davefly76

20 miles sounds like a good excuse for a ride out to me You need to describe the noise a little better for people to have an idea of what may be wrong. Although without hearing it its going to be nigh on impossible for anyone to accurately diagnose it.. What speed do you hear it? High/low revs? Accelerating, decelerating? Hot, cold engine?

Hi, nice choice of bike. I really like the look of them in blue with gold wheels.. Anyway.. What makes you think the radiator is noisy? It doesn't do anything apart from sit there. As its so new if you really think there is a problem you should take it back to the dealer and let them ride it. They would be able to tell if the noise is normal or not.

Regarding pedestrian crossings.. http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTr ... /DG_070339 What bike are you getting? The cost of doing the tests isn't any different whether you do it on a 125 or a 1000. By doing it on a 125 you are limiting the amount of brand new bikes available to you and if you do get a bigger bike you will have to consider the cost of having it restricted. You can learn all you like by reading manuals and guides on how to pass a test but that doesn't make you a good, or safe rider. An instructor will be able to tell you where you are doing things wrong and can determine how safe a rider you are.

So if you plan to stop and let a pedestrian cross you lift your right hand off the throttle and away from the front brake lever?? Sounds like a sure fire way to crash to me, but I guess at least you would have stopped.. Get some lessons before you become a statistic. I have to ask though, why do you want to pass on a 125 and be restricted for two years?

Your confidence will come back, will just take a bit of time and you are doing better than me if you ride a lot. I have only been out once since I came off and that was a couple of weekends ago. I did about 130 miles in total and was the same as you, nervous going into bends. I was ok on main roads but on some really narrow country roads I had to slow down a lot, more so than usual especially if I saw some dirt on the road but I did get more comfortable as the miles racked up. The chicken strips on the rear tyre (which is new) are about 1/2 wide at the mo, but they'll get smaller I only rode a 125 for the CBT and had my first lesson on one as I had 3 months inbetween. The power difference of the bigger bike was instantly noticeable (and a little scary) but at more than walking pace it felt more stable and was easier to pull away from junctions etc. I just found that you had to work too hard to pull away and get a 125 up to speed and I felt more vunerable on a smaller bike with L plates on.

The tyre is 30% down on pressure, so yes it would have made a major difference and most likely the main cause of you crashing.. You should really check your tyres at least once a week, or before you go for a long ride out.

cheers Alex To be fair, the statement has 3 questions all with different answers so it should have been yes, no, yes Either way, i'm still right

No, if you pass your test on a 125 you will be restricted to 33bhp for two years regardless of your age. For the sake of a few months I'd wait!

Could have been some dirt/diesel on the road and have you checked your tyre pressures recently? Anything like that could have caused you to come off. I came off in November and broke my hand. Similar incident to yours, going round a bend that I knew at a normal speed. I got back on this weekend for the first time feeling a bit rusty and less confident but will get better. My advice would be to analyse everything about what happened and whether you could have done anything different, and learn from it. Also, get back on a soon as you can and start building up your confidence again. I'd still go for the DAS if thats what you were planning to do, when you pass you can still stay on a 125 if you want but I found riding the bigger bike easier than a 125, and it will only go as fast as you make it

Well I don't know where you live..?

I've got these too and they are very good for the price. I paid £35 for mine. My main gripe is that the waterproof covers let spray in from behind but some inner roll bags can solve that.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?rlz=1C1RN ... CFMQ_AUoAg that was difficult..

MOT fee's are set by the Government, although many garages discount it.. http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Ow ... DG_4022514

Snetterton, Kings Head, Crown Snetterton Circuit The Kings Head The Crown

If the problem will be covered under Kawasaki's warranty then they won't pay for another garage do it, you'll have to take to a Kawasaki dealer. If your bike is one of the affected models then I would doubt that they would ask you to pay for any diagnosis. I'd give them a ring.. And no, they won't pay your parking ticket.. Why should they??

Helmets are supposed to be replaced after 5 years (so I've heard..) and if it doesn't fit properly then its not worth wearing imo. You can get decent helmets for about £50 so having to replace it after 2 years isn't exactly going to cost a fortune. As for clothing, decent second hand gear will be fine. There are probably plenty of people out there who are selling purely because it doesn't fit any more.

It has to go to a VOSA approved MOT testing station, the same way a car does.

Bullet in the Head - Rage Against the Machine

Congrats! It was that and the Mod 1 test that I was most worried about

Going on your theory, a motorbike won't be necessary. A push bike would be sufficiant to travel a mile and a half.. I take it you won't be going out and about on it??

You don't have to do take the theory test if you just want to ride a 125, just a CBT. Theory test and CBT last two years and need to be re-done if that time lapses. If you pass mod 2 within the two years then you don't have to do anything else. 1. CBT 2. Theory 3. Lessons 4. Mod 1 test 5. Mod 2 test 6. Ride... The quickest way to pass would be a 1 week intensive course, starting with the CBT and working your way up to the final test.

When I'm asked to pull in for whatever reason, when planning to pull out - should I indicated to the right? Yes, but don't forget to cancel it. On a roundabout, can I get away with going a bit slower? The Roundabout on the test route is notorious for people failing both car and motorbike tests for whatever reason - it's a very small roundabout with many exits. As long as you are making good progress then yes. If you are going so slowly that you are holding up traffic or riding unsafely you could get minors or fail. Is there such thing as doing too many lifesavers? Not really, just as long as you aren't constantly looking over you shoulder. As a general rule, lifesaver every time you want to make a manouver and periodically as you ride along a straight road. Don't forget to lifesaver as you pull away from lights/junctions.

Nice pics!

Jesus Saves - Slayer

If he can't teach 3 people at once then he shouldn't be trying! You paid YOUR money to do what YOU wanted and he basically forced you to do something else.. Imagine you paid for something in a shop and the assistant gave you something else just because they were busy and thought you'd prefer the other item.. I wouldn't be visiting him again!