John Metcalfe

Hi

Me and the missus both have RST Atlas jackets & trousers and have had no issues regarding being waterproof. They were put to the test during our trip to Italy when we were twice in heavy rain and both times our base layers were bone dry when we reached our hotel stops.

they aren't the most expensive but they not the cheapest, we got ours from MSG Bike Gear> I also added a pair of long touring gloves by RST and they are waterproof also as per the test above. We both have boots by Black and they are so comfy straight from the box you could forget you've got em on. They are double zipped with the breathable waterproof liner which also keeps your feet warm when it gets a bit colder.

From memory the jackets were £199, the trousers £99, boots £89 and gloves £49 along with free 2 day delivery I thought that was a good deal for two full suits with boots plus a pair of gloves.

I've got a DIN plug on my 1994 K1100LT which is permanently live. Mine is located down on the left handside mounted into the coil mounting. I've used this to connect my charger when bike off road for any length of time. 

I've wired extra usb and other accessory connections for phones and sat nav  plus one into the topcase so "she who shall be obeyed" can have her kindle on when on long boring motorway trips, anything for peace and quiet, into mine but they are only live when the ignition is on, also they are all connected via individual relays so as to reduce power drain etc.

11 hours ago, S-Westerly said:

You want to try and be in China mate. Full restrictions and a total pain in the arse.

No thanks mate.

It been bad enough here in Tunisia with the lockdowns at short notice, curfews, wearing a mask to go in shops etc and having to show covid pass. At least now we have got rid of that shit and almost back to normal. Tourists are starting to return because you now don't need to be jabbed to enter of do quarantine. If not had 2 jabs then all you need is a PCR test either 48hrs before departure or a rapid test 24hrs before.

It's great for bikes over here, loads of near empty roads if you travel out of the tourist areas and for the off road guys there's that large expanse of sand called the Sahara to go play in

We came through the tunnel last November when we brought the bike over here to Tunisia where we live. We had to change from ferry at Dover to tunnel due to some little jumped up jobs worth French plod turning 75% of British plated vehicles round just for the sake of it. He told us that he didn't have to accept our vaccine paperwork because the UK was no longer part of the EU. I was not too polite with my response, lets just say I reminded him of 1914-18 & 1939-45 when they cried out for our help. Booked tunnel while having cuppa at nearest services. Arrived at check-in told what to do and where to go and bingo straight through on next train and no issues with french border control. Once in France we yet again had no issues with the local or national police. Due to issues back in UK we had to travel from Pontefract West Yorkshire through France and into Italy for the ferry crossing from Genoa to Tunis a trip close to 1200 miles. We left Pontefract on the  Wednesday morning and the ferry to Tunis was due to depart Saturday afternoon so it had to French & Italian motorways all the way down, "never again" was the wife's response.

At least now we can just jump on a ferry to either Sicily and then decide where to go next, either Sardinia, Corsica or Malta, or we can go direct to the Italian mainland. Already planning the next jolly.

We had no issues with any numpties or the like, but it don't matter where you go there will always be a couple of em' and they're the ones who get noticed and remembered.

We booked all with Booking.com but checked if the hotel had a website and checked the prices direct. We found that the prices were more or less the same but with a couple of alterations from the hotels website.

The added bonus now with Italy is they've binned all the chinese flu restriction shit, so you can enter and travel round the country now as if it never existed. Pity rest of europe still clinging on to the chinese flu fear control factor.

2 hours ago, Copycat73 said:

story i`m hearin is the further south you travel into Italy the scruffier it gets .. any thoughts / comments ?

The bits we were in were fairly clean, defo cleaner than some places in UK. We mainly stuck to the coastal roads keeping away from some of the major towns and cities. We also avoided the toll roads & motorways sticking mainly to the rural and urban roads which aloud us to keep the daily mileages down along with the availability of stopping as and when we wanted to.

If I'm fully truthful Palermo was probably the "dirtiest" place we visited/stayed in especially on the outskirts of the town down the side roads. We found out later that there was a strike by the bin men which was causing the rubbish to build up.

Other than that no we had no issues, with the exception of dropping the bike while trying to turn it round, no real damage though except bending the cage round one of the spot lights mounted on the crash bars, plus the embarrassment of doing it in front of 2 Carabinieri who were parked at the roadside. Unlike UK police, they helpful in helping pick the bike up and checking that we were both uninjured and checking the bike was ok. Yep thick end of 2000km with no issues and then drop it in front of 2 police at less than 2mph "red faced" or what lol.

We've got some decent photos of some of the places including along the Amalfi Coast road so once I've go them sorted I'll be uploading some of them along with the full route we took. We lost a day on Sicily due to the "Giro d Italia" bike race which was on Sicily the day we were due to arrive in Messina but the ferries were cancelled because of them being in Messina that afternoon. Cyclists strike again, never mind though we already planning next visit, but we'll just stay on Sicily for the week and see where we end up.

Me and the missus have just returned from a 12 day trip to Italy so I thought I'd share the names of the hotels we used during our 12 days.

We used Booking.com to book all the hotels and found all the hotels used to be bike & biker friendly. Listed below are the hotels in the order we stayed there the location and parking facilities.

1. P&P Assisi Camere in Bastia Umbra. Free off road private parking.

2. Waldorf Palace Hotel in Cattolica. Private underground garage €6 per day. Free parking for motorbikes available to front of hotel in full view of reception and covered by CCTV.

3. The Grand Hotel Montesilvano. Free off road private parking.

4. My Angels B&B in Pompei. Free off road private parking within gated courtyard.

5.Villa Sethere Salerno. Free off road private parking within gated courtyard.

6. Hotel Posidonia Sapri. Free off road parking within gated yard. CCTV covered

7. La Casa di Caso Villa San Giovanni. Free off road parking within gated yard

8. ll Gelso Bianco Montebianco near Catania Sicily. Free off road private parking. CCTV protected.

9. 55 Aira Hotel Palermo Sicily. Free on street parking to front of hotel in clear view of hotel reception and covered by CCTV. Also opposite main railway station with Police station also opposite.

We would recommend and use all these hotels again without question but by far the best would be My Angels B&B i Pompei because the owner Melisa could'nt help enough and is very knowledgeable about the local area. Along with My Angels Hotel Posidonia in Sapri is superb when it comes to customer service and the food within the attached restaurant is amazing, especially the steak. They are very bike friendly also insisting that we parked within the locked yard area which is also covered by an enormous fixed gazebo.

The breakfast at the Waldorf Palace is a buffet type with a choice of cooked and cold/chilled food along with the standard continental type breakfast also. There is a well stocked bar here also.

I've tried various types/styles of ear plugs, ranging from the cheapo foam ones, custom fit and even military issue type that look like little dildos with a small tag from aiding insertion and removal. I have now stared using the silicon type that you mould into your as you insert them. I bought these from our local Home Bargains before we moved over here to Tunisia. After trying them for a couple of weeks finding them a comfortable fit and reducing the wind noise enough to be more bearable than some of the more expensive options I've tied I went back and bought about a dozen boxes at £1:99 a box for 14 plugs. I will certainly be visiting HB next time in UK and buying even more boxes.

Me and the missus have just returned from 12 days in Italy and Sicily and had no issues with any of the different types of law enforcement, in fact they were rather friendly when we saw them. 

We did travel through France in November last year when we brought the K11 over here to Tunisia and as with Italy no issues with plod.

With regards to what you do or don't need most of the motoring websites are very much car focused with the rules and regs.

All we carried with us was the following

Bike docs: Log book, insurance MOT if applicable.

Hi-Viz vest for the wife, I didn't need one as my jacket is hi-viz (Looks like a Police jkt)

Stickers are not required for tourists or helmets not purchased in France.

Gloves are mandatory, as are protective boots of at least ankle length.

Warning triangles are not mandatory for bikes.

Bulb kit is required but very rarely enforced

Breath test kit is no longer a legal requirement. It wasn't enforced anyway.

In addition to the above we also carried a puncture repair kit and compressor, first aid kit and a decent tool kit, not the bike issue type.

We traveled through the tunnel and had no problems with the dreaded covid requirements and associated paperwork. If you check on the tunnel website you get all the up to date info on what's needed and not needed. I may be wrong but I think that if you've only had the 2 jabs then the last one has to have been given no more than 290 days before arrival in France. If you've had the booster then there's no "expiry" date.

Have a safe trip and hope you enjoy the freedom of the wind in your hair.

I've a 1994 K1100LT and when just nipping around locally I'm getting about 40mpg. However we just done 12 days in Italy and Sicily and when fully loaded 2up on local rural/urban roads averaged about 48mpg.

I've had nearly 300 miles from a tank full, but that was on the French motorways and that's sitting at a constant 70mph using the cruise control.

It's getting a bit hot round here now so not much riding done at minute coz feels like been in a sauna by time got to end of our road. So it's time for trip to beach for a chill with some food and the obligatory beers

saw this on the counter at WRS in Cattolica Italy. It might not be made out of Meccano but its a GS. It's actually made from Lego Technic and is available to buy at a rather steep £137 on Amazon

In the same shop also on display were a number of other bikes including Cal Crutchlows  Moto GP bike 

I've suffered with wind noise etc on numerous bikes and wearing different types of helmets. Currently me and the wife are wearing GMac Glide Evo's. With her been pillion she doesn't suffer too much wind noise but I get a small amount even with the screen and barn door fairing on the K1100. I've tried different ear plugs including a set I had issued during my time in the RAF all of which worked to differing levels, however I now use the silicone type ones which I bought on the off chance from our local Home Bargains before we set of on the trip over here to Tunisia. During this 1200 mile trip I wore the Home Bargains ear plugs and suffered almost no wind noise and could still hear the missus through the headset even at motorway speeds (130Kmh).

The plugs cost £1.99 for a pack of 14 and you mould them between your finger and thumb before fitting them into your ear and holding in place with your thumb for a few seconds until they form the "seal" in your ear. They are comfortable also even with headset earpieces in close proximity. For £1.99 they work out pretty good value especially compared to the custom made ones which can be uncomfortable.

I'd quite like an adventure bike like the GS or Tiger for playing in the desert sands over here in Tunisia but I think I'll stick with the 2up comfort of my 1994 K1100LT. The comfort bit keeps the missus happy when we go on our little jaunts around Tunisia of further afield into Italy and France

Just to throw a curve ball into the mixer, me and the missus have just done the best part of 2000 miles in 12 days round Italy on our 1994 BMW K1100LT with no issues with regards to comfort for the "boss" on the back and we were fully loaded.

After a 12 day near 2000 mile trip round Italy with the wife on the pillion and full luggage the K11 has just had a well deserved service, including all fluids and a complete strip down and clean of the front and rear brakes complete with new pads all round. A new YSS shocker was fitted while in Italy which was the excuse for the trip in the first place. But main thing is "she who must be obeyed" enjoyed the trip especially after the new shocker was fitted, which took less time to do than it takes to boil the kettle for a cuppa.

Over here in Tunisia helmets are "a legal requirement" but very rarely enforced by the police unless that is they are having a purge when they enforce it with vigor and enforce on the spot "fines". 

On the flip side we are members of a group/club that is based at a motorcycle shop in Tunis. Regular ride outs and rally's are arranged where it a requirement that ALL riders and passengers wear the correct clothing etc which is inspected before you are allowed to take part in the ride/rally. Bikes are also checked over to ensure that they are up to the required standard. Then and only then will you be allowed register/sign in and receive a number which is then fixed to your bike before you can to take part in the ride.

Try and get a copy of the book Roadcraft. It shows how the police ride and their methods and techniques for both novices and experienced riders alike. You will be suprised at how much more confident you will become after a bit of practice

Me and missus have freedconn headsets/intercoms and have been using these for about 4yrs with no problems. We have them fitted in a pair of GMAC Glide Evo flip front helmets. We get about 10hrs talk time from them when used in "free talk" mode. They have the facility to be paired with other units of the same type which is a simple process. They can also be paired with mobile phones and sat navs with bluetooth capability. The pair we have cost less than £100 for the pair.

1 minute ago, MikeHorton said:

We actually had a brewery tour at a small micro brewery just outside Sousse local Muslim guy ran it too he was allowed sell it in his own 2 bars. Did a v refreshing baverian style pilsner 

There's a chateau about 15 minutes from us that do their own wines that you can buy on site and the missus loves it. And if I'm honest it not too bad and I'm not a wine drinker either. The local supermarket in town has an alcohol section that sells just about very form of alcoholic drink you can buy including imported ones. Not bad for a Muslim country lol And people ask why we decided come and live here.

45 minutes ago, MikeHorton said:

Yup me too spent our honeymoon in Sousse great people loved the markets, respected their culture and country and they couldn't have made us any more welcome. 

It may be a Muslim country but they don't ram it down your throat like they do in certain places in the UK. In fact one of the biggest Catholic Cathedrals outside of Rome is in Tunis. Plus when it comes to priorities football definitely comes before religion

19 minutes ago, Steve_M said:

Looks awful. Where’s the mud, grit, potholes, grey skies?

So sorry for the lack of grey skies and crap weather, we do get rain and clouds every no and then. 

With regards to grit and mud etc we do have access to that large sand mass called the Sahara desert which is about 6hrs from us so there's plenty of scope to "play" if you get my drift

22 minutes ago, rightstuff said:

Hamamet is a dump like all of Tunisia been twice never again thieving ragheads

When were you here and where about's in Hammamet?

We been coming since 2008 and had house here for 6 years living here for the last 3 and had no trouble at all. It fact it's the complete opposite of what you're saying where we are. Locals can't do enough for the British, obviously no matter where you go in the world you will get the customary "dickhead" who spoils it for everyone else and gets remembered for their actions. At least here the police do act straight away and deal with the problem, unlike the UK where they sit with their thumbs up their arses and protect the criminal and not the victim, unless you happen to be riding a motorbike then they screw you at every opportunity they get with the fixed penalty ticket. Plus over here just about everybody has scooter or bike as their mode of transport and bike are given priority over cars at junctions etc.  

Yesterday the wife and I decided it might be a good idea to go for a short ride out. This short ride turned into a trip around the Cap Bon Peninsular here in Tunisia. A total of almost 250 kilometres

After breakfast we left our hometown of Hammamet and headed out towards the town of Grombalia about 20k from Hammamet and onto Mornag. We then turned North and headed towards Soliman and on out towards Korbouson the coast overlooking the Bay of Tunis, on a good clear day Tunis can be seen along with the port of La Goulette. After about an hours break we set off North again along the coastal road towards El Haouria, the most northerly point of the peninsular before heading South towards Kerkouane and onto Kelibia for a lunch stop. After this stop we headed on towards Korba and Nabeul before reaching Hammamet and home for tea.

I use the household cleaning fluid "elbow grease" that comes in the spray bottle along with an old 1" paint brush to get in all the nooks and crannies. After leaving it for about 10 minutes to soak into the grime I give it another scrub with the brush and if necessary a kitchen pan scrubber, the type with foam on one side and a scrubbing pad on the other, then wash it of with warm soapy water followed by clean water.