Can you believe January has finally come to end, a month that seems to go on long after your money has run out! So what have I been up to? Read on to find out.
New Helmet and Comms.
First up was a new helmet and comms. I had hoped that finances would stretch to a nice Shoei Neotec 3 with built in comms, but in the end, it was just out of reach. However, the James at Infinity Motorcycles in York, put me a great deal together for a new Aria and new Cardo Edge comms. Arai is a make I am well used to, as this helmet will probably be my 10th or 11th Arai. I have tried other makes over the years, but I obviously have an aria shaped head! I also decided to upgrade my comms as most customers/riders now seem to have 'mesh' systems, which it makes it easier to pair and allows larger numbers to be in a talk group together. That said, I still have a helmet with a Cardo Freecom 4 attached, and another helmet with an Interphone Tour fitted, so I pretty much have all options covered. I've used the new helmet and comms a few times already, and have found the helmet to be very comfortable and the comms to work well. Although I find it easier to pair using the buttons, rather than through the app, which seems to have a mind of its own on whether it actually 'finds' my unit or not in the first place!
Training.
You won't be surprised to read that I haven't completed any training in January. I did have a couple of optimistic bookings, but the icy weather and low daytime temps put paid to completing any. Hopefully Februarys weather will be better.
IAM Examining.
Only 1 IAM test conducted and that was a car test, not a bike test. The candidate was Tony in his very nice Skoda Octavia. Tony put in a really good drive, which was safe, legal, smooth and inline with 'the system'. All of which resulted in Tony successfully passing and achieving a 'F1rst' pass grade. Apologies for the picture quality, I'd been having camera phone issues, but I managed to sort them later in the month.
RoSPA Examining.
One RoSPA bike test. The candidate was John on his Triumph 900. It wasn't the nicest of days to be out on a bike, however, despite the tricky conditions, John put in a great ride, which resulted in him passing successfully and being awarded a Gold pass grade. Camera issues sorted for this one.
FireBike.
Both bikes have been serviced, MOT'd and had new tyres, discs and pads fitted in preparation for the season ahead. All the work was completed by the excellent team at Barrie Robson BMW in York.
The team also had a pre-season get together to review last year and look ahead to 2025. Obviously, no winter meeting can commence without the necessary sustenance, so it was pre meeting bacon and sausage sarnies.
Social rides.
Despite there being no training, either commercially or with my local RoSPA group, I still managed a few social rides, but didn't have my first ride of 2025 until the 15th! That just shows how iffy the weather had been. So I was really looking forward to the ride. I met Richard, Carl and John just outside of York and we made our way to the Manor Farm Café at Bellerby. The roads were absolutely filthy, but it was still great to be out on the bike........until I got a puncture! Yes, the first ride of the year, and I got a puncture. Unbelievable! Initially we couldn't find the culprit, but I managed to re-inflate the tyre and limp it to Barrie Robson BMW, where after much drying, wetting, wheel spinning and head scratching, we found the tiniest piece of metal in the tyre. Unfortunately, the hole was in such a place, that it wasn't 'pluggable' so a new rear tyre had to be fitted. Expensive 1st ride of the year! John, Carl and Richard at Manor Farm cafe.
New tyre time.....bugger!
And of course, the inevitable bike cleaning afterwards. My god the bikes were mucky, the worst I've ever seen after just 1 ride.
ADI Part 2.
As some of you may know, I am currently going through the process of obtaining my Approved Driving Instructors qualification. This will allow me to coach advanced driving techniques, and take drivers wishing to become an ADI' through the process of parts 1, 2 and 3. It's fair to say, it took me longer than anticipated to pass the part 1 tests, but Part 2 is a driving test so I was fairly confident. However, this is not an advanced test, but an extended DVSA driving test for wannabe ADIs, so advanced techniques such as 'straight lining' roundabouts or a series of bends is bad, so I had to avoid some techniques I regularly use and have done for years. Plus, the ADI test allows far fewer faults to be accumulated than a standard test. I took the test on Monday 27th, meeting my Examiner at the DVSA test centre just off the M62 at Castleford. Prior to the driving part commencing, I was asked 4 'tell me' questions relating to the vehicle and was then asked to drive off. I have to say, I was very nervous, but felt things were going well. During the test I was asked 2 'show me' questions relating to showing the Examiner how something in the vehicle worked, which were simple enough and we ended back at the test centre approximately 1 hour after setting off. I sat there eagerly awaiting my result and then the Examiner uttered the words all test candidates want to hear "I'm pleased to tell you, that you have passed successfully". Brilliant! The Examiner then debriefed the test and was very complementary about my drive, saying I had committed just 1 minor error throughout the test. Needless to say, I was well chuffed. Next up is Part 3, the instructional part. I'll keep you posted.
My GSA.
Not much to report on the GSA front that you haven't already read. Not many miles, but still needed a new tyre!
Here's my GSA mileage figures for January 2025.
01/1/25 - 24253
31/01/25 - 24573
GSA mileage in January - 320.
FireBike mileage for January - 14! (back and forth to Barrie Robsons BMW)
Total mileages for the year to date;
GSA - 320
FireBike 14
Total for the year as of 31/01/25 - 334.
And that my friends, ends January 2025. Thanks for reading and ride safe.
Ian S
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