it along on the gear lever as, despite the high rev limit, there’s adequate bottom end to just open the throttle and go.

Have you decided yet Chilled?

Just as an update, and entirely by coincidence as I was not aware of the event coming up, my local Suzuki dealer had a test day (they are touring Britain with the bikes so may be coming your way soon) so I rode the 250 Inazuma.

Car traffic forced an 80 mph cruise on the motorway and it was very happy at that with plenty more to come. 8500 revs at 70 mph and revs to 11000 so work it out.

Handling superb and claimed up to 85 mpg so bound to have a pretty good consumption in reality. If max 100 and relaxed cruising with plenty power for safe overtaking does you then try one out. And it weighs what a motorcycle should weigh.

Oh yes, £800 off on test day so a new bike for quite a bit less than £3,000.

I then went out on the 650 Gladius (the nearest thing to my current SV 650)and can’t say I found it any better in many ways than the 250.

My Thorn does not have a frame number, which was queried by the Police at a free Bike Register session. The chap at the adjacent bike shop stall said that small producers were not obliged to number frames. Don’t know if it’s true or not but there must be plenty such bikes insured.

Do you mean the Mosque Kitchen or the Mosque Kitchen? There seems to have been a schism.

Haven’t read all the pages but would say don’t buy a 125 – good used ones are hard to find – hire for the test after using a school bike.

What to buy? Perhaps I’ve been spoiled by an old fashioned outlook and forty years of trials competition but, for me, if you want a bike to enjoy then the prime characteristic is that it has to be nimble. Now, this encompasses power as well as weight, handling etc so rules out most sports bikes as, frankly, they’re just too much of a good thing. I’ve never liked fours, too much like riding a vacuum cleaner apart from the weight involved

Assuming you want to keep your licence then you want something you can wind up occasionally without going berserk. It’s no fun having to ride everywhere at a tickover to stay below the limit.

My SV 650 I consider to be on the upper edge of my requirements. The 500 Guzzi Monza was great and the RS 250 Honda perfectly acceptable (apart from the front brake but that’s not a factor nowadays).

I see the 250 class seems to be making a comeback, I’d like to try one but they all seem to be race styled which ain’t for me. A modern version of the RS would be super and well up to passing any traffic on a “proper” road.

Edit, just seen the Transalp reference. My brother did a trackday on his and the guy on the GSXR 1000 couldn’t work out why he was not able to keep up. It’s all about the rider and, powerwise, less can be a lot more.

There have been so many rumours/stories that who knows?

They seem to be settled in Leith Street now with the (even more) upmarket version down in Leith. Not sure about the one under the Pear Tree. I was in the Leith Street one last week for the first time – OK, but none of the locations have ever had the ambience of the Drummond Street place which should have been subject to a preservation order!

It is possible to do Nevis Range and Laggan on the same day, depending on your travel time/distance.

Kushi in Victoria Street is long gone (a fire) and their other branches are in Leith (not far from Britannia) and opposite the Playhouse, rather upmarket now.

Museum is next to the Southside which is pretty much ethnic eating central though mainly not the traditional sort of places to impress business clients, but Sudanese may have more sensible views on that sort of thing, I’ve no idea of their culture.

You’ll find halal food in pretty much any part of Edinburgh. Can’t offhand think of a good sit-in chippy though [unless you want to take them to Glentress, there’s a good ‘un in Peebles :-)] so I’d like to hear too.

“I’m 56 & came off on Good Friday, landed on me nut & hurt my neck & I’m still not right.”

Hopefully you’ll be OK for the Scottish?

Resonance FM had a couple of programmes about the Moulton (still available on their site if you’re interested Moulton Programmes ). Apparently MIT carried out some rolling tests in the 80s and found that the most efficient wheel size was approx 17″ with a high pressure tyre.

Never mind folk stuck on hillsides, the reason these services exist is to rescue servicemen eg a downed RAF pilot. How will the private sector cope with the requirement to go out in almost any conditions to do that?

Haven’t read through all of this but they do seem to work in that I recall reading about “questions being asked” in a local council as they were spending a fortune on instllation and maintenance but not getting enough revenue in to cover it, so a net loss.

I swirl the chain round in a jar of diesel which cleans everything but leaves an oily residue. I then let it sit in a jar of automatic transmission fluid for a few days then hang it up to allow the surplus to drain off. Of course, I alternate two chains to allow this and to spread wear.

I remember an article in the Scotsman years ago by a columnist who brought his English bride back to Edinburgh where she found a job at the Infirmary. She could not understand why all the porters were apparently named James and sought his advice…………..

Well you can save the weight penalty of painting it.

I did once see, and I can’t remember the manufacturer’s name, a bike spec and it actually stated the weight reduction on the new year’s paint over the previous year’s.