A689 Nenthead - warning.

From the BikeWise news site, a warning of very poor road surface on the Eastern approach to Nenthead. 


Click the link to read the warning from BikeWise and see the photos:   Bikewise News

Also be aware that on the West side of Nenthead there is one of the Cumbria safety camera sites, and the van has been seen working that area on recent weekends.

Latest test pass - Terry Scott.

Congratulations to Terry Scott who passed his IAM test on Sunday 10th July.

Terry rides with the Geordie Branch of the Harley Owners Group (HOG) as a road captain.

Thanks to Don Anderson for Observing Terry.

Stuff on the Forum

For those who frequent the Blog, but not the DAM Forum, I've posted another couple of advice write ups which are taken from another Website that I frequent.


Previously I posted the article on "Using your Vision", this is now joined by some advice on "Urban riding" and "Motorway riding".


I must clearly state that this is not my work, or DAM or IAM's work, but an individual member of another forum!


DAM Forum link

Please read, digest and comment please!

Thanks to DAM

Our Chairman, Brian Clements, has received a thank you from Bob Brown, on behalf of the Mini Bike club, for the assistance that DAM provided for their recent event with the Scottish Mini Moto Championship.

Better Biking - 25 years on

The recent "summer weather" made this article from the www.geton.co.uk website particularly interesting, especially for those riders of a certain age who can remember the days before Gortex, Pin Locks and Textile bike wear.

Remember the eighties? Spandau Ballet and Gary Numan, big hair and big shoulderpads, yuppies and the Miners’ Strike? Remember that motorbike you had? Great in the spring, but those leathers were too hot in summer, and in winter you got wet and cold.

If, like thousands of people, that’s why you swapped two wheels for four, read on. Because the riding experience has changed since the days of Kate Bush and the c90 cassette, and one of the things that’s improved is the weatherproofing.

So we decided to test the kind of bike you might have been riding 25 years ago, and the gear you might have been wearing then, against the kind of motorcycle kit you could be enjoying now.

Get On took over the climatic wind tunnel at MIRA. It’s the place where Bear Grylls trained for his microlight flight over Everest, and Ben Fogle and James Cracknell practiced for their race to the South Pole. So it should be able to match the worst a British winter could throw at you.

Into the tunnel went some brave journalists, including Mike Bushell of the BBC. Dressed in typical 1984 leather kit, helmet and gloves, he “rode” a 1984 Honda VF500. In those days commuters were hardy, so he was riding through rain, in temperatures 10 degrees below freezing, in a 70 KPH wind – that’s over 40 mph.

The rain proved versatile, turning itself into ice when it hit him, but still managing to soak into the leathers and form mist inside the visor. After 5 minutes he was losing the feeling in his fingers, and “the wind just cut straight through me which was pretty painful.”

So much for the good old days. Now for today’s riding experience.

On a brand new BMW sports tourer, dressed in new kit from Weise and BMW, Mike found it much easier to smile at the weather. The bike’s aerodynamic fairing diverted the wind away from his body, along with some of the rain. The new generation of breathable waterproofs kept the water out without getting unpleasantly sweaty, and the helmet didn’t even steam up.

In fact, he was comfortably warm and dry, able to see and keep wiggling his fingers throughout the “ride”. Did we mention that the motorcycle has heated grips, so holding the handlebars is cosier than a hot water bottle?

Just to be sure, we tried summer conditions as well. With the same headwind we pushed the temperature up to 35 degrees, with humidity just to ensure a sticky ride. That’s in the eighties  leathers, of course. In the new breathable gear he stayed fresh and relaxed.

Three times British Superbike Champion John Reynolds came along to see for himself. “I’ve still got all my old leathers from when I first started riding and it’s quite amazing how much the kit has developed since the 80’s,” he said. “Back then the leathers were made up of individual panels which came apart and were pretty useless at keeping out the cold and wet. Now the new synthetic fibres are quite amazing at keeping you warm when it’s cold and cool when it’s hot. I road ride much more than I ever previously did, which is a joy in the new kit.”

And who are we to argue with that?

Watch out for the "SD" markings...

It may be a bit late, but keep an eye out for the dreaded "SD" markings hand sprayed on your local road.


Tis the season for Surface Dressing of our county roads


Not long after the white spay appears on the road the surface dressing crew will be along to apply a liberal coating of surface dressing chippings - a mild inconvenience when you're in the car, a positive pain when you're on the bike.


So, keep an eye out for the "SD" markings, temporary signage going up in advance and piles of chippings by the side of the road.

10th July Rideout - The Road to Hell(with)

The 10th July Sunday Rideout was a pleasant run out over the Durham and Yorkshire Dales to the Manor Cafe Bellerby.  The route was set to take in some of the smaller roads through Barnard Castle, Whorlton, over the A66 and then taking the single track road to Helwith which dropped us into Maske.

This route has a crossroads that is probably the only left turn in the North of England that doesn't need a drop off marker!  Right turn? - no through road, straight on? - no through road! Must be left then!

All six bikes made it to the Tea and Bacon Buttie stop at the Manor Cafe in Bellerby, a relatively new cafe venture aimed at the bikers riding the roads around the Leyburn area.

www.manor-cafe.co.uk/

From the cafe, we took a roundabout route to Preston Hall in Stockton for the Ridewell 2011 show.


The rain held off, just, so an enjoyable ride for all!