mar_2007

P A G E 12

p6AltamuraAlert

p8Welshweekendpart II

p10Melle inFrance

p11KilspillsRally

p12MistletoeRun

I N S I D E

MAKINGprogress

Registered Charity No.1097558

T h e I A M A i m sTo improve the standard of driving (and riding)on the UK roads.

The Advancement of Road Safety.

The Administration of an Advanced Test.

Help us make progress with a contribution towards the next issue. Pics in jpeg format please.Newsletter email address is [email protected]

SOLENT ADVANCEDM OTO R C Y C L I S T S

M a r c h 0 7

samS A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

Answers via email to:[email protected]

CAPTION COMPETITION:

How do you turn this...............

SAM Polo-shirtsBlack long or short sleeve shirts embroideredwith the Club name - always available to buyat Club Nights. Sizes XXL to Small.Long Sleeves £18.50 Short Sleeves £15.00

Books and VideosThe Assessment of Advanced Motorcycling £4.50

Know your Traffic Signs £3.00

How to be an Advanced Motorcyclist £7.99

Motorcycle Roadcraft (Blue Book) £11.99

Mike Waites Video £14.99

Top Rider Video £14.99

DISCLAIMERMost of the views expressed in this SAM Newsletter are personal to the author and publicationdoes not imply endorsement of any article, any author or any organisation. Views expressed arethose of the authors, and are not necessarily in accordance with the policies or the views of the

IAM or SAM. Where articles are reproduced from other publications or authors, unreservedacknowledgement is given to the source. No responsibility is accepted by the Editor or SAM forany damage to intelligence or riding abilities, howsoever caused, which might result from reading

this publication.

DECEMBER CAPTION COMPETITION WINNER:

OK, but why the ••••

did you have tobring y’mother...!

Dave Tilbury

Contact Kate Davies Tel 01962840954

Mistletoe Runby Paul Nol

Twas a bright and cold Sunday morning when 11 (I think) intrepid soles met at Ower, on their way tosee Father Christmas on the famed Mistletoe charityrun from Swanage seafront to Sandford.

Setting off at a brisk pace wepicked up Nigel who had

been amusing himself frighteningother motorists by sitting in hisblack gear and white helmet onthe bridge over the main road atRingwood. Sad to say, despitepromising a sea crossing, ourintrepid leader (me) hadforgotten to make theSandbanks Ferry a Way Point onthe dreaded Garmin and thedamn thing decided to take usoff on the scenic route toSwanage as it calculated that tobe the fastest way there.

With a bit of help from Nigel weeventually arrived at the sea to

join the merry throng ofassorted motorcycling Santasand other festive folks andparked up to take in the air andobserve the fun whilst weawaited the start. I haven’t heardthe exact count of numbers butthere was well over 100 bikestaking part. We duly set off inconvoy with Police and Marshallscontrolling the junctions to letus glide through, waving to thelocals and children as we past.There was only one casualtyfrom SAM when one of ourgroup’s bike’s broke down andeventually had to be assisted bythe RAC. Arriving at the pub,

which as usual was absolutely heaving, wefound places to park where we couldeasily escape and then queued forrefreshments with the hordes.After lunchand a look around, the majority of uselected to go on to Stockbridge for teaand cakes and had a very pleasant tripacross the hills through Salisbury in thewinter sunshine. Much to the disgust ofseveral of the group, Lily Langtree’s will notserve toasted tea cakes until after 15:30 sowe had to make do with other things! Weended the run there, after searching forChris’ glasses and everybody went theirseparate ways home to put their feet up.

Annual KILSPILLS RALLYstarted from the Ace Cafe

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bike mar cov 07 8/3/07 11:41 pm Page 1

S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

P A G E 2 P A G E 11

5% discount to SAM members, on production of membership card.

The annual KILSPILLS rally startedfrom the Ace Cafe on 9 September2006. It finished at the Houses ofParliament and we all double parkedon the Embankment. The Weatherwas glorious throughout. There wereabout 4000 bikes in the rally and itwas escorted by thePolice throughout. To cutthrough London over redlights and along bus laneswas quite an experience.The rally seems to beachieving something as 2supermarket chains havefitted spill preventionfillers to their truckfleets. The lesson of theday for me was that goingat 5 mph with all lightson for one hour willflatten your battery! Thebiking community got megoing again. Thanksfellas.Mike

We had a very good bimble to The Swan on New Year’sday. A very sociable lunch followed and everything wasfine until Mark & Alison departed. Alison ‘poured waterinto my wine’ by telling us that ‘the old black blade’ hadgot a puncture...Going into denial didn’t help but I tried it anyway even though I knew minewas the only old blade on the ride. Don’t you just hate it when that happens?The rest of my lunchtime was spent in the hotel car park with a Reemapuncture outfit.

I think that these are seriously good bits of kit, the best £20 you’ll everspend. I had assumed that everybody else was aware of these outfits but mehaving the ability to get out of my predicament seemed to be a pleasantsurprise to a lot of the party. Sure, there are a couple of little ‘knacks’ thatyou need to acquire but the resulting repair is long lastingly sound. Thetoughest hurdle to overcome is that you have to shove a rat’s tail file intothe puncture to clean up, roughen and enlarge the hole.Your subconsciousscreams at you that you are supposed to be sealing a small hole, not making

it bigger and, at first, it overrides any attempts you may make to tell yourhand to ‘stick’ the tyre with the rat tail file.

The three CO2 bottles put in somewhere between 25 to 30psi which isdesigned to be enough to get you to a filling station with an air line totop it up. Luckily Howard King was on hand with a magic 12v electric airpump and in went another 10psi.Thanks again Howard.

The decision to buy another repair kit is a no-brainer for me. £20 for akit versus £100 plus recovery charge and one or two hour wait for thetruck.Twenty minutes and you’re on your way.

I guess I’ve repaired about a dozen punctures and am getting to be a dabhand at their repair. But why is it that Mr Sod wrote the law stating thatI’ll only get a puncture when I fit a new tyre; a shabby old threadbarecarcass never picks up a nail. Perhaps the moral is that I should only useshabby old tyres. So before you throw away your old worn tyres; thinkof me.

A No-Brainer for tyres by Dave Irving

KILSPILLS RALLYTue 12 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm start with Lois Pryce Talk and slide show about her recent ride across Africa

Sun 17 SAM Group Ride to the Ogri Café Horam Wickham Paul NolTue 19 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmThu 21 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesFri 22 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesSat 23 Motorcycle World Beaulieu

Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesSun 24 SAM Group Ride Ower

Motorcycle World BeaulieuContinental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian Ardennes

Mon 25 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesTue 26 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pm

JULY Sun 1 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 8 SAM Group Ride Winchester Colin HitchcockTue 10 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 15 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 15 Big Wheel Charity Event BasingstokeTue 17 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 22 SAM Group Ride (Arundal) Meon Hut Petra WilloughbyTue 24 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pmSun 29 SAM Group Ride to Castle Coombe Winchester Nigel Grace

AUG Sat 4 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 5 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 12 SAM Group Ride OwerTue 14 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 19 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Gerry GoochTue 21 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 26 SAM Group Ride WinchesterTue 28 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pm

SEPT Sun 2 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSat 8 International AutoJumble BeaulieuSun 9 SAM Group Ride Ower

International AutoJumble BeaulieuTue 11 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSat 15 BMF Tail End Show PeterboroughSun 16 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Mark Sabin

BMF Tail End Show PeterboroughTue 18 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 23 SAM Group Ride WinchesterSun 30 SAM Group Ride Wickham

OCT Sun 7 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amTue 9 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 14 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Dave CharltonTue 16 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 21 SAM Group Ride Winchester Nigel GraceSun 28 SAM Group Ride Wickham

NOV Thu 1 1 - 11 Nov - Motorcycle and Scooter Show NEC BirminghamSun 4 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 11 SAM Group Ride Meon HutTue 13 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 18 SAM Group Ride WinchesterTue 20 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 25 SAM Group Ride Wickham

DEC Sat 1 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 2 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 9 SAM Group Ride Meon HutTue 11 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 16 SAM Group Ride WinchesterSun 23 SAM Group Ride WickhamSun 30 SAM Group Ride Ower

JAN Sun 6 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut

MAR Sun 11 SAM Group Ride (Pirbright Twisties) Meon Hut Alec GoreTue 13 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm start with

Andy Ibbot from the California Superbike SchoolSun 18 SAM Group Ride Winchester TBC

Tue 20 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 25 SAM Group Ride Wickham Mark SabinSat 31 New Joiners Ride Ower Ian Cooper

APR Sun 1 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 8 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Mark NichollsTue 10 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSat 14 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 15 SAM Group Ride Winchester Paul NolTue 17 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 22 SAM Group Ride Wickham Colin HitchcockSun 29 SAM Group Ride (Dorset) Ower Nigel Grace

MAY Sat 5 SAM Ladies Only Group Ride Wickham Square Hayley Miller Sun 6 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amTue 8 SAM AGM Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 13 SAM Group Ride to the Cotswolds Winchester Paul NolTue 15 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSat 19 BMF Show PeterboroughSun 20 SAM Group Ride Wickham Gerry Gooch

BMF Show PeterboroughTue 22 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pmSun 27 SAM Group Ride Ower Ian Cooper

JUNE Sun 3 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSat 9 Sarisbury Green Community Centre Fete Sarisbury GreenSat 9 BMF Garden of England Show KentSun 10 SAM Group Ride Winchester Chris Palmer

BMF Garden of England Show Kent

SAM DIARY OF EVENTS FOR 2007


P A G E 3

S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

So what’s been going on at SAMsince my last column you might

be wondering?

Some riders think of the winter asbeing a quiet time for bikers, butthey should see the numbers of riders who turn up for theSAM Group Rides each Sunday throughout the winter.Normally between 12 and 18 turn out to the well organisedruns led by a selection of our members, some leading a runfor the first time. Many new members have joined in theseruns and have been given a warm welcome by us all.

TV programmes on the 2nd Tuesday of each month must bepretty bad, or is it that the attraction of the SAM Club Nightis just too good to miss? The December Club Night saw 80members enjoying a truly excellent evening and even theNov and Jan nights saw 70 or so members arrive. All thishas been due to the efforts of our Club Night OrganiserSam Davis.

Our MDU is receiving some TLC from new memberRichard Ferguson at his works at New Milton. Richard hasoffered to do the work in his own time with SAM payingonly for the parts that will be required. Free tea & biscuitsfor a year must be in order here I would have thought. Therefurbished MDU will be up on Portsdown Hill attractingnew members on the 25th March; so do drop in for a chatif you are that way.

The following Sunday is our first SAM Sunday of the year atSarisbury Green Community Centre and a really good dayis being planned, so put it in your diary and join us for a fullEnglish Breakfast and much more as well.

We are planning some annual changes around thecommittee with John Parvin taking over the Treasurers jobfrom Godwin Calafato, David Spicer being handed the ChiefObservers job by John Goodson and Rex, who is so busywith other things has said,

“Having served over three years in the position of GroupSecretary and having to take on additional responsibilitiesfor another group, I feel that it is necessary to ask to bereleased from my post. I intend to continue as a member ofSAM and take part in the club activities; however, for thenext couple of months at least, for health reasons, I will notbe riding my bike nor doing anything too strenuous. Allminutes etc for the past three years are electronically storedand the 2007 AGM paperwork is set to go, just needs a fewtweaks. I will always be available to help with advice on theSecretary front”.

You will all be pleased to hear that Colin Backhouse ourVice Chairman has offered to take on the Secretary’s roleand to hand over his Skills Coordinators’ job to someoneelse.

We have a new SAM Information leaflet under way and wewill need you all to help to distribute these around theDealers and your places of work etc.We need to keep ourmembership numbers up as they have started to fall overthe winter months. So please do your bit by spreading theword about the advantages of improving riding skills byjoining SAM.

Happy and safe riding to you all.

Gerry Gooch

CHAIRMAN’Schat

COMMITTEE MEMBERSAND OTHER CONTACTSChairman: Gerry Gooch 01329 832 416

Vice Chairman Colin Backhouse 02380 871 642

Secretary: Rex Brittian 01489 784 398

Treasurer: Godwin Calafato 02380 253109

Chief Observer: John Goodson 02380 692 959

Membership Secretary: Paul Nol 02392 710 929

Club Night Organiser: Sam Davis 07961 534802

Public Relations: Claire Jenrick 02392 615 964

Group Rides Co-ordinator: Ian Cooper 02380 410 690

Skills Development: Colin Backhouse 02380 871 642

Regalia: Kate Davies 01962 840 954

Newsletter: Nigel Grace 01425 472 021

MDU Manager John Parvin 01329 284 640

Special Events Co-ord Dave Barrett 02393 552200

Stay Clever in BadWeather by David Granger MCN 7 Feb 07

Distribution ofnew SAM leafletsVolunteers are required to help distribute the newSAM Information leaflets to Bike Dealers, Shops etcPlease get in touch with Claire Jenrick on 02392 615 964 or at [email protected]

Lord love climate change. It’s turned the seasonsupside down. We get sunshine and winter

rideouts at the beginning of January, then cold andsnow three weeks later, and then...... who knows.But on two wheels, we have to be more preparedfor any change. In terms of riding, the cold andwet is going to affect you, how your bike reacts andit’s not going to be as much of a laugh.

In wet weather allow double the distance tobrake and avoid pools of water on the road. Whena tyre can’t displace water quickly enough, you losegrip on the road and can aquaplane. So slow downand remember manholes, drain covers and whitelines get especially slippery when wet.

In the cold, your concentration can suffer andriding in snow and ice (yep, it could all reappear inFebruary) can again seriously affect your tyres’ gripwhich in turn messes up your accelerating,

cornering and braking. Avoid riding when thetemperature’s below freezing whenever possible,and especially if there is ice or black ice on theroads.

In the fog, keep your distance from vehiclesahead and behind, check your lights are in goodworking order and.... Slow down.

In windy conditions keep an eye out forplaces where gusts could throw you off course: ifyou pass lorries or high-sided vehicles, gaps inhedges or buildings and on open, exposed roads.

So when you’re out in poor weather remember tokeep your head, keep warm and dry and ensureyour bike is in the best working order it can be.And allow for the fact that everything, from ridingto braking to getting your kit on, is going to take alittle more time.

bike b_w mar 07 7/3/07 1:00 am Page 2


P A G E 4

Well we are well into2007 now and hopefullynot long before we havesome warmer weather tobe riding in. I am glad toreport that there aresome associates who arestill undergoing observedrides in this colderclimate, but alas still a lotthat are not. So if you areplaced with an observerand not active then pleasemake contact with yourobserver, to let him or her know what yourintentions are.We currently have 81 associateswho are undergoing observed ridesor at least placed with an observer,but approximately half of you do

C H I E F O B S E RV E R ’ S R E P O RT Fe b 0 7

not keep in touch with yourobserver. So I am pleading withthose of you who are not active tomake contact and get out therewith your observer, it is veryfrustrating as an observer to havepeople that just don’t bother, as it ispreventing some other person frombeing observed as most observershave a maximum number they wishto have at any one time. If there areany of you who are not sure whoyour observer is or have lost theirdetails, please let me know and Iwill sort it out for you.

I would also like to inform you allthat I shall be standing down asChief Observer at the AGM in May,I will be replaced by David Spicerwho is another Senior Observerwith the group. I would like to takethis opportunity to thank all theobservers who I have had thepleasure of working with during mytime as Chief Observer, it has beenvery rewarding to have such a goodteam working in the same way to

further our cause in road safety andriding skills. I joined SAM in thespring of 1997 and passed my testin October of that year and joinedthe committee soon after and beenthere ever since, I have hadnumerous roles such as Treasurer,Chairman and Chief Observer forfive years. So I feel that it is timethat I take a step back and let someone else have their ideas how SAMcan progress, I wish Dave all thevery best in his role as ChiefObserver

I would also like to let you knowthat as reported in the lastnewsletter Mark Nicholls hadcompleted his hours, he has sincecompleted his check ride and isnow a qualified Observer.We havealso lost Peter Emmins as anObserver as he is moving toScotland at Easter, so Peter, thanksvery much for all your hard workwhilst an Observer and I am sure Ispeak for every body in wishing youall the best in your new venture.

We have had another six passessince the last newsletter, they areMillard Patton, Matt Page, SteveDavies, Gary Whiteside, David Coleand Robert Ranson well done toyou all. This brings our tally ofpasses since the last AGM to 32, butwe have a good few awaiting theirtests so hopefully the figure will risebefore this years’ AGM. One point Iwould like to bring across to all theAssociates who are test ready nowor indeed in the future, that whenyou do take your test to let yourObserver or the Chief Observerknow the result (good or bad) aswe have to report to the IAM everyyear on passes and indeed failures.

Well that’s about it for me in thisnewsletter, next time you will beable to read your new ChiefObservers’ report. Take care andsafe riding.

John GoodsonChief Observer

STOP PRESS...STOP PRESS

April 1st - SAM raises over £500 forBBC Daisy Appeal (and has fun doingit)

This need not be an April fool butSAM desperately needs your help tomake it a reality.

Sunday April 1 marks the first of our training days to beheld at Sarisbury Green Community Centre. We plan toget as many people as possible to come along and take afree assessed ride. The MDU will be at Portsdown Hillon Sunday 25th March to help generate interest but weneed you.The plan is to invite all members and budding membersto come along to the Community Centre from 9.30 whereyou will be able to purchase, at very reasonable cost abreakfast and in doing so support the BBC Daisy appealwhich is commited to raising money for theWessex Cancer Trust. We hope to get as manypeople as we can to take advantage of a freeassessed ride and the training session at12.00. But this event is not just aimed at newpeople, it’s for you and if we can get 200 peopleto drop in and have breakfast we will hit ourtarget.As of today 22/01 the details are being sortedand by the time you read this I hope you’realready down to be there. There will be healthy

options for those that prefer. It is a good cause somake a date in you diary. Let SAM do the cooking,you sit back read the paper and enjoy a goodbreakfast and chat. Bring a friend, ok I know thatmakes it difficult for some people, and stay for thetraining session at 12.00. We hope to have PhilPentlow, a class 1 rider and examiner to educate andentertain. It will be good so make a date for 1st Apriland do your bit to raise half a grand.

Dave Barrett

PS we also need you on 25th March to help man theMDU from 9am at Portsdown Hill. Please contact JohnPavin on 01329 284 640.

Know your signs....!


P A G E 5

S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M A R C H 2 0 0 7

SP2 SuspensionSet UpHave you ever exited a bend with your face onthe front mudguard?You’re not the owner of an SP2 then. Having thrown the SP2 at a pothole onthe way down to the apex it decided to fight back and punted me over thewindscreen.Well the experience made me decide to do something to sortmy suspension. I’d read somewhere that bike suspension works best in themiddle third of its’ range. Without ‘preloading’ the spring correctly thedamping will not work at its best either; always suffering from the badly setspring. So, what to do? How do you get to the ‘middle third’, or is that ‘middleearth’? Problem is, you’ll be needing a friend to do the measuring...

GADGET CORNERMP3 ON THE MOVEIf, like me, you like to listen to music on the bike and bywhatever means Autocom, Starcom or even direct connection, you have themusic into the helmet, but once you get up speed you just can’t hear itproperly - then this is the item for you.

It’s called the Bosteroo. It is a 3-way headphone or speaker splitter designedto boost the volume of your music by up to 12dB, with a less than 1% lossin sound quality.

The clever Boostaroo uses amplifiers usually found in CD players to increasethe volume produced by your mp3 player, computer or mini speakers, or letsyou plug in 3 sets of speakers or headphones for triple the music!

Ideal for motorbike users and musicians as well as traveling, computers,gaming and much more! 12” line-in cable, powered by 2 x AA Batteries , size4,5” x 1.5” x 1.1” and weighs in at just 6oz with batteries fitted.

Loaded Suspension Sag This ishow far the bike settles on its’springs, or ‘sags’ when you sit on it.You’ll almost always need to adjustthe springs.

Rear Gently ease the bike over onits side stand until the back wheelis off the floor.

Mark the tailpiece directly abovethe spindle and measure thedistance to the rear wheel spindle.

Write the distance down and callthis measurement A.

Sit on the bike with your feet onthe pegs; put your elbow againstthe wall to stay upright. Bounce onthe bike and then assume yournormal riding position.

Measure the rear of the bike againand call this measurement B.

Subtracting B from A gives youyour rear loaded sag.

By adjusting the rear preload tryto get a difference of between30-40mm.

Front Now ease the front of thebike off the floor using the sameside stand method. Measure thedistance from the bottom of thestanchion, or clamp, to the top ofthe brake calliper. Call thismeasurement C.

Sit and bounce on the bike again,using your elbow to stay vertical,and measure the calliper distance,calling this measurement D.Subtract D from C to give yourfront loaded sag. Either compressor loosen the spring to try toobtain 35-50mm difference.Theadjuster is the nut that pokes outof the top of the forks.

If you can’t get into these rangesthen you will need to speak toPaul to find out how best tochange to a harder or softerspring.

The settings I used.

Minimum preload on the rear, setting0, gave me 30mm sag.

Standard preload on the front, 12turns from max, gave me 42mm sag,the middle of the range.

At 14 stone I’m above average,perhaps, in weight and with zeropreload I can just get the minimum,30mm, sag; suggesting that the SP2rear spring is too hard for mostpeople that weigh less.

With the standard preload on thefront I get into the middle of the sagrange; perhaps suggesting that the SP2front spring may be a tad too hard forthose that are ‘Mass Challenged’...

Backing off a couple of clicks oncompression damping, both front andrear, makes the suspension feel lessharsh and gives an estimated 10-15mm of unused travel at the front,under braking.

Perhaps the correct way to measuremaximum fork travel is to undo thefork caps, release the springs andallow the forks to rest on the bumpstops. My ‘effort to avoid effort’method was to put a zip strap aroundthe fork slider, unwind fork preloadand compression to zero, find a quietbit of road and as savagely as I dare,nail the front brake to try to bottomout the forks. Not feeling anymechanical clunk, and measuring thefinal position of the zip strapindicated that I had failed; a good trybut no cigar. Hence the wordestimated in the unused travel figure.

From the ‘standard’ setting I took a‘click’ off of rebound damping both atfront and rear mainly because I’dreduced every other setting and, insubsequent test rides, I managed toconvince myself that the suspensionfelt more compliant that way.

Dave Irving

Police refuse to chase bikethieves with helmetsTraffic police have admitted refusing to chase two motorbikethieves because they were riding without helmets. InspectorMartin O’Connor, from Greater Manchester Police, said:‘In situations like this,officers need to consider the safety of all road users before deciding whetheror not it would be appropriate to begin a pursuit.’ MCN Jan 2007

I bet the safety of “all road users” was in the mind of the toe rags that stolethe bikes too. The moral to the story is - if you’re going to steal a bike; leaveyour helmet at home. Ed

Need a tow?


P A G E 6

S A M S O L E N T A D VA N C E D M OTO R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

Beware StoneMastic Asphalt!We all know the pitfalls of riding a bike over spilt dieselbut have you ever heard of Stone Mastic Asphalt?

How can a rider on a perfectly straight, dry road doing 45 mph apply thebrakes gently and find himself in a ditch? Well the road had been re-

surfaced 6 weeks earlier with the aforementioned stuff which can be soslippery that contractors are supposed to leave out warning signs for someweeks after! There have been various BBC TV and radio programmes aboutthe dangers of using SMA and some countries now ban its use.

ALTAMURA ALERTWhen I decided to closely inspect the tarmac back in October. Thetiger was entrusted to Altamura a repair outfit who took 14 weeksto repair and return my soulmate. So if you are unlucky enough to havea leisurely lunch with Nigel and this lot turn up to repair your pride and joy,be warned you are in for a long wait! On a lighter note I was stood at thecashpoint the other day when a little old lady came up to me and asked if Iwould be kind enough to check her balance, so being the kind heartedperson that I am, I pushed her and she fell over.

Dear Editor,I’ve never written to you before, but I reallyneed your advice on what could be a crucialdecision.

I’ve suspected for some time now that my wife hasbeen cheating on me. The usual signs ... phone rings,but if I answer, the caller hangs up. My wife has beengoing out with the girls a lot recently although whenI ask their names she always says, “Just somefriends from work, you don’t know them.”

I always stay awake to look out for her taxi cominghome, but she always walks down the drive. AlthoughI can hear a car driving off, as if she has got out ofthe car round the corner. Why? Maybe she wasn’t ina taxi? I once picked her mobile phone up just to seewhat time it was. She went berserk and screamedthat I should never touch her phone again and whywas I checking up on her.

Anyway, I have never approached the subject with mywife. I think deep down I just didn’t want to know thetruth, but last night she went out again and I decidedto really check on her. I decided I was going to parkmy 2006 Yamaha R1 motorcycle next to the garageand then hide behind it so I could get a good view ofthe whole street when she came home.It was at that moment, crouching behind my YamahaR1, that I noticed that the valve covers on my engineseemed to be leaking a little oil. Is this something Ican fix myself or should I take it back to the dealer?

SMA is deep black in appearanceand white lines show up on itvividly. It looks like the perfect roadsurface but is a classic example ofappearances being deceptive. Itsuse is becoming widespread in thiscountry . It is thought that theproblem stems from it beingporous so water soaks through itinstead of remaining on the surface.The downside is that this makesthe oil content of the asphalt riseto the top.

It appears that the HighwaysAuthority is well aware of theproblems and dangers that SMAposes to the motorcyclist. It is oneof the ingredients, a bindermaterial, which gives SMA its lowskid resistance. 3 ways of dealingwith it are suggested; the first is tospread a type of grit on the roadsurface but this apparently createsit’s own problems. Secondly,warning signs can be put out,

although these are possibly oflimited affect. The third mostpopular solution amongst HighwayAuthorities is simply to wait for thebinder to be worn away by thepassage of traffic!

How long this takes will depend onthe amount of traffic using the road.It can take weeks, months or evenyears. Needless to say the stripbetween the wheels which is leasttravelled will take the longest towear.

There is a petition on the government website:http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/SMAsphalt/ where you can register yourdisgust at the use of this material.More info can be found at:http://wwwhaucuk.org/newspages/announcements / s tone_mas t i casphalt.htm.

You have been warned!

the service items are very easy toget to with the minimum of tools.Some nice touches are the brakesare interchangeable front and rearshould say the front get damaged.The oil is held in the frame and canbe drained via a screw at the front.The indicators are huge as is therear light - perfect for commuting.As are the brush guards!

WOT! NO TASSELS.I have always wanted a winter hack,something to ride in all weathers and then park up and not feel guiltyabout cleaning it. Not somethingyou would equate with a HarleyDavidson! Those who know merealise I do like a clean machinewith a bit of spit and polish. I foundtrying to get a cheap bike below£1000 very difficult. Good old ebay

came to my rescue and for £891 Ireckon I got a good deal as they gofor £2500 from the main dealer. Ihave ridden the MT350 during thecourse of my duties and whilst notthe fastest bike around it is a soliddependable workhorse. It haselectric and kick start, ohlins andmarzocchi suspension and isgenerally over engineered and thecarb is a closed unit requiringpractically no maintenance. All

For those of you after a 2nd bike that does not need to go on motorways I can heartilyrecommend it, plus the green lanesof Hampshire beckon. An addedbonus is I can now go down dockgate 20 and wind up my fellowharley owners - Result.

Colin Hitchcock


P A G E 7


Bend Lines byRapid Training I have always kept training stuff out of the website,mainly because of the problems involved in learning apractical skill from the written word, but as a result offeedback asking for some, here we go.

Sometimesyou can’tplease someof the peopleany of thetime

You know how the saying goes -you can’t please all of the

people all of the time. Well we risktaking this to the next level byensuring that we don’t please someof the people any of the time. Mypoint relates to social rides, grouprides or whatever the latestpolitically correct, hazard and riskassessed, safety manager-approvedterm is.

I am told that the best games ofsquash are had when players areevenly matched. This analogy kind-of works for biking too - althoughno inference of competition isintended. Back to the point - socialrides - or whatever. We welcome“all of the people” to all rides,which at face value seems like agood thing, but actually it’s not.

Let’s go off on a membershiptangent now. As a club committedto furthering road safety, we need abalance of enthusiasticmembership. Without enthusiasticmembers the club dies and there isat least one example of a local clubwith similar aims to ours whereexactly that happened. So whatdoes having “a balance ofenthusiastic members” imply? Ireckon it means meeting the needsof Associates and Green Badgeholders. For Associates, we haveour excellent team of Observersand a selection of runs designed tomeet their needs. These arereferred to as first timer runs orleisurely/moderate paced runs. Itshould be said that a number ofGreen Badge holders enjoy theseruns too.

However there are a number oflong-standing members who wantto exercise their advanced skills byriding at an advanced pace withbikers they know and trust.Returning to the squash analogy,they want to ride with people ofsimilar ability so that they can makethe overtakes and enjoy thecorners without being startled,when committed to a pace and line,by a brake light coming on mid-corner from the bike in front.

There’s another problem withsome of the advanced pace rides oflate; it’s not always made clear whatadvanced pace actually means. Theconsequence of not being explicitabout the riding standard requiredis a big mix of riding abilities. In theblink of an eye an advanced paceride ends up being leisurely andfrustrating since the least skilledrider tends to dictate the pace.

So this is the message SAM, keep upthe excellent work with newmembers but please plan moreadvanced pace rides and make itclear that the ride is for GreenBadge holders only. No exceptions!

The Grumpy Old Biker.

Disclaimer: Grumpy Old Biker is aperiodic column written for the SAMnewsletter. It is highly unlikely that theviews expressed here are in any wayrepresentative of the IAM or SAM.

Most of us, even without advancedtraining, know that for a right handbend we get over to the left andmove to the right for a left handbend. Sounds simple enough but ifonly it was.

riding at the view, it easy to stay online too long and find yourself ridingall the way round the outer edge ofthe curve. Not the right way at all.

Bends should link together with aflow from one line to the next. Ifyou find yourself wrestling the biketo get it on line early enough thenyou have done it wrong. Peoplehave fewer problems with the linefor left-handers. Riding in themiddle of the road is easy. There’snot much around you so you feelsafer.We often get asked how far tothe right can I go? Well yes if yourode in the offside gutter you couldsee further round the corner. Butthe drag is in this country is not allthe roads are one way!

You may know why you are on thewrong side of the road but whatabout the guy coming the otherway? You are putting a lot of trustinto a guy you have never met! Yeshe may do nothing but he couldswerve to your side of the road. Itcan at least look tacky, at worst bedangerous. Rapid’s policy is; go as faras the hazard line but don’t cross itsimply to increase the view. Thisdoesn’t mean you can’t straightenout bends where appropriate,because there you already have theview.

Remember bend lines are meant tobe flexible. Compromise your lineand your speed for situations thatyou see. Don’t ride throughpotholes in the gutter or close tooncoming traffic.

There is more tobends that I couldever hope tocover here butremember, themore you practicethe better you get! Rapid Training 2002

www.rapidtraining.co.uk

Lets take a right hand bend.The keyto getting the bend spot on isassessing it as early as possible. Assoon as you can see it’s there, youneed to be on the correct line.Thisis where most go wrong. If you arestill trying to get on line as you gointo the bend, its already gonewrong. Get your machine on themost accurate line that you can, andonce there focus on lookingthrough the corner.

What most newcomers say after ademo ride is “I can’t get the bikethat close to the side of the road”Like most things its practice thatmakes it slot into place.The reasonyou feel uncomfortable is obvious:it’s the thought of hitting the kerb.Done correctly I promise it won’thappen! Firstly, we need to do all ofthis on the straight approaching thecorner. Get the bike as close to theverge/kerb as you feel comfortable.Once there you must look whereyou want the bike to go, i.e. to theright; the bike will always followyour eyes; look at the exit of thebend and it will come off line to theright. Simple! Well no, don’t expectall this to slot into place after twocorners. The thing that makes melaugh about new riders now, is thatthey want to be so good so quickly.Give yourself time to becomefluent. Once you have this accurateline, make sure that you are always



P A G E 8

Leaving our “Guest House” in Abergavenny, we foundthe A465 and started heading west.

WELSH WEEKENDBIKES and TERRYPART TWO THE WELSH BIT

We didn’t mind, but would she haveasked anyone in a car to move? Ithink not.

The second half of this road was nodisappointment. The area becamemore mountainous which offeredwonderful hairpin bends and it wasnational limit all the way.Too soon,we reached Brecon and then tookthe A40 west bound, which skirtsalong the northern edge of theNational Park.We were riding withsuch excitement at the experience,that we almost had our toesscrunched up.

As some of you may know, last yearI bought myself a new HondaFireblade. An act brought about bythe Male Menopause is a distinctpossibility. I have still kept my agingVFR 800 and before “The Trip”, mydilemma was which bike to take.Nige was all up for the VFR becausehe felt the ‘Blade would shame hisstill perfectly capable, but slightlypassé, ZZR600. I chose theFireblade! And boy, was that everthe right decision? Anyway, it’simpossible to shame Nige. He is atotally brilliant rider, great companyand there is no one I’d rather do abike trip with, except, maybe, EwanMcGregor or perhaps CharleyBoorman, or both.

The Fireblade is an awesome bikebut I feel slightly guilty riding it. I

It was not the most inspiring roadby Welsh terms, but still animprovement on what we wereused to. It is called “The Head ofthe Valleys Road” which might giveyou some idea, and as we nearedMerthyr Tydfil, it did become quiteindustrial. I started to have somesympathy with Terry’s opinion. Wepassed the town to the north andpicked up the A470 to Brecon.Now, this is where Terry was spoton. We immediately entered theBrecon Beacons National Park andthis road was mind-blowing,stunning and every othersuperlative you can conjure up. Ittook your breath away and youalmost had to pinch yourself tobelieve it. Talk about scanning thearea ahead, your eyes workedovertime just trying not to misssome new bit of scenery. Half wayalong this road we stopped in a lay-by. We had a coffee, stood there,and savoured the moment. It was a“things to do before you die” event.

Understandably, it was a busystopping place and in a vain attemptto shatter our euphoria, somewoman parked her car on the grassverge, walked back to us andenquired. “ Are you going soon? Iwant to park my car.”

“Yes, of course. So sorry! Give us aminute and we’ll get out of yourway.”

The beach at Aberystwyth

could never, ever ride it to anywherenear its capability, but what’s so niceabout the bike is, it just doesn’tmind. She’s there, always happy to letme push a bit further but nevergetting upset if I don’t get it quiteright. And we bonded on this trip.We became as one.We gelled. I fellin love all over again. The way toreally get to know your bike is toride bend after bend after bend allday long, constantly fine-tuning. It’s arapid learning curve.

For me, one of the highlights of theday was towards the end, whenNige, who was following at the time,came through my headset. “Dave,you look really good on that bike”.

What greater compliment can afellow biker make?

And so there we were, eating up themiles in a blissful state until a fairlyurgent call of nature becameapparent. We had just entered asmall town, and so I spoke up.

“I’m stopping here Nige. I need awee.”

I pulled into the car park and Nigeobediently followed.

The locals were happy to charge20p for the pleasure of using theirtoilets in this particular town.

“My wife and I usually go into thosetogether.” said Nige.

A quick look at each other and wedecided that was not an option.

40p later we were fully refreshedbut slowly realising we didn’t have aclue where we were. Trying to beresourceful, I spotted a woman wholooked like a resident, but myquestion to her was not my mostconsidered.

“Excuse me. Do you know wherewe are?”

The look in her eyes said it all, butvery slowly she offered“Llandovery”

It was time to get out the map,consult the pre-planned route, anddecide what changes to it, if any,were necessary. Time was gettingon and so, by mutual agreement, weknocked our visit to Carmarthenon the head.We had always plannedto have our lunch in Aberystwythand this was looking like being avery late lunch if we stuck to ourroute. So we decided to turn ontothe A482, which was about fourmiles further up the road, and beltstraight across to Aberaeron onThe Irish Sea and from there, followthe coast road up to Aberystwyth.

Again, superb biking road acrosscountry to the seaside and neitherof us regretted the change of plan.It was by pure chance that, halfwayalong the A482 we entered a townand, in unison, we shouted to eachother “This is Lampeter!”

Eager to spot our “friends”, wescanned everywhere for signs ofthem but sadly, no signs of a hippyencampment or a “Wellies R us”retail outlet. We hoped they hadmade it but, on reflection, it lookedlike an ambitious destination forsome of them.

As soon as we hit the coast westopped for a breather and gazedacross the water towards Ireland.Then it was up the A487 coast road

Bike Park in Aberystwyth


P A G E 9


for Aberystwyth and lunch.This wasthe busiest stretch of road weencountered on our Welsh visit, butthe sun was shinning and the viewwas great, so who cares?

When we came up to the sea frontin Aberystwyth, it was a simplechoice. Do we turn left or do weturn right? We elected to go left,whereas, every other bike goesright. This place is a biking Meccaand all the bikes, (except us) park inthe middle of the promenadesurrounding a wooden diner - café.Great place for lunch!

Fully sated, we left Aberystwythheading east on the A44, and foundanother glorious road. It wasmountainous, with hairpin bendfollowing hairpin bend, wonderfulscenery and empty. Sometimes itfelt like we had the whole of Walesto ourselves.

For those of you who, like me untilrecently, have never travelled Welshroads on your bike, let me try andexplain.

Imagine that, for every road youride, the day before, a team of highlyskilled engineers had been thereand resurfaced the road to anamazing standard. No potholes, notar banding, no debris and smooth.No one had then come along andstuck up plated limits just becausethe road could be dangerous forun-skilled drivers. In Wales, if youget it wrong, you can plummethundreds of feet down amountainside. THAT keeps driverson their toes!

Imagine also that the roads wereput there not just to get from A toB, but to always get the best vantagepoint for the wonderful landscape.

Imagine that a message goes out toall other road users to get off theroad because you want to use it.The occasional overtake becomes anovelty, not the norm.

That’s Welsh roads.

From the A44, we turned onto theA470 and eventually came to aquaint little village called BuilthWells, with narrow streets and oldhouses.As we approached, we bothfelt that an ice cream and a cup ofcoffee would not go amiss. Ridingdown the High Street, I pulled intothe first available parking place thatwe could squeeze two bikes into.We dismounted, removed ourhelmets, looked up and saw wewere parked opposite a café sellingany-flavour-you-can-think-of ice

cream. It had a garden on the sidebuilt like an oasis in the side of a hill.Perfect.

We were sitting there in thesunshine, supping on ourcappuccinos and trying not todribble ice cream down ourleathers, when what must havebeen the entire membership of theYamaha V-Max Owners Club rodeby. The deep throated roar ofmasses of bikes, reverberating offthe village walls. Fellow patronsasked if we were part of the group,to which we hastily denied anyinvolvement. It was as if we feltguilty to be part of anythingdisturbing such peace andtranquillity.

It was time to consult the mapagain.Time was on our side and wehad no desire to rush back to Terryso we looked for a detour.The mappromised a scenic route if we wentup the A483 to Garth and thentook the B4519, which eventuallyjoins up with the Brecon road.

As soon as we turned onto the Broad at Garth, the narrow roadstarted a rate of assent notdissimilar to a Jumbo jet leavingGatwick. The road twisted andturned and climbed and climbed,again through the most stunningscenery. Signs advised us that thiswhole area was given over to themilitary, and anyone daft enough toleave the road would beimmediately blown up. Why doesthe army always acquire the mostbeautiful areas to play their stupidwar games?

Continuing the assent, we passed acouple of cyclists (admittedly all inlycra gear) riding up the roadmaking us feel guilty to be onmotorised transport.

At the summit was a stopping placeguaranteed to be free from mortarfire.

We stopped to drink in the view.

Strategically placed benches and apanoramic map of the whole areacarved into a granite slab wereavailable for the convenience of theweary tourist.

We had almost convinced ourselveswe were the only people left alive inthe word, when a chirpy little voicefrom behind acknowledged ourpresence with a friendly “Hello”. Itwas one of the cyclists who, despitehigh altitude and extreme exercise,was no more out of breath than us.

These cyclists then turned aroundand proceeded to ride back downthe hill.They were clearly doing theride just for fun!The descent on the other side wasmuch more gradual, and we pickedour way along through thewandering sheep. How the sheepsurvived in this war-torn utopianarea, when humans could soobviously perish if they did so muchas step on the grass verge, I shallnever know.Finally, we joined up with theB4520, which took us into Brecon,and then it was the A40 to bring ussafely home to base camp inAbergavenny.We were riding as if on autopiloton this last stretch. Not that we

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Final installment next issue.

weren’t concentrating, it was thatthe roads were still so blissful andour riding skills felt like they werehoned to perfection after a day inthe saddle. Man and machine inperfect harmony!

Sad to report, but a relief for us atthe time,Terry was conspicuous byhis absence when we arrived back.We guessed it wasn’t because hehad been out receiving any awardsfrom the Welsh Tourist Board.

That evening we found a pub justround the corner where we had afew beers, a good meal and satchatting with one of our fellowguests, where, strangely, the subjectof Terry never came up.

Lay-by onthe A470


P A G E 10


TRIP TO MELLE INFRANCE run by Flash ToursMy name is Dave Bruguier and I cover 30,000 miles plus each year. Most ofmy riding is training, track days or organising UK or Continental trips, so thisyear I decided, with a little persuasion from a friend, to go on his trip to Mellein France and experience Flash Tours where I could relax and let someoneelse do all the organising and route planning.

delicious croissant and Frenchbread, a homemade selection ofjams and as much fruit and cereal asyou want. Luck was with us, as wewere getting ready for a run aroundthe Loire valley the rain stopped.

Tony, our host, gave us a pre-ridebriefing and clarified the ‘marker’system (which had been fullyexplained in the bookingdocumentation). A morning coffeestop, an excellent lunch venuefollowed by more stunning roads,afternoon tea and back to basewhere tea, beer and snacks weretaken in the large garden and ourdays exploits, the roads, cockupsetc were discussed with the usualmicky taking. A distance of about220 miles had been covered withTony leading and controlling hisplacement of markers and althoughat times the group was spread outwith not another rider insightnobody got lost - the beauty of thissystem is that it allows everyone toride at their own pace.We took themorning to settle with noovertaking being carried out butTony egged us on into riding ourown ride and encouraging‘progress’ which kept everyonehappy and does prevent frustrationcreeping in if there is a slow rideror it allows you time to unwind andlook at the scenery without thethought of slowing others down ifthat is your thing.

Day 2 was to Cognac. Pleasantweather, glorious quiet roads, lunchoutside at a super café/restaurantnear the town centre and return tobase for usual beer, tea and snacksprior to evening dinner - beefbourguignon - wonderful.

Day 3 (the road to doom). Wewere given a choice of going toOradour or La Rochelle. As theforecast was for heavy showers weopted for (democratically ofcourse) Oradour, probably betterknown as the Martyr Village. Ourhost had been talking about ‘theroad to doom’ over previousevenings ramblings on this routebut no warnings or location wasgiven. The story is that a previous

The brief history of this trip isthat a group of riders who had

attended a Rapid Training trip to atrack day at Folembray in Franceand then carried on to theNurburgring decided that theyenjoyed the experience so muchthat they organised the ‘Flash Tours’as a fun get together for thefollowing year and it has nowbecome an annual event.

There were twelve attending thisyear and we met at Portsmouth tocatch the 2230 ferry to Le Havre.The idea was that we would havecabins and so get some rest beforeour 320 mile D road ride to Melle,which is just southwest of Poitier.However this was the MotoGPweekend at Le Mans so the boatwas heaving with bikes and we hadbeen too late to book cabins,however we did have luxurycouchettes!!!! The ferry operatorwas LD Ferries who had only justtaken over the line from P & O.There were over 150 bikes on aferry that was apparently designedto carry 40 motorcycles max. and Iam sure there were only enough tiedowns for half that -worse still itwas blowing a gale with Force 9forecast for the crossing.The crew,who of course didn’t speak English,tried hard but then gave up andcleared off leaving us to sort it outourselves. I had been lucky to get aplace against the hull and managedto secure my ZX9 reasonably well.The crossing was rough andinevitably on returning to the car-decks in the morning some 25bikes had fallen over including 4 ofour 12. Tempers were frayed,exacerbated by lack of sleep andthe inability to communicate withthe non-English speaking crew.There were a lot of dents andscratches but the worst our groupsuffered was a broken offsidemirror (well it becomes a n/smirror on the continent - so nottoo bad) on an R1.The form fillingetc took nearly 2 hours, which putus a long way behind schedule andto add to that it was still blowing agale accompanied with heavy rain.All this, and only a couple of hours

sleep - not the start we werelooking for!

Setting off through Le Havre wasuneventful though it was difficult tokeep 12 bikes together, in pouringrain in rush hour traffic. Howevercoming out of town I was suddenlyconfronted with the magnificentview of the Pont du Normandy inthe distance.This is the bridge overthe river Seine which from thedistance looked awesome, even alittle intimidating and all the tired,negative thoughts disappeared. It isa toll bridge but there is a freecycle and motorcycle lane to thenearside which saved the bother ofgetting money out in the monsoonconditions. Riding over was difficultwith excessive surface water and aright to left cross gale howeverbattling with the elements alwaysgives a certain satisfaction and itwas a great experience. I would saythe sight is almost as impressive asthe Millau bridge - a stunningdesign.

Our journey to Melle was relativelyuneventful, with improving weatherand, mostly riding on excellent Droads, with the occasional N roadthrown in, we made up quite a lotof time. Also by reducing thestopping time for food and petroland we were able to make goodprogress and eventually arrivedalmost on schedule with time for abeer and bath before dinner -heaven.

I had been told that dinner was ‘anevent’ and was certainly notdisappointed. Done in the Frenchtradition we all sat down at abaronial size table in the farmhousestyle kitchen and ate our waythrough five, or was it six, courseswith as much wine or beer as youwanted (all included in the price).The main course was salmon butunlike any salmon dish I have hadbefore, but more about the foodlater.

Next morning we awoke to heavyrain that dampened spirits aroundthe breakfast table, particularly as itlooked like it was in for the day.Breakfast was French style with

group had two quick riders on R1’s(what else) misread an uphill bendwhich disappeared over a crest andboth ended up in the middle of afield with some cattle where onerider speared his thigh on a cowshorn killing the cow. We allsuccessfully negotiated this bend.This was my first visit to Oradourand although not as emotive asAuschwitz it was a soberingspectacle - the village being leftexactly as it was after the massacreby the SS in June 1944 - well wortha visit if you are in this area. Thisdays run was fairly short but thereis a section of road that previousvisitors in our group had called‘mini-Cadwell’ for obvious reasons,so 7 of the group stayed and playedon this section with much swappingof bikes and having a good thrashbefore returning to base for usualrelaxation on the lawn and duck asthe main course for dinner.The lastevenings reminiscing over a supermeal was a grand finish to a brilliantweekend.

The ride back to Le Havre waspleasant and uneventful with usarriving in good time for the 1630ferry which got us back toPortsmouth around 11pm. Noproblems with bikes this time andsurprise, surprise loads of newratchet straps.

This is an excellent long weekend,with hosts Tony and his Frenchwife, Violette, providing gourmetevening meals, sparklingconversation and Tony leading thetours over some fantastic roads.He has delightful, sometimeswicked, sense of humour, make amistake and it will comeback tohaunt you. I shall be going backagain in 2007 and thoroughlyrecommend it. Have a look at thewebsite on www.flashtours.co.ukand give it a go, you won’t regret it.

Rush hour in France!!Arriving at the Chateau


S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7S A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

P A G E 2 P A G E 11

5% discount to SAM members, on production of membership card.

The annual KILSPILLS rally startedfrom the Ace Cafe on 9 September2006. It finished at the Houses ofParliament and we all double parkedon the Embankment. The Weatherwas glorious throughout. There wereabout 4000 bikes in the rally and itwas escorted by thePolice throughout. To cutthrough London over redlights and along bus laneswas quite an experience.The rally seems to beachieving something as 2supermarket chains havefitted spill preventionfillers to their truckfleets. The lesson of theday for me was that goingat 5 mph with all lightson for one hour willflatten your battery! Thebiking community got megoing again. Thanksfellas.Mike

We had a very good bimble to The Swan on New Year’sday. A very sociable lunch followed and everything wasfine until Mark & Alison departed. Alison ‘poured waterinto my wine’ by telling us that ‘the old black blade’ hadgot a puncture...Going into denial didn’t help but I tried it anyway even though I knew minewas the only old blade on the ride. Don’t you just hate it when that happens?The rest of my lunchtime was spent in the hotel car park with a Reemapuncture outfit.

I think that these are seriously good bits of kit, the best £20 you’ll everspend. I had assumed that everybody else was aware of these outfits but mehaving the ability to get out of my predicament seemed to be a pleasantsurprise to a lot of the party. Sure, there are a couple of little ‘knacks’ thatyou need to acquire but the resulting repair is long lastingly sound. Thetoughest hurdle to overcome is that you have to shove a rat’s tail file intothe puncture to clean up, roughen and enlarge the hole.Your subconsciousscreams at you that you are supposed to be sealing a small hole, not making

it bigger and, at first, it overrides any attempts you may make to tell yourhand to ‘stick’ the tyre with the rat tail file.

The three CO2 bottles put in somewhere between 25 to 30psi which isdesigned to be enough to get you to a filling station with an air line totop it up. Luckily Howard King was on hand with a magic 12v electric airpump and in went another 10psi.Thanks again Howard.

The decision to buy another repair kit is a no-brainer for me. £20 for akit versus £100 plus recovery charge and one or two hour wait for thetruck.Twenty minutes and you’re on your way.

I guess I’ve repaired about a dozen punctures and am getting to be a dabhand at their repair. But why is it that Mr Sod wrote the law stating thatI’ll only get a puncture when I fit a new tyre; a shabby old threadbarecarcass never picks up a nail. Perhaps the moral is that I should only useshabby old tyres. So before you throw away your old worn tyres; thinkof me.

A No-Brainer for tyres by Dave Irving

KILSPILLS RALLYTue 12 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm start with Lois Pryce Talk and slide show about her recent ride across Africa

Sun 17 SAM Group Ride to the Ogri Café Horam Wickham Paul NolTue 19 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmThu 21 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesFri 22 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesSat 23 Motorcycle World Beaulieu

Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesSun 24 SAM Group Ride Ower

Motorcycle World BeaulieuContinental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian Ardennes

Mon 25 Continental Trip to Bouillon in the Belgian ArdennesTue 26 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pm

JULY Sun 1 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 8 SAM Group Ride Winchester Colin HitchcockTue 10 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 15 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 15 Big Wheel Charity Event BasingstokeTue 17 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 22 SAM Group Ride (Arundal) Meon Hut Petra WilloughbyTue 24 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pmSun 29 SAM Group Ride to Castle Coombe Winchester Nigel Grace

AUG Sat 4 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 5 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 12 SAM Group Ride OwerTue 14 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 19 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Gerry GoochTue 21 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 26 SAM Group Ride WinchesterTue 28 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pm

SEPT Sun 2 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSat 8 International AutoJumble BeaulieuSun 9 SAM Group Ride Ower

International AutoJumble BeaulieuTue 11 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSat 15 BMF Tail End Show PeterboroughSun 16 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Mark Sabin

BMF Tail End Show PeterboroughTue 18 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 23 SAM Group Ride WinchesterSun 30 SAM Group Ride Wickham

OCT Sun 7 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amTue 9 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 14 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Dave CharltonTue 16 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 21 SAM Group Ride Winchester Nigel GraceSun 28 SAM Group Ride Wickham

NOV Thu 1 1 - 11 Nov - Motorcycle and Scooter Show NEC BirminghamSun 4 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 11 SAM Group Ride Meon HutTue 13 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 18 SAM Group Ride WinchesterTue 20 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 25 SAM Group Ride Wickham

DEC Sat 1 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 2 SAM Group Ride OwerSun 9 SAM Group Ride Meon HutTue 11 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 16 SAM Group Ride WinchesterSun 23 SAM Group Ride WickhamSun 30 SAM Group Ride Ower

JAN Sun 6 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut

MAR Sun 11 SAM Group Ride (Pirbright Twisties) Meon Hut Alec GoreTue 13 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm start with

Andy Ibbot from the California Superbike SchoolSun 18 SAM Group Ride Winchester TBC

Tue 20 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 25 SAM Group Ride Wickham Mark SabinSat 31 New Joiners Ride Ower Ian Cooper

APR Sun 1 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSun 8 SAM Group Ride Meon Hut Mark NichollsTue 10 SAM Club Night Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSat 14 SAM Observers Meeting Sarisbury Green 10.00 amSun 15 SAM Group Ride Winchester Paul NolTue 17 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSun 22 SAM Group Ride Wickham Colin HitchcockSun 29 SAM Group Ride (Dorset) Ower Nigel Grace

MAY Sat 5 SAM Ladies Only Group Ride Wickham Square Hayley Miller Sun 6 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amTue 8 SAM AGM Sarisbury Green 7.30pm for 8pm startSun 13 SAM Group Ride to the Cotswolds Winchester Paul NolTue 15 SAM Committee Meeting Sarisbury Green 7.30pmSat 19 BMF Show PeterboroughSun 20 SAM Group Ride Wickham Gerry Gooch

BMF Show PeterboroughTue 22 Tuesday Evening Group Ride - Winchester & Fareham 7.30pmSun 27 SAM Group Ride Ower Ian Cooper

JUNE Sun 3 SAM Free Assessment Rides/Training Day Sarisbury Green 9.30amSat 9 Sarisbury Green Community Centre Fete Sarisbury GreenSat 9 BMF Garden of England Show KentSun 10 SAM Group Ride Winchester Chris Palmer

BMF Garden of England Show Kent

SAM DIARY OF EVENTS FOR 2007


P A G E 12

p6AltamuraAlert

p8Welshweekendpart II

p10Melle inFrance

p11KilspillsRally

p12MistletoeRun

I N S I D E

MAKINGprogress

Registered Charity No.1097558

T h e I A M A i m sTo improve the standard of driving (and riding)on the UK roads.

The Advancement of Road Safety.

The Administration of an Advanced Test.

Help us make progress with a contribution towards the next issue. Pics in jpeg format please.Newsletter email address is [email protected]

SOLENT ADVANCEDM OTO R C Y C L I S T S

M a r c h 0 7

samS A M S O L E N T A D V A N C E D M O T O R C Y C L I S T S M a r c h 2 0 0 7

Answers via email to:[email protected]

CAPTION COMPETITION:

How do you turn this...............

SAM Polo-shirtsBlack long or short sleeve shirts embroideredwith the Club name - always available to buyat Club Nights. Sizes XXL to Small.Long Sleeves £18.50 Short Sleeves £15.00

Books and VideosThe Assessment of Advanced Motorcycling £4.50

Know your Traffic Signs £3.00

How to be an Advanced Motorcyclist £7.99

Motorcycle Roadcraft (Blue Book) £11.99

Mike Waites Video £14.99

Top Rider Video £14.99

DISCLAIMERMost of the views expressed in this SAM Newsletter are personal to the author and publicationdoes not imply endorsement of any article, any author or any organisation. Views expressed arethose of the authors, and are not necessarily in accordance with the policies or the views of the

IAM or SAM. Where articles are reproduced from other publications or authors, unreservedacknowledgement is given to the source. No responsibility is accepted by the Editor or SAM forany damage to intelligence or riding abilities, howsoever caused, which might result from reading

this publication.

DECEMBER CAPTION COMPETITION WINNER:

OK, but why the ••••

did you have tobring y’mother...!

Dave Tilbury

Contact Kate Davies Tel 01962840954

Mistletoe Runby Paul Nol

Twas a bright and cold Sunday morning when 11 (I think) intrepid soles met at Ower, on their way tosee Father Christmas on the famed Mistletoe charityrun from Swanage seafront to Sandford.

Setting off at a brisk pace wepicked up Nigel who had

been amusing himself frighteningother motorists by sitting in hisblack gear and white helmet onthe bridge over the main road atRingwood. Sad to say, despitepromising a sea crossing, ourintrepid leader (me) hadforgotten to make theSandbanks Ferry a Way Point onthe dreaded Garmin and thedamn thing decided to take usoff on the scenic route toSwanage as it calculated that tobe the fastest way there.

With a bit of help from Nigel weeventually arrived at the sea to

join the merry throng ofassorted motorcycling Santasand other festive folks andparked up to take in the air andobserve the fun whilst weawaited the start. I haven’t heardthe exact count of numbers butthere was well over 100 bikestaking part. We duly set off inconvoy with Police and Marshallscontrolling the junctions to letus glide through, waving to thelocals and children as we past.There was only one casualtyfrom SAM when one of ourgroup’s bike’s broke down andeventually had to be assisted bythe RAC. Arriving at the pub,

which as usual was absolutely heaving, wefound places to park where we couldeasily escape and then queued forrefreshments with the hordes.After lunchand a look around, the majority of uselected to go on to Stockbridge for teaand cakes and had a very pleasant tripacross the hills through Salisbury in thewinter sunshine. Much to the disgust ofseveral of the group, Lily Langtree’s will notserve toasted tea cakes until after 15:30 sowe had to make do with other things! Weended the run there, after searching forChris’ glasses and everybody went theirseparate ways home to put their feet up.

Annual KILSPILLS RALLYstarted from the Ace Cafe

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