2 Guys Ride through London on Custom Bikes

Friend and fellow blogger Ian Solley, of 7 Ages Custom Motorcycles and I went for a ride on our custom motorbikes on Thursday. Ian is a custom bike builder extraordinaire, as he mainly builds bikes for fun and he currently has 6 of them!

We decided to meet at 10.30am in Greenwich. Founded by King Charles II and built in 1675, the Royal Observatory at Greenwich is the home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Prime Meridian of the World, making it the official starting point for each new day, year and millennium. As time is started there, it seemed like an ideal location for Ian and myself to start our motorcycle ride.

















I live just north of London but Greenwich is way over in East London. I had allowed plenty of time to get there, but I was late. London traffic is unpredictable, but predictably it all seemed to be in the same place as me. Combined with the fact that I wasn’t exactly sure where the entrance to the Observatory was and I misjudged its location badly, meant I arrived late. However, as I rode along the Observatory's tree lined avenue, there was Ian - smiling and waiting for me.

Ian had bought one of his latest bikes, called Hamlet. It is a striking light blue bike rigid-framed bike with a Harley-Davidson engine, originally from a Street Bob. It has an S&S carb and the frame and all the sheet metal are to a one-off design. The exhaust pipes are wrapped and having ridden next to it, I can personally vouch for their volume!

The picture above shows the bikes in front of a statue of General Wolfe who commanded the British forces at Quebec against the French and won a great victory, at the cost of his life. The statue was erected in 1930 and bears the inscription “This monument, a gift of the Canadian people, was unveiled by the Marquis de Montcalm”. History lesson over.

Here are some more pictures of the Royal Observatory....






The bikes on the tree-lined avenue

















Part of the observatory














General Wolfe looking out over London










The bikes draw some interest












The view over London with the National Maritime Museum at the bottom of the hill and Canary Wharf in the background




The weather was unseasonably warm – it fact it was a corker of a day – slightly chilly at first but then warm with bright blue skies all day. We had a fantastic ride – no rush, no time to get anywhere, just two guys out riding their bikes. We stopped at Warrs, the Harley-Davidson dealer in Chelsea before eating at a Spanish restaurant just around the corner.

Here is a video we took of the ride .....







As you can see, we tried the camera in many different positions and this was using a new recently acquired mounting clamp. I will write more on this blog soon comparing the different types of mounting clamp available.








Ian in the restuarant













Thanks Ian for a brilliant day out, and for lunch!

You might see some more of Ian and one of his bikes on this blog in the near future – we are both going to the 2010 Harley-Davidson Euro Festival in St Tropez, southern France and no doubt I will be doing a posting or two about that trip.

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Good Job, Snob!

I was out riding my red bike today and a scary thing happened. My front brake lever came off!

Not the whole thing, but the lever itself. The bolt that holds it in place had obviously become loose and had fallen out. Lost somewhere on the road.
















Luckily, I was only doing about 25mph at the time and I managed to prevent the lever itself from falling and I was able to bring the bike to a stop safely.

OK, so I am 25 miles from home, no front brake, I have a ride planned on this bike for tomorrow and at the end of next week the bike is going to St. Tropez in southern France. The hand controls on my bike were made by Arlen Ness in California, so the chances of getting a replacement bolt quickly are pretty slim. Luckily, I was only about 4 or 5 miles from a custom motorcycle builder and service workshop that I knew. Here is their website. The place is called Snobs, called after Snob, a London Chapter Hells Angel that runs the place.

I decided to ride the bike there. Now, I have never ridden a bike without a front brake and it wasn’t until I tried it that I realised how difficult it is. You have to allow for 2 things. Firstly, you only have about 30% of your normal stopping power so taking great care is essential and you have to look ahead a very long way to see what might need you to put on your brakes. Secondly, stopping using the footbrake only whilst preparing to land only your left foot on the ground takes some getting used to – it wasn’t too bad, but you just have to be very cautious, as any hint on leaning to the right and having to put your right foot on the ground would result in no brakes at all!

Anyway, I got there slowly and without incident and I am certainly glad I didn’t have to ride the bike all the way home without a front brake.

The guys at Snobs were nothing short of incredible. Having spent a minute or so looking at the problem, they said that they would make a new bolt to fit and could I wheel the bike road to the workshop so they could take some measurements. Sure!






The new bolt had to fit in a hole in the underside of the hand controls




It took no more than about 30 minutes to turn and make the bolt – what an incredible service. To them it was straightforward, but to me it was a piece of engineering that you just don’t see in many places anymore. This wasn’t a normal bolt with a hexagonal top – it needed a round top that had to go into a recessed hole to hide it. This is a real workshop where they make things, not just bolt things together. They even made me a cup of tea!

Half an hour later I was on my way. I have nothing but admiration and praise for those guys. Real engineers.

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Goosenecks are so wide ....

In researching places to visit on my tour, I found a photo of Goosenecks State Park and I think I said wow as I looked at the picture.








Goosenecks State Park is all about one thing – the deep meanders of the San Juan river. Millions of years ago the land slowly rose and the river cut a remarkable chasm into the rock, forming an incredible series of curving meanders. I had to include this on my tour, but I was already worried about being able to take such a spectacular looking photo as this with my regular 17-55mm lens.



I had a hankering for a new gadget, so last week I jumped on the train to Central London and purchased myself a new lens – a fisheye! This goes by the snappy name of the .... Nikon 10.5MM F2.8G AF DX IF-ED FISHEYE-NIKKOR. It sort of trips off the tongue, doesn’t it!





It is a spectacular lens and I had to try it straight away. Here are a few test shots.... I can’t wait to use it on the tour.....

The very first picture I took with my new lens - the front of the British Museum in London

Another wide shot with the fisheye of the front of the British Museum

The same shot, but taken with a standard lens

The interior of the British Museum. The roof was built by the firm I helped to run

My local railway viaduct, with a train crossing

I think the key with this lens will be not to use it too often.

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Boys will be Boys....

Earlier today I watched a video made by fellow blogger bobskoot whose blog goes by the name of Wet Coast Scootin.

Bob is a nice chap, who is inventive, knowledgeable and very helpful in many new areas that I am not very accomplished in (blogland, videos, electrics, to name a few).

Today though, I have to give him a bit of a ticking off, for he is endangering life and (especially) limb. His limb. Or more accurately, his feet. If you take a look at the link above you will see what I mean – just check out the video.

Well, this got me thinking that to act in this way, Bob must have been pretty reckless as a boy. You know the type – always taking things apart, finding insects to dissect, playing with fireworks, and so on. This conjured some images in my mind, that I remembered seeing previously so I searched them out and have re-produced them below. These have absolutely nothing to do with motorbikes or touring the USA, but I thought you might like to see them.

If you are a guy, which one of these most reminds you of your own childhood? If you are a woman, I bet you remember seeing some things like these.....

If you have seen them before, I am sure you won't mind seeing them again.

Enjoy.













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Lightweight vs Heavy Boots

I enjoy walking. One of the things I expect to do a considerable amount of when on my tour of the USA is to walk. I can picture stopping my bike, grabbing my camera and walking to explore and to take pictures. When I have done this before, footwear has sometimes been an issue, for to walk any distance in typical motorcycle boots is, well, a pain.

The heavy boots that are good for giving you protection on a bike are frankly useless for walking in, especially in the summer as the temperatures rise. Here are my normal riding boots, which I have had for years. Okay for walking short distances, but no good for anything longer.







My Normal Heavy Riding Boots














So, I have been trying to decide what boots to wear on my tour. As I will be travelling from June to October, the weather should generally be good, with only light rain (please!). During my 2 week motorcycle trip to California last May, I wore my regular heavy riding boots and I suffered in the heat. So, I have decided to go for a compromise between boots that give some protection but are very lightweight.

On Monday this week I decided to give myself a birthday present – new lightweight riding boots. Here they are....






New Boots









As you can see, not your regular riding boots. These are made by Alpinestars and are nearer to a shoe than a boot. They describe them as “this range of footwear offers a modern, casual look, while offering superior levels of protection and abrasion resistance. Constructed using synthetic leather, the shoe offers waterproof performance making it the ultimate, urban, riding shoe for all occasions.” As I said, a sort of a cross between giving some protection and being comfortable. And comfortable they are too.

Now, I just know that some of my readers are going to say that these won’t give the full protection needed on a bike.... and yes, I know this is true. But, I am a realist. Last May, I often left my heavy riding boots in my saddlebags, preferring instead to wear something really flimsy because it was just too hot to wear the heavy boots and that was the only other footwear I had with me. I would rather have something that is a good compromise between some protection and comfort, hence my new acquisition.

And before you suggest it, no I don’t want to carry two pairs of boots with me....!

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Visitor Motorcycle Insurance for the USA

One of the things you will need to arrange for any motorcycle trip in the USA is temporary motorcycle insurance.

If you are renting a bike, this will almost certainly be arranged on your behalf by the organisation you are renting the bike from. This was certainly the case in 2009 when a group of us rented bikes from EagleRider, one of the largest rental companies in the US. HOG Fly & Ride does the same. Both have standard arrangements and standard plans for insurance and it is really simple – the renter does all the work and you ask the right questions, sign the forms and pay your money. Done.

If like me you are taking your own motorcycle to the US, then putting insurance in place is slightly more complicated. Finding insurance companies that do this isn’t easy, but I found one that specialises in this type of insurance. They are called Motorcycle Express and essentially the cater for foreign nationals touring in the United States and Canada.

They can arrange different types of policy....

.... Motorcycle shipping
.... Motorcycle insurance
.... Roadside Assistance and emergency towing
.... Travel medical insurance
.... Trip cancellation insurance
.... Emergency medical evacuation (ambulances etc)
.... Insurance in other countries

They have an online system that is fairly easy to use, but you do need to read what they say carefully. I am not talking here about the small print, but the large print! The issue here is that the words and terminology used by US insurance companies are quite different from similar firms here in the UK and probably elsewhere as well. I went through the whole process of getting an online quote and then realised (thanks to my American wife) that I had mis-understood a few things.

In the UK, the main part of a motorcycle insurance quote is centred around covering any damage to your bike caused by an accident, or theft or fire. This is different with Motorcycle Express in that the quote puts Bodily Injury, Property Damage and Uninsured Motorists as their first priorities. This is not a problem, but just be aware that the US has different terminology to other countries and if you are not sure, then ask them what each type of cover is for. I nearly ended up with an insurance policy that didn’t cover my bike!

I also took out their Roadside Assistance and emergency towing policy. As I have a Harley, I also already have the Harley roadside assistance service called HOG Assistance and I am told this covers me when I am in the USA. However, in some of the more remote parts of the US, I want to be able to get help quickly, so being a cautious type, I took out the additional policy.

Of course, unlike Europe, nearly all medical services in the USA need to be paid for, so taking out travel medical insurance is an absolute must. I certainly did. It isn’t cheap.

Overall the costs of these insurances is expensive. These are the ball park figures for my 5 months trip....

Motorcycle insurance, including bodily injury, property damage etc. $1200
Travel medical insurance (includes evacuation) $975
Roadside assistance and towing – about $50

Here is a link to the Motorcycle Express website

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I went for a ride in London yesterday....

The sun was out, the skies were blue, the temperature was warm. What a perfect day for a ride!

I wanted to test my GoPro camera in a city, so I chose London - My City. I was born here and have lived here all my life. So I fixed the camera to the bike, checked I had a full battery and I headed south into Central London.

I love My City. It is so lively, so full of things to do and see. So full of culture and the arts. So full of magnificent buildings. So full of life.

Yesterday, so full of traffic!!! So full of tourists!!! The latter were nice to see. The former wasn’t.

I have cut down 2 hours of film into the highlights of the ride. Squeezing London into 10 minutes isn’t easy, but I enjoyed the ride and making the video. I hope you enjoy watching it.

You will see a few things worthy of a small note....

The Amphibious Tour Bus is called The Duck. It is unlike any other bus tour in London as after driving on the streets for a while, it plunges into the River Thames!

You will see Horseguards Parade, which is a large square often used for Royal and State occasions. This is going to be the location for the Beach Volleyball in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

The London Eye is 135 metres (442 ft 11 in) in diameter and is the largest observation wheel in the world. It has become the most popular tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over three million people in one year. The construction management company I used to be a director of built the London Eye. It was quite a challenge!

At the end of the video is Tower Bridge, which I rode across. The wide angle lens of the GoPro makes it look squat. It is actually taller than it appears.

Lane splitting is legal in the UK. Just in case you were wondering.

I know there doesn’t seem like there is much traffic in the video. Believe me, there was – I simply didn’t include it in the final video!

I think the camera performed well. The only problem was I wrapped a strip of cloth around the handlebars to protect it when I fixed the camera. This has caused a “bounce” effect when I rode over bumps. A lesson learned.

For the best effect, turn your volume up!

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