Mike's Blog

Category: Motorbike

  • VUK 2016

    You meet the nicest people on a Honda… It may be a line from an old Honda advert, but this weekend at least, it was true. Step in the UK Varadero forum having a get-together in North Yorkshire. I’ve been a member on the forum for a few years – mainly for the occasional question…

  • Ireland, October 2015

    Ireland – land of Guinness and Leprachauns? Yes, and, well, I’m not superstitious! Home of the Dunlop motorbike road racing dynasty? Absolutely. AirBnB – Bed and breakfast without the breakfast? Not this time. Accommodation on the cheap? Nope, well, certainly good value, but definitely didn’t feel cheap! Luxury? Yep, well, certainly felt like it! Going…

  • Rua Reidh

    The one thing about planning trips in Scotland is that you simply can’t rely on the weather. That’s not a moan, it’s just a fact of life. For a weekend that involves mainly outdoor activities this means you need the right clothing, or it’s highly likely to be a miserable experience… Back in Feb/March this…

  • Motorbike tour, France 2015

    I’ve rented cars and driven in France quite a few times, where I often rapped my knuckles against the window as my left hand automatically sought the gear lever which of course was on the, er, wrong side… but I’ve never taken my own vehicle abroad, and certainly not a motorbike – at least with…

  • All hail the Road Racers

    I love motorbike road racing. Not doing it – watching it. I can’t even begin to understand what it must be like to travel at the speeds these guys (and girls) do on roads – to blast past ‘road furniture’ at full throttle on a race tuned bike takes a special sort of person. Besides…

  • A week further on

    A week on and I’m getting gradually more used to the Varadero. The buffeting around my head at speed continued to be an issue. Last weekend I tried the screen at the lower setting, and that wasn’t any better than the high setting, and since that offered a bit more weather protection I put it…

  • Oi! – you’re in MY space

    What was it today? Was it a full moon last night? Filtering by a line of traffic this morning the light up ahead changed, so I held back at the first gap to merge slowly in with the traffic. Lifesaver, yep, can see car behind me is quite close, so going steady – what do…

  • Varadero first impressions

    OK, so I’ve done just over 170 miles on the Varadero so far. I took it home from work on the back roads the day I bought it. What a joy! Seriously, for such a tall and heavy bike it’s a real joy to play in the twisties, and the suspension soaks up the bumps…

  • What bike to buy…….

    After much soul searching I finally made up my mind – it was time to sell the ZZR and look for something a little different. Why did I decide to sell the ZZR? – mainly because I realised how much effort and money it was taking to maintain it! It went through it’s MOT absolutely…

  • IAM Skills Evening at Knockhill

    I went to the IAM Skills Evening at Knockhill last night – NOT a track day, but a chance to practise cornering technique using the track as a closed, one way road, with no hazards (other than yourself!) I begged off work early, fuelled the bike and got to the circuit around 3:30. There were…