Slowlycatchymonkey

I favour a bit of kitchen towel or blue roll and some water. It does means stopping but if your visors clean before you start it amounts to maybe stopping once in hours when you’ll likely be stopping anyway. Kitchen towel folded into 4 takes up no space and there’s always water at garages etc. Wet the towel, lay it on the visor wait a minute or two and wipe it off. Being tissue it’s versatile so it works for all sorts of other tissue related needs!

Waited for the January sales as advised and have just bought a tent. Went for Robens 4ex. Camping world have an extra 15% off everything today so all in it was £212 which is a saving of £150, I do like a bargain. Nearly went for the voyager 3ex but this one has only a fractionally bigger footprint (30cm width wise), is only 200 grams more but slightly smaller pack size (the 3 is 54 X 21, the 4ex is 51 X 22) it was also less expensive. I was impressed with the blurb and the reviews for the Robens, they seem like good value. I like the wind testing I watched on YouTube, the level of waterproofing (hydrostatic head of 5000mm), the desirable touches like alloy poles that are held together with the string thing, colour coding, guy rope retainers, two doors with mesh nets and a big porch. When I looked at their accessories they also look well thought out which is reassuring. A 4 man for two people might seem a tad excessive but as the weight, footprint and pack size are good I’m happy. Things that were very apparent from my first foray back in August were I wanted a porch area for storing stuff and that stepping directly in n out of the sleeping area into rain is annoying and muddy. The main problem though was just how bloomin hot it was in the tent, I woke up every morning quite desiccated so a tent with good ventilation was a priority, I’m hoping the extra space in the tent will also allow for better airflow. Thanks for all the advice. I’ve come back to this thread a few times to make notes of the recommendations and without it I wouldn’t have had a clue. https://www.campingworld.co.uk/en/Robens-Voyager-4EX-Trail-Tent-2018/m-19213.aspx

You’re just not going to need 4 days for mod 1. I’d be surprised if you need one!

Happy birthday for yesterday [mention]old-timer[/mention]

I’ve just happened upon the visorcat of which you speak. Made me laugh, looks like something Data from the Goonies would invent https://www.visorcat.com

[mention]Paulpen[/mention] how long have you been riding? I’d definitely go and see them before you make your decision. The convenience of being local isn’t to be sniffed at but you really want a bit of rapport, you’ll learn faster if you enjoy it.

I recognise your work, is this one of yours too

God I’m out of touch. I’m pushing it to say I understood 20% of this post

I have a beard, if that helps? Hmm gorillaish then!

Happy birthday to you squashed tomatoes and stoo you look like.... dunno never met you so can’t comment on your gorilla looks, hope you don’t smell like one too!

Don’t know about specific liners. Depends how much time those 9 miles take and what the ambient temperature is. Keeping food hot without electricity is the same as keeping people warm, you need layers. A thermal lunch box in an insulated bag or polystyrene box with as much wadding (towel blanket etc) as needed to remove air space will do the trick. I use an insulated lunch box in a thermal backpack (no wadding, can’t be bothered to lug it about) and it keeps everything hot for hours but if I was going home I’d probably just nuke it. Alternatively you could steal a delivery moped and use that, bike crimes all the rage now.

My phone is waterproof enough so I use this. It absorbs vibration so the screens easy to see and it’s only on the bike when I need sat nav. I’m not a fan of those clunky ugly plastic mounts that stay on the bike. https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07798GW1T/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I’m afraid I read everything, sometimes even an article in the hate mail and then hate myself for it

[mention]Paulpen[/mention] I think it’s wise to go to the place and meet the actual instructors. They usually tend to reconvene at the place lunch time but ones I met were happy to give me 10 mins at 8amish before they started instructing. You of kind need to have a look at them to see if your happy to hand over that cash. I didn’t like the DAS instructor at TSM. She looked me up and down an exhaled in that exasperated way that lets you know they don’t think much of you and that was before I’d even said hello. It’s easy to get very jaded when you work with the general public but she was telling me about two other women she had been teaching the day before (one had come off their bike and hurt their ankle) and it was quite a blaming story which for me sealed it as a definite no. I thought the same as you that I’d be better off on roads I knew but in the end it didn’t matter at all. The training school will show you the dodgy bits where people make mistakes (like the weird offset traffic lights or poorly marked lanes) and you won’t be complacent because you know whats coming up, you’ll just ride the road in front of you as you should which in its own way is an advantage I’d go along to TSM and say hello because you never know, different strokes for different folks n all that. I just have a low tolerance for people who are miserable, tightly wound or lacking in humour. I tend to look for banter which really isn’t that necessary when it comes to learning to ride a bigger bike but I’d rather be laughed at than told off. I still laugh to myself about falling off slomo style in front of everyone because they ribbed me about it and made it fun. A good school will advise you to split up your mod 1 and mod 2 by two weeks as this allows you to cancel the mod 2 training and test without losing any money should the first mod 1 no go so well. Some schools want it all up front and you can be locked into training times and tests you might not even be able to take- this allows them to charge you again for extra training and the bike for the test Looking forward to hearing how you get on

She’s got 9 lives so can afford to ride about dressed like that!

Bad and BMW in the same sentence that must be a mistake!

I think this journos lost it. Chic?!?! I just can’t see it! https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/nov/18/cezeta-electric-scooter-rebirth-of-communist-era-bike-chic?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Yep I was at a doo recently and one of the people seated next to me got quite excited about what I wear when I’m out on my bike (an immediate weirdo alert) I said no I didn’t wear a skin tight head to toe leather and those fantasy pictures of women in leathers weren’t in real riding gear cos the real stuff has to be thick n protective enough to keep your skin on your body if you crashed. The removal of the helmet and swishing about of yards of wavy immaculately blow dried tresses doesn’t happen, in real life you’ll get helmet hair and just have to live with it. I most disappointed him

[mention]Paulpen[/mention] I wanted to do my DAS in Taunton because I didn’t fancy taking my test in Bristol with the kamikaze cyclists, constant speed limit changes and poorly marked roundabout lanes but I ended up there (and it was fine) because the three main schools in Taunton didn’t appeal at all. The reviews for I think it was called Durstan elms wiped that one off the list straight away. The Somerset Motorcycle Training website had some ranting from the clearly frustrated owners about pass rates and was written in a manner that let you know they were very fed up with students and that left Taunton School of Motorcycling who I went to visit and they told me I should go for an A2 licence because their A2 bike was the smaller bike and I couldn’t touch the ground on their full size bikes. Every school (apart from ACE in Bristol) told me I’d need a minimum of 6 days training without ever having seen me. After a year on a 125 I didn’t agree. I did my CBT in Exeter with Triumph training and found them very pleasant. Exeter test centre also has very high pass rates (I presume because the roads are easier) so perhaps have a look there if you don’t mind travelling. I did just type motorcycle training into google maps and it’s thrown up a lot more than the three I’ve mentioned above so perhaps there’s some new start ups that are worth a look? Good luck. Let us know how you get on

Glorious. They look like museum exhibits.

Sorry to be here with another ‘what bike should I get’ question but I’m thinking about another bike and am clueless on what. The 9T’s not going anywhere, we are as one as we have always been but the amount of detritus plastered over it after every ride stresses me out a bit and because I mainly cut things so fine timing wise I don’t rinse it off after a ride. I initially remedied this by booking a valet every 3 months but it turns out a valet every three months just ain’t going to keep its looks where I want them. So this winter hack thing I’ve heard mentioned by others might be the answer. Something that’s not prone to rusting, is fun to ride and can be loaded up with ugly panniers. Something available used so I don’t fret about the state of it would be good. Obviously I’m drawn to BMW because it’s so well balanced but I’d consider anything worthy of long distances and prefer not to have a chain to maintain. Have you got a winter hack and if not then what would get and why? Thanks

Also age dependant, the older house owners more likely to offer coke.... Coke is way too expensive and ‘more more more’ to offer out surely? That’s why it’s the choice of the older well heeled house owner. Speed would be your young renter. Personally I’d go for the tea n biscuits

Are you perchance looking for a research assistant? Alas the wages would be limited to PG Tips and a slightly crispy Jaffa Cake*. *Which raises the point of interest in the definition between a biscuit and a cake. For to many it seems that a Jaffa Cake is really a biscuit masquerading under pretensions of grandeur. However the humble Jaffa Cake can claim its name in all integrity since by law a biscuit is defined as going soft when stale whereas a cake goes hard when stale. Therefore a Jaffa Cake is really a cake**. ** Not many Jaffa Cakes actually get the chance to go stale in our house so I have to take this fact on trust. I think that might be the most delightful biscuit fact I’ve heard. Ill perform the necessary tests and present the results with my application for research assistant

You're either going to have to stock an enormous range of biscuits or conduct a poll to determine the most popular choice. Good luck . I shall be conducting extensive market research into the subject. Of course the first dilemma is whether to serve Earl Grey, English Breakfast or Lapsang Souchong - with milk or lemon? Are you perchance looking for a research assistant?