Hairsy

I really hope you can solve this. As has been said, the issue around footwear for your CBT is not a legal one - it's a documented duty of care expectation for those offering CBT training. By having conversations with schools, you might find someone who's prepared to compromise - there's certainly no harm asking. However, ankle protection is a big deal on bikes. It's not just about high speed crashes, it's also about protecting you when dropping the bike (some say that dropping your bike is inevitable - I'm more inclined to say its very likely but I think a positive mindset helps!). With that in mind, could you look into some sort of custom footwear? I had a quick search and came up with this - https://taylormadeshoes.co.uk/orthopaedic/ Perhaps you could contact them and explain what you need. If they're not familiar with the bike need, perhaps say you're looking for something like Dr Marten boots with strong ankle protection. Even if they can't help you themselves, they may be able to refer you. Inevitably this sort of thing comes at a cost but (a) you won't regret the cost on the day you need it and (b) although I don't know your situation, might an injury be more consequential / harder to recover from? Let us know how you get on - I'd love to see biking becoming more accessible.

I used to coach paragliding and I would constantly have to remind people that the phrase 'practice makes perfect' is rarely true. The reality is that 'practice makes permanent' but, without training, there's no guarantee that what we're practicing is even close to perfect. It might work for 98% of situations but Mod 1 is all about the 2%. Your 2,500 miles may well have really helped with the 98% but perhaps less so for the 2%? Coaching & instruction leads to doing things right - and THEN there's the potential for practice to make perfect. So my advice would be to pay for a little tuition from a local school on how to pass the Mod 1. 2,500 miles is definitely enough miles to have developed strong muscle memory but you may well find that there are tiny little tips that a good instructor can give you that will really help you. If you're already pretty much on top of all the skills then it won't have cost you much. If you're not yet there then it will have been a great investment. I hope it goes well for you.

I really think we should cut them some slack on the helmet wearing. The level of police investigation of a driving-away-without-paying is going to be minimal at best so if the crime happens then the garage is just going to lose. Buying a fake reg plate (or adding a bit of black insulating tape to change a character) is a trivial task for anyone who wants to do it. These petrol stations are giving us access to their product while standing next to (or sitting on) our getaway vehicle. With our faces covered. As it happens, I'm yet to be asked to remove my helmet. I may have just got lucky or it may be because I have a flip front helmet which I always raise and then try to face the cashier with a smile on my face when they're looking at me to authorise the pump. But when it does happen (which I assume it will), my goal is to retain that smile, give them a little wave, and keep all the expletives bouncing around inside my head. But that doesn't change the fact that I think if they'd like us to remove our helmets, a little sign saying "Sadly we need to ask you to remove your helmet before using pump to help us to protect against theft" would go a long way.

I agree that you need to find a different instructor. That doesn’t make the current one bad but we click well with some people and less so with others. Can I ask - what are you nervous of? There are many different things it could be.

I have some sympathy for the petrol stations with people driving away without paying - and the ridiculous accidents that some people have where they then try to blame someone else for 'letting them do it'. Having said that, some clear and polite signage wouldn't go amiss and would help us all to comply.

It would be good to find the error code for the engine warning light. From a quick search, I think you need to put the bike in neutral with the side stand down and the engine management light will do a series of short and long flashes e.g. two longs and one short would be code 21. Once you have the code, that will be be the best way to address the problem. And if the code happens to be 21 then I believe it's oxygen sensor. But I'm sure there's many other codes! Try to resist firing the parts cannon at it - its expensive and demotivating!

For anyone down south who wasn't already aware, they're opening in Southampton. I agree that they're fantastic. I've got an Infinity very near me but they just don't get it quite right in the way they handle customers. The thing that most annoys me is that the price in-store is often a bit higher than the price online, which I've normally seen before turning up. They've always matched the online price when I've asked but not if I haven't remembered / noticed. Bit naughty and a real shame as the people themselves are lovely. It's just a bad corporate policy. Sportsbikeshop are fantastic though. Their 'Try or Buy' is an excellent way of ensuring that they'll have your size in stock before you turn up.

And to close off the story, I've just delivered the bike to its new owner. For a final little twist, the tank repair that I did started to weep a little 2 weeks ago. Not enough to cause an actual leak that dripped but there was a little dampness and you could smell fuel. I had planned to line the tank but the chap responded to my advert and, when I explained about the problem, he said he'd rather have £200 off the price of the bike. It would have been financially better to do the work myself and then get the full price but he was keen and I was under increasing pressure to release some garage space to the family push bikes. I suspect he may not bother fixing the problem which is a bit of a shame but that's his choice now. What was nice was that he asked me to deliver the bike to him so I got a nice final ride in today's glorious sunshine. Bike is now safely at her new home ...

I would think its unlikely to be the hydraulics - air in the system would make it impossible to get the clutch to slip enough, not to cause it to keep slipping. Could be a slave cylinder issue, stopping the piston return to its proper position. Dirt or corrosion? If you're confident that the clutch was put back together properly then slave cylinder is where I'd start my investigations.

A friend of mine has had a 752S for a few months. He loves it. I haven't had a go yet but I hope to. Sitting on it convinces me that it's all about the fun.

Golden find! I love this forum - on others you get told to Google it. On this one, people don't care that they've never met you and just give you a bit of their time.

I'd suggest removing the starter motor (if you haven't done already) and then look for part numbers / manufacturer details for the starter motor itself (rather than the bike it's fitted to). You can then search for the brushes for that model of starter. You may also find that with a little bit of every fine emery paper, you can clean up the existing brushes. This, combined with some contact cleaner, might kick the starter back into life. Another thing to check is the springs that hold the brushes in place - stretching these slightly could help as well. Don't stretch them much though - it will cause the brushes to wear out more quickly. This of course all assumes that brushes do prove to be your problem.

Airbag has arrived and seems fine - I guess there's not much to say about them until you need them. But it synced up with it's app, installed itself some new firmware and then just did what it should. It fits fine under my winter textiles but not my summer mesh jacket - as I suspected. I'll keep the current jacket for use when I'm not using the airbag - that will be infrequent but I know that if I'm popping out 5 minutes down the road then I'm not conscientious enough to put the airbag on every time. I'm off to Sportsbikeshop tomorrow to try on some alternative mesh jackets. My preference is to go for a larger version of my current mesh jacket (because I really like it, has a great removable wind & waterproof liner and is great value). However, if that doesn't work for me then I may bite the bullet and get one of the Alpinestars made-for-airbag leather vented jackets.

I would suggest that the material is only part of the issue. The stitching & zips are just as important and are far harder to assess without testing. It's no help having a great piece of leather that is no longer held between your skin and the road. I completely agree that the certification process isn't perfect - but we shouldn't discount the good just because it isn't perfect.

I went hybrid a few years ago and I love it. I can go months not using petrol and 'filling up' for free from solar. But I can also drive across France with one 10 minute fuel stop.