Well, Februarys weather definitely battered us from pillar to post with storms Franklin, Dudley, and Eunice, all doing their best to disrupt planned training. Fortunately, all was not lost, so here's what I got up to. Training As mentioned above, the various storms put paid to some planned training but two customers still managed to beat the weather. First up was Mark on his BMW GS. Mark has recently returned to biking after a long break and despite the very changeable weather, still rode very well, successfully completing the DVSA approved Enhanced Rider Scheme.
Next up was Pete on his Yamaha 700 Tenere. Pete completed a BikeSafe event in 2021 and is now looking to progress his post test training further. As you can see, Pete got a gloriously sunny day for his training!
RoSPA Training - Advanced Riders North Yorkshire February saw me return to Tutoring with my local RoSPA group. I have been part of the group since 2013 and spent 6 years as the groups Training Officer, before standing down from the role in 2021. Despite the weather in February, I still managed a few Saturdays, along with a few other hardy souls who braved the cold and windy weather.
Social ride
On the 11th February I arranged to meet up with Dave (V4 Multistrada) and Chris (Ducati Hypermotard) for a social ride. We met at Strawberry Fields Cafe and got chatting to another biker, Stuart, who was out on his VFR800. After a brief chat, Stuart was invited to join us and the 4 of us headed off towards the coast and had a very enjoyable coffee and cake stop at the café at the Spirit of Yorkshire Distillery near Filey. Thoroughly enjoyable day, if a little cold and I should point out that no alcohol was consumed during the visit!
Versys update The Versys was back at 5-Ways Motorcycle Centre in February for an issue with the cruise control which had stopped working. The issue turned out to be a fault with the rear brake switch, which meant the rear brake light was staying on so the cruise control wouldn't engage. The problem appeared to be solved but it reappeared at the end of the month, so the bike is booked in again on 11th March. Free Tyres! Who doesn't like a freebie! Back in October 2021 I took part in an article for RiDE Magazine and as the feature was published in the mag, I received a free set of Metzeler tyres. Result!
Motorcycle News I managed to pop up in MCN in February, it was a photo from one of the January ARNY rides.
Previous Bikes - Honda CB900 - 1982 Last month I told you about my first bike, a CB250 Superdream. Well, that generated quite a bit of interest, so I thought I'd follow it up with my next bike, a Honda CB900 in 1982. I got the bike from Hull Motorcycle Centre in Hull and paid £2,200 brand new for it. I'd ordered a silver bike but when it arrived it was in 1983 colours, so was more a graphite metallic with gold reversed Comstar wheels. It looked mint!! Unlike the Superdream, the CB900 was never messed about with and stayed completely standard during my ownership. Here's me at 18 years old, one piece leathers, AGV helmet, Ashman boots and turned-over 'fishermans' socks.....a true style icon!
I have to say that I loved that CB900 and it was a model I would return to in the future, owning 3 in total. In fact, I still have a massive soft spot for them and at some point in the future would love to buy and restore one.....with Kims permission of course!
And that my friends, completes Februarys round up.
Thanks for reading and stay safe.
Ian S