Categories
Clothing/Protection

A Guide to Motorcycle Gear and Staying Safe

Staying safe when you’re riding a motorcycle is paramount. Motorcyclists are 27 times more likely to be involved in a collision than other road users (according to research from the Insurance Information Institute).

That means it’s important to invest in quality gear. What you wear when on two wheels will help to protect you against the cold, sun, wind and rain, as well as absorb some of the impact should you be involved in a collision.

The human body doesn’t do so well when it’s thrown from a motorcycle at any speed, but if you’re going over 30mph then it’s even more important to be protected.

Think back to when you were a kid and you fell off your bicycle – with the cuts and bruises to your hands and knees. If you come off your motorcycle at speed then that experience will be amplified.

Let’s see how you can stay safe when on two wheels.

Categories
Videos

Highlights Roundup Video 2019

It was a busy year for me in 2019 with numerous biking trips and adventures around the globe.  Below is a short video of the key highlights from the past year, do enjoy!

YouTube player

Have you had similar interesting adventures in the past? Do you have any exciting plans for the coming year? I’d love to hear from you in the comments section below.

Categories
Riding

Scotland West Coast Motorcycle Road Trip with Mapped/FA

Scotland motorcycle tour with Blake, Mapped/FA
Blake, Mapped/FA

I think I’m almost as passionate about Scotland as I am about motorcycles, scotch and good coffee (which means it’s significant). My first Scotland motorcycle tour was back in 2017 for our NC500 Adventure. I fell in love with the scenery, the roads and the people. I knew I would be heading back.

In August 2019 I set off on tour to explore the West Coast of Scotland by motorcycle and, more importantly, the Isle of Mull and the Isle of Skye. I decided to call this adventure the “Western Isles Tour”. Now, I must put my hand up and admit that I have made a mistake. I have been advised by several followers that the Isle of Mull and Skye are not part of the Western Isles. Please accept my apologies for this error! (But to me, Mull and Skye were the Western Isles, for this adventure at least!)

The tour itself took place over five days and was designed to take in key parts of the Scottish Highlands, the West coast as well as the Isles of Mull and Skye. In total, the adventure covered over 1,300 miles, starting and ending in Manchester. AKA Team Mapped Base Camp. Although, the true start point is Loch Lomond.

Categories
Featured Riding

Solo Motorcycle Tour Tips

It’s well-documented that riding a motorbike can bring a huge sense of freedom and when you tour solo for longer distances over many days this feeling is even greater. For a beginner, that first big solo motorcycle trip can be quite daunting, raising many what-if questions – what if I break down? what if I get lost? Some people are just more naturally confident, whilst others are less so, worry more and find the idea of riding out into the unknown uneasy.

If you’ve not travelled long distances by bike solo before and are somewhat nervous about the proposition, but do what to overcome this fear and explore, then read on. This article will hopefully give you some solo motorcycle tour tips to beat those fears and plan for a trouble-free motorcycle adventure.

Dream as if you’ll live forever. Live as if you’ll die today.

James Dean

Categories
Gear Reviews

Denali SoundBomb Split Air Horn Review and Install on Yamaha Fazer FZ6

Denali SoundBomb Split AirhornOn my old Fazer, I had installed a Stebel Nautilus air horn, a super loud horn that saved my bacon on a number of occasions on my daily commute into London. As such, I was keen to install similar on my new FZ6, but with the Stebel horns less readily available in the UK I came across the Denali SoundBomb. On first glance, it appears to be a spitting image of the Stebel horn and is priced similarly at £40.

With the horn being such a large lump, mounting needed some thought as the FZ6 stock horn is mounted between the forks and there are no handy mounting points on the sides under the fairing. Denali sells a number of specific bike and generic crash bar mounting brackets, but unfortunately nowt suitable for the FZ6. That’s when I found the Denali SoundBomb Split version which separates the two halves of the air horn, thus allowing the compressor and horn elements to be mounted individually. A supplied thick heat-resistant hose then connects the two halves. As with other large horns, the compressor should be wired to the stock horn via a relay due to its 20A power draw. i.e. the stock horn wire triggers the compressor via a relay, to power it directly from the battery on its own fused line.

Categories
News

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ace Cafe Toy Run at Royal Brompton Hospital
Ace Cafe Toy Run at Royal Brompton Hospital

We’ve had many biking adventures over the past year, trail riding, track day, trips to Australia, California and the French Ardennes; plenty to takes one’s mind off the current political climate… One of the years last jolly’s was the annual Ace Cafe Toy Run, a charity event to deliver toys and gifts to sick children in London hospitals. A fun day with dressed up and decked out bikes.

I hope your 2019 has been filled with adventure and fun riding. What has been your biking highlights this year?

“put out the lights on the Age of Reason.”

– Here Comes the War, New Model Army

Categories
Hardware Maintenance

Fitting a Chinese Replica Instrument Speedo Clock Case – Honda CBF500/CB900F

Honda CBF500 replacement motorcycle clocksWhen we first picked up Mary’s Honda CBF500 it was clear it hadn’t always stayed rubber side down. It had various bits of cosmetic damage, which I have progressively fixed up as parts popped up cheap. One of the last items to address was the speedo tachometer case which had a few cracks and was taped up. Genuine Honda CBF clocks are expensive (£300+), second-hand Honda instrument clusters aren’t cheap (£100-150 odd) and are often missing mounting lugs. So, when I spotted a cheap Chinese replica speedo clocks casing for £25, I was of course intrigued and figured it had to be worth a punt.

Cheap eBay replica speedo clocks casing

Categories
Riding Videos

Motorcycle Trip to Yosemite on a Yamaha Super Ténéré

My planned visit to California to rent a Yamaha Super Ténéré from Eagle Rider and head inland to take a motorcycle trip to Yosemite National Park all went to plan without hitch. The weather was perfect, the snow stayed away and the Tiago Pass stayed open. Experiencing Yosemite off season at the end of October and riding the Tiago Pass on a weekday was probably a shrewd move to avoid the crowds and ride the roads at their quietest to enjoy the stunning scenery at it’s best. Below are some video highlights from my trip through Yosemite.

YouTube player

Read about my trip planning shenanigans that went into this mini adventure here. The second half of my mini tour took in Lake Tahoe and a return to San Francisco via Sacramento. Watch this space for highlights on this second leg.

You can download the full route and other top San Francisco motorcycle roads here.