10 days on from the CBT. Where I stand now.

[ChrisBiggsUK]

So it has been a little over ten days since I passed my CBT.  It's been interesting.  Where I'm at;

1 - I'm completely invisible on the road.  I've been riding around to build my confidence in the early morning, wearing not only my riding gear but also a hi-viz 'learner' vest (https://www.oxfordproducts.com/motorcycle/brands/oxford/rider_wear/reflectives/oxford_bright_vest/) over the top (both to make myself visible and also as a way of showing other road users that I'm new and so hopefully they will be patient with me) and the amount of people who get right up my ass, or pull out right in front of me, is unbelievable.  I cant do anything more to make myself bright and visible, so I must chalk it up to people in cars actively wanting to run us all down.  I thought it was mere hyperbole, but now that I've been riding for over a week, yup.  They're all out to get us!  On a plus note;  I am now very confident holding my own and not panicking when some idiot gets right up my ass and revs his engine when I'm going the speed limit and I'm also very confident in my ability to avoid people suddenly pulling out in front of me.  Riding defensively is definitely where its at!

2 - Slow and steady wins the race! I'm taking things slowly (not speed wise, I drive at an appropriate speed).  I'm not rushing into going long distances or tackling unknown roads.  I'm sticking with where I know, at times of the day where I'm not going to be hit by loads of traffic, and doing lots of slow speed drills in empty car parks.  Passing the CBT was just a starting point.  The real practice and learning has only just begun.  In news that many of you will be pleased with, my stalling when stopping / setting off is almost completely resolved.  This morning, for example, at a local empty car park, I did 100 (yes, I counted)stops / starts.  I came to a stop at a pre-determined point, waited for a few moments, then set off to another pre-determined point and repeated the stop / start process.  On stopping, I stalled once.  And I know why I did it.  On setting back off again, I stalled twice.  Both times, I know why I did it.  So, as it stands (today at least) I have a 97% non-stall rate!  I'm fairly happy with this.  Will it be the same next weekend when I hit that car park again?  Who knows?  But I do know that I'm getting better each and every day!

3 - Gears are still the bane of my life!  Well, no, that isn't accurate.  I'm great at shifting up in gears.  I occasionally (albeit very rarely) don't shift all the way from first up to second, instead accidentally knocking it into neutral.  This is immediately remedied and I'm in the correct gear in a matter of a second or two.  Going up gears is, thus, completely fine.  It is coming back down them again that I find myself still struggling.  When I shift down when coming to lights, for example, I do what I was told.  Roll off throttle, smoothly pull clutch, shift down, smoothly let go clutch and apply throttle.  Things get a bit jittery and juddery, which I'm sure isn't normal, but I'm sure that in time (and with practice) they will become much smoother.  If I'm only in second or third, going down to first in a short space of time / distance if lights suddenly change is relatively simple.  But anything higher than that and I just don't seem to have enough time to get all the way down and find myself coming to a stop in a much higher gear than I should be and having to try to shift down while at a stop which is, of course, less than ideal.  In time, of course, this will all happen a lot smoother and faster, but right now?  I still struggle with it.  It isn't too bad on my early morning practice route as I'm mostly in 1st - 3rd and so all is good.  But anything more than that?  I need to work on it.  

4 - It's a whole new world! I came into motorcycling at the ripe old age of 43, having never ridden or driven before.  I had never been on the road as anything other than a passenger before and it was quite the shock to the system!  Going from being a pedestrian and looking around while walking and crossing roads to driving and having to change the way I look and where I look has been quite the experience.  It isn't just the difference between walking and riding, the whole riding community is an entire world in itself and hoo boy is it a wild one!  Just wish I'd done it sooner!

And finally;

5 - Wifes verdict.  When I randomly told the Wife that I wanted to ride a motorcycle, I received no pushback whatsoever.  Nothing.  She just said 'oh, thats nice' and that was it.  I think she thought it was something that might, possibly, maybe, happen somewhere down the line and not quite so quickly.  She probably thought I'd just give it a mention and then forget all about it.  Needless to say she was quite surprised when I bought the bike before doing the training and, well, we know how things went from there!  She is rather happy that I'm now a motorist in my own right.  Not when she is driving and I'm a passenger mind you.  I'd often comment on her driving (much to her chagrin) and she would always shut me up by saying 'when you drive you can comment!' thinking that since she drove and I didn't that would be the end of it.  Little did she realise that now that I can drive (albeit still very new) according to her own rules I can now comment on her driving!  She is fine with me having a bike and all the gear and riding off of a morning in the dark.  But my turning the tables on her and commenting?  Not so much.  Zero pushback from her whatsoever and instead full on support.  I guess that I picked the right Wife!  

So there we have it.

It's been wild so far!  And this is only the beginning!  

[S-Westerly]

You seem to be going at it with your head in the right place. Being over 40 and thus maybe more sensible probably helps although having decided to be a biker at all probably cancels out some of the "sensible". At least at 40 plus you are not convinced of your immortality unlike guys in their teens and early twenties who tend to do insane things and assuming we survive look back on as why the "f**k did I do that?" moments.

[Davidtav]

You are overthinking everything … and I would stop criticising the wife’s driving. That won’t get you anywhere other than the spare room maybe 

[Simon Davey]

HI Chris, progress is progress.

Two things I notice, firstly is that vest. With that big shiny red "L" plate on the vest, you're giving the modern day motorist too much credit to be as nice and as kind as you are on the road, they're just seeing a great excuse to treat you like a numpty, they're seeing that vest and instead of cutting you some slack, they're taking advantage. I would personally switch to a standard Hi-Viz.

 

Secondly, I have a feeling that when you're changing down gear, you don't have enough rev's, that engine needs to have a little speed to throw the synchromesh into place. I could be talking bollox, but I've always giving the throttle a little blip to change down, and I find it helps.

Edited November 3, 2024 by Simon Davey

[bonio]

If you're in a higher gear, like 4 - 6, and you're coming to a stop, bear in mind that you can change down more than one gear at once before engaging the clutch again. You might want to try it out first on a quiet day.

 

[Simon Davey]

27 minutes ago, bonio said:

If you're in a higher gear, like 4 - 6, and you're coming to a stop, bear in mind that you can change down more than one gear at once before engaging the clutch again. You might want to try it out first on a quiet day.

 

 

That's a very good point, and the sort of thing that nobody tells you... 

[ChrisBiggsUK]

10 hours ago, bonio said:

If you're in a higher gear, like 4 - 6, and you're coming to a stop, bear in mind that you can change down more than one gear at once before engaging the clutch again. You might want to try it out first on a quiet day.

 

See, I was under the impression that I had to do it one at a time, and that I couldn't drop through the gears like that.  Clutch, one gear, clutch, one gear, that is what I was told.  I'll have to try it out in the car park at the weekend.  Thank you!

[RideWithStyles]

Yes you’re not changing down the gears often enough (as your leaving to do all the gear changes at the last moment-nope don’t do that). Bad habit as especially as your new and you need to avoid rushing every thing to the last minute which makes you have less mind control for reading the road etc also what would happen if the lights suddenly changed or a car suddenly switched or something else happened while your busy fluffing up the changes?Putting yourself in a predicament that you made for yourself.

Dont bother with blipping as your adding another thing to do to the list of now when you just need to do it better in the first place-ie change sooner and higher in the rev range.

 

go down as the speed dictates, if your at 60- it’s fifth 40 it’s 4th 30 it’s 3rd, 20 it’s 2nd and before coming to to a stop down to first…

and your most likely too low in the rev range.
Also maybe the gear lever may want adjustment to allow for your leg to engage (too acute or not enough) with it at the correct angle due to poor placement or your biometric- A side picture with you sat on the bike so the we can see how your leg and foot are doing. That will help you get it into gear more positive consistency.

 

You’ll find 1st is very comically short geared for the Indonesian high hills and 3rd and forth are almost pointless as theyre ratio is stacked so close together. Fifth is sort of a bit longer but could of been a touch more to be honest.

your 125 should have nearly 10,000 rpm with work within but really it only produces some go from 5-9k so you need to keep that in mind. 
 

oh and by the way your invisible while you have a bike, a hi vis or lights brighter than the sun will not save you. Only the wits and the assumption of they’re all out to get you for prizes. Don’t even think they’re looking at your and lock eyes they see you,  it ain’t it’s the bait/trap to run you over by them or tag team with another box crew.

Your also fair game to be screwed over and think I aint sitting behind a noob in a L plate car is what drivers think, so add a L plate and a bike their opinion of you is worse than a pedo out of prison for the 4th time while sat outside a primary school. Its bad but not far off what level of self preservation to think to save yourself from “them”.

Edited November 4, 2024 by RideWithStyles

[Yorky]

1 hour ago, ChrisBiggsUK said:

See, I was under the impression that I had to do it one at a time, and that I couldn't drop through the gears like that.  Clutch, one gear, clutch, one gear, that is what I was told.  I'll have to try it out in the car park at the weekend.  Thank you!

Just think of it as gear is related to speed. If you are braking, and hence reducing speed rapidly, then dropping more than one gear is the way to go.

 

[Shepherd]

I'm also of the opinion that you should lose the 'L' on your hi-viz. Other drivers will see you as an easy target to bully. The ones on your bike blend in with all the other deliveroo / pizza riders who ride like they own the road.

 I never drop in to 1st unless I'm actually stopped. 2nd gear is very forgiving, even when pulling away from being almost stopped if the lights go green etc.

I never used to like hearing the engine rev high, but it's where they work best.  You can 'slip' the clutch (slowly - no wheelies!) to avoid stalling.

 You can slow down further than you think without gear changes, then pull the clutch and drop down to 2nd or 3rd to slow more.

Keep doing what you're doing - get out on the bike and get some miles in, it's all riding experience and you'll learn quicker the more you do.

 

Most of all, enjoy it!

[bonio]

2 hours ago, Shepherd said:

I'm also of the opinion that you should lose the 'L' on your hi-viz.

Me too. 

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

100% afmgree with the advice to ditch that vest. Standard hi-viz is better.

 

Also, bear in mind that when motorists see a small bike they have a tendency to treat it as a learner even without the L plates. 

 

You will find that a larger bike commands more respect on the road. Plus you have better tyres, better brakes, better suspension.  

[ChrisBiggsUK]

In heeding everyones advice re the hi-viz vest, on this mornings merry little jaunt (and a fill of the tank £11.33! how will I ever financially recover from this?) I ditched it.  There was no noticeable difference from traffic, indeed having the same idiots (I'm sure they were different ones, but idiots nonetheless) deciding to get right up my ass in 20 zones and insist on overtaking me.  While I know (certainly round here) many don't respect the 20 zones and feel they are in the most stupid of places, as a responsible road user it is my duty to obey the speed limit.  No amount of revving or getting so close to my rear wheel that you could smell one of my farts will make me exceed the speed limit.  I'll ride appropriately and if scallywags don't like it, then they can wait for a few seconds until I come to my next pre-planned turnoff and can then go hell-for-leather themselves and hopefully not injure anyone when they inevitably crash.

While I certainly felt more comfortable with it on (my thinking was that since it made it clear that I was a learner, hopefully people would bear that in mind, give me a bit more time, a bit more distancce, and pay a bit more attention to me in case something suddenly goes wrong) it is abundantly clear that it in fact does nothing.  I think I am. however, going to take it with me on a saturday / sunday morning when I go and practice in the big empty car park that I practice in so as to make it very obvious to the staff at the train station that I'm not some scally on a stolen bike zooming around their car park that they need to call the police on, but rather someone simply practicing.  I'll be taking it off on my ride to / from though.  

I'd just like to take a moment to thank everyone for the advice given not only on this post but also my other ones.  That you have been patient, understanding, supportive and helpful is an understatement.  You have all been bloody fantastic!  Thank you!

[Davidtav]

I think 20mph areas are a difficult area. It seems to me that most traffic goes through them at 25mph or slightly more. And my experience of keeping rigidly at 20 is that someone is going to be very close behind you. Whether in a car or on a bike actually. Which doesn’t feel safe. I’m definitely not reckless or a habitual speeder. And I get it that 20 zones are often close to schools. But I think it is generally safer to be at least travelling at the same speed as the traffic around you. Preferably with a safety “bubble” between yourself and any other vehicles. So I’m going to be criticised for saying this but my strategy with 20 zones is to adopt a very strong road position. And a speed of about 27mph. Be very vigilant for road hazards. And yes be vigilant for speed cameras etc. … I know I’m going to get criticism for this post. But in my view, this is real world riding. I would rather risk a ticket for being slightly over 20 than risk being knocked off by a stupid motorist. 

[Hairsy]

@Chris, what sort of speed are you doing and how are you judging that speed? Your bike speedo will probably over-read by approx 10%. If you're doing an indicated 20 mph then you're probably doing 18 mph.

 

Also, others have correctly pointed out that a lot of people rarely stick religiously to speed limits - I'm not suggesting that's right but it's reality. So people are likely to be used to doing, perhaps, an indicated 25-30mph in the 20mph zone. Maybe more in the early mornings when you're riding. When they're behind you, they're then travelling at 25%-50% of their 'normal' speed.

 

On top of this, you're choosing to use the roads at a time when people have got up early and are travelling with intent to get to work. That makes for cranky drivers.

 

So I'd suggest that you have a couple of options:

 

1) You could travel a bit faster. This would probably make your speed more 'acceptable' to other road users. To be clear, I wouldn't personally particularly advocate this - when it comes to your test, you really want to be 100% used to sticking to speed limits. And your posts suggest that this may not be in your nature.

 

2) I think you may find that other times of day are more suitable. I live in an urban area and if you were here then I'd recommend 10:00am or 2:00pm. 9:00-5:00 people aren't commuting, school run isn't happening and people round here are a little more relaxed. You need to be the judge of your own area but I wonder whether your pursuit of quieter roads has led you to more impatient road users.

 

3) Do you have any buddies with cars or bikes who can follow you around for a little while you gain confidence? That way they get the grief from other road users (although generally the person travelling behind the 'slow' vehicle tends not to get abuse).

 

Whatever you decide, you'll probably find a long ride on a Sunday morning will be nice and people will be more tolerant.

[Fiddlesticks]

20mph zones are everywhere in Wirral. They're a pain.

I think the threshold for prosecution will be 10% +2 =24mph. If the speedo reads 26mph, you'll probably be fine, even if you miss the camera.

[Hairsy]

14 minutes ago, Fiddlesticks said:

20mph zones are everywhere in Wirral. They're a pain.

I think the threshold for prosecution will be 10% +2 =24mph. If the speedo reads 26mph, you'll probably be fine, even if you miss the camera.

 

I've heard from the mouth of a traffic cop that, when they're being enforced, 20mph zones are quite harshly enforced. He suggested that you shouldn't expect to get away with more than +10%. The discussion was in the context of a real cop enforcing it - not a camera. We didn't discuss cameras.

 

Just for the record, the conversation wasn't in the context of my own speed!

[ChrisBiggsUK]

6 minutes ago, Hairsy said:

@Chris, what sort of speed are you doing and how are you judging that speed? Your bike speedo will probably over-read by approx 10%. If you're doing an indicated 20 mph then you're probably doing 18 mph.

 

Also, others have correctly pointed out that a lot of people rarely stick religiously to speed limits - I'm not suggesting that's right but it's reality. So people are likely to be used to doing, perhaps, an indicated 25-30mph in the 20mph zone. Maybe more in the early mornings when you're riding. When they're behind you, they're then travelling at 25%-50% of their 'normal' speed.

 

On top of this, you're choosing to use the roads at a time when people have got up early and are travelling with intent to get to work. That makes for cranky drivers.

 

So I'd suggest that you have a couple of options:

 

1) You could travel a bit faster. This would probably make your speed more 'acceptable' to other road users. To be clear, I wouldn't personally particularly advocate this - when it comes to your test, you really want to be 100% used to sticking to speed limits. And your posts suggest that this may not be in your nature.

 

2) I think you may find that other times of day are more suitable. I live in an urban area and if you were here then I'd recommend 10:00am or 2:00pm. 9:00-5:00 people aren't commuting, school run isn't happening and people round here are a little more relaxed. You need to be the judge of your own area but I wonder whether your pursuit of quieter roads has led you to more impatient road users.

 

3) Do you have any buddies with cars or bikes who can follow you around for a little while you gain confidence? That way they get the grief from other road users (although generally the person travelling behind the 'slow' vehicle tends not to get abuse).

 

Whatever you decide, you'll probably find a long ride on a Sunday morning will be nice and people will be more tolerant.

I stick to whatever speed is written on the signs or on the road itself and go by what the speedo on my bike says.  If I'm in a 20, I have the little dial on my speedo only just over the 20 line.  Same with 30 and so on.  As a new rider, and indeed a new driver of any sort, I admit I am perhaps being overly cautious when it comes to obeying speed limits, but getting from A - B safely is better than speeding for the sake of it.  I will also note that the people getting right up behind me tends to happen on two sections of road, both of which are 20, one of which is through a little shopping area with lots of crossings etc, and one of which is a stretch of main(ish) road which goes from 30 down to 20 for a stretch before going back up to 30.  It seemingly only happens on the 20mph sections of road. I get it.  Here on the Wirral there is quite strong feeling toward the seemingly arbitrary 20mph zones in the most random of places, and I know that a lot of people ignore them. I, however, cannot bring myself to knowingly speed even if I may have a personal opinion about the arbitrary nature of said speed limit.  Again, speeding isn't my thing.  Getting from A-B safely is my goal.  Nothing is so vitally important in my life as to make me risk speeding and lose my license or indeed my life.  

With regards to going out at different times, I am indeed working on that.  I've been going out progressively later in the morning (I had started at 05:00 but now I'm out at 07:00) and by Monday next week I'll (hopefully) push that time back to around 10:30 (after the school and college rush).  Again, I'm taking things slowly (not speed wise, but easing myself into things).  

And on your suggestion of a nice Sunday ride, not this coming Sunday (Mother in Law requires a visit) but next Sunday I have every intention of taking myself off to the beach after Church.  Well, provided the weather is good.  It'll break me out of my comfort zone getting there (although I do know the roads and the route as a passenger at least) but it is a goal I have set myself so that I keep on expanding slowly and at my own pace.

 

[RideWithStyles]

On 05/11/2024 at 12:04, Hairsy said:

@Chris, what sort of speed are you doing and how are you judging that speed? Your bike speedo will probably over-read by approx 10%. If you're doing an indicated 20 mph then you're probably doing 18 mph.

 

Also, others have correctly pointed out that a lot of people rarely stick religiously to speed limits - I'm not suggesting that's right but it's reality. So people are likely to be used to doing, perhaps, an indicated 25-30mph in the 20mph zone. Maybe more in the early mornings when you're riding. When they're behind you, they're then travelling at 25%-50% of their 'normal' speed.

 

On top of this, you're choosing to use the roads at a time when people have got up early and are travelling with intent to get to work. That makes for cranky drivers.

 

So I'd suggest that you have a couple of options:

 

1) You could travel a bit faster. This would probably make your speed more 'acceptable' to other road users. To be clear, I wouldn't personally particularly advocate this - when it comes to your test, you really want to be 100% used to sticking to speed limits. And your posts suggest that this may not be in your nature.

 

2) I think you may find that other times of day are more suitable. I live in an urban area and if you were here then I'd recommend 10:00am or 2:00pm. 9:00-5:00 people aren't commuting, school run isn't happening and people round here are a little more relaxed. You need to be the judge of your own area but I wonder whether your pursuit of quieter roads has led you to more impatient road users.

 

3) Do you have any buddies with cars or bikes who can follow you around for a little while you gain confidence? That way they get the grief from other road users (although generally the person travelling behind the 'slow' vehicle tends not to get abuse).

 

Whatever you decide, you'll probably find a long ride on a Sunday morning will be nice and people will be more tolerant.

Bikes speedos are actually more accurate than most cars…primarily because bike don’t get options of fitting bigger wheels at the first level so they’re good out of the box. even a cbf125 on a wheel cable speed drive is pretty much spot on.

 

most people double impact this by seeing it as their limit of around 5mph above the limit as they some know or think the Speedo is inaccurate but really most know its because they think can get away with it…

personally I have a view /habbit of sticking to 20s and 30s because of a very logical and good reason , higher up the less I’m concerned about it, so doing 45–50s in a 60-70 in good conditions is terrible for so many reasons.

 

contradiction.
at the end of the day chris have the right to go out as, when you want, do as you please aslong as you dont poke at the law and law say he cannot.
Your reply says go do it another time is laughable! He might actually have to travel in peak time for life reasons rather than just to do so to piss ar*eholes who have less regard???

not just because someone else can’t organise their life or bothered to get up out of bed 5-10min earlier and in a rush with total disregard isn’t chris’s fault nor concern….maybe if they weren’t FB or some other bull shite till the early hours for example?

 

sundays I get the idea but still not a magic trick, around us all that happens it lends to be the family outing sick of the kids /partner being a pain, weekend warriors or old people, tend to choked up with people rushing (slightly less now it entering winter) but absolutely clueless about directions, road markings, corner speeds and car widths, flow control, road usage, parking….and because their are “complicated” options layed out they dither and dather rather than go with the flow or snapped pushed into the decision because another car is rammed up impatient behind rather than look for a bike. 
Still plenty of ways for a new rider to get tripped up by a clueless goof ball in the death machine….

[ChrisBiggsUK]

Update;

I have just returned from a 'screw it, lets do this!' trip into town, on the bike, in morning traffic. 

I set off at 09:15, got in to town at 09:30, and left town at 09:50 and arrived back here at just after 10:00.  Coffee.  I went to buy some Coffee.  Thats it.  Just a jar of Coffee.

I was thoroughly nervous doing it, but I've done it.  I rode in much worse traffic, and at higher speeds, during my CBT but doing it alone was much more nerve wracking.  But, I did it.  I've popped my 'nipping to the shops' as an excuse to ride the bike cherry.

I had one minor mis-step when I hit a diversion.  Followed the signs fine, was nice and slow moving around roadworks, turned a corner and hit a red light.  As I was going slowly, and had shifted down while doing so, I thought I was in first at the light when I was actually in second.  I stalled as I came to move off.  I need to get in to the habit (at least for now) of while I'm sat at the lights, just tapping down on the gear lever to make sure I'm down in to first.  I recovered quickly, but stalled nonetheless.  AT least I'm consistent in that it is gears that are always tripping me up.

That I only did it once despite multiple traffic lights, roundabouts, pedestrian crossings and indeed navigating into a parking space is, to me, a massive achievement.

I can't use going to get Coffee as an excuse tomorrow morning, but now that I've headed in to town and back during (albeit the tail end of) rush hour traffic, there is no excuse for me to not do it again!

Slowly but surely I'm getting there.  Every day is a new experience.  Every day is a learning curve.  Every day I need more Coffee!

[Simon Davey]

It's been a treat reading your progression, it's a lot more positive than you probably realise. 

Good stuff Chris, soon to be "Biker Chris".

[Davidtav]

Just use the bike and don’t stress about it. As I said earlier in the thread. You are overthinking everything. … these folks that say they always stick to 20’s I would take with a pinch of salt.  This isn’t what I see in the real world.  I’m not advocating speeding. Just be careful. Ride smoothly. And stay safe. 

[onesea]

You can get lucky talisman bells with "don't ride faster than your guardian angel can fly".

 

My reading of that is "Don't ride faster than you feel your comfortable or capable." That is a golden rule, if you think your going to fast you are end of subject.

 

My aunt just got a talisman for me, ironic considering her last injury was from her bike. She dropped the  bike stationary (although we have all done it),  she is 70 odd and been riding all her life.

 

Taping into first when stopped just to check, nothing wrong with that in my book.  As with tapping into top to check your in top when riding.  Also taking your indicator off just to check you cancelled it, just think of it as not bad practice.

 

Regarding actual speed and speed limits.  Most of my bikes (and cars) speedos have read about 10% under the speed limit.  So 33mph is actually 30 mph.

 

I use this app on my phone: 

https://www.tomtom.com/en_gb/navigation/mobile-apps/amigo/

 

I have never used for navigation*. However, it can be set to start when it connects to chosen Bluetooth devices. 

 

For me my bike intercom and phone, that way it gives audible and visual warnings of hazards (traffic and speed cameras) as well as average speeds through areas with average speed camera zones.

 

It can also be used as speedometer, full screen. 

Any new to me vehicle I check on a straight road to see how accurate my Speedo is.

 

You can also set it to give audible alarms when at the speed limit or the speed limit plus 5%, 10% etc. 

 

I have mine set at 10% just to give me a nudge to be careful. It actually helps me enjoy the ride as I am not airways thinking about speed until it gives me a nudge.

 

Where to ride and when to ride?  

Don't overthink it and don't build fear into certain rides etc 

First night ride I suggest on local roads but again don't over think it keep relaxed.

 

*Next pleasure ride I go on I might try it it's now free it seems and has option of winding routes maybe roads I don't normally ride. 

Edited November 7, 2024 by onesea

[ChrisBiggsUK]

43 minutes ago, onesea said:

Regarding actual speed and speed limits.  Most of my bikes (and cars) speedos have read about 10% under the speed limit.  So 33mph is actually 30 mph.

 

I use this app on my phone: 

https://www.tomtom.com/en_gb/navigation/mobile-apps/amigo/

 

I have never used for navigation*. However, it can be set to start when it connects to chosen Bluetooth devices. 

 

For me my bike intercom and phone, that way it gives audible and visual warnings of hazards (traffic and speed cameras) as well as average speeds through areas with average speed camera zones.

 

It can also be used as speedometer, full screen. 

Any new to me vehicle I check on a straight road to see how accurate my Speedo is.

 

You can also set it to give audible alarms when at the speed limit or the speed limit plus 5%, 10% etc. 

 

I have mine set at 10% just to give me a nudge to be careful. It actually helps me enjoy the ride as I am not airways thinking about speed until it gives me a nudge.

 

 

I have just downloaded the app and will give it a try tomorrow and see how it matches up with the speedo on the bike itself.  Even if the speedo on my bike is wrong, showing me as going faster than I actually am, I'm still wary about compensating for it and going however much faster would be needed to more 'accurately' reflect my actual speed as if I get pulled over and accused of speeding or something similar, I will have to be honest and tell the police that my speedo said one thing while I was doing another, if that makes sense?  I am, perhaps, too honest for my own good.

Even still, it would be useful for me as I would be able to more clearly keep track of what the speed limit on any given road is, and given the changeable nature of such things (with 20 zones being brought in, abolished, brought in again and so on) will give me one less thing to worry about.  I don't think I will use it for navigation though, certainly not any time soon as for now my eyes are firmly fixed on my surroundings and my mirrors and looking at a screen to see where I'm supposed to be going would (again, at least for now) be a distraction.  Once I've got a firmer grasp of the basics, however, and want to get out and explore, it will most certainly be useful!

[bonio]

13 minutes ago, ChrisBiggsUK said:

if I get pulled over and accused of speeding or something similar, I will have to be honest and tell the police that my speedo said one thing while I was doing another, if that makes sense?  I am, perhaps, too honest for my own good.

Tell them what you like, it makes little difference. If you get pulled, the police know exactly the speed you were doing - that's why they went to the bother of pulling you. They're not a jot interested in what your speedo says, unless perhaps it's underreading (and personally I've never come across any vehicle that does that). The reason they ask you what speed you were doing is to see if perhaps there's an additional charge of driving without due care and attention - if you're miles out, it supports the case that you weren't pay due care to your speed.