Beginner Biker Adventures | Trials and tribulations of a London biker, from newbie to seasoned commuter

Riding

Dress for the Slide, not just the Ride

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 19, 2016
No Comments on Dress for the Slide, not just the Ride

It’s forecast to hit 33°C here in London today, but we still wear full leathers. Dress for the slide, not just the ride.

As tempting as shorts and t-shirt are in this heat, you just never know when you may have a spill. Mary often tells me stories of a stint she did as a nurse in A&E & theatres. Once putting a biker under a general aesthetic so they could use scrub all the grit out of his remaining skin after a coming off with no decent gear on…

It maybe hot and sweaty in gear, but I’d rather retain some skin through which I can sweat.

News

IAM 60th Birthday Bash at National Motorcycle Museum

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 18, 2016
No Comments on IAM 60th Birthday Bash at National Motorcycle Museum

Earlier this month I popped along to the IAM’s 60th birthday bash up at the Nation Motorcycle Museum in Solihull (near Birmingham), being a member of IAM it seemed daft not to. Especially as they had guest talks from Steve Plater, Peter Hickman and Mick Grant and a chance to check out all the classic bikes in the museum.

I rode up with another from my local ELAM (East London Advanced Motorcyclists), avoiding the M1/M6 by taking the old A5. On arrival, of course we had to check out everyone else’s bike, including the parade of bikes from every year of the last 60. Next we hurried into the main hall to listen to Steve Plater, Peter Hickman Mick Grant discussing BSB, the TT and how bike racing has changed over the years.

Tags Shows

Gear Reviews

Alpinestars S-MX Plus Boots Bargain

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 10, 2016
No Comments on Alpinestars S-MX Plus Boots Bargain

Alpinestars S-MX Plus Boots My latest eBay bargain has been these Alpinestars S-MX Plus race boots. Albeit a slightly older model from around 2010, they’ve been barely worn and came in for the princely sum of £50. A damned sight better than their usual £250 retail price – sorted!

They’re a little different from my past S-MX 4 and current S-MX 5 waterproof boots; firstly they’re not waterproof, rather they are nicely vented for cool feet in the summer – which really works once you’re over about 40-50mph.

Tags Boots

Maintenance

MOT Time @ Burwin Motorcycles

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 6, 2016
3 Comments on MOT Time @ Burwin Motorcycles

That time of year again – MOT. No matter how confident you are the bike is all fine, there’s always a little worry in the back of your head, just in case it fails for some reason. Certainly been a well used bike with 9k gone on the clock since last MOT.

After a prior bad experience at my usual MOT garage, I decided to give Burwin Motorcycles over in Islington a go. Had heard a few good reports and they open at 8am. Big bonus, as I couldn’t afford much time off work. As it happened, they started even earlier and I was done and down the road by 8:30am – that’s what I call service. Barely had chance to drink a coffee in a nearby swanky pre/post drinks artisan coffee shop cum off license specialising in gin…

Videos

Sixth Sense Skills – Tip 17

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 6, 2016
1 Comment on Sixth Sense Skills – Tip 17

It’s been a while since I last put up a Sixth Sense video, but this incident today was ripe for a fresh video. Enjoy!

Tags Tips

Gear Reviews

FreedConn T-COM VB Helmet Bluetooth Headset Intercom Review

Post author By Arthur
Post date July 2, 2016
79 Comments on FreedConn T-COM VB Helmet Bluetooth Headset Intercom Review

So, you want a motorcycle Bluetooth communications headset for your helmet, listen to some tunes, your SatNav or natter with your partner, friends or pillion whilst you ride. But, you’ve checked out other Bluetooth headsets for motorcycle helmet offerings from the likes of Sena, Midland, Interphone, Cardo etc in the shops and probably come to the conclusion it’s gonna set you back quite a bit of cash. But, you’ve seen eBay is littered with funny Chinese branded gadgets at far more affordable prices. Sure they may not be the best Bluetooth headsets, just how bad can they be? Well, I took a punt on a pair of T-COM VB Bluetooth headset and this review tells how they turned out.

The first issue is narrowing down what you’re buying as you browse the glut of these intercoms on eBay. There are seemingly dozens of subtly different variations, on branding, spec and revision. Ultimately, I just took pot luck grabbing one of the cheapest FreedConn T-COM VB Bluetooth helmet intercom kits I could find from a UK seller. I wasn’t keen on waiting 4-6 weeks for a China-based seller to post or risk getting charged for VAT and duty by Royal Mail on arrival. Expect to pay around £40-50 a pair on eBay.

TCOM-VB Bluetooth Headset

Tags Gadgets

Riding

Summer Solstice 2016

There’s nothing like a British summer to piss on your bonfire.

The summer solstice, when the Northern hemisphere is at it’s closest point to the sun. I wouldn’t know, I can’t see the sun for the thick cloud and rain. I got absolutely drenched this morning, definitely not fun biking weather.

Gear Reviews

Herbert Richter Phone Case Mount Review

Post author By Arthur
Post date June 16, 2016
No Comments on Herbert Richter Phone Case Mount Review

When it comes to satnav’s on a motorcycle you basically have two choices: splurge a tonne of cash on a proper waterproof and rugged device from the likes of TomTom or Garmin, or you make do with the smartphone you already have. With the latter cheapskate route, you either make do with audio direction only and keep your phone in your pocket or you look at a waterproof case to mount to handlebars. This is where this Herbert Richter phone case and mount come in.

Tags Gadgets

Riding

Mersea Island Essex Ride Out

Post author By Arthur
Post date June 10, 2016
No Comments on Mersea Island Essex Ride Out

The only thing worse than being stuck at work, is being stuck at work when there is perfect biking weather outside. So, the other day my wife and I booked the day off, dropped kids off at school and then just hit the road. Life’s too short.

We took a gentle bimble out into Essex with Mersea Island as our destination for lunch. Fairly familiar motorcycle roads Essex offers, but a good opportunity for Mary to continue building back her confidence and also test out her new Garmin Satnav. Here’s the route (though we plotted this in Garmin’s Base Camp app and then downloaded it to the satnav, which all worked perfectly).

Tags Ride Out, Route

Gear Reviews Hardware

Maplin USB Power Socket Review

Post author By Arthur
Post date June 6, 2016
No Comments on Maplin USB Power Socket Review

There’s nothing more annoying than being far away from home with no battery life left in your camera or phone. It’s sods law that at this point you’ll really want to capture some video footage from an incident, need to phone for recovery or just witness the perfect shenanigans to go viral on YouTube next. All of which are easily resolved with the addition of a USB power socket on your bike.

Tags Gadgets