Tyre Talk… its controversial.

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One of the most lively issues on any bikers forum especially in relation to long distance trips is the issue of tyres. These little black circles are the only contact we have with the ground and total reliance in their integrity and design results in our trust in their performance, but… I fear style over substance is taking hold and this is based on my pre trip workshop enquiries, were a number of customers have asked for the most aggressive tyres that can find for is a primarily road based journey. For the trails I ride, potholed hardtop, forest trails, gravel, sand and unpaved back roads I want a tyre that I trust and I believe 90% of my tyres performance is in my head.

Sure knobblies will work in gloopy mud, the Dakar, and off road racing but for most of us a good open tread is all that is needed — face it most riders spend most of their time on the highway. I use a tyre that will get me from A to B then work effectively on the surfaces I expect then get me back from B to A. Talking to customers recently they seem more concerned about the appearance of the tyre on their bike, never mind its highway performance. The mantra seems to be the more aggressive looking the better. For me one thing is sure, I need confidence at 100 kmh on the road, in the rain, that an aggressive offroad based tyre simply will not give me – so don’t criticise me for my tyre choices, I would rather be safe and upright than look cool(er) but flat on my face.Dunlop Trailsmart

Hard v Soft… I know what I like

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Seems to me that pannier manufactures have become a victim of their own success and there is now some inverted snobbery directed at hard luggage – had a conversation this week with a guy who claimed it was dangerous and if I was rear ended at speed my top box would injure me… I assured him that if I rear ended at speed the top box was the last thing on my mind I would worry about… For me the choice is simple, hard luggage is secure, robust and if you buy wisely, safe. The biggest mistake I see is massive pannier sets on bikes that increase width and the temptation to overpack – you really do not need all that stuff and extra weight. I use two small and slim Metal Mule panniers and a small top box – my packing has been refined over years of solo trips and you can see my packing list on one of the main site pages. Metal Mule are different, handmade in the UK, 2mm thick, lapped, riveted, with reinforced seams and edges and bases and just to be clear I have been saved by my panniers on a number of occasions, once in Norway when I was knocked of the bike by a coach, once in Italy when I was side swiped by a mobile phone wielding twat, once in France when the bike was tipped over by a myopic French driver… all these times the bike went down hard but my legs were protected, so it’s an easy choice for me, hard every day.

Hard v Soft

GDPR Update

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It is ironic that GDPR has unleashed the biggest amount of spam since that fateful date in March 1989 when Timothy John Berners-Lee woke up one bright sunny morning and invented the internet… anyhow I promise not to sell, share or try not to lose any of your personal data on the basis that you do not subject my mailbox to unwanted junk mail offering me pills, retirement holiday homes or unsolicited HMRC refunds. Its all about trust people and I trust you all, especially the Nigerian princes offering me money in exchange for a small upfront payment, those telling me I have an inheritance and all those wanting to return my missing and winning lottery tickets.GDPR Compliance

Skyteam – Afternoon Delight

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They do say classic design never fades and that copying is the highest form of flattery in which case the 1980’s original Japanese bike designers must have got something right. Meandering around one of the Heptanese islands I have been struck by the number of copycat small monkey bikes and narrow engineered enduros – all are perfectly designed for the islands and rough gravel and pitted roads. This well used and sun bleached Skyteam ST200 model was born in 2007 and with 17HP is faster than much of the local taxi and tourist traffic. The ST200 looks like a slimmer love child created by blending a 1991 Honda XR250 and a 1993 Suzuki DR350 – nice to know that classic design lives on care of the Jiangsu Sacin Motorcycle Company based in Nanjing. But one question remains – now that Honda have announced the release of a new 125cc classic monkey bike following on from the success of the Grom, maybe design is going full circle with Honda recreating the Skyteam copy of a Suzuki copy of a Yamaha copy of a Honda original – I can see patent lawyers rubbing their hands together from here…Skyteam ST200

Kåfjord Memories

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Somewhere in Norway, I pulled over into the side of a minor dirt road, skirting past the fjords on the lead up to . The sun was shining and rain had long since passed, there was not a sign of a single other vehicle for miles around and I drifted into lay by next to the Tirpitz Museum – thinking it was closed I tried the door only to startle a young man who’s summer job was welcoming the occasional lost traveller – I remember the day like it was yesterday, a strange array of twisted metal and shell casings, plus well restored photographs of the attacks by the RAF and midget submarines from the Royal Navy, plus a well restored snow camouflaged 80 year old BMW bike…Best bike ever!