Seasoned London commuter, doing my best to stay rubber side down and never stop moving forward.
I popped along to this local fun day a couple of years ago, I recall it being a bit small – just only a handful of stalls. Returning this year, it was good to see the event had developed and had a lot more going on.
The fund raising event is organised by the Essex & Herts air ambulance, a entirely charity funded service, and one that is often deployed to a fallen motorcyclist. North Weald airfield is a great venue for the day, and obviously where the air ambulance runs from.
It was a bank holiday, the sun was shining and the rest of the family were out of town – such a perfect day tear up Essex on the bike. Be rude not to take advantage of the best motorcycle roads Essex offers.
I struck North out of Romford, up to Ongar, West a bit to Stansted, up through Thaxted and then my first stop was Finchingfield – all roads lead to Finchingfield, you can’t have an Essex ride out not going there… Though surprisingly quiet today, not like most weekends. A quick cuppa in Bosworth’s, then back on the road.
Heading Eastbound to Sible Hedingham, Sudbury, Manningtree before finally hitting the coast in Walton-on-the-Naze for lunch. Parked on the seafront by Revved Up, a friendly little biker shop selling clothes and a modest brew. With sea, sand, surf and the chippie next door it ticked all the boxes for a quintessential British seaside jaunt.
One of a biker’s biggest bug bears when bombing around the countryside is the constant splatter of bugs. Midges, flies, wasps, mozzers and other bugs, all just want to commit suicide on your shiny new visor. Visibility soon sucks, and when you make the mistake of trying to wipe that big bug mess from between your eyes, you inevitably spread a huge smear of insect entrails hindering vision even more… If you’re the sort to prepare, you may have a rag and some squirty stuff under your seat for when you finally take a break, otherwise you just grin and bear riding most of the day with naff visibility.
This is where Visorcat comes in. A crafty gadget that straps to your left glove, sporting a soft sponge and rubber squeegee to let you clean your visor on the go. Sorted! Well, the lovely people at Visorcat sent in one for review, so read on to find out my verdict on whether it shapes up to be gadget or gimmick.
You know what parents are like strong opinions as to what is best for you, mildly tolerant of your motorcycle ‘hobby’, but secretly scared to death you’re gonna kill yourself on your bike. So my old man keeps seeing lots of big adventure bikes adorned with bright spotlights, and declares I must install said distinctive pattern of lights on my bike to ensure I stand out. My Dad has a few odd opinions, but more often than not he’s right.
After borking at the price of offerings from Givi etc, I decided to take a punt on some cheap Chinese lights off eBay. Very cheap at under £20 for a pair including wiring. I didn’t have high expectations, but they can’t be that bad, can they? Read on…
After Mary had flattened her battery twice this week, I promised to wire the heated grips up properly with a relay…
When we first bought Mary’s CBF500 it came with heated grips fitted, but they were installed with no relay, so all too easy to leave on when parking up. After Mary had flattened her battery twice in this manner this week, I promised to wire them up properly with a relay to cut the power when the bike’s ignition is off. However, the heated grips aren’t the only accessory wired in, we have a satnav, USB sockets and probably more gadgets in the future. So, to help simplify stuff, I opted for a secondary fuse/distribution box.
Tapping the rear number plate live is a good choice in case the new circuit causes a short, loosing the number plate light won’t prevent us riding.
A mate happened to have a basic Mictuning 6-way fuse box going spare – perfect for the job. My plan was to tap a switched live feed from the rear number plate light circuit, which would trigger a relay, to feed this fuse box and in turn all of the bike’s gadgets. Tapping the rear number plate live is a good choice in case the new circuit causes a short for any reason, losing the number plate light is no big loss and won’t prevent us from riding. On the CBF500 this light is connected by some bullet connectors behind the rear right-hand fairing panel. I opted to strip back the insulation and solder on a feed, rather than using a Scotch lock which has a reputation for failing. The final join was covered in heat shrink wrap and waterproofed with amalgamating tape.
At the weekend I popped by the Classic Dirt Bike Show up in Telford. Being in the area with family and having not checked it out before, it seemed too good to miss. Admittedly I’m no off road dirt biker, but some green lane and trail riding has always been on my list of stuff to try. So with kids in toe we rocked up to ponder all these curious bikes with knobbles.
If you live or commute into London, you will undoubtedly have heard about a raft of emission charges, toxicity charges or Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) charges being bandied about to tackle pollution. With so many charges, consultations and plans afoot it’s tough to get a grip of what the hell is actually coming into effect and how it’ll affect you and your bike.
Pollution is pretty bad in London, but motorcycles should definitely be considered as part of the solution. Bikes rarely, if ever sit still in traffic jams and have much shorter journey times and thus pollute less. Recent TFL consultations even concluded bikes contribute less than 1% of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions. So read on to learn how to avoid the charges and keep biking.
Pinlock visor inserts are definitely the dog’s bollocks for preventing a misted-up visor. Whether you ride in the winter, the wet or often set off early on brisk mornings; once you have a Pinlock, you don’t realise how much you rely on it – that is until it starts to fail. And a Pinlock visor fogging up is the most frustrating, as you can’t even wipe it clear when it’s misted inside…
From time to time your Pinlock will need a little TLC to keep it working well and remaining mist free. This article explains how to remove, clean, and refit your Pinlock, as well as some tips on ensuring you maintain that crucial airtight seal.
Full moon against the London Shard at the London Bikers Borough Market meet the other night. Bit nippy, but some tasty empanadas and a cup of tea soon warm you up.
If you plan to commute year-round by bike, then here are five super useful mods you should definitely consider for your bike.
Sure, they’re not the most aesthetically pleasing of items and certainly not suited to all types of bikes. However, they are invaluable for lugging a change of clothes and packed lunch to work and the best way to transport heavy security chains that are now sadly essential in the city.
Givi is the market leader for top boxes, but there are cheaper alternatives from the likes of Kappa and others. Although Givi racks are bike-specific, the plates and boxes are interchangeable and can readily be picked up second-hand. Do opt for the better-rated Monokey kit, rather than the lightweight Monolock ones. Also, note some Kappa and Shad top boxes share the same mounting as Givi.