Throttled

Is it bikers causing the increase, or other road users? Cars are getting faster and heavier and that increases impact forces at the time of an accident, which increases the chances of fatality.

As a rough calculation, I am getting low 40s, mpg. Hopefully a screen will make me more aerodynamic and that will improve the mpg. The Versys 1000 averaged 50mpg.

Auchengree Farm shop

The Green Welly is number 1 on the Scottish biker bucket list. Every road leading to it, is cracking.

You can tuck and brace yourself better on a bike like the Hornet. I am like a full sail, with only my hands to take the pressure.

Metzeler Cruisetec. The 240 wide rear tyre limits alternatives.

Rode it and regretted it. After that long dry spell, the road is so slippery with the rain. That was no fun.

First 500 miles. It is a handful in the wet and for the first time, on any vehicle, I have activated the ABS. The massive back brake and tyre is easy to overcome grip on a wet, greasy road. Roundabouts are negotiated in 1st gear. Even with the sissy bar, it kicks up a lot of muck, so I have ordered a mudguard off Aliexpress. I have also ordered an MRA universal screen. How does anyone ride a bike with no screen? Do they stick to 50mph maximum?

Rode it.

North of Scotland, Wee Blether tearoom, which is now permanently closed;

Rode to Largs and had a bacon roll.

Taking into account how common they are, I hear more about BMW breakdowns than any other make.

The "A" means you can ride any size of bike, once you have completed the CBT and passed the Mod 1 and 2 tests. You can do a check of everything you can drive/ride, online here; https://www.gov.uk/view-driving-licence

Surprised that during this long run of good weather and sunshine, I have not seen any biker who has ditched their gear, for a t-shirt, jeans and trainers.

Now the switch, from 4 cylinder adventure tourer, to V twin cruiser, has been completed, the big differences are feet forward and gear selection. Feet forward has taken minutes to get used to. Gear selection is taking longer. The Versys would ride around quite happily, in 5th, as low as 20 mph and winding country roads would be in 5th and 6th. The Morbidelli wants to be in 2nd, tops, at 20mph and is happier in 1st and winding country roads are ridden in 3rd and 4th. Top gear, 6th, is for 70mph on the motorway. Both bikes are rated at 102 Nm, 75ft lbs, so I was expecting the gear selection to similar.

I think that the build quality of the new wave of Chinese bikes, from Keeway, Voge, Benelli, CFMoto and Morbidelli is very good. They also use parts from European and Japanese makers. As for long term reliability and how well they cope with UK weather, that is not yet fully established. I know an ex-salesman from a motorbike dealer, who said they had fewer problems with the CFMoto bikes, than the KTMs they sold, with CFMotos made in China and the KTMs in Austria, and they share parts. He also rated Keeway as a pretty trouble free brand, or at least cheap to sort if they did go wrong.

If more bikers admitted to being out of practice and did some extra tuition, there would be fewer deaths and injuries. Since passing my driving test in 1983, I did the police "blue lights" driving course in 1990, my bike test in 2011 and a council driving assessment in 2017. Each acts as a refresher, or adds to skills. I ride my bike pretty much weekly. I think every road user should have to do an assessment, say every ten years, appropriate to the vehicles they use. A quick quiz on the Highway Code and a half hour assessed ride or drive.

I bungeed two dry bags to my pillion seat, one with the tent and a few bits and the other with the rest of my camping gear. It is easier to pack a tent into a dry bag, than its original bag.

I think that is the most secure way to move a bike backwards, as seen in the YouTube video. I take it you leave the side stand down whilst pushing? I hope you gain more confidence by the fact you have not dropped it that way.

This just popped up on my YouTube feed;

The Morbidelli MBP C1002V is designed in Bologna, Italy, put together in China (where it is the Gaokin Thor), using parts from Japanese and European makers, GKN, J Juan, Metzeler and Bosch and it is part of the Benelli, Keway group. It was originally the MBP, until Keway bought the Morbidelli name. It was a small brand that made racing bikes and then a V8 and then went out of business. I think the C is for cruiser and the V is for V twin, but it is 997cc, so where the 1002 comes from, I have no idea. I am going to go out on a limb and say it is the best looking bike I have ever seen, the end. It avoids being a look-a-like, but it sits with the Diavel, Rocket and Benelli C502, as a modern European style cruiser. According to the owner's manual and Morbidelli website, it has 87hp and 65 lbs-ft, but according to the importers MotoGB, it has 95hp and 75 lbs-ft. The discrepancy may be due to the rider modes, normal and sport. https://www.morbidelli.com/int-en/products/c1002v https://www.morbidelli.co.uk/model/2024-morbidelli-c1002v-1720 I am still running it in, so I have not tried sport. So far, I have managed one 100 mile run and initial impressions are; - the seat and seating position is not immediately impressive, but it was comfortable for the whole run. The running boards allow for a lot of leg movement. - the mirrors are small, but do their job. - the ride is to the harsher end, but the tyre pressures were set by the dealer at 40 psi and the manual suggests that is the rear pressure for when there is a pillion. I will adjust to the manual's recommended 36 psi for both. - the controls are simple to use, and the cruise control is effective if a little jerky. - the gear change is very clunky and positive, with a long throw from 1st to 2nd. Neutral was easy to find. - the headlight is distinctive, with two LEDs for dipped and two for main, split with a line as a running light. It is effective. - the TFT display is clear, but I miss not having an outside temperature reading. - the brakes are very good, the back brake being the most powerful I have ever encountered on a motorbike. It is very stable under braking. - handling is good, with a ton of dry weather grip from the huge 240/40VR18 rear tyre. It is not as cumbersome to flip from turn to turn as I was expecting. - there is a tiny tool kit and no other space, under the seat, which needs a hex key and the key to remove. - there is no user forum as yet, but there is a reasonably active facebook site. - there are no official accessories at all! I thought accessories were a big moneymaker, so that is a surprise. There are a couple of backrests and pannier rails, along with generic screens, being sold online. I got a backrest from Italy, which attracted £60 on import duty and VAT.

As a family, we are on a run of bad luck, so it does feel that way.

You are not alone. I have to negotiate cars to get to my lock up. I have to do a 90-degree turn and then walk the bike backwards into the garage. There is a slope, but it does not sound as steep as yours and I don't have to bump over a pavement. That sounds the hardest part and would a bit of wood in the gutter help? You clearly can physically do it, and it sounds like hating to have to do it, is the real problem. When you go back on the bike, do you sit on it and paddle backwards, or do you get off and walk it backwards? I feel more confident sitting on the bike and paddling backwards.

And now I have got the bike, I cannot ride it, as a disc in my lower back has ruptured, pressing against a nerve, so total rest for me.

It is what the maker calls it. I would have called it a backrest. My son is the main user.