sarafiel
I’m sitting here all wrapped up like Boris Karloff in an Egyptian tomb trying desperately to stay warm and yet sunlight is streaming through the window from a picture-postcard blue sky and I hear the sound of bikes roaring past my window. Lots of bikes. It’s all a bit disconcerting to be honest. My body’s telling me it’s freezing and yet my eyes and ears tell me it’s a lovely sunny day…
It’s the sound of motorbikes which confuses me the most. Though it really shouldn’t. I’ve never been one to leave my bike in the garage just because it’s a bit chilly, heck I’ve ridden to work in the snow only to stop and find I couldn’t walk across the car park it was so icy and another time I caught hypothermia and almost died trying to visit my Mum in the middle of winter. In Yorkshire. So why does it surprise me to hear bikers riding past my window?
Because the majority of us think of winter as the domain of the car. We wrap our pride and joy up in the garage, plug in the Optimate and dream of the summer. And why do we do this? Because winter means cold. Winter means snow. And Winter means salty, wet roads. The bikes which do venture out are often cheap winter hacks. Old ‘crossers, ratty 400′s or hard core mopeds, and it changes the sound of the traffic.
In the last few weeks however I’ve been hearing the return of the four cylinder roar and the bark of the throaty twins. Take a look around you if you’re stuck on a bus in the morning or caught up in traffic in your warm little tin box. There’s more and more of us taking to the roads and it bodes well for the Summer. It seems some of us feel that the Winter has already past and well, what can I say? Here comes the Spring!
Tiniest sniff of fog and some folk seem to believe their 1.5 tonne steel box becomes invisible! In the middle of a well-lit city centre…? Honestly. Can you see the road? Can you see the car in front? Yes you can? Incredible.
So why on earth do you feel it necessary to blind me with your bloody fog light?
I appreciate that on an A-road in the middle of nowhere fog lights are a fantastic idea. But why oh why do so many idiots feel it’s necessary to switch the damn things on in the middle of the city?
The other day I was following a jeep in rush hour. We were never further than 2 metres apart and yet the idiot driver seemed to think it necessary to switch his fog lights on! Strangely enough mate, I could see you perfectly well before you switched it on. Then you decide to blind me. Nice one.
Not only that but now I can’t see your brake lights either. Aaaagh. Go read your highway code, which clearly states that you MUST NOT use front or rear fog lights unless visibility is seriously reduced as they dazzle other road users and can obscure your brake lights. You MUST switch them off when visibility improves.
Which as I’m sure you’ve all noticed is the biggest problem of all. Once they’re switched on it takes someone else to point out to these fools that they’ve forgotten to turn them off. Do us all a favour and next time you see fog forget where the bloody switch is will you?
The title of this post says it all really – we now have a fantastic selection of top quality, new learner legal 125cc bikes for sale. And they start at just £1250 on the road! That’s a brand new learner legal 125cc bike with 12 months road tax and fully registered to you! No hidden extras, no extra fees; one price, one bike. All you need to do is insure it.
Sounds cheap for a brand new 125 doesn’t it? That’s because it is. We have probably the cheapest and best range of high quality learner legal bikes in the Midlands. Granted there are some other motorcycle shops with cheaper offerings but they simply don’t have the range we do and often the quality is much lower too. We only sell 125cc bikes from brands we know and trust who offer a full spares back up. Brands such as Suzuki, Sinnis and Superbyke.
So why not take a look at our brand new 125cc web site which spotlights all the learner legal bikes we have for sale as well as offering advice to new riders, a motorcycle finance application form and even points you in the direction of reasonably priced bike insurance. There’s also the possibility of discounted training courses, maybe even free CBTs plus who knows what else…
So if you’re a perpetual L-Plater and need a new 125, or a new rider, maybe you have friends who would be interested in anything from the world of the Learner Legal 125′s… Whatever the reason, head on down to Fasttrack and check out the full range of 125cc bikes we have for sale.
As bikers it’s occasionally necessary for us to park up our motorcycles and make use of four wheeled transport. Arguably not such a bad thing in mid-winter when it’s raining. As we are all painfully aware, a motorcycle offers absolutely no protection from the bitterly cold British rain drops which seem to soak straight through any Gortex or similar brand clothing that’s more than about a week old and seep right into our bones. We also sacrifice our freedom to weave steadily (or recklessly) through the wallowing herds of commuter-beasts and end up jammed in amongst the throng plodding our laborious way toward the metaphorical watering hole. Well, in the evening at least. It also gives us a chance to view some spectacularly stupid driving at first hand.
Last night for instance I was driving home and heard an ambulance behind me. Now if I’m riding my bike this doesn’t generally present much of an issue as I can easily just slip out of the way should the eager paramedic succeed in catching me up.. However as I was in my van I had to give the situation a little bit more thought, so taking in my surroundings as quickly as possible I soon realised that the volume of traffic in my lane was far less than in the inside lane. So I indicated and pulled in between a couple of accommodating cars to my left, as did the cars directly in front and behind of me. So far so good, nice big empty lane for the ambulance to travel down… Or this would have been the case except that one enterprising ‘hole decided it would be best if he simply pulled over an inch or two toward the central barrier and stop. Just stop. Successfully blocking the entire – otherwise empty – lane!!??
Let me just say something straight out to avoid any confusion. If there’s an emergency vehicle with it’s blue lights on and siren wailing coming up behind you KEEP GOING!! For goodness sake! Drive until you can find somewhere that is OUT OF THE WAY of the traffic – and indeed the ambulance – which is behind you. Why oh why do these morons which I am forced to share my valuable space and time with think that blue flashing lights mean stop? They don’t you imbeciles, they mean GET OUT OF THE WAY! Yes, that includes jumping red lights, mounting the pavement, pulling across and almost blocking a side road etc etc but it certainly *doesn’t* mean you should slam your bloody brakes on and block up the entire carriageway!! Nor does it mean you should half-heartedly pull onto the verge directly in front of other vehicles leaving them no space to get around you. Honestly. You people make my blood boil.
How about this then? Next time you bring your bike to Fasttrack for an MOT, service or repair bring your laptop! We now have FREE wi-fi access! Combine that with our new coffee machine and well, we’re obviously the new black…
Comfy sofa’s and a coffee table coming soon. Seriously.