fastbob

I didn't have to push in because it seems to be all over now but I did cause some consternation when I arrived at the pump on a pushbike with a Jerrycan in my panniers . I left it in place when I filled up and I think the cashier thought I was going to make off without paying .

Where would you get a red can from ?

No reason intially . I was looking for a project and I didn't want a four cylinder bike or a 125 and having no four wheeled transport it had to be something that I could ride home . I would have preferred not to have had the hassle of liquid cooling if I'm honest but that's just the way it turned out . It was only after I got an ER5 that I discovered what fun they are to ride and how readily available second hand spares are . Which is why I bought another one .

Apology not required . That's exactly what I got one for . I rode GSXR 1100's as my main bikes for 20 years . When my 93 GSXR was released it was tested at MIRA and judged to be the most powerful production motorcycle in the World* and the second fastest . ( ZZR1100 ) But I always used to feel like a passenger on the thing . It went faster than I could ride it , it went round corners and it made a pleasing enough sound while it was doing it . Bland ? With hindsight yes , very bland . Those who follow my posts will know that it was my first ER5 that finally made me realize what had been missing from my motorcycling for years . That little thing , with its noise and vibration and it's plucky determination to get down the road was a joy to ride . So much so that I started to leave the GSXR in the garage and go on longer and longer rides on the ER . I rode from Arisaig to Coventry via the lake District in a day once and I felt ready to do it over again the next day . If I had been on the GSXR I would have done the bulk of that journey on motorways and I would have been physically and mentally shattered at the end of it . So it was around this time that it dawned on me that it was time to leave speed behind and get a Harley . And I haven't regretted anything except not doing it years ago .

Phone screen to be precise . I pound a keyboard all day at work .

Meanwhile in some godforsaken fly blown wilderness , scorched by a relentless sun , there stands the ruins of a deserted mental hospital / castanet factory . The windows are shattered now and a solitary shutter creaks and bangs as a mournful hot wind moans through the rusting bars . No sign of life now except a dried up turd in a corner left by a long dead shepherd in 1973 . But wait .... What is this I see ? There are two motorbikes parked outside in the baking sun . Can it be ? ....... To be continued ( not really )

What the hell is an Akra exhaust ? Surely not one of these Chinese £35 jobs with an Akrapovic sticker on ?

Is that so ?

Well , today I rode my bike . Not the Harley , the ER5 . This thing is so quiet and smooth . Much smoother than my old one but it's all relative after riding a V twin . I've got five gears but not a lot of clutch so I'll stick a new one in . If I'd bothered to check the tyre pressures I might have actually enjoyed my little trip around the block . As it was I ended up desperately wrestling the thing around corners armed only with a tiny ( To me ) pair of handlebars while trying to find the tiny ( to me ) gear lever . Anyone want to buy an ER5 ?

Well that's the point isn't it ? The dirt sticks to it , the bike turns black and in the spring you carefully remove all the filth including the ACF50 to reveal a gleaming and beautifully preserved bike underneath . That's what we used to do back in the day but with ordinary grease .

And that's generous for Yorkshire .

Sounds good , I'll try to make a visit one of my 2022 goals .

Do you blanch and then brown or just boil in oil ?

I could name one or two bike garages that operate like that . " No problem , bring it in on Monday morning " ........ Half past five the following Friday " No need to keep calling , we'll call you " I'm sure they get a kick out of it . It's especially infuriating when it's a one hour job . Never again !

Much of that trend stems from the builders of early choppers taking tanks off the Mustang economy bike .

But surely if you have a plethora of active Driver Assistance Systems and a Sat Nav , why do you need lights if there's no need to look out of the windows ?

Styling , no other reason . The Sportster has been a retro bike ever since it was outclassed by the Honda 750 four . And it's been a retro bike since long before the Japanese manufacturers started turning out retro bikes . So the styling is archaic and that's what sells ..

I believe I've got the 3.3 gallon tank but there's nothing inside it except petrol . EFI models have all kinds of gubbins in the tank taking up space .

It's not as bad as it sounds . The range to reserve is 80 - 90 miles . It's a lot more than the later EFI models like the Iron . When I'm touring Scotland I don't have any issues as long as I don't pass any garages without filling up .

Not on carburettor models . There is a digital trip meter if you remember to reset it whenever you fill up but mileage varies according to the type of riding you're doing .

Not to everyone's taste perhaps but my only regret is that I didn't get one years ago .

Oh yes , it's happened several times . Obviously I've got reserve but my bike tends to quit without any preliminary hesitation or spluttering . So it's clutch in and get to the hard shoulder asap and restart .

I would like to apologize on behalf of all Harley Davidson riders , myself included , who appear not to have a clue what their indicators are doing . It's bad enough having one button on each handlebar particularly the right one where you're doing three things at once . When you've got used to that , there's the self cancelling system which operates completely at random . Designed in the US , the tilt sensor appears to have no understanding that in order to go right at a roundabout you have to lean left , then right and then left again . Then there's lane changing on the motorway . The indicators always seem to stay on too long but whenever you flick the switch a second time to cancel it will be at the exact moment that they self cancel so of course you end up reactivating them . The only good feature is the hazard function which is very useful when you run out of fuel without warning in the fast lane * of the motorway . * Comments anticipated .

What I don't get is why Coventry Council has randomly dotted isolated charging points all around my neighborhood when eventually everyone is going to have to get their own charger . Just looks like a stupid PR stunt to me but I bet somebody has got their snout in some trough or other .

I'm with Swinton . My insurance is so cheap that I can't remember how much it is .