humbucker

What is 'work'?

I think it is only unlucky if you are a Templar Knight. If you are not then it's just a day of normal thrills and spills. If you are a Templar Knight can you please pm me the location of the Holy Grail. TIA.

I completed mine in a couple of weeks in Sept/Oct last year from CBT to Mod 2 pass and I am a few years older than the OP. Your previous traffic experience will help, assuming you are a car driver and it is just a case of getting used the two wheel environment. I see in another topic you already have a 125 so you are more than able to progress to the bigger stuff on an intensive course. Good luck with whatever you decide to do. Us old dogs can learn new tricks.

If you do the course in the town where you will take your Mod 2, there shouldn't be many roads you have not covered. Most of the instructors are familiar with the routes used on tests and you are on the bike for a fair while and will be acquainted with the roads. I took my Mod 2 in a town I didn't know very well and soon got the hang of it through the riding school's local knowledge. If possible, find a riding school that can let you use the actual Mod1 test area to practice. It really helps and good luck.

If you think changing the bed linen is bad, it started three weeks ago with she who must be obeyed wanting to change some cushion covers. I have just spent the last few days changing the curtains and painting the whole of the inside of the bloody house! After all these years together, I still fall for it.

Indeed, but who is going to tell him? Not me!

Excellent! You get a 'like' for that.

Here in Spain there are few roads, particularly on a Sunday which are not clogged up with the lycra loonies. It is a national sport (after torturing drugged bulls to death but that is another matter). It also not uncommon of them to use one or two to block a roundabout so that you dont force them to slow down when they descend, 20 or 30 at a time. The local cops never take action over the inconsiderate riding practices so you just smile, take a deep breath and hope they turn off your road. Or you do what a member of the local Blue Angels chapter did, barge through them with your Harley, wait at the next roundabout for them to catch up and punch one off his bike. I did not witness the incident but I know the man very well and have seen him in action. I have no reason to doubt his story.

Oh yes and where am I going on holiday this year? Ingerland!

We live 90 minutes from Benidorm, it has an unenviable reputatioin but don't be put off. Yes it is like Blackpool on steroids with better weather but there is far more to the area than kiss me quick hats and happy hour. Rent a car and drive up the coast to Altea and Calpe, about half an hour to 45 minutes driving, they are lovely resorts and towns, also a bit further inland you have Terra Mitica the big theme park, Terra Natura, a zoo/interactive animal park and the huge aqua park if that is your thing. Somew way inland is the town of Guadalest, pretty as a picture but does get a bit full of coaches if you go at peak times. Avoid week ends there. The old town of Benidorm and Villajoyosa which is very close to Benidorm are a welcome break from the beaches and the nearby city of Alicante is always worth a visit. There is even a period railway service up into the hills from Alicante where you get to call into some fabulous little villages. Whatever you do, be careful when hiring a car, there are so many rip off merchants who will try and add various charges, including scuffing the wheel trims. Take a look at the state of them before you sign up to that one! It may be telling you to suck eggs but don't forget your EHIC health card and if you need medical trreatment you must have your passport with you as well. The NHS in this region is fantastic and years ahead of the UK so don't worry about what kind of service you will receive. If I can think of anything else on the area I will post it but if you, or anyone really, needs info on the area or some do's and don'ts, don't hesitate to pm or ask me. Buen viaje!

Food for thought, thank you for the advice everyone.

This is going to sound really weird but word for word, this story was told to me by a friend a couple of years ago, same place, same motorway. They were heading for Stevenage. All I can think is, there is some sort of scam being worked by a convenient driver, working the pubs around Kings Cross.

Happy birthcake Ricky, feliz cumpleanos and hope you have a day & night to remember. But ffs, don't count down to your 21st!

Outstanding. Thanks everyone for taking the trouble to post, some great info in there. Makes the decision to buy a lot easier.

Are £400-£500 helmets worth the price tag? I would like to buy a new helmet and was stunned at the price of some of them. Do they really have that much more safety and quality built into them? I have never paid more than £70 for a lid and am beginning to think I haven't taken my head safety seriously enough.

The Long Good Friday.

None suffer more than the Spanish. This youtube scene has English subtitles and gives an excellent idea of what is ahead of any procedure. Funny as hell. ">

Congratulations! I live near Torrevieja and there are some fabulous roads & scenery to ride and admire. Wish you every happiness in your life together

I am sorry to hear about your friend, that road has claimed many lives, one the reasons they made it dual carriageway in the last four years. The fatality rate has dropped to single figures per year and it is a lot easier to get around. The pool idea is a great one, since technically I should not even be riding the bike. I have no idea what the Guardia would make of it all if they stopped me but you can bet your bippy it would be expensive. But hey, live to ride, ride to live, the last Korean 125cc to hell, you're either on it or you're nothing....booooorn to be wiiiiiiiild.....

My little Daelim will soon be going on the market so I decided it was time to chase up where the log had got to. I have owned it for a year with no proof that I own the bike and the shop I bought it from have been no help at all. Change of owndership of a vehicle in Spain can be as complex as buying a house and costs a fair bit, depending on the value of the vehicle, I think. As usual here, no one ever gives you the same answer twice. So, I bypassed the shop and went to their equivalent of an accountant who deals with vehicle transfers and this is the situation I found myself in after three visits to them, one to the town hall, one to the tax office who also spoke to the Police. I cannot register the bike in my name because: There are five years previous road tax payments owing. I am trying to register the bike in a region outside of the region it was bought in. This is like buying as bike in Cornwall and not being alble to register it in Dorset. I am trying to register the bike in a region I do not live in and in which the bike was not sold. I am trying to tax the vehicle in a region where the previous owner did not live. I am trying to tax the bike in a region it was not sold in. I am not allowed to pay the back duty, it doesnt amount to much and it means I can sell the bike on. Only the previous owner can do that. Yes really, they turn your money away. I am now waiting for three different towns to work out how much I have to pay for the last year of ownership and then one of them will let me change the ownership and everything above will be possible. Now, complain as much as you like about DVLA but isnt filling in a V5 just a teensy weensy bit easier than above? Oh, and this is not an unusual situation.

Best of luck Miss Meg, that grin when you walk out of the test centre with your Mod 2 certificate is something you never forget.

My wife worked in a bank for over twenty years and the times she came home close to tears at the abuse she had to take was heartbreaking. She left her job due to that and the pressure to sell products that customers did not want or need which made the problem worse. A few years later, we were on a visit to Boston town centre when for no reason she walked up to a man, smiled sweetly and said, 'I just wanted to let you know that you are a complete twat.' She walked away, with me giving her the wtf look, as well as the man giving her the wtf look. 'I've waited a long time to say that to him', she said happily. 'Who was it?' said I 'A complete twat, didnt you hear what I said?'

Sorry for sounding like the old fart that I am, but I am really pleased that you did not come to any harm and I am also pleased that you did not get the opportunity to vent your spleen. In that moment of red mist we say and do crazy things and you had just handed control of your life over to a total dick who does not deserve that kind of responsibility. Coming on here and blowing off steam to like minded and sympathetic peers is a much better option. Having said all that I did have a moment yesterday when a Russian plated 4x4 decided he wanted my piece of road. I let him have it, not only was this going to be a one sided match between a Daelim 125 and a Sherman Tank (or should that be a T54), but the Russinas here are not renowned for letting angry gestures go unanswered. As the song says..'Oh those Russians...'

I also lurked on several forums before joining the ones that I felt were 'my kind of people'. You get a feel for the mood and the regular posters, smartarses, trolls and found none of them as open as this one. If you didn't ride a superbike, asked what they thought were stupid questions or simply tried to make a contribution, you were shot down. I really wish I could make the rally in August but we are in Spain for pretty much the whole time now until October, there isn't a poster on here I would hesitate to meet up with. Maybe next year when I have the VFR. Thanks for the great forum and all the unseen hours that make the place tick

Glad to see progress on this project. Waiting for more please.