Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2016 i BIKE

I rode the new Triumph Street Twin into work this morning. Low winter sun, low winter temperature and slimy roads, but a fantastic ride on the choked A1 and on wriggly back lanes. It’s a great bike. All that Triumph Bonneville heritage and style, but in a package that performs better, sounds better, handles better and has better detailing than its predecessor. Your new, improved Bike magazine is similar to the new Triumph Street Twin. All the familiar heritage and style, but in a package that performs better, reads better and has better detailing. There are more tests of the important new bikes, like the first group test of the Street Twin (we got the very first UK test bike) with the new Yamaha XSR700 and the big selling Ducati…

>>The big story from round one of the X-Trial World Championship season-opener on 9 January at Sheffield should have been Spanish manufacturer, TRS, won at first attempt. The bigger story though is ‘the most successful trials rider in history’, Toni Bou, lost. A tight contest and two unforced errors on the night were Bou’s downfall. Since switching to TRS in the off-season, fellow Spaniard Adam Raga has upped his training and ultimately the level of his riding. At Sheffield he showed the extra spring in his step needed to challenge Bou. Time will tell.…

BIKE MAGAZINE HAS always been famous for travel stories. In the past 12 months we’ve attempted to get to South Africa on a £1000 Kawasaki, before that was the Suzuki V-Strom to Japan and before that Dan Walsh’s tales from around the globe. And in between our own big trips have been your big trips. Stories of Bike readers in South America, India, Eastern Europe and Australia have peppered the pages of the Bike for the past 45 years. They’re an essential part of the magazine. For the past three years we’ve run an annual travel stories competition, you send in great stories, we publish them in a supplement with the October issue of the mag and select a winner who gets to go on a biking holiday to an…

‘It’s exciting because wherever we start the year we know the bike is going to get better and better’ IT WAS JONATHAN Rea last year, it will be Alex Lowes this year. That isn’t necessarily a World Superbike champion prediction; it’s just that where Rea was this time in 2015, Lowes is now: climbing off an uncompetitive bike onto the latest piece of kit. We all know what happened to Rea when he hopped off a Fireblade and onto a ZX-10R, so can Lowes do the same by parking a GSX-R and jumping onto an R1? And the same goes for new team-mate and 2014 champ Sylvain Guintoli. Lowes is quietly confident after several seasons on ageing machinery. ‘Comparing the Fireblade in BSB and the Suzuki in WSB with what…

»Ten finalists for the Classic Bike of the Year competition will also be on display at the London Motorcycle Show on 12-14 February. Among them are a 125cc 1972 Yamaha AS3, a Vincent-powered Norton-framed Norvin, a 1973 Suzuki TT250 and a cute customised 1977 Honda CB550F2. All the projects were completed by amateur restorers, some from deeply unpromising starts. The Yamaha, now in shiny showroom condition, was found abandoned in a garden while the Suzuki was bought as a rolling chassis with the engine in pieces. After a load of effort by their committed owners they’re ready to ride, and ready to be shown off. The winner will be picked by reader vote in Classic Bike magazine (or at classicbike.co.uk/cboty), and by visitors to the London motorcycle show.…

NEVER HAVE THE two ends of the motorcycle skill spectrum been so close. Down one side of a small exhibition hall at the NEC Motorcycle Show in Birmingham, a beginner is having his first ever go on a motorcycle. He’s sitting astride a burbling CB125, togged out head to foot in protective winter kit, complete with a high-viz bib. He’s about to set forth into the unknown and, understandably enough, is oblivious to the kid in expensive trainers on the scooter ten metres to his left. This is Maverick Vinales, factory Suzuki GP rider, MotoGP rookie of the year, Moto2 rookie of the year, Moto3 world champion (and rookie of the year), and widely regarded as MotoGP’s Next Big Thing. Look at the stats and you can see why paddock…

IF YOU’VE BEEN MOTORCYCLING for a while, you probably know someone who has more bikes, spends more money and rides more miles than is generally considered normal. These fellas (and it is almost always men) are the source of innumerable excellent stories about smuggling illicit purchases past the wife and into the garage, of ‘accidentally’ buying another bike and of popping out for a ride and not returning for six weeks. Weirdly, the latest clinical studies suggest that this commendable behaviour might be a sign of addiction. Here’s the clinician’s checklist – anyone who ticks all six boxes is, technically, an addict. 1) Total preoccupation. This occurs when motorcycling becomes the most important activity in your life and dominates your thinking, feelings (e.g. you crave it when not on the…

» Ducati Scrambler Total mileage: 4372 Tyres: Pirelli MT60 Price: £8130 otr Story this month: new back tyre fitted after 3100 miles saw the Scrambler fit and ready to take on 2016’s new arrivals in our big retro test p50. » Yamaha XSR700 Total mileage: 486 Tyres: Pirelli Phantom Price: 6385 otr Story this month: delivering wheelie-popping, frantic yet comfy proof that retro doesn’t mean steady-away. See p50. » Kawasaki Versys 1000 Total mileage: 4391 Tyres: Maxxis ST Price: £11,060 otr Story this month: bearing up remarkably well despite this dripping wet winter. In fact there’s not a hint of rust, anywhere. » Triumph Tiger 800XCx Total mileage: 2311 Tyres: Metzeler Karoo 3 Price: £9999 otr Story this month: new tyres fitted (p118), plus busying itself with our adventure bike…

This month: Sorting out his new double garage Other projects: KTM 300EXC (now sold), KTM 350 EXC-F I’M STILL WORKING ON THE LAYOUT of my new garages and I’ve got a limited budget, ie nothing. So, at this point, old kitchen cabinets will have to suffice and there are plenty of them, all filled with old riding kit, luggage and parts. But my plan is coming together. This is the ‘off-road’ side of the garage. The bikes have to go through a narrow doorway that joins the two garages together and they need to be light with a decent steering lock to get in here easily. It’s a doddle for my trials and enduro bikes. Garage two houses my Honda FireBlade and Honda XR650R, a workbench which doubles as a…

This month: KTM 690 Enduro R Other bikes ridden: CCM GP450, Triumph Tiger 800 XCX, BMW R1200GS Miles ridden: 303 ON A 26-YEAR-OLD Tengai of indeterminate mileage and abuse, a new piston is a perfectly acceptable consumable. But on a three-year-old KTM that’s covered 8000 mollycoddled miles, it’s a bit of a pisser. An expensive pisser. The problems started about a year ago. Occasional stalls became more frequent, then it started cutting out when down-shifting. Idle became erratic and it was running rougher and rougher. Eventually it refused to start at all. The general consensus from those who understand KTMs was the electronics, so off it went to AMS Motorcycles for diagnostics. Good news, they said, it’s just a clogged injector. It’ll be ready by the end of the day…

This month: Aprilia SL1000 Falco Other bikes ridden: Aprilia Caponord Rally, Ducati Scrambler Miles ridden: 226 A YEAR RIDING CAPONORDS and Tracers had me dreaming of selling my Falco and buying the Multistrada I’ve always wanted. But I’m short of cash, so for now it’s staying. Time to tart it up then. My ’03 Falco’s standard matt black cans were starting to look tatty. Lots of Falcos have Akrapovic or Scorpion silencers fitted, but they’re hard to find and expensive. But I found these reasonably priced GPR slip-on silencers at gpr-motorcycle-exhausts.co.uk. I wanted to keep to matt black so opted for the Furore Nero. They’re £389 per pair and weigh 1.8kg per can - that’s 6.4kg lighter than the standard Aprilia exhausts. The instructions aren’t the clearest but they look…

FEW BIKES CAN trace their lineage back as far as BMW’s mighty GS; fewer still do so while retaining their original concept, and spawning a whole new subclass of motorcycle in the process. A development from the R1150GS, the 2004 R1200GS shared few components with its predecessor. The biggest change was a 30kg weight loss; the Boxer engine had only gained 40cc (up from 1130cc to 1170cc) but BMW focused on improving performance and economy. With a more agile and sportier chassis the revised GS tempted yet more riders to switch to the now swelling adventure bike market. Thanks to the updated 2013 model, the used market is buoyant and main dealers are more than happy to take in ten year old bikes which are then sold through BMW’s Used…

‘Provided you are not going to be a dick about it, the police won’t be either’ Shoei and Bell, among other visor and helmet manufacturers have brought out ‘photochromatic’ or ‘reactolite’ visors, which darken in direct sunlight. I think this is a brilliant idea but, like conventional dark visors, is illegal if the visor tints to any appreciable degree in the sun. Until 2014 Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) guidance, supported at a local level, was for officers to ignore dark visors in bright sunshine, but to pull over and advise anyone riding in fading light with a dark visor. The 2014 the ACPO ‘motorcycle safety strategy’ is silent on dark visors so it boils down to the constable’s discretion. The only authorised device for testing how much light…

MY INITIAL REACTION to this question is ‘no’. Core principles of good riding involve learning throttle control, acceleration sense and vision so we’re always in that sweet spot of having time on our side – we arrive at hazards at the right speed and in the right gear to settle the bike, deal with the problem and then drive it through. Many advanced bike instructors sit close to their students as they ride. It’s so we feel what you feel. If I’m matching your speed exactly, I’ll feel when you time everything perfectly, and hit that sweet-spot of perfect bend assessment, arriving at just the right speed, letting the suspension settle and then accelerating out. Similarly, I’ll also feel when you’re unbalanced – in a fraction too quickly, your timing…

‘Nothing can prepare you for the first faint sounds of tortured engines approaching on the redline’ » YOU WANT REAL? This is real road racing at its absolute zenith. It’s hard to imagine anyone with a healthy interest in motorcycle racing who has not yet been (at least twice) to the Isle Of Man at TT time. If you’re one of the three who haven’t yet sampled the awe-inspiring spectacle of McGuinness on The Mountain or Hutchy through Hillberry, it’s time you took instruction on the how and why of making a pilgrimage to this magical Mecca. Book early, book now: ferries from Liverpool or Heysham, accommodation via the Isle Of Man Tourist Office and the best vantage points by asking the locals or regular time-served race fans. Absolutely nothing…

‘Lap, after lap, after lap. For 24 hours… it’s the ultimate test of a sportsbike’ » CIRCUIT PAUL RICARD’S Mistral straight is 1.8 kilometres long. At full tilt, and they’re always at full tilt, a 200bhp World Endurance spec superbike will be on the stop for slightly less than 20 seconds. Lap, after lap, after lap. For 24 hours, from the baking heat of Saturday afternoon, though the long night, into the chilly dawn of a Sunday morning, through to the flag at 3pm. It’s the ultimate test of a sportsbike. The people who go to watch the Bol aren’t spectators in the usual sense. They’re participants in an endurance event too, using their ingenuity to get a good campsite, to erect a tent on Ricard’s unforgiving terrain, to carry…

Mike Armitage Deputy Editor »Thought I’d got over it. But the sound, feel, engineering and sheer ooh-ya-bugger of the 959 (p84) brings new-found sportsbike love. Jamie Duncan Trip advisor »I want to conquer sand riding in 2016. Fortunately this means I’ll need to go somewhere with proper sand dunes to practice. John Westlake Contributor »New experiences for 2016. This will be my year for odd-ball bike sport; loony hillclimbs, city trials, grass track, I want to see them all.…

>> 7 February Hawkstone International, Hawkstone Park, Shropshire International indeed it is and one of your few chances to see huge names in world motocross in Britain this year. Dutch master Jeffry Herlings lines up with Britain’s best, Shaun Simpson. hawkstoneinternationalmx. com >> 20 February The Tough One Nantmawr Quarry, Oswestry An otherwise quiet quarry in Oswestry hosts Britain’s toughest Extreme Enduro madfest, the Michelin Tough One. Event organisers, WOR Events, run competitions for all levels of rider but for this one they ask, ‘are you tough enough?’ We’ll attempt to be… worevents.com…

» 31 March – 3 April Haggs April Fool March Moto Madness, Cumbria The UK version of the world’s biggest adventure rally. There’ll be off-road riding for everything from big adventure bikes to beginner tiddlers, world travellers to offer advice and, er, a silly bike riding contest. haggsbank.com » 30 April – 2 May Taffy Dakar, Abercraf, Wales Just like the real Dakar, except considerably shorter, with more rain and beer. Teams of two-four compete on pretty much any road-registered bikes, but enduro tackle is banned. Get in quick as tickets sell out fast. taffydakar.org.uk » 26 – 29 August The Overland Event, Oxfordshire If you’re planning that trip of a lifetime, or even just dreaming about it, this is the place to be. Expect experts, authors, travel cinema, test…

» 29/30 April - 1 May Imola, Italy The circuit’s full name says it all; the Autodromo Enzo & Dino Ferrari is drenched in Latin atmosphere. The track is in Imola town, so some lucky locals get to watch from their balconies. worldsbk.com » 8/9/10 July Laguna Seca, USA MotoGP no longer visits this iconic circuit and how long before it’s deemed too dangerous for WSB? Hire a bike and visit San Francisco and/or Los Angeles while you’re over. worldsbk.com » 22/23/24 July Monza, Italy Back on the calendar (subject to homologation) after being dropped for safety reasons, this is another iconic track that may be gone soon. worldsbk.com…

‘Finished like a Steinway piano: just make sure you hang on’ YES… THE VISCERAL lure of the V-twin… the arrhythmic thudding of horse’s hooves, the offbeat of the human heart, and yes, even the potato-potato… let’s, however, abandon the animal and vegetable, and concentrate on the gestation/germination of the Musket engine. Aniket Vardhan, of Delhi, arrived in the USA in 1999. His plan: get a Masters degree in Industrial Design. He got one and wound up in Columbus, Ohio teaching. His heart wasn’t in it… His heart was in building a Royal Enfield V-twin. ‘The idea baked into my brain in the heat of Delhi when I heard a Harley-Davidson,’ he said. Enfield had been making V-twins since before the First World War so it was no departure from previous…

Hugo Wilson Editor » Normal behaviour isn’t it? If you can’t collect bikes, you collect parts, books, tools, anything you can to do with something you like. Mike Armitage Deputy editor » I’m not an addict (honest), although my shed is full of motorcycles. I spend most of my time looking at stuff I can’t afford on ebay. I’m an enthusiast Mark Graham Production editor » Sod moderation. If you’ve got the money and the space and the time – have as many as you fancy. No one ever calls a stamp collector a stamp addict. Jeez.…

» Bike crowned the first travel stories winner back in March 2014 (digital back issue available now on iPad and Android). Michael Bentham took the spoils and the trip to Nepal thanks to Blazing Trails. The following year ( Bike , May 2015) Chris Cranstoun hit the front of the pack, his prize an adventure to Colombia courtesy of Motolombia/Proexport Colombia. And this year it was Tom Hartland to Peru thanks to Adventure Peru Motorcycling. And so to the 2016 competition. This year there are two categories – photography and writing. Here’s how it works… Writing: simply tell us your biking adventure story. Write up to 5000 words and supply pictures for illustration (300dpi). Please send the pictures separately ie don’t embed them in the Word document. Send by…

This month: 1982 H-D FXR Super Glide Other projects: FXRS, FXLR, Hodaka Wombat, Honda Melody Deluxe EARTH’S IMPOSSIBLE DAY: three Harleys in running order. It’s only been two years in the doing. Only cost millions of pounds. And since you can only ride one bike at a time, this rare achievement puts me in the ridiculous position of curating an H-D FXR museum. Something has to give. First: the much-loved Shovelhead. For anyone still mildly interested in the travails of running/repairing/despairing over this long-suffering machine the registered keeper is proud to report that it has now covered 26 trouble-free miles since the front exhaust port boss fix and head oil feed upgrade. This means the Shovel is now as ready as it will ever be for ferrying Trialmaster and me…

This month: 1981 Morini Camel Other projects: Morini 350, Morini 500 Camel (another one) Matchless G3L, Mobylette AV42 WHERE’S THE ENGINE? That’s the trouble with projects. You leave them for six months which becomes six years and then can’t remember where you’d got to. Or you lose a critical part. The rebuild of my 1981 Morini Camel is a textbook case; it’s years behind schedule and thousands of pounds over budget, the chassis is in Lincolnshire but the engine is in Kent. In pieces. Time to get stuck in. Dreamy optimism is a critical character trait of the amateur bike fettler so, despite evidence and experience to the contrary, I’m hoping it will come together soon. The critical engine components have been to Modus Engineering in Tunbridge Wells (modusengineservices.co.uk). The…

This month: Kawsaki Versys Other bikes ridden: Yamaha FZ1 Fazer, Beta Rev 3 Miles ridden: 788 ON THE WAY HOME from Bike’s Fenland HQ I pass a gravel/mud byway. Despite it lopping a few miles off my route I always think better of it, but today is Friday and in a moment of buoyant exuberance I leave the tarmac… To start with all is well. The Versys splashes across a rocky ford and lays waste to the gravel track. However… With the light fading fast I head into the mud zone. The Versys starts lurching on the throttle. The connection between throttle and the back wheel seems random. It dawns on me that the traction control must be getting befuddled by the lack of grip, so I stop and switch…

This month: Gloves Bikes ridden: Triumph Tiger 800, Ducati Scrambler, Miles ridden: 387 Hands just don’t come in one shape and size. We’re all different. Gloves are arguably the most important piece of biking kit, but do they really fit? My unique combination of finger length, palm size and thumb joint position seems to make finding the perfect fit almost impossible. It’s a choice between gloves with flappy fingers but a good thumb fit, or snug fingers and a crushed thumb. Here’s what I’ve been wearing in the past 12 months… Knox Biomech gloves Used for: two summers Price: £129.99 Info: planet-knox.com » Well made, decent fit and, hopefully, good protection. Worn for a few thousand miles. I feel secure in these and can operate the controls. These are a…

» 2004-2006 BMW R1200GS First of the new generation GS. 1170cc produces more power and is smoother and more responsive. Chassis improved with lighter components, and revised geometry means there’s a sportier feel. 1170cc – 238kg – 109bhp - £3800-£5995 » 2006-2010 BMW R1200GS Adventure 33-litre fuel tank provides a staggering range. Suspension has increased travel and there are engine protector bars. Seat height is a hypoxia-inducing 910mm. 1170cc – 256kg – 109bhp – £5899–£8200 » 2010-2012 BMW R1200GS/ Adventure The boxer twin now has double overhead cams from the sportier HP2, producing better engine characteristics and puts an extra 500rpm on the rev range. 1170cc – 238kg/256kg – 110bhp - £7500-£9999 » 2010 Special editions 30th Anniversary BMW R1200GS/Adventure commemorates 30 years of the GS with white paint, Motorrad…

THICKNESS VS FEEL Despite new materials being developed and used in gloves, the age-old problem of thickness versus feel remains. To defend against cold a thick glove, such as the Richa Cold Protect (£100) with its tri-fleece lining, is the way to go. But be aware the thick fleece lining doesn’t allow you to feel the bike’s controls particularly well . This isn’t a problem in the summer when we can use very thin gloves such as Alpinestars SP-8 (£58). To create a glove that works in the summer and winter manufacturers need to use a lining material that gives warmth without reducing feel; it needs to be thin. The best material at the moment is Outlast. INNER GLOVE ALTERNATIVE If a two or three season glove is too pricey,…

» This is Bridgestone’s new T30 EVO. Three sizes of the T30 changed to the new EVO variant during last year, but as of February all 21 sizes should be available. The main difference with the EVO is improved wet grip over the standard T30. The new tyre goes up against Metzeler’s also-new Roadtec 01 and existing tyres like the Pirelli Angel GT, Conti RoadAttack 2 EVO and Michelin’s Pilot Road. AVON So new we haven’t got pictures, Avon’s on/off-road TrekRider adventure tyre will be here later in ’16. Think of it as their version of Conti’s TKC80 or Metzeler’s Karoo 3. Avon’s problem is the 120/70-19 and 170/60-17 sizes for the BMW R1200GS, KTM 1190 and 2016 Triumph Explorer are not in their size range. Neither do they have…

FROM WASHOUT TO whitewash, the 2016 Dakar Rally will go down in history as a dramatic one. El Nino rainstorms and air-less, 40-plus degree desert heat caused detours, shortened stages and even cancelled days. But despite everything the South American weather, not to mention landscape, could throw at the racers the 2016 Dakar will stand out as the year Toby Price became a new hero and Australia got its first winner. For a while the world and his mother tried to grab a decisive lead: a Slovakian, Portuguese, Spaniard and, historically for South America, an Argentinian all hit the front at one point or another. They were all fast but can you be too fast? It certainly seemed that way for pre-race favourites Joan Barreda and Mathias Walkner. Mechanical woes…

WHEN A REBORN MV Agusta wheeled out their dizzyingly pretty F4 750 in 1999 they bounded immediately to the top of the must-have list. With high-level components, unique engineering and prices considerably higher than an equivalent Suzuki GSX-R750 or Kawasaki ZX-7R, the slinky F4 slotted directly into the exotic class. And let’s not forget that the first limited edition Serie Oro versions of the machine were over 26 grand. The Italian brand encapsulates exotic. And yet we’re now buying more of the things than ever. During 2015 the small but confident firm shifted almost 9000 bikes. Sales and revenue were up by a considerable 30%. Countries in the Far East bought 12% more bikes compared with the previous year, Germany was up 26% and Spain saw a 54% increase. However,…

Where are you now? I’m just back in the UK after riding my R1200GS across America, from Vegas to New York. In fact, the bike hasn’t made it back yet, it’s still on a ship somewhere. Wait, a GS? Aren’t you the fella who rode a Honda ‘postie’ bike from Australia to the UK? I get bored that the GS gets such a bashing, mostly from people who’ve not ridden one, so I kinda feel sorry for the bike in a sense. The point I was trying to make with the trip and the book was that you don’t have to get carried away with the whole adventure scene, mega trips and big distances. I’m hoping to suggest to anyone who’s got a GS or equivalent that they can take…

BIG TANK Massive 7.5 gallon fuel tank is handmade in aluminium. So is the dustbin fairing that covers the front wheel IGNITION Rear cylinder’s ignition coils on the left side of the bike. Ignition timing controlled by inlet camshafts. Rear exhausts exit under seat, front pipes under engine FRAME Duplex cradle frame has an oil carrying spine. Swingarm pivots on the rear of the engine cases. Front forks are leading link AN ALMOST PERFECT replica of one of the most audacious Grand Prix machines ever built is to be auctioned at the London Motorcycle Show on 13 February. It’s claimed that two original Moto Guzzi 500cc V8s survive, one in Guzzi’s own museum at Mandello del Lario, and one at the Smithsonian institute in America. The bikes were built and…

Message from Rick: ‘OK final offer on the Kawasaki ZZR1100. £100 to charity and it’s yours but you need to collect it.’ From the Black Forest in Germany, 96,000 miles on it but all good. I’d be getting the original ICBM for nothing and a holiday in Germany. I flew from Edinburgh to Basel and after a couple of days of ‘test’ rides and barbecues said my goodbyes to Rick and Andrea and headed to the hills. Only 1000 miles to go. I got lost three miles in, then found the main road through Strasbourg closed. A guy on a BMW R1100RS was going the same way and helped me through Strasbourg. He also pointed out that ‘there’s a lot of smoke coming off your bike.’ ‘Yeah, that’s OK mate,…

This month: 1990 Yamaha TZ250A Other projects: Honda RS125, assorted other nonsense. LAST YEAR I bought a 1990 Yamaha TZ250A Grand Prix bike, from Japan. It was pink, very original but had been stored for many years and needed restoring. After toying with the idea of doing it myself I saw sense and gave the job to Mr TZ – Andy Sawford at St Neots Motorcycles where he, John and Martyn (his mechanics/restorers) gave it the works. And just before the end of 2015 I went to St Neots to pick it up… I was lucky with the TZ, confirmed Andy. The condition was super honest and original including unscraped standard levers, footrest, bars and bodywork. The engine and gearbox, when stripped, were standard and perfect. Also the telltale factory…

This month: Honda CB400N street-tracker Other projects: Honda VT500 Ascot, Honda CBX750-F NEW MODELS BY Ducati, Triumph and BMW affirm street-trackers are rather more than a niche cult and so my aspirations to build something different, pretty and practical are beginning to feel irrelevant. But I’ve started so I must finish. ‘Loosely built’ the CB400N engine and carbs are now ensconced in Café Racer Kits’ (caferacerkits.co.uk) seriously modified and de-lugged frame. The trad spoked CB400F wheels now wear the twin CB400N front discs and, almost miraculously, the gearbox and rear wheel sprockets married up perfectly. The small but stylish (well I think so) CG125 fuel tank sits on the bulbous, pressed-steel spine courtesy of judicious internal hammering and re-siting of the tap. This, thanks to some precision cutting, drilling and…

This month: 1980 Suzuki GT200 X5 Other projects: 1957 Mobylette AV33, 1973 V50 dual seat (with working hooter) THIS WINTER MY LEAKY SHED was to be faff-free. With my Suzuki GT200’s various niggles corrected to an almost satisfactory degree and the duo of silly French mopeds in rude health, I had every intention of leaving them cuddling under a cover until spring. The obstinate Suzuki needs attention, however. After rebuilding its top-end last summer (we’ll gloss over the idiotic capers causing the seizure) the two-stroke twin was perkier than ever, until losing most of its power on a modest ascent. I went back over the route and had a brief look, but there was no sign of it anywhere. Although starting cheerily and revving cleanly, the GT struggled and bogged…

This month: Triumph Tiger 800XCx Other bikes ridden: Triumph Street Twin, Yamaha XSR700 Miles ridden: 1428 MAKING OUR TIGER an adventurer was easy. Triumph thoughtfully equip the 800XCx with absorbent suspension, trinkets, faith-boosting handling and an engine with clout from 1000 to 10,000rpm. All it needs is a taller adjustable accessory screen (comfort), Givi’s huge Maxia 4 top-box (stashing) and Metzeler Karoo 3 tyres (go anywhere). It takes ten metres to show the tyres are foolish. They’re dual-purpose, but lean towards trails. Steering is cumbersome, the Tiger wanders in fast turns, and there’s the tyre roar of a speeding JCB. In the wet it’s scary and our VBOX datalogger shows reduced front grip and subsequent ABS action add four metres to the stopping distance (up to 56m). But the Karoo…

‘At this point I remember thinking ‘bloody American piece of rubbish’, or something. How wrong I’d be’ SOMETIMES LIFE CAN feel like one big mechanical fault. I’d been readying my 26-year-old Honda VT400SP for months for this overseas adventure with my dad, Mick, who would be riding his bike – a 1996 Harley-Davidson Sportster. But his was the first machine to blip. Our father/son convoy left for the Eurotunnel at Folkestone with the sky a smudge of cloud and our unprofessional touring baggage – a few holdalls bungeed to our bikes – wrapped in bin bags, to protect from rain. Our return train was booked for seven days’ time, and our only itinerary loosely involved meeting my girlfriend’s dad and fellow biker, Andy, at his farm cottage in Gorron, around…

» Northern California’s extraordinary range of motorcycling roads and supernatural scenery are legendary. Big-view coastal roads, fast winding forest, canyon and river rides, empty high desert highways, smooth grippy rollercoaster blacktop, a golden mile-long suspension bridge, wide open Interstates, high mountain switchbacks, monster gradients, and huge elevation ranges. »Interstate-5: ride the stretch of big road between Jacksonville, Oregon and Shasta Lake. It’s the very definition of ‘open road’. Mt Shasta, a massive 14,162ft volcano, is visible from a hundred miles away. Ride a cruiser for this one. Great coffee, food and micro-brewery beers available in the friendly and relaxed small towns of Weed and Mount Shasta. Only out West would you find a town named Weed. »The northern section of Pacific Coast Highway 1 between San Francisco and Leggett is…

» Rukka R-Star £190 It’s a lot of dosh but the dual chamber means you get two gloves in one. A Gore-Tex liner surrounds both chambers – slide your hand into the upper section for extra thermal assistance. Lots of extras for this price: there’s a visor wipe on the left glove, reflective fingers, carbon knuckle protection etc. » Held Air N Dry £160 A dual chamber glove for warmer conditions. Gore-Tex lined pocket to keep you dry and an un-lined pocket closer to the palm for improved feel thanks to a thin layer of strong kangaroo leather. Cordura construction. Want more cold protection? Try the thicker £170 Held Twin gloves. » Weise Outlast Diablo WP £100 Outlast material for less money. No Gore-Tex, but wind resistant thanks to a…

This isn’t a limp brochure-style round-up of all the bikes you can currently buy. No, your guide is far more useful as it only contains bikes that we have tested, with data, expert opinion and must-know detail gathered by fussy full-time testers. We do hundreds of thousands of miles, countless dyno runs, datalog, weigh and ask the questions that matter. Don’t buy a new bike without reading this first. MOVE OVER, BAYLISS Ducati’s 999R was the V-twin pinnacle in 2005. With a more radical motor and fancier materials than the base bike it broke records with 150bhp at 9750rpm, and helped the 999 become Ducati’s most successful racer. Yet their ‘entry’ 959 is now bigger, lighter, more powerful… and cheaper. BUT IT AIN’T GOT TASSELS... Honda’s ‘New Mid Concept’ came…

‘Graham Field won £5000 off Noel Edmonds on TV’s Deal Or No Deal and immediately rode to Mongolia’ » THERE’S ADVENTURE AND then there’s making life difficult for yourself – or easier – depending on how you view choice of machinery for arduous and extended travel. Among the luminaries from the world traveller community explaining their decisions on the Bike /Carole Nash Adventure stage will be Sean Dillon who rode a Honda C90 from Alaska to Argentina (33,000 miles) in 2012, and who holds the record at 5706m above sea level for the highest C90 climb. Graham Field won £5000 off Noel Edmonds on TV’s Deal Or No Deal and immediately told the host he’d be buying a bike and riding it to Mongolia. Graham spent £750 on a Kawasaki…

‘America’s 39th highest mountain most resembles the horribly challenging Mont Ventoux stage in the Tour de France’ » IN A COUNTRY where winning is everything and second place is ‘first loser’, America’s second oldest motor race (the Indy 500 is the oldest) is a surprisingly big deal. First run in 1916 this 12.42 mile highway to the heavens begins at a heady 9390ft (2863m) above sea level and finishes at a stratospheric 14,114ft (4300m) atop the waves. This means a considerable loss of power in the final stages (an estimated 30%) despite fuel maps programmed to compensate for the substantial drop in air density. Aside from that minor issue there are 156 turns to be negotiated too. America’s 39th highest mountain in the Front Range, Colorado Springs, Colorado most resembles…

‘Numerous other attractions include: bar; food court; vintage ice cream parlour; cult movies; bands and more’ » NOW IN ITS fifth year and established as one of the premier custom shows (with a selection of local and more travelled attendees). Still at the same grassy neck of the woods in rural Bedfordshire (ie Scald End Farm, Thurleigh), still mingling motorsickles with hot rods and this year the prize is a custom van. Not a hi-top Transit but a US item modded and rodded as a one-off for one lucky show-goer. We can but hope for captains chairs, portholes, sidepipes and a double-bed in the back. The bike build-off is strictly for fifties, sixties and seventies-style customs with British, American or Japanese power, and all entries have to be capable of…