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The BMW Club
JOURNAL
£2.00
March 2006
2
BMW Club Journal • March 2006
HONORARY EDITORIAL TEAM
Please send all letters to Paul Nadin,
Mutual Aid to Owen Vaughan, features
Dave Bertram. All other correspondence
or queries should be sent to the Editor.
EDITOR: CHRIS FLEMING, 58 Janes Lane, Burgess Hill, West Sussex. RH15 0QR. Tel/Fax:
01444 245367. e-mail: [email protected]
SECTION NEWS & ‘COMPASS’: Please send to
the Editor at present.
FEATURES EDITOR : DAVE BERTRAM “Kimberley”, 4 Southcrest, West Hunsbury, Northampton, NN4 9UD. Tel/fax 01604 479749. e-mail:
[email protected]
MARKETING MANAGER : ROB PEARCE 16
Forestfield, Horsham, RH13 6DZ. Tel/fax 01403
754912 e-mail [email protected]
TORQUE REACTION: PAUL NADIN, 49, Berkshire Drive, Congleton, Cheshire. CW12 1SB.
e-mail: [email protected]
MUTUAL AID & SMALL BUSINESS ADS: OWEN
VAUGHAN, 16 South Meadows, Pembroke,
Pembs. SA71 4EW. Tel 01646 683188. e-mail:
[email protected]
DIARY OF EVENTS: GORDON CATCHPOLE,
Avenida de las Especias 58, Pinar de
Campoverde, 03190 Pilar de la Horadada,
Alicante, Spain. Tel/fax: (0034) 966762893. email: [email protected]
COMMERCIAL DISPLAY ADS: ROB PEARCE
16 Forestfield, Horsham, RH13 6DZ. Tel/fax:
01403 754912 e-mail
[email protected]
TECHNICAL OFFICER: MIKE FISHWICK, Sirgon,
24250
Daglan,
France.
e-mail:
[email protected]
100,000 MILE AWARDS: BOB HARRISON, 251
Preston Road, Coppull. PR7 5DS. Tel: 01257
793209 e-mail:[email protected]
DISCLAIMER
The BMW Club Journal accepts for publication articles and
letters written in good faith; however, the views expressed
in articles and letters which are published are not
necessarily those of the editor of the Journal or those of
the BMW Club or its officers or members.
The information, including advice and suggested
modifications published in the The BMW Club Journal has
not been approved, tested or otherwise checked by The
BMW Club Journal or the BMW Club. Before acting on
information, advice or suggested modifications published
in The BMW Club Journal you should always obtain technical
advice, and if appropriate have a professional motor-cycle
engineer carry out the work for you.
The BMW Club Journal and the BMW Club cannot accept
liability for any loss, damage or claims occurring as a
result of any modifications or work or other action carried
out on the advice or based on the suggestions given in any
article or letter published in The BMW Club Journal and
(save for death or personal injury arising from The BMW
Club Journal’s negligence) all such liability is hereby
excluded.
The BMW Club Journal is published for and on behalf of
the B.M.W. Motorcycle Club Ltd.
The BMW Motorcycle Club Ltd, the BMW Club Journal, It’s
Editor and Officers accept no liability in respect of loss or
damage occasioned directly or indirectly as a result of the
publication of any advertisement in The BMW Club Journal
The Journal
March 2006
The Official BMW Club
within the UK and
Republic of Ireland
www.bmwclub.org.uk
General Enquiries: 0800 0854045
FREEPOST THE BMW CLUB
The BMW Club is the Trading name of The B.M.W.
Motorcycle Club Ltd Registered in England, Registration
number 4261129 whose Registered Office: Charter Court,
Midland Road, Hemel Hempstead, Herts, HP2 5GE
All Rights Reserved
For problems regarding distribution of the Journal please first contact your Section Secretary.
Should there still be a problem then contact the
membership secretary. Their details are listed on
page 6.
CONTENTS
Editorial Freewheeling.............................. 4
National and Section Officers...............
6
President’s Platform.........................
7
Torque Reaction ............................
8
Where We Meet...........................
65
Section News.............................
66
Social and Register Secretaries........
66
Mutual Aid......................................
76
Featured this month :
Post /5 Toolhire Procedure ...............
The Ultimate Turntable ......................
In Search of the Lost Vowel ..............
Baglux Seat Review ..........................
The Last BMW ..................................
Phil & Pam’s European Adventure ......
Eighties Sidestands ...........................
NATIONAL EVENTS 2006 .....................
Its A Dog’s Life ( part 1 of 3 ) .............
15
18
21
27
29
33
38
46
50
This months cover photo :
John Thompson’s R80GS on tour in Germany. I see
no dogs ...
3
Editorial
Freewheeling
Lots of members contacted me last month
enquiring on the lines of “where is /what’s
happened to my Journal ?”. Gentlemen (and
lady) I refer you to Our Membership
Secretary’s note on p82. of the January
Journal : giving notice that the February
Journal would be delayed to allow our
renewal systems time to process late
renewals. May I also remind everyone that,
as shown on the previous page, “For
problems regarding distribution of the
Journal please first contact your Section
Secretary. Should there still be a problem
then contact the membership secretary.”
The editorial wallet has taken a beat of a
beating recently as Februrary heralded the
K12LT’s annual service and its insurance
renewal. Both occasions turned out to be
less traumatic and expensive than I expected
: although I ended up renewing with eBike,
our regular Journal advertisers’ quotes came
very close indeed, and all were WAY under
the premium that BMW / Devitt wanted. As I
didn’t need either the multi-bike or the
breakdown and recovery services that are
offered by our advertisers (my BMW Approved
Used Bike Warranty is still in force - the cost
of THAT being is being examined as we
speak) I went with eBike. However the old
adages still apply : “shop around”, and “pay
your money and take your choice”.
The K12LT’s service didn’t reveal any
unpleasantness, the bike passed its MOT
and with all its fluids, filters and plugs
replaced ( a similar thing should have
happened to me by the time you read this )
we should now be more than ready for the
the 2006 season. During the K’s time in the
dock, the dealer allowed me to play with their
R1200RT demo bike and much to my
surprise - being a K-stalwart - I found myself
4
very impressed indeed. Compared to the
R1150RT I had a few years back, the
improvements in the R12RT’s overall
handling and responsiveness were
immediately apparent to me. The rider’s
standard seat wasn’t too uncomfortable unlike the R1150RT’s ! - and like the K12LT,
being heated it meant the cold (-6 degrees
on occasion) was barely noticeable. I
couldn’t really get used to the R1150RT in
the year that I had it, however if I was forced
to give up my much-loved K, the R1200RT
really would be an acceptable replacement!
I’ve also had some enquiries about the
K1200LT-with-outriggers, a photo of which
slipped onto the much-discussed page 82
of the December 2005 Journal. All I can tell
you is that the photo was originally published
on the www.motoring.co.za site on 03
November 2005 by Les Stephenson
“Japanese design studio Phiaro showed this
bizarre add-on at the Tokyo auto show – a
BMW K1200 LT tourer with training wheels!
Apparently the wheels are meant to take the
place of a normal side or centre stand. They
are electro-mechanically operated by means
of an electric motor and short chains and can
be deployed at the touch of a button on the
handlebars as the rider coasts to a stop.”
Someone in the editorial team who shall be
nameless thought it would be a good idea if
my bike was fitted with these as I’m clearly
getting too feeble - mentally, as well as
physically - to cope with the intricacies and
complications involved in putting the Journal
together. They may have a point.
Continuing on the theme of editorial
incompetence, I should have acknowledged
that the January 2006 cover photo showing
an R1150 in Switzerland in early June was
submitted by Petar Vidakovic of the Ride With
Us organised motorcycle holidays company,
who are one of our regular advertisers.
Also the club’s Easter Weekend at St Audries
Bay should have been publicised last month
- we’ve made up for this month - and has
anyone actually solved the Christmas
crossword? If so, can they let me have a
copy of their solution for printing !
ALAN CLARK
Advancing years bring few advantages
other than perhaps a state pension, an
occasional pensioner’s lunch and, if
you’re lucky a free TV licence.
Sadly Alan never had the chance to
enjoy any of these “benefits” of old age
because he passed away during the
early hours of 21st January having lost
his fight with motor neurone disease.
He was 57.
Typically he had refused to accept the
general medical view that nothing
could be done and subjected himself
to several weeks of traumatic stem
cell treatment in a Chinese hospital.
Tragically, on his return, further
unrelated medical problems conspired
to end his hopes of a recovery.
He had been driven to the Northern
Section meeting on 8th January by his
wife Margaret, in his newly acquired
wheelchair converted vehicle. Though
he was obviously very ill, few present
on that day would have believed it was
the last time they would see Alan. Such
is the alarming rate at which this
cruellest of diseases can progress.
The monumental effort it must have
taken to attend that last gathering says
it all about the courage of the man.
Alan loved his wheels, particularly his
blue R80RS which carried himself and
Margaret on many trips around Europe
over a decade or so. The trio of Alan,
Bob Vass and Neil Sagar, in the guise
of Team
Stupid,
competed
enthusiastically in several National
Rallies. Alan had a long term
involvement with the Liverpool Slot Car
Club which he maintained to the end.
He also loved his wings and was a
qualified pilot.
His day jobs included Art Director in
the advertising world, teaching Graphic
Design and latterly he functioned as a
BSM driving school instructor.
Alan put his heart and soul into our
club. Following a spell as Assistant
Editor, he became Editor for some 7
years, during which time he effected
the change from the steam driven era
to computer technology. In his role as
Northern Section PR Officer he
designed the current Diary of Events
and was responsible for the new club
logo, chosen from several designs he
had submitted to the National
Committee.
Alan was a modest man, a good
listener and was liked and respected
by everyone who met him. He spoke
with a quiet authority, as anyone
attending a National AGM would testify.
He will be sorely missed.
Our heartfelt condolences and best
wishes go out to Margaret. We do
hope you won’t lose touch with your
friends in the BMW Club.
Alan had of course continued to think
positively in spite of his illness and
renewed his membership for 2006.
What a lesson to us all.
JOHN YATES
5
National Officers & Section Secretaries
HONORARY NATIONAL OFFICERS
PRESIDENT: TONY MOORES, 54 Lingmoor Drive
Manor Park, BURNLEY, BB12 8UY. Tel/Fax: 01282
421628. e-mail: [email protected]
SECRETARY:STEVE SHEPLEY, Tulloch Mor
Tullynessle Aberdeenshire AB33 8DD Tel 01795
564199 e-mail: [email protected]
TREASURER: DEREK JOHNSON, 32 Eason Drive,
Radley Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 3YD Tel:
01235 532622. Fax: 01235 539689
ASSISTANT TREASURER: BOB BARKER, 88
Browns Bay Road. Islandmagee, Larne BT40 3RX
Phone 028 9338 2558Mobile
07770 746627
eMail
[email protected]
SOCIAL SECRETARY: GARTH FORBES, 9
Conyngham Road, NORTHAMPTON, NN3 9TA. email: [email protected]
MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY: DICK BOYD, Stewart
Place, Garmouth IV32 7LX. Tel: 01343 870389,
Fax:
01343
870591.
e-mail:
[email protected]
POST/5 TOOL HIRE SECRETARY: MIKE
DELACOE, 4 Charwelton Road, Preston Capes,
Daventry. NN11 3TA. 01327 360945.e-mail
[email protected]
PRE/5 TOOL HIRE SEC: PETER DUNN, 101Station Road, Thatcham, Berks.RG19 4QH Tel: 07941
REGALIA SECRETARY: JEAN COX, 22
Combermere, Thornbury, Bristol. BS35 2ET. 01454
VINTAGE & CLASSIC REGISTER SECRETARY:
MALCOLM McNAIR, 27 Syon Gardens, Newport
Pagnell, Bucks, MK16 0JU Tel: 01908 216623 email: [email protected]
SPORTING REGISTER SECRETARY: ROBERT
BENSLEY, Oak Tree Farm, Heath Road, Banham
NR16 2HS. Tel: 01953 888415 (+fax) e-mail:
[email protected]
HONORARY SECTION SECRETARIES
East Anglia: CLIFF BATLEY, 46 Nemans Rd., Sudbury,
Suffolk, CO10 1UA. Tel: 0178-7378064 e-mail:
[email protected]
Irish: JAMES CONNOLLY, Landenstown, Sallins, Kildare,
Ireland.
Tel:
0035345868638.
e-mail:
[email protected]
London: NICK FRY, 4 Newbury Close, Chancellors
Road, STEVENAGE,Herts. SG1 4TE. Tel: 01438 749
Mercia: RAY SMITH, 1,Parsons Close, Church Gresley,
Derbyshire. DE11 9NQ. Tel: 01283 551915.
e-mail:
[email protected]
Midland: ROB HARVEY, 33 Rochester Court, Bourne,
Lincs PE10 9EW Tel: 01778393187
North East: ANN WRAY, Hoge Veluwe, 19 Greenhills
Byers Green, Spennymoor, Co. Durham. DL16 7QJ.
Tel: 01388 605764 e-mail: [email protected]
Northern: BERNARD J. TAGG, 349 Tag Lane, Ingol,
Preston. PR2.3XA. tEL: Tel: 01772.466205 E-MAIL: Email:
[email protected]
Oxford: TIM READ, 15 The Limes, South Cerney,
Cirencester, Glos. GL7 5RF. Tel. 01285 869 320. e-mail
[email protected]
Scottish: JASON GOODWILL, 3 Upper Burnside Court,
Thurso, Caithness. KW14 7XT. Tel: 01847893935.
South East: BRIAN SHEARS, 100 Park Avenue,
Northfleet DA11 8DL. Tel. & Fax: 01474 566142. e-mail:
[email protected]
Southern: GREG SMITH, 2 Claudius Gardens, Chandlers
Ford, Hants. SO53 2NY. 02380 251146. e-mail:
[email protected]
South West: LESLIE MADGE Glenthorne Cheriton
Bishop Exeter Devon EX6 6JA Tel 01647 24523 e-Mail
[email protected]
Ulster: BOB BARKER, 88 Browns Bay Rd., Islandmagee,
Larne, Co., Antrim. BT40 3RX. Tel: 02890 777490. email: [email protected]
Western: RON ELMSLIE, 8 Cleeve Lawns, Downend,
Bristol. BS16 6HJ. Tel no: 0117 9569209 e-mail:
[email protected]
Yorkshire: DAVID MILNE 132 Sandgate Drive, Kippax,
Leeds LS25 7QR Tel: 0113 2860604
HQ Register: TONY PAINTER, 101 Gillards, Bishops
Hull, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 5HJ. Tel: 01823253897.
Fax: 08700514267. e-mail: [email protected]
SIDECAR REGISTER SECRETARY: VACANT
ASS. SEC. FOR AMERICA: BRUCE PRESTON
WEBMASTER: GREG SMITH,
[email protected]
e-mail:
VICE-PRESIDENTS: BRUCE PRESTON, 0208 979
1555 e-mail: [email protected].
CYNTHIA MILTON, not available at present
DELEGATES to other ORGANISATIONS
BMF: TONY CARTMELL, DEREK JOHNSON, JEFF
DYMOND, RICHARD POWELL and PETER MAPES
BMW Club Europa: PETER DUNN
FBHVC: M McNAIR
DVLA: BRIAN PRICE
TONY CARTMELL, 28 Houseman Place, Blackpool. FY4 5AE Tel: 01253 768421. Email:
[email protected]
Please restrict any calls or enquiries to these Club officials to between the hours of
10 am and 10 pm, and let the Editor know if any of these details need amendment
6
President’s
Platform
It’s not a bad start to the year when you can
visit your sections New Year do, enjoy a plate
full of hot pot (or two) and then win first prize
in the raffle! (The cleaning kit should prove
useful) This also illustrates the time scale
needed for journal copy for this March edition
and the difficulty of keeping ‘current’ with
some issues. BMW also seem to have some
catch up problems and when I recently
received a ‘Quality monitoring at BMW has
revealed enhancements that your motorcycle
would benefit from’ letter from BMW Motorrad
I booked the bike in at my
dealer and a few days latter
arrived for the mods. During
my sit and wait stay the phone
was constantly ringing due to
owners making similar
appointments for various
‘latest levels of technology.’ In
my case a fuel seal was
replaced and adjustments
made to indicator and hazard
warning light response times.
I still marvel at the technology
involved with modern bikes
and the ability to be able to reprogram and fine-tune
systems. When they work
they’re great, but when they
don’t! I haven’t a problem with the service
campaign and appreciate the updates, but I
know of members who feel aggrieved that
their bike should require these mods and
see the recalls as some admission of failure.
You will always win and lose some, but that’s
life!
My concerns relating to the workload placed
on club volunteers were illustrated during the
New Year period when our recently appointed
Commercial Display Ads Manager resigned
for personal reasons. This important post
involves liaising with our advertising clients,
doing deals, and accounting for the business
accrued. The income generated is crucial to
the financial well being of the club and we
owe ‘retired’ ads manger Rob Pearce a big
thank you for stepping into the breach on a
temporary basis. As our recently appointed
Marketing Manager, Rob had just started to
work on deals and discounts for members
and it appeared plans made were now on
hold.
Finding a volunteer with the PC and
necessary skills for the post seemed a
daunting task, but to the relief of the team the
phones began to ring. I’m keen on all club
officers having a back up to cover such
eventualities and to have a possible
replacement to hand when needed, with luck
this option might also be covered.
I often hear club officials criticised, that’s easy,
but to actually play a part in progressing the
club takes commitment. Should volunteers
cease to come forward then the day will come
when our growing club has
to take the step to employ
someone to secure its future,
lets hope we can defer that
day for as long as possible.
If you don’t plan to change,
you plan to fail!
The club AGM takes place on
8 th April in Chorley and VP
Tony Cartmell and team are
busy
finalising
event
arrangements. BMW GB will
have some new bikes for us
to look at, and with a dinner
and talk planned during the
evening you have yet another
reason to attend the event.
The club owes many past
members a debt of gratitude for giving their
time to voluntary posts and non more than
Alan Clark who for seven years acted as
journal Editor and in his capacity as a graphic
designer produced the design we chose as
The BMW Club logo. Alan died on 21 st
January following a debilitating illness. He
continued to support the club attending the
2005 AGM and the recent northern section
New Year meeting in a wheelchair. His
obituary is elsewhere in this journal, and I
shall miss him.
Safe riding. Tony Moores.
7
Torque
Reaction
Man’s Best Friend
I was somewhat amused to see Robbie and
myself gracing the front cover of the February
Journal! Please credit the pic. to Matthew
and Anne Anderson who took it at the Rally of
Discovery in Wales in May 2005.
For those who don’t know of this event, the
Rally of Discovery was originally started by
Philip Gunn in Ireland a number of years ago
as an opportunity to visit off the beaten tracks
(and sometimes obscure) points of interest,
and to socialise with other like-minded
individuals. I first attended in 2004 in West
Yorkshire, and again last year in mid Wales.
The event is huge fun and aims to include off
road riding or tarmac (mostly) only if you prefer.
The going is as difficult or as easy as you
would like, it’s up to you. The off road bits
invariably include mud and lots of water!
Sadly I can’t make the 2006 Rally in Crete
due to work commitments.
Robbie unfortunately has since passed away.
His most favourite enjoyment (apart from
nipping unsuspecting ankles) was to be out
riding in the tank bag on the R80 G/S, or
running alongside up the green lanes. I now
March 5th is the deadline
for the April 2006 Journal.
Send letters or e-mails to
Paul Nadin, his details are
on page 3.
have Rosie, another rescue Jack Russell,
who is currently undergoing CBT.
I must make amends for my own error and
omission in 2005 when I failed to
acknowledge and thank all who contacted
me re. a starting conundrum problem
published in the Journal in early 2005.
Problem was simply within the starter button
assembly which needed dismantling,
cleaning and re-greasing prior to reassembly. I now have a spare starter motor
and relay, as I was convinced the problem
lay in there………
Finally, I enclose another pic. of Robbie on a
green lane near Eyam, Derbys. taken
September 2005. Please credit Simon
Shariff with this.
Thanks again to all Officers, Helpers and
Members for a great Club and Journal. The
warts and foibles that some have to criticise
are just part of the character which make the
whole just that more personal and enjoyable.
After all, none of us is perfect, like the bikes
………….
Nick Dulk
Northern Section
Editor’s note
As you may recall last month’s cover
showed Robbie sitting comfortably
in Nick’s’s tankbag. Several
members have pointed out in
emails and website postings that
this isn’t the most sensible
approach to dog/bike transport.
Maybe Touratech, Caberg or
Schuberth can come up with
something more appropriate? ( ! )
Farewell, Robbie. Roam - or even
ride - free !
8
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9
More Questions
IOM TT Week Meeting
Happy New Year everyone! May your BMs
give you much enjoyment. I have been
accused of ‘raking over old embers’ in my
previous offerings, but I do enjoy reading the
responses and letters from other members.
My raising of the ‘Counter-Steering’ issue was
really good value. I can repeat that I DO
understand the EFFECTS of it but was lacking
a qualified explanation. Thanks to all those
who responded. I have a couple of questions
to put before you:1) I have four vehicles (two vans, a camper,
and now just one bike...1150GS) and,
according to my GPS every one has an
optimistic speedo to the tune of about 10%.
Friend’s vehicles seem to show the same
disparity. Is this an industry norm? (Maybe to
reduce speeding?)
2) I have just bought a System 5 helmet, and
recently saw someone with ‘GS’ insignias
and flashes on his. It looked very effective.
Does anyone know where these can be
bought?
With regard to the technical features on
modern BMs. Whilst I do agree that the bikes
are becoming too technical and my gut
reaction is to seek out a more basic machine.
On the other hand, these advancements have
been roughly at the same rate as my declining
interest in ‘messing’ with bikes. Sorry! It’s
my age.
As to the support (or lack of it) for club events.
Members will always give and take what they
want from a club. People join for different
reasons. They’re members, it’s their
prerogative. BUT, please don’t underestimate
the comradeship and interest that there is
‘out there’. Many BM owners are singular
creatures (that’s possibly why they bought
BM), but I have had so many friendly and
interesting conversations with members,
generally in isolated places, including views
expressed about these pages.
I’m an enthusiastic member and applaud
your efforts.
Dear Bernard Tagg of the Northern Section,
you may recall an article I wrote in the August
2005 issue of the ‘Journal’ asking about the
possibility of a club meeting at the IOM.TT
2006. You kindly replied to my article by
saying (in the September issue) that the
island members were holding an inaugural
meeting on 16 August 2005, and also said
that ‘ it would be nice if this group were able
to arrange a special meet during TT week’.
Would it be possible to let me and other
members know if the meeting was a success
and, if so, was any ground made towards a
meeting during TT week 2006?
I would also like to thank Harvey and Dorrie
Garton from the IOM for the answer to my
question of what happened to the IOM BMW
International Assembly.
Looking forward to meeting some members
in June.
Ralph Philips (Western Section)
One Answer to the Key Problem
I am one of those people who carry all their
keys together. As a result of this I was finding
that on occasion during a ride they would work
their way under the handlebars, thus making
the withdrawal of the ignition key very difficult.
I assume that other people have experienced
the same problem.
The answer that I have found is to obtain a
piece of Perspex (preferably black) about
55mm wide and 90mm long. Then, using a
heat gun, shape it to clip over the handlebars
between the clamps, thus finishing up with a
piece of around 55mm wide, 30mm top and
30 mm sides. This blocks the space beneath
the bar and stops the problem.
Hope it helps.
Martin Stimson (Northern Section)
Pete Fisher (Mercia Section)
10
11
Help With Mirrors
Some Comments from Lagos
Could I please via Torque Reaction thank all
the members who gave ideas/advice
regarding rear view mirrors on my 1981
R100RS.
I eventually settled on fitting Kawasaki ZX750
mirrors as outlined on www.wlsolutions.com/
bmw/. What an improvement, highly
recommended.
Whilst I am blithering on does any member
know of a paint match for my smoked red
BM? I have tried Motorworks to no avail, and
Motobins, order no.97604, are out of stock.
All I need is to ‘touch up’ scratches etc. Any
ideas?
Safe riding.
Niall Maclean (Llandudno)
With regard to Torque Reaction in the January
edition of the journal I would like to make the
following comments.
I like the idea of a Stay at Home 2006 Rally, it
appeals to me and I dare say a lot of other
club members. I could stand a chance of
winning this trophy and my slogan is,” I love
my sofa because it is 3500 miles away from
my K75.”
Whilst I do not disagree with most of Mr.
Devey’s comments I, in fact, like his style in
both tone and content. However, could the
editor limit Mr. Devey’s letters to 4 pages or
give him a section of his own! ( No. Ed. (!) )
Along with the various members commenting
upon their preferred and ideal requirements
for a motorcycle, my only considerations are
something that thrives on neglect, and is not
worth stealing.
In the January journal I notice the subject of
attracting more and younger members is
again raised. May I comment from a personal
social and historical perspective. I have now
reached another milestone in my life, no
doubt along with many other club members.
I have become a granddad, and I now fit the
perceived image (pipe and slippers) of a BM
club member. However, and again in
common with a lot of other club members
this has happened with the passing of time
and not with the choice of motorcycle.
I first met our former and very capable
president Mike Warrilow and his lovely,
charming, and supportive wife Peta
around1968 at a Midland Section ride out to
Crich Tramway Museum. At that time we were
all a lot younger, so I am not quite sure where
this corporate mission of attracting younger
riders comes from. If, as a manufacturer,
BMW Ltd wish to target a specific social or
age group for their motorcycles then in a free
market economy they can do so. As a “club” I
feel we should, if it is considered desirable,
attract people who have a common interest
in motorcycles, motorcycling, and a specific
interest in BMWs. Age should not be an issue.
Keep up the good work and safe riding.
The other Dave Williamson
South East Section. Lagos, Nigeria.
Thanks to Mike Fishwick
Just a quick note to say a huge thanks for
your advice about my old R75/5 and its fuel
problems. As a result of following your
suggestions and reading your technical
bulletin sent to me by Deva, the old girl is
now going like a scalded cat, revs out cleanly,
is smoother than before and I’m sure that
the fuel economy will have improved as well.
Right, got to go ‘cos I’ve just heard that bloody
Fireblade coming up the road. I’ll blow him
off this time - you’ll see! (Well, it’s nice to
dream isn’t it!).
Best wishes.
Geoff England
Well done, George!
Just re read George Davidson’s imaginative
suggestion for the “Stay at Home Rally 2006'
(January issue.) Excellent thinking; well done
and thank you. I have 47 members of the SW
section interested and looking forward to it Is your home large enough?
All the best.
Ted Devey (SW Section)
12
Motorcycleseatworks.co.uk.
Just a short not ref the above company who
advertise in the club mag. I have just had a
seat re-covered in the comfort seat style for
my R80RT and what a good job they have
done.
Not too expensive compared to a new seat
and also custom made to suit one’s weight!
I am well pleased with the result.
Jon Woodhouse (Hampshire)
Les Madge Sells Flight Socks
Daft as it may sound, my dear wife and I wore
our nice long motorcycle socks on a recent
long haul flight to Mexico. Wow, what a
difference! No more swollen feet or ankles.
Every bit as good as flight socks but they don’t
look as pansy and we already have them.
So, next time you are planning a long flight,
or even a long car journey, get out those
biking socks. And if you don’t have any then
get hold of Les Madge at Travel-Dri Plus and
he’ll send you some.
As usual, I have no contact with Les other
than being a satisfied customer and now
looking forward to my nice big discount.
Steve Shepley (Alford)
Windscreen Help Wanted
I would like some help from members if
possible.
I have owned an R100RS for several years
and have appreciated the aerodynamic
fairing. Recently I bought a 1995 R1100RS
SE, a cracking bike except for the area of wind
buffeting and noise.
I’m 5ft 10 inches tall and have tried all
positions of the (adjustable) screen plus an
aeroflow after market screen, with the seat in
all positions, to no avail! Has anyone any
suggestions regarding an after market
screens?
Les Carter (Lincolnshire)
Ride Etiquette and the Drop-off
System
Thanks to Martin Ellis for his article in the
February edition. As a member who has both
lead and been on ride outs, I found the article
interesting and informative. I would like to add
to his article about ride etiquette.
If you are leading a ride and you have a trike
or an outfit please keep them at the front of
the ride, immediately behind the leader and
don’t use them for the drop offs. If the route
takes the ride off the main roads onto minor
roads or single track lanes, if a trike or an
outfit can get through then the rest of the ride
will be able to follow.
Chris Crocker (SW Section & a Triker)
New blood - good or bad ?
This is the first time I have written to the journal
but I just could not let this sort of abusive
letter pass and I am surprised it was printed
with all the insults it contained.
I have been a member of the club for a long
time and have enjoyed the journal for its
freedom of views and excellent articles.
However I could not believe the letter from
David Greenwood in the February edition.
He refers to members as whingeing and
overbearing , rich, spoiled snobs, good start
for a new member lets see if he is still a
member next year I think not as soon as he
opens his mouth the other members will see
what he is and retreat.
I can only assume that the article written by
John Tailor (midland) was the article to which
he refers as all other correspondence
regarding the R1200RT was favourable.
Well as I have known John for many years I
think I should put David straight and present
him with some facts which he has not David
Greenwoobothered to investigate.
First the local dealer inadvertently, did not tell
him about the change in BMW GB policy
relating to the key and kit, but asked for extra
money at handover time.
13
After some unhelpful discussion with BMW
GB a letter was sent to BMW Germany and
within days a number of phone calls were
received from Germany and an apology
received. The dealer was told to supply
John’s demands f.o.c.
We are told to get a life and throw our money
away if I read this letter correctly, but if David
purchased something on e bay and it was
not as described would he pay up and say
nothing, I think not.
The Rich spoilt bit is an insult, John works in
an engineering factory and his wife also
works hard to be able to follow their passion
for motorcycling. I also have a top of the range
BMW K1200LT and I am a working man,
highly qualified and well paid so I must be as
described by David.
How dare this man abuse another member,
we have the right to our opinion but not to
slander others. I can only think that David’s
ego is so big that he thinks he has the right
to do this, also envy and jealousy seem to fit,
Brian King (Midland Section)
Cracoe and District Community
Village Hall
Editor’s note :
First and foremost, the
Torque Reaction letters are an opportunity
for our members to express their opinions.
As stated on page 3, The BMW Club Journal
accepts for publication articles and letters
written in good faith; however, the views
expressed in articles and letters which are
published are not necessarily those of the
editor of the Journal or those of the BMW
Club or its officers or members. As long as
they are not obviously offensive, libellous or
slanderous, then all letters and articles
submitted will be published in due course.
That said, I think Mr Greenwood’s letter
was intended to be a “wind-up” and, being
more than slightly tongue-in-cheek, to
produce a range of (similar) responses that
would warm the blood on a chilly winter’s
evening. To Mr King and Mr Taylor and indeed
anyone else who was offended by this, please
accept my apologies. I would rather “publish
and be damned” rather than be damned for
not publishing, if you see what I mean. If its
any consolation, you should see some of the
letters I receive as Editor commenting on my
character and abilities - or rather, their
absence !
J H White (Chairman)
14
Dear Bikers.
I write on behalf of the Village Hall
Management Committee, to thank you
sincerely for the very acceptable gift of a
microwave oven for our kitchen. It was a piece
of equipment which was certainly missing
and I am sure that it will be much used in the
future.
Thomas and Hilda are full of praise for the
way that you use the Hall and leave it as you
find it – which is not always the case with
some users I am afraid.
I hope that you keep finding the facilities
useful to your needs for many months yet to
come.
Once again, many thanks for the microwave.
Yours sincerely
That’s one up to the bikers then. Thanks very
much for everyone who attends.
Dennis Crompton (Yorkshire Section)
Free Membership
Hey, my membership to your august body is
free! Let me explain.
I have bike insurance from one of the well
known, TV advertised, "you won't get it
cheaper", "phone now for a quote and we will
quote you delirious" insurance companies
that you see in the bike magazines and MCN.
What a good deal I thought. Until I recently
asked one of the advertisers in this
magnificent journal for a quotation and I
said,"I saw your advertisement in the BMW
club magazine"
Well the quote was £44 cheaper than the high
street and I get 60 days continental cover
instead of 30 days. It cost less than that to
join the club and I have only just started to
buy the bits I need. The more I buy the more
I save. It really pays to be a member.
The moral of the story is to always support
our advertisers because they support us and
they give a great deal.
Nigel Tailyour (Oxford Section)
The BMF NOMC Forum
As chair of the BMF's N.O.M.C Forum and a
BMW club member I would like to reply to
some of the comments made about the BMF
and the N. O .M .C. in February's Journal .
With regards to the importance of clubs
affiliated to the BMF and their opportunities
to shape BMF policy or change the way it is
run .
Firstly, the Forum elects 15 councillors to the
BMF which is one third of the total and
currently five of those,excluding myself,are
BMW club members therefore clubs do have
an opportunity to guide and influence the
BMF's management team.
Secondly,at the Forum's own A.G.M. clubs can
propose motions to be put before the BMF's
main A.G.M. which will be held this October at
a central venue. I would urge all clubs to
remain part of the BMF because you were
there at its conception and can help shape
its future and the future of motorcycling.
The Forum's A.G.M. is on Saturday 8th of July
at the A.C.U. offices in Rugby and on Sat' 25th
March at the same venue we are running a
seminar on the topics of club archives and
First Aid training for motorcyclists and club
marshalls who supervise club events.
Please contact me on 01531 635843 but
please note I don't do "bickering"nor do any
of the current stalwarts who are part of today's
Forum .
Cheers,
Frank Whittaker N.OM.C. Forum Chair.
Post /5 Tool Hire Procedure
The procedure for hiring any of the tools is as
follows.
1.. Indentify the tool & tool number required.
This can be from either manuals e.g. Official
BMW, Clymer, Haynes, or by phoning /
emailing me to discuss.
2.. Send a deposit cheque (usually £50)
made out to the BMW Club.
3.. On receipt the tool will be despatched
via insured post (usually Parcel Post)
4.. When the hirer has finished with the tool
it should be returned again via insured post
back to the Tool Hire secrectary.
5.. On safe return a refund cheque will be
sent to the hirer. (Deposit minus hire fee and
outbound postage charges).
Part No. Qty
Description
00-2-5001
Dial Gauge Holder
To Fit
Notes
00-2-5601
Spanner Gearbox Output Flange
Driveshaft Bolts All
00-2-5702
Friction Gauge
All
00-2-5801
Dial Gauge Holder
K
00-2-5901
Plastigauge
K
00-2-6001
TX30 Torx insert/socket
K
00-5-0101
Internal puller, shaft seals K
00-5-5003
Drift punch handle
All
00-5-5501
Drift wheel bearing
All
00-7-5001
Universal Extractor Kukko 17K
00-8-4001
Extractor
K
00-8-5701
Inner Race Extractor
K
00-9-5001
Riveter, Cockpit Integral All
11-1-250 1
Tongs, valve guide seals K
All
All
11-1-600 1
Drift, Pushrod grommets R to 1985
11-1-610 1
Drift, (use with 005-500) K
11-1-620 1
11-1-630 2
11-1-660 2
Gripping Tool, pressure relief valve R
11-1-680 2
Reducing nipple for 00-7-500
R
11-1-700 1
Cylinder Head removing tool
R
1112DB350
1Allen Socket, Cylinder Head BoltsK
11-1-720 1
valve
Tappet depresser K
11-1-730 1
Not 16 valve
Tongs, for valve shim removal
11-1-740 1
Valve spring clamping jig K
11-1-747 2
Use with 11-1-740
Not
16
K
K
15
Part No. Qty
Description
To Fit
Notes
Part No. Qty
Description
11-1-760 1
11-1-770 1
Drift, valve guide, removal R45/65
17-1-003 1
Adapter for 17-1-500
K75
Drift, valve guide, fit
17-1-004 1
Adapter for 17-1-500
11-1-780 1
Drift 8mm valve guide, removal
K
R
17-1-500 1
Cooling System Leak Tester
11-1-790 1
Drift 8mm valve guide,
fit
R
18-0-600 2
Exhaust Nut Wrench
R
1-1-800 2
Extractor, timing chain cover
R
21-2-600 8
Clutch clamp bolts
R
11-1-820 1
Centring bush / sleeve
R to 1975
21-2-650 4
Centring Arbour, clutch
R to 1981
11-1-830 1
Centring bush / sleeve
R 1975 on
21-2-670 1
R 1981 on
11-1-850 3
Seal drift R
21-2-672 1
Centring Jig for use with 21-2-670 K
11-1-880 3
Seal drift R
11-1-881 3
Spacer for use with 11-1-880
R45/65
One is damaged
R
11-1-890 2
Crankshaft Rear seal remove / refit R
Mounts across crankcase to hold 11-1-880
To Fit
Notes
K
21-2-673 1
K1200
23-1-620 2
Forcer gearbox cover
R to 1981
23-1-650 1
Drift
Gearbox output flange remove / fit
R
11-1-940 1
Drift
K
23-1-700 1
R
11-2-500 1
Torque guage indicator
All
23-1-705 7
Spare bolts for 23-1-700 / 710
11-2-600 2
Puller duplex timing chain sprocket R
Gearbox output flange remove / fit
11-2-606 2
Sleeve Head, for use with 11-2-600R
23-1-710 2
R
11-2-620 2
Drift, for use with 11-2-630
Presser R
23-1-750 3
6 on
Inserter Gearbox cover seal
11-2-630 2
11-2-700 3
Presser, main bearing removal
23-1-760 1
Drift for Output shaft sealK
11-2-710 2
Assembler, main bearings R
23-1-770 1
Drift for Input shaft seal K
11-2-720 2
Presser, for use with 11-2-710
23-1-780 1
Drift Gearbox shaft seal K
11-2-800 2
Clutch / flywheel retainer R
23-1-790 1
Drift Selecter roller seal
11-2-810 2
R&K
Extractor, flywheel (3 pieces)
23-1-800 1
Slipover Sleeve, clutch pushrod
23-2-650 1
Assembly bushes
11-2-860 1
Universal spanner, big ends
R
Piston Ring Clamp R65/75/80
R
23-2-655 1
1981 on
Exchange Sleeve for 23-2-650
11-2-905 1
11-2-910 1
R&K
Piston Ring Clamp R45 / 50 / & K
23-2-750 1
Adjuster R /5
23-2-770 1
Disc Plate
11-2-915 1
Piston Ring Clamp R90 / R100
11-2-920 1
Drift, Gudgeon Pin
11-2-925 1
Piston Ring Clamp K75 / K100
11-2-930 1
Drift, Gudgeon Pin
11-3-600 1
Sleeve R&K
1112DB400-410
1
11-4-650 1
Oil filter key
11-5-500 1
Clamp, remove / Fit Tensioner
12-3-5001
Plug Spanner
12-3-6001
Alternator Rotor remova bolt
R
R
R
R
All
K
All
T27 / 30 Torx keyAll
K
K
R
12-3-6501
Static ignition Timer
Despatched with 9v Battery diconnected
R
R
R /
K
K
R
R
R /6, /7
23-3-650 1
Measuring Plate for Gearbox Shims
R /6 on No Depth Guage available
23-3-660 1
Measuring Plate for axial play
K
23-3-670 1
Adapter for use with 00-2-570
K
26-1-600 2
Retainer R to 1985
26-1-650 1
Extractor
26-1-655 1
R100RS
Extractor shells for use with 26-1-650
26-1-660 1
Extractor
K
26-1-700 1
Assembly Jig
R 1979 on
31-4-600 1
Clamp Jaws, forks
31-4-650 3
Drift, fork seals R
31-4-660 1
Drift, fork seals K
31-4-700 1
Assembly Sleeve
R /5 to /7
31-4-720 1
Assembly Sleeve
R 1981 on
31-4-730 2
Assembly Sleeve
K
31-4-740 1
Assembly Sleeve
R80
R to 1985
R
12-3-6511
30DB103
twins) R
1
13-0-7001
LE Jetronic carb Synchroniser
R
13-0-7021
R
13-0-7031
R
Gauge Spanner for use with 00-2-570
13-1-5001
Pliers, hose clips K
31-4-750 2
R
16-1-5002
Fuel Pump pressure Gauge
K
31-4-760 1
K
Gauge Spanner for use with 00-2-570
16-1-6501
K75
Starter set (to run without petrol tank
31-4-800 1
Cap Ring
16
K
R
Vacuum Gauges (2 valve
All
Part No. Qty
Description
314DB300
HammerAll
2
Bearing Extractor / Slide
Steering Head & Swing Arm
31-4-8502
R to 1985
Hex Ring Spanner for Top Yoke Nut
31-4-8601
Open ended spanner
33-1-5001
Support for rear wheel drive
33-1-6502
Retainer for drive pinion R to /7
33-1-7002
Pin wrench
33-1-7501
Drift
33-1-8001
Assembly Sleeve
33-1-8501
Drift
R
33-1-8601
Drift
R
33-1-8802
Drift
R
33-2-6001
Gauge for use with 33-2-620
All
33-2-6041
Gauge arm for use with 33-2-620
K
33-2-6201
6 pieces All
33-2-6401
Drift
33-5-6002
All
Spring compresser for suspension unit
33-5-605 / 610
2
Clamp Block
34-0-6001
Gauge
R /6 /7
36-3-6131
Balancing Flange K
36-3-6141
Balancing axle
K
36-3-6501
Peg Spanner
R
36-3-6512
to /7
Bush for use with 36-3-650
36-3-7002
Drift
36-3-8002
Spoke Nipple wrench
36-3-8201
Spoke Gauge
R
36-3-8501
Spoke Gauge
R
36-3-8801
Tongs to fit balance weights
46-5-6061
Gauge Bolts
46-5-7001
R /5
200
02568/1 1
EBM10 1
Notes
K
R
R
R80GS
R
R
R
All
K
Fork Top Cap pin wrench R /5 /6
All
14mm Spark Plug Helicoil Kit
505
R50 to 1969
1
Oil Seal protection bush
M522
MITYVAC Brake Bleeding Kit
1
Clymer Manual K75 - K100
M502
Clymer Manual R Series 1970 - 1989
1
Clymer Manual R850 & R1100
BMW
BMW Repair Manual F650, F650ST
1
Haynes 1
BMW Manual Twins
Original Handbook
I have the original handbook from a bmw bike
LCJ 949Y. I wondered if you could print it in
The Journal and maybe the owner is out there
somewhere and could contact you or me and
I could pass it on to them.
My telephone number is 01792 850809.
Brian Morgan (Western Section)
NEC SHOW 2006
The confirmed dates for the 2006 NEC
Motorcycle Show are Thursday 26th October
to Sunday 5th November
Mike Warrilow
All
M500
1
1985 - 1989
M503
1
1993 - 1998
01327 360945.
e-mail [email protected]
K
Rocker assembly jig & 8 shims
10mm Allen Key Socket
Depending on the cost size and weight of the
tools they can sometimes be sent as
registered mail, but for example the head
bearing extraction tool (Number 314DB300)
weighs 3.5 Kg and for mainland U.K costs
£8.95 to send by parcel post insured for
£200.
MIKE DELACOE
4 Charwelton Road,
Preston Capes,
Daventry.
NN11 3TA.
All
R
Lever to remove mirror fm plate
1
All
1
All
38140
To Fit
1970 - 1988
17
The Ultimate Turntable?
Mike Fishwick
M
ANY MEMBERS have problems
storing their motorcycle and car in the
usual size of residential garage, and
several have found that some form of
turntable is useful to position the motorcycle
sideways against the rear wall, so leaving
sufficient space for a car to also be
accommodated. Even so, it is not an easy
task, as while a turntable will position the
motorcycle parallel to the rear wall, it cannot
move it sideways against the wall. Some
form of trolley would obviously be the answer.
While camping at the 2003 BMW Club
Europa treffen in la Roche-en-Ardennes I
came across an interesting German
company, MV Motorrad-Technik, who
manufacture a range of interesting
accessories exclusively for modern BMW
motorcycles. One such item is a sturdy trolley,
designed to also act as a turntable.
This item, described as a ‘Rangerhilfe der
Fa. Becker’ is a four-wheeled trolley capable
of supporting 400 kg. Manufactured from 10
mm steel, it is fitted with a foot-operated
brake on each castor, so allowing it to pivot
around one corner if required. In use the
machine is placed on its centre stand, using
the centre platform of the device, which is
some 10 mm clear of the ground. As even
such a height can drastically increase the
effort required to operate a centrestand, it
would be useful to manufacture a pair of
wooden ramps of equal height to the platform.
These could then be placed on each side of
the trolley, so easily raising the motorcycle to
the same height as the platform. At 125 Euro
(about £85) this device is not too expensive
when its obvious advantages are considered
M
V ALSO MANUFACTURE a large
variety of other items, some being
useful, and others decorative, all of
which are manufactured to the highest
standards, usually in aluminium. As one
would expect, their equipment carries TüV
type approval.
Typical of the ‘useful’
category is a folding
lifting handle for the
oilhead twins and
F650, auxiliary wind
deflectors for the
K1200RS, and some
really
beautiful
footrest adjustment
brackets for all the
current range of
BMWs.
The turntable
18
Even items such as
foot boards for the
R1200C have a neat
and
efficient
appearance, with the
smallest mounting
brackets
being
19
footrest loop of the 850/1100/1150
GS/R/RS ranges.
One of their specialities is a range
of handlebar adjustment brackets
for the oilhead GS, RS and
K1200RS, all of which are at least
as well made as the originals.
The most striking product was
without doubt the electricallyadjustable handlebar kit of the
K1200RS and GT (shown
opposite), which is so neat that
one almost misses it. At 1,482
Euro (about £1,000) it is only for
those who really need it!
MV Motorrad-Technik are
based at Viersen, north-west
of Mönchengladbach, but
their UK distributor is Motor
Works.
manufactured in the traditional Teutonic ethic
of quality and function.
This
was
also
obvious
in
the
adjustable Paralever
torque stay ( shown
opposite ) made for
the later K-Series and
oilhead twin ranges,
the
adjustment
mechanism being
protected by a sliding
aluminium
cover,
sealed by ‘O’ rings at
each end.
Another neat idea is
the helmet lock and
power socket unit,
mounted on a panel
fitted inside the pillion
20
Moto-Challenge Cymru or
In Search of a Vowel
T
HE SECOND MOTO CHALLENGE
CYMRU, held last year in mid Wales
over the first May Bank Holiday
weekend had 46 riders taking part.
Pete Crowe (Northern Section) and myself,
Terry Reynolds, (Mercia) had signed up at
the Manchester Motorcycle Show but had
been unable to persuade any of our mates to
take part with us. They missed a fantastic
weekend on fabulous roads. The Challenge
is run by Nick Sanders on one of the few
occasions that he is back in the UK. In fact he
had just returned from an “Edge of the
Sahara” challenge and would be looking to
break the round the world record on a brand
new R1 just five weeks after this weekends
event. He used his year old R1 to marshal on
(it has been around the world twice, but has
only been cleaned once).
Riders had been encouraged to stay over on
the Friday night (for briefings and to get to
know each other) so I took the day off work
and rode to Manchester to meet up with Pete
and we got away before the usual Bank
Holiday weekend rush. Once off the M56 and
into Wales we had time to play and stopped
in Bala for fuel and then rode over the Bwlchy-Groes in brilliant sunshine. We would travel
over this highest peak twice more over the
weekend but never in Sunshine again.
As we were early I took us on a couple of
Forest tracks I thought I knew and got us lost,
but we did end up close to Nick’s farmhouse
at Abercegir
So we joined marshals Nick, Carry, Robin,
Sue and Nick’s new assistant Jiten for tea,
before booking into our guesthouse in the
village. 4 riders and the best pillion passenger
Julie were booked in already and we were
able to leave our bikes there and travel to
Corris in the back of Nick’s van. I think I would
have preferred to have gone on my bike as
the picnic chairs that we were perched in
moved around the van on every corner as
Nick played at rally drivers. Dave (Z Power)
drove us back after winning the keys off Nick
in the pub. Dave doesn’t drink so persuaded
Nick he could have a pint with his supper if
he gave up the van keys.
at Pontrhydfendigaid track
The village of Corris (A487) would be the
centre of operations for the weekend with the
majority of riders staying at the YHA, although
the nearby Slater’s Arms appeared to be the
real centre. Not surprising really as the route
master was Steve Andrews and this was his
local. Introductions, Road-books etc were
supplied and as teams needed to be of 3
riders we recruited MCI Director Nich Brown
to join Pete and I. Nich was running in a new
Multistrada Sport and did not want to ride too
21
hard until he had a few more miles on it which
was just perfect for us.
A look in the bike park showed an almost
equal mix of built for the purpose “adventure
bikes” such as GS1200’s and 1150’s,
TDM900’s, Hornets, V-Strom’s and the
Kawasaki version, a couple of genuine Super
Motard’s and then Fireblade’s, CBR600’s,
R1’s and even a Kawasaki ZZR1200 and a
Yamaha Scooter. The riders were a complete
mix of ages from 17 to 60+ with about half
having some experience of Nick’s challenges
and the others experiencing for the first time.
One was using the event as a shakedown
for his new GS1200 before setting off on a
solo round the world trip and others just
wanted to get to the racetrack.
S
ATURDAY MORNING rained and rained
(as Wales is wont to do) and we struggled
to supply any enthusiasm for the 300-mile
ride ahead. We arrived at the briefing late (in
fact missed it altogether, although Nich was
there for us) and then spent another half an
hour marking the maps.
22
The Road-books were very well detailed so
copies were made and pushed into our
rolling road handlebar attachments. These
were purchased about 10 years ago through
“Old Bike Mart” and are ideal for this. The
maps were pushed into the tank bags and
the Corris YHA position downloaded into my
GPS in case we got completely lost. The GPS
was then packed away and in fact never taken
out of its case again, the Road-book was that
good.
We were therefore the last to leave and only
then realised that the Control Points had
opening and closing times on them. We were
going to miss the first one unless we were
very lucky. In fact we got there last but in the
nick of time. Mind you it took us 10 minutes to
walk up the mountain from the car park to get
Martin to sign our books. The first of the cryptic
questions also had to be answered here so
we now know that Castell-y-bere (a Welsh
Castle on top of a small mountain) was built
in 1221 and taken by the English in 1283 and
again at 10.10am on a wet Saturday morning
in 2005.
The Nant-y-Moch checkpoint
Martin assured us it was clearing up. How?
“I can see those caravans across the valley”
was the reply. Oh that’s ok then, it’s amazing
what excites a Welshman.
W
E RODE (in the continuing downpour)
through the Happy Valley (!) to Towyn
and out to Barmouth over the bridge made
from wooden (wet) railway sleepers and
eventually to Harlech Castle. We seemed to
have made up some time and after getting
our road-books signed by Foxy and obtaining
yet another Welsh history fact, we discussed
whether to stop and have coffee. The
consensus was, keep going. If we stopped
now and got comfortable (dryish) we might
not restart.
So a continued wet road took us to
Porthmadog and east across the Snowdonia
National Park (on Forest tracks) to Bala. We
got a bit lost on this bit, but the Forest
Umbrella kept the rain off us so we didn’t
mind and we were soon at Bala Railway
Station for our third checkpoint signing. As
Nich and Pete organised coffees and buns I
set off to the engine shed to get the answer
to the quiz.
Fuelled up and a little dryer, we realised that
we had leapfrogged some of the riders so
we were no longer last, but we were still an
hour behind schedule. Nick’s marshals had
realised that the rain had slowed everybody
down (and in fact Steve and the support van
had been helping 5 riders who had come off
their bikes on the gated road-all of the riders
were OK but one of the bikes-a Triumph Tiger,
was too damaged to continue) and adjusted
the Control Timings accordingly.
The Bwlch-y-Groes was next and relatively
dry until we rode into the cloud at the summit.
So stopping only to get our books signed we
rode down to Lake Vyrnwy were we spent
half an hour trying to answer the quiz
questions. All power to Nich who rode back
and forwards across the Dam checking every
notice board for the answers. This would be
the first of so many Dams to be ridden over,
under and around that we felt like 617
squadron. The rain was definitely slowing
23
though and we even saw glimpses of
sunshine.
More “local roads” saw us join the A5 briefly
and a control point (in sunshine at last) at
The Ponderosa Café on the Horseshoe
Pass. Road-books signed we took our wet
weather gear off and enjoyed a well-earned
lunch. Most of the riders had already arrived
or turned up whilst we were eating so there
was a nice “we made it” atmosphere. Most of
the Marshals also used the café for a break
so we learnt about that mornings crashes
and other little disasters. It appeared that we
had lost at least one rider who had gone
home. If you prefer a club run where the leader
always leads and you just sit back and enjoy
the scenery, then do not attempt a Moto
Challenge. Nick pushes riders to get the
most out of themselves and you only meet
him, or any of the other marshals, at control
points, although there are mobile phone
numbers for emergency contact. All of the
marshals travel by bike (apart from Jetain who
drove the recovery van)
A Triumph at the Ponderosa Cafe
24
We rode on with drying leathers, boots and
gloves to Llandudno to count the arches on
the Aquaduct and then a spirited ride on the
fast A5 and A483 down to Newtown. Another
local road took us to Clywedog Dam and our
penultimate control point for the day. On
narrow roads amply supplied with sheep
droppings and grit we took turns to lead the
way back to Machynlleth and the final control
point and question for the day.
The evening was spent in the Slater’s
recounting the days 280 miles but most
riders (including us) retired early that night
ready for the track event on Sunday.
S
UNDAY MORNING greeted us wet but
warm and with a clearing sky. After a
healthy breakfast (make that 2 pieces of fried
bread with mine) we rode to Corris YHA and
actually made the briefing. Today was split,
with the morning at a racetrack and the
afternoon bombing more Dams. Robin and
Nick gave grave warnings about the track
event, which was described as being built by
2 welsh farmers after a night in the pub
watching TT films. Although no wider than 2
metres the mile long “mini TT course climbed
a mountain (1 in 3) has several very tight
bends (with no run off area) and if anybody
crashed and needed hospital treatment it
would be “game over” as we only had one
ambulance.
So duly warned we donned our leathers and
set off for the track near the village of
Pontrhydfendigaid, which is close to the
Welsh Gold Mining Town of Tregaron.
Briefing at the track was thorough and we
were allowed a few supervised sighting laps.
The morning was then broken into 3 sections
with riders responsible for ensuring that they
completed all 3 sections.
Section 1 was a timed Hill start with local
Super Moto champion Martin Litton there to
brief us and set the pace. He recorded 1.05
but later admitted that he forgot to turn his
petrol tap on. Riders set off, each getting the
track to themselves and times of 1.04 were
soon seen followed by a fantastic 59
seconds (on a CCM). Nick managed 1.06 on
his Multistrada but I only managed 1.12 on
my GS and Pete 1.15 on his 1100R. The
1200GS’s did well though with one recording
1.02
This was followed by slow riding tests (CBT
style around cones) were we performed well
and felt sorry for the R1 and Fireblade riders
who had no steering lock to use. This section
was run by Jason who’s W reg R1100S has
been around the world twice and is still used
as daily transport. With 117,000 miles on the
clock it still looks as good as new.
T
HE FINAL SECTION was 3 laps (but we
managed a sneaky 4th) around the whole
circuit with the difference between the lap
times measured. Shortest time difference
was what you were aiming for, but to be
honest, by then we were enjoying the circuit
so much that we just went for a fast blast. It’s
a good job that we had to leave for lunch,
because you could see that the red mist was
beginning to descend and Robin the clerk of
25
the course ticked me off for overtaking whilst
in mid air (there was a really great bump at
the back of the track half way along the
straight)
The local Red Lion served up a great Welsh
Cawl (lamb and veg stew) and we were soon
keen to get off and started on the Challenge
again. We were amongst some of leaders
now and after another quiz question, we rode
on some fantastic forest and local tracks to
Elan Village and the Victorian Dams. The sun
had arrived in force and it was a great
afternoon of dry (but very gritty) roads,
untrained lambs, gates, cattle grids, forest
waste and big grins.
A stop at Devils Bridge to answer yet more
questions and take tea seemed just right
somehow. My GS looked like it had spent the
last few days at the bottom of the Manchester
Ship Canal and we had less than 30 miles to
go. We rode up to Tal-y-Bont Dam to complete
our last check point and then rode back to
Corris on local roads, which by now we had
become very familiar with and in some cases
26
a little too familiar as we let the bikes get a
“bit loose” now and again.
As we had to surrender our Road-books at
the Slater’s Arms, it seemed uncharitable not
to have a Shandy whilst we soaked up yet
more sunshine.
Sunday evening was spent at the Owain
Glydwr pub in Machynlleth with the whole
premises being dedicated to the Challenge
Riders to enjoy a superb Roast Beef or Lamb
dinner and then Nick and Steve awarded the
trophies.
And I’m pleased to say that we won the Team
Trophy, with Nick, Pete and I each receiving a
lovely engraved Highland Quaich (well it is
Gaelic). From being last out of the traps we
had ridden well together and used our years
of knowledge to realise when we had gone
wrong and be able to retrace our tracks to
complete the correct course. Each day’s
mileage was measured and we gained 10
points on Sunday for being within 3 miles of
the organisers. A great evening was had and
an even better nights sleep.
Team Alzeymers de:
The map used by us all was the latest
Ordnance Survey Tour 1 inch to 2 ¾ miles
“North and Mid Wales” ISBN 0-319-25076-8.
Along with the detailed Road-book it is a
complete surprise to me that we managed
to get lost at all!
Terry Reynolds R1150GS Twin spark with
Super Motard Conversion
The Moto Challenge Cymru will take place
around the same weekend next year, with the
centre moved further South to take in different
roads. Why not take part? Nick and his team
are also looking to host more Special Stage
Weekends both here and in Ireland with
London to Monte-Carlo also on the cards.
The team name originates from the village of
Alzey in Germany where Pete and I have biker
friends. Some years ago we were called the
Alzeymers crew and it has been used ever
since. No disrespect is intended.
Pete Crowe R1100R
Nich Brown Ducati Multistrada 1000 Sport
Photographs taken by Terry and Pete
Footnotes:
Nick Sanders can be contacted on 01650
511701 or 711, or write to Moto Challenge
Office, PO Box 27, Machynlleth, Powys, SY20
8WT.
27
R1200GS Baglux Comfort Seat
Tested by Tony Moores
With the launch of the mile crunching and
best selling R1200GS, the accessory
manufacturers went into overdrive producing
both practical and cosmetic items for the
model. Perhaps, partly due to my lack of
natural padding in a certain area I have
always upgraded my bike seats for an
optional comfort seat. Riding my GS, I soon
found that I was
wriggling
around after
100 plus miles,
particularly on
the
more
uninteresting
stretches of
road, a remedy
had
to
be
found.
At the NEC bike
show
the
Baglux stand
had a GS on
site displaying
a
recently
launched comfort seat. Founders Chris and
Tracy Hanley started in the accessory
business with AboSport 25 years ago, but
within five years began to sample and then
market products from the French Bagster
Company. Baglux was born and have been
28
importing soft luggage and merchandise for
motorcycles since.
Their products are familiar to most bikers and
it was only a matter of time before they
produced a GS comfort seat to compliment
their range.
The seats are modifications of your existing
seats, and customers have a choice of hide
colours, style, piping and graphics and can
choose a standard or gel filled option for
additional comfort and flexibility.
I liked the look of the seat, and a few weeks
later a large box arrived by courier. Visually, I
find the seat
looks well
and
in
particular
the pillion
seat that
h
a
s
supporting
contours
instead of
the plank
l i k e
standard
item.
But does it
do
the
business? I
opted for the gel version and for me it does. I
have long legs and the minimal difference in
seat height due to the additional padding
mattered not. The pillion seat in particular
seems much improved and as they say, so
far so good.
The Last BMW ?
Chris Barnes (Midland Section) changes over to KTM
I
N RESPONSE TO JOHN AND FREDA
Taylor ’s impression of the R1200RT
reported in the Nov 2005 Journal I was
recently faced with a similar decision - do I
keep my R1150R Rockster (just over 2 years
old with 27,000 more or less trouble free
miles), or do I go for something different? I
don’t like riding behind barn doors, the
1200ST has been hit with the ugly stick - and
my 1150R was a better GS than the 1150GS
- (as a go anywhere road bike that could also
be hustled if you wish) - and better than the
1200GS for that matter - not enough low down
grunt and not enough of an improvement to
warrant a vast expenditure. My 1150 was
worth nothing really - because I’ve ridden it !
(although still mint), and lately BMW have
produced so many new models that second
hand values for “old” models are suffering.
The 1200S and R are simply too ballistic,
and not engaging. Above all tank ranges are
getting pitiful. By drilling vent holes in the
recessed neck of the 1150R I could squeeze
in another half gallon and push 170 miles.
The move to canbus electronics,
power brakes with ABS etc has left me cold if it stops on the road you’ve had it - and you
can’t service it yourself - all of which is against
my reason for motorcycling - to be at one with
the machine and the environment, and to
have a sense of independence - not a card
with a phone number in place of a tool kit!
It looked as though I was going to stick
with the R1150R as there was nothing out
there in BM’s range that equalled it as a great
all rounder. However, I had bought a 1986
The author in the Dordogne
29
Yamaha Tenere as a winter hack (for 500
quids—taxed and MOTd and only brought in
from Southern France in 2003). This old bus
is very comfortable up to a sensible 85 mph
( in France) - it has a 5+ gallon tank and, at a
genuine 62 mpg, will do over 300 miles on a
tank - now that’s better! - its done a couple of
long trips—Bourges, Glen Coe and the
Hippo—and has been super reliable , used
no oil, not needed chain adjustment, and so
on. I suppose it brought me “home” and I
began to realise that squeezing a sensible
performance out of a limp 600 was really
great fun, and I didn’t need to watch for speed
cameras or really feel that I should be doing
a “ton” simply because the bike would do it..
T
HE F650 RANGE IS OK—but again
styling is not a strong point—as is the
lack of fuel capacity. The Tenere doesn’t
even have a fuse—simply a circuit breaker and it has both electric and kick start, and
will still fire even if the battery is toast
(separate CDI ignition). This “finding my
roots” started me looking at the KTM 640
Adventure - and the more I looked the more I
30
liked it. 27 litres of fuel carried low down, a
single carburettor, electric and kick start, loads
of touring accessories at about half BMW
prices (quality tank bag, tail pack, Touratech
pannier frames, H and B plastic top loading
waterproof cases, road book holder and so
on. The frames are powder coated, the
aluminium is top quality, the wheels are built
like bricks, WP fully adjustable suspension and weighing in at 159kg less fuel. The
motors are known to vibrate a bit, but punch
hard and rev to 8,500—they are also cheap—
the full package was cheaper than just about
ANY standard BMW—so needless to say I’ve
sold the Rockster (for peanuts), and my Beta
Alp—and bought one. It’s the wrong time of
year to put real miles on it with all the salt, but
so far I’m really pleased. 80+mph cruising is
virtually wind free. KTM do a full on owner’s
manual (almost a full workshop manual) they also provide a fully exploded parts list and a two year warranty. Give me about half
an hour and just 6, 8 and 10 mm sockets
and I can have the thing down to a rolling
chassis less all plastics. Its actually got
tappets and everything is easy to get at.
I know this sounds like a KTM advert but they have managed to produce a simple,
robust bike at a sensible price, and still meet
Euro emissions - and the only electronics
are the ignition module - there’s even a
simple plug that you disconnect to run on 80
octane (switches to a retarded timing map).
Oh, and by the way - you DO get a quality tool
kit - with a bottle opener. They are tall (but I’m
only 5 ft 6 inches and manage well enough
having fitted a pair of lowering links and
dropped the forks through a bit). Customer
support is excellent - parts are relatively
cheap and arrive within 3 days without fail
(but due to the relatively “standard” nature of
their models most service parts such as
bearings, seals etc are already on the shelf).
A simple bike also means simple servicing and that keeps costs down.
I’ll still keep up my membership of the
BMW club (because of the people in it), but
the point of all of this is that I think BMW are
losing touch with their original loyal customer
base. I would have liked to have considered
a new BMW, but there was nothing there that
justified a very expensive swap—at least for
me. If you attend the odd rally, at least during
the winter months, the majority of the bikes
are airheads or early oilheads. There must
be a lot of new BMWs simply parked up and
taken out on the odd Sunday - are we simply
heading down the road of bragging rites on
bigger, better, newer, faster - over a G and T
in the pub on Sunday? - don’t get me wrong—
I like new toys - but not ones that I can only
polish (like most cars these days). If this is
the BMW target for customers , and is driving
their design, then they are leaving me behind
- innovation doesn’t have to be technically
complex—telelever, paralever and duolever?
I
KNOW THEY ARE TRYING to compete with
the Japanese, but you only have to look at
Japanese prices (dealer discounts) to see
that they will have to be so much better to
31
justify their cost—and this without any street
cred in these classes - I don’t think they ARE
that much better - and they are simply too
late. I think the real value for money
motorcycles will come from China - we are
seeing this already, even up to 650 cc. The
new HP2 is £12k and not that good on or off
road—what are they doing—simply
pandering to people with money to burn who
are buying for exclusivity?
I’m sure that this will generate a bit of
discussion—but that’s healthy - and should
improve the breed. I’ll give the KTM a go
and see how it ultimately stacks up. I’ll also
keep the old Tenere - as parts are still
available, its well built and reliable - and far
cheaper to keep going than an old airhead and they fetch good money on e-bay always a good sign!
32
Phil and Pam’s European Adventure
The Bowkers Abroad
F
RIDAY AT 5PM on the 3rd June 2005 saw
our K1200 LT and us loaded onto the
Pride of Rotterdam at Hull excited to be
starting our three-week tour of Europe. Sadly
we were soaked to the skin, as the heavens
had opened on the A63 running into Hull. This
seriously heavy rain followed us, and two
German bikers from Stuttgart on their way
home after the TT races, all the way to the
dockside at Hull. What a great start to the
holiday we thought. We felt so sorry for the
lads from Stuttgart, as they had had rain
whilst camping in the IOM, and they wondered
if it was ever dry in Britain. We set sail at 9pm
after a lovely meal on board, and after an
excellent night’s sleep, we arrived in
Rotterdam at 8.30am on Saturday the 4th
June. We said “Auf Wiedersehen” to the
German bikers who were dry at last.
The weather was still a bit drizzly but we set
off hoping it would dry out by the time we
reached Arlon. We stopped at Breda for fuel
and again just outside of Brussels for coffee
and we arrived at our hotel at Arlon mid
afternoon to be bathed in sunshine at last.
Day three, Sunday the 5th, and we were off on
our way down to Troyes. We met some very
friendly Harley riders on their way to a Harley
Rally in St Tropez and had a coffee and a chat
with them. We found the Holiday Inn at Troyes
without too much difficulty, but we hadn’t
realised when booking that it was
predominantly a Golfer’s Hotel. We stood
out a bit in our biker gear, but the staff were
lovely and encouraged us to park our bike
right outside the front entrance. Had it been
An intruder in the Ducati Factory Car Park
33
a little warmer we would have made use of
the outdoor swimming pool and although it
was sunny we were not feeling that brave.
Monday 6th started off dry and bright, but as
we neared our overnight stop in Bourg-enBresse the rain had started again. We really
felt as though this rain cloud was going to
follow us everywhere and we were pretty
down hearted that evening.
So, on Tuesday morning, we set off for
Switzerland, hoping that even if the sun didn’t
shine, a chance to get out of our wet weather
gear would be nice. Hurray! As we crossed
the Swiss border the sun came out and the
waterproofs came off.
We arrived mid afternoon at Hotel Baeren in
Wilderswil. We followed their directions to
view the Schiltorn, however, we were too late
to get the cable car to the revolving restaurant
of James Bond fame. With clear blue skies,
warm sun on our backs, a picture postcard
view from our bedroom window, a free
musical concert that evening given by the
children in the town and wonderful food, what
more could we ask for?
Incredibly, having a meal at our hotel, were a
couple who live about 20 miles away from us
in the North West! Small world isn’t it?
Wednesday the 7th and we were off on the
road again to Lake Garda via the scenic route.
We took in the Sustenpass, where at the top
we chucked snowballs at each other, then
34
the St. Gotthard Pass, where the view from
the top looking down onto Italy was
awesome. We arrived at our destination,
Brenzone, about half way along Lake Garda,
late that afternoon. This was to be our “home”
for 3 nights, and after checking out the view
over the lake from our balcony we had a drink
and a leisurely dinner watching the sun
setting. It was so beautiful and tranquil.
Thursday 9 th and we were showered,
breakfasted and away early as we had an
appointment to keep. For at 11am we were
due at the Ducati Museum in Bologna for a
guided tour of their factory and museum.
What a fascinating place to visit. Our guide
was extremely well informed and interesting.
No photographs were allowed in the factory,
for obvious reasons, but you could take as
many photographs as you liked in the
museum and of course you could spend as
much money as you liked in the Ducati Shop!
A fantastic day out all in all despite the
extremely hot riding conditions and the erratic
and often crazy Italian motorists!
Friday was spent relaxing and checking out
Garda itself. Plenty of tourist traps and we
had pizza for tea, what else!
Saturday the 11th and we were on the move
again to Müstair, which lies, just into
Switzerland near the Swiss Italy border. The
weather was still glorious, in fact rather too
hot for riding around in bike gear, so we had
a leisurely stroll around Müstair itself, after
checking into the family run Hotel Münsterhof.
That evening we had the most delicious meal
in the hotel finished off with home made
truffles, yum.
Sunday 12th and we awoke refreshed after a
wonderful sleep and set off after a leisurely
breakfast for Weissenbach am Lech in
Austria, which was to be our base for a week,
in order for us to explore the area. 1855 miles
had been ridden to reach our destination
Gasthof Goldenes Lamm.
Gaichtpass summit
During the week we rode just about every
pass in the area, Gaicht Pass, Fern Pass,
Oberjoch Pass and Fussen Pass to name a
few. We visited all three of King Ludwig’s
Castles in the area, Hohenschwangau,
Neuschwanstein & Linderhof. We went up
the Tiroler Zugspitzbahn cable car from
Lermoos to the top of the Zugsptitz,
Germany’s highest alp at 2962 metres. (Well
Phil did, I was too chicken to do it!) The views
were amazing.
Thank goodness he
remembered to take our camera up with him
so we have some fantastic photographs. We
had a snowball fight at the top of Hahntenjoch
at 1894 metres above sea level and we also
sunbathed by the lakes Haldensee and
Plansee. We ate too much rich food and
drank too much Schnapps, but who cares,
we were on holiday! We also visited
Garmisch-Partenkirchen where the BMW
Motorrad Biker meeting is held, although the
event wasn’t on when we visited. We only
got our BMW in February 2005 so were
unaware of this event but next year we plan to
35
visit it.
Sunday 19th and we reluctantly had to say
goodbye to the owner Roland and his staff at
Goldenes Lamm who had treated us so well.
Off we set for the Mosel valley to stay a couple
of nights with our old friends Klaus and
Bettina Berens at their Hotel-Restaurant “Zur
Post” in Klotten on the banks of the Mosel
River near to Cochem. We visited the
Nürburgring on the Monday morning and on
our way back to Cochem we dropped into
Center Parcs at Heilbachsee for a swim to
cool down as temperatures had soared to
35 ºC. Later that afternoon we enjoyed ice
cream in Cochem with a Harley Rider from
Koblenz who had just finished work and
fancied a run out, as the weather was so nice.
He didn’t speak much English but that didn’t
matter, our limited German and use of hand
signals enabled us to have an interesting
“conversation” for an hour.
We left Klotten to head for Aachen on the
following morning. We had decided to check
36
out BMW Kohl in Aachen, as it is reputedly
the largest dealership in Europe, and yes it’s
HUGE! The building itself is massive and it
also houses other motorcycle dealerships,
which include Ducati and Harley-Davidson
Buell. The staff we met were extremely
friendly and asked us to park right outside
their front entrance, as our K1200 LT SE Lux
was good advertising for them they said! The
hotel we stayed overnight at was fine,
however, Aachen itself wasn’t. The only place
we wouldn’t go back to again, ever.
Wednesday 22nd and we set off for Rotterdam
via Renswoude and called into Biker’s Best,
a wholesale company specialising in
Goldwings and accessories that we have
used in the past, as we previously owned a
GL1500. The staff there are always
welcoming and chatty no matter what bike
you ride and their hot chocolate is delicious!
We stayed a couple of nights in Rotterdam
itself in the Savoy Hotel as I had managed to
get us a fantastic deal through the Internet
that meant we were paying less than half the
real price. Rotterdam was a bustling city, as
expected, with old and new architecture living
side by side. It was SO hot whilst we were
there that after 11am in the morning it was
too exhausting to wander around. So most
of our time was spent sitting sipping cool
drinks watching others hurry along.
Friday 24th of June we sailed home on the
overnight ferry from Rotterdam to Hull. We
arrived back at our home in Heysham just
before lunch on Saturday 25th June having
travelled 3200 miles and having seen some
wonderful sights.
The bike performed beautifully and it really
has to be the most comfortable bike ever, as
even after all that mileage we weren’t walking
like John Wayne when we got off!
We have already started planning for next
year’s holiday. Two weeks touring this time
and I wonder what we’ll see and how many
miles we’ll cover then?
37
EARLY ‘EIGHTIES BMW
SIDESTAND MODIFICATIONS
Mike Fishwick
W
ITH THE ADVENT OF ‘FIVE’ SERIES
models in 1969 the BMW ‘flyup’
sidestand became an object of
criticism. The main problems were that when
in use it did not stay down, or permit the
machine to adopt a reasonably safe angle,
and required only a slight decrease of this
angle before the return spring retracted it.
These factors caused many a machine to
fall over if, for example, someone pushed
against it while parked.
It was obvious that the stand was designed
to retract as soon as weight was removed
from it as a safety measure, for many riders
had been involved in accidents caused by
their forgetting to retract the sidestand before
moving off. Although this type of accident was
eliminated, many riders became statistics of
another kind due to the necessity that they
dismount before being able to deploy the
sidestand. A rider with stiff right leg, trapped
in a futile attempt to lift it over luggage
strapped on the pillion seat, was in a most
unenviable position!
So was born a ready demand for after-market
sidestands, such as the popular ‘Surefoot’
range, which while they may have resembled
something left over from the Forth Bridge
were at least safe and secure. They even
retracted on contact with the road if not raised
before moving off.
After only ten years BMW did something about
this problem, in the form of the drasticallyrevised models which were launched for the
1980 model year. These machines were fitted
with an excellent sidestand, which could be
deployed while seated, and would stay down,
but which was able to readily retract on
contact with the road if not raised. The R80G/
S and R80ST, however, retained the old type
of stand.
Unfortunately the (non-motorcycling?) US
safety lobby demanded that all sidestands
be of the self-retracting type, presumably
basing their legislation upon BMW’s cast-off
designs! This led to a simple modification,
incorporated from the 1982 BMW model year,
which prevented the stand from staying down.
This change took the form of a pivot bolt with
a extension which protruded
below the frame lug, so
preventing the top of the
spring from moving past the
pivot point.
Fortunately this retrograde
modification can easily be
removed by simply sawing off
the extended portion of the
bolt.
Another simple
improvement to these
stands is to fit a short
extension to the spur by
which the stand is lowered.
On my R100 for example, I
can easily lower the
sidestand
before
dismounting, which is an
essential ability on any
motorcycle, particularly if well
laden.
38
float will usually be found, but it can easily
be removed by inserting suitably large
washers.
The pivot originally took the form of a
spherical steel bush, apparently designed
to permit the stand to assume an
increasingly acute angle as the stand wore,
without straining the pivot bolt. As part of
the 1982 modifications it was replaced by
an orthodox bronze bush, lubricated via a
small grease nipple on the front face of the
frame lug.
These sidestands are no
exception to the rule that nothing is
perfect, as they usually become
worn, permitting the machine to
assume an acute angle of lean.
This is mainly due to a lack of
lubrication, coupled with the
twisting load imparted by the return
springs, which causes wear on the
ends of the pivot area. I have known
several owners who fitted
expensive
after-market
replacements when their original
sidestand became worn, but
repair is quite simple.
Wear of the stand can be easily built
up with welding, before being filed
back to shape. When wear takes
place on the frame lug, however,
repair work becomes difficult, for it is not easy
to file its lower surface without inverting your
motorcycle! Even then unworn excessive end
Although these stands were not fitted after
the advent of the Monolever range in late
1984, BMW were aware of the wear problem
associated with them, particularly the difficulty
in repairing a worn frame lug. For this reason
a repair kit was introduced in 1989, which is
still available under part numbers
46.53.1.454.750 for the R80 and R100, and
46.53.1.454.751 for the R45 and R65. These
kits consist of a pair of flanged (‘Top hat’)
steel bushes, with a new pivot bush, pivot
pin, and sidestand. At £77.65 for the R45/65
and £59.15 for the larger machines they are
not cheap, but do provide a complete and
lasting repair for the price of an after-market
sidestand.
39
If a grease nipple is fitted, ensure that it is
clear, and drill through the steel bushes to
provide a lubricant path. After assembly make
sure that the stand is correctly positioned
(about 10 degrees forward) and that it can
easily retract.
The key to maintaining the stand pivot in good
condition is of course to lubricate it regularly,
using the grease nipple (if provided) or an oil
can. A front mudflap will reduce the amount
of water and grit thrown over the stand from
the front tyre, while those who ride in all
weathers would be well advised to
manufacture a small shield, secured from
the front engine mounting nut.
It is strange to recount the identical saga of
the K-Series sidestand, which has its own
peculiar problems. This also began life as
the ‘flyup’ variety, and was then replaced by a
truly excellent stand which retracted when the
clutch lever was pulled, before the original
type was fitted again – but that is another
story.
After removing the pivot bush (if fitted) and
cleaning any paint from the frame lug, the
new bushes are inserted into the lug, the
bush with the thicker flange being fitted in
the lower position. After insertion of the pivot
bush the assembly is clamped together by a
suitable M8 bolt and large washers (with a
bore exceeding 12 mm) after which the
flanges are welded to the frame lug.
As will be imagined, the overall thickness of
the frame lug and its flanged bushes is now
greater than that of the space between the
‘ears’ of the original sidestand, hence the
inclusion of a new stand. In many cases it
may be necessary to fit a thin washer to
reduce end float.
In view of the large amount of end float
normally found in these stands, it is also
possible to manufacture steel bushes with
flanges sufficiently thin to fit inside the original
sidestand, particularly if the distance between
its ‘ears’ is slightly enlarged.
40
Diary of Events - March 06
These activities have been arranged as agent for and on behalf of The BMW Club
1
N.East
S.East
Mercia
Belmont Community Centre 7.30
p.m. Talk on STARCOM intercoms
by Mike Prohock.
Club Night at ‘Riano’s’, Maidstone.
8pm.
Northern Section Gathering. Hale Barns. 2PM
Southern 12.00 Station Cafe, Alton. “Old Gits
Run”.
Oxford
Western Evening Meeting - Codrington Arms
- 19.30 hrs Denis Bradbeer - 01454
775786
2
Oxford
3
Northern The Briars Hall Hotel. 8PM
5
E.Anglia The Crossways Scole Norfolk 12.00
5
Midland Rangers clubhouse (indoors with hot
snacks) Islington Rd, Towcester,
Northants. Tabletop bring ’n’ buy biking stuff only - set up from
11.30am - hot snacks at 1.00pm
John/Janet Winn (01604) 631043
Campbells Capers. Depart 10.30am
from lay-by on A20 at Jct with M26.
(Ian Campbell 0208 693 0329).
S.West
1200 hrs. Pub Meet. Good Knight
Inn, Cheriton Bishop
Southern 11:00 Gail’s church treasure hunt.
Meet King Alfred’s statue Winchester. Tel 078999 54555 for details.
Western Easter Compton Meeting 13.30 hrs.
Tea and Natter.
Yorkshire 12:00 White Swan Blythe
13
Yorkshire 20:00 Triton Inn Brantingham
14
London Coach and Horses, Newgate St village 8pm.
Oxford
Scottish Gairdener’s Arms, 232 Paisley Road,
Glasgow. 19.30
7
N.East
The Waggon Inn, nr. Ponteland
S.East
Meet the Kent Air Ambulance, at
‘Riano’s’, Maidstone. 8pm
Southern 12:00 Jack’s Fish & Chip Shop,
Bagshot. “Bikers Meet”.
16
Midland The King’s Head, Kinsgway, Tealby,
Lincs. (01673) 838347 Pub meet
7.30pm
Yorkshire Cracoe village hall bring and
buy.12:00
17
Northern The Glory – Loveclough. 8PM
Mercia
18
Midland SATURDAY EVENT Clay pigeon
shooting at Cosford shooting club,
near Rugby, Warks. Directions from
the organiser, Tony Kingston
(07714) 951194
Four Counties Inn
Southern 20:00 True Lovers Knot.
Midland The Fox, Grantham Road, Ropsley,
7.30pm
Ulster
Club Meeting Corr’s Corner 8.00 pm
Western Evening Meeting - New Inn, Claines,
Worcs. 19.30 hrs - Bob Dunn - 01384
390344
9
Natter night, Waggon and Horses,
Southmoor 7.30 pm
Southern 20:00 Phoenix/Saddlers Arms.
15
Scottish Meldrums Hotel, Ceres, Fife. 19.30
Southern 10:00 M/C Training Day at Alice
Holt Forest Classroom.. Phil
Raymond Tel 078999 54555. Booking essential.
Indoor meeting, Me and the land
speed record by Stan Dibben,
Uffington village hall, 2.00pm
Scottish Log Cabin Hotel, Kirkmichael,
Perthshire. 12.30
Natter night, George & Dragon,
Erlestoke, Wilts 7.00pm
S.East
Bowling at Tamworth 11am
Midland The Community centre, Great Lane,
Greetham, Rutland. From 11.30am
Bron and Terry Collier (01572)
755292
Mercia
Bull & Swan Inn
Mercia
Cross & Bowling Green
Midland The Green Dragon, Blind Lane
Oxton, Notts. (0115) 9652012 Pub
meet 7.30pm
Southern 20:00 The Flying Bull, Rake.
10
S.East
12
E.Anglia The Chequers Wimbotsham Norfolk
12.00
‘The Green Man’, Ringmer. 8pm.
Northern Lunch In Lancashire - Meet Little
Chef A6 North Of Garstang. 9:30AM
19
E.Anglia Auction Sale at The Chequers
Wimbotsham 12.00 after meeting
the Midland Section at The Little
ChefA10 at Ely Cambs. 11.00 for
coffee.
Irish
Tipperary Hills Run. Meet Matt the
Trashers, Birdhill, 11.00am. Peter
Deevy 087 2570855
London Run to Heritage Motor Museum,
Haydon, depart 10.00 A41 Hemel
Hempstead (petrol station at Bourne
41
End service area)
Mercia
Midland Auction Invitation from E. Anglia
section. The Chequers pub, Church
Road, Wimbotsham (Downham Market), Norfolk). Auction starts 12:00.
Auctioneer Rob Bensley. Organiser
Paul Brown (01354) 741168.
S.East
S.West
Ulster
27
28
Midland The Queen’s Arms, Isham Road,
Orlingbury, Northants. (01933)
678258 Pub meet 7.30pm
Northern The Creek, Peel Isle Of Man.
7:30PM
22
Mercia
Chetwynd Arms
23
Mercia
Whipping Stocks
N.East
Jackson’s Wharf at Hartlepool Historic Quay.
Northern The Whipping Stocks - A50 2 Miles
South Of Knutsford. 8PM
Southern 20:00 The Flying Bull, Rake.
Hotel weekend, Creedon’s Hotel,
Inchigeela, Co Cork Claire Mullen
00353 (0)71-9170887
24-26 Scottish Glen Luce Camping weekend. Mick
Reed 01977 708608.
Tony Kingston Clay Shoot
Midland Seaside run to Kelling, Norfolk. Depart 10am Peterboro’ services 300
yards west of A1 on A605 Ian Griffin
(01733) 205370 Note - Saturday Run
26
42
E.Anglia The Silver Ball Cafe A10 south of
Royston 10am onwards (01354
741168)
Northern The Haraby Inn – Carlisle. 7:30PM
London Old Guinea, Ridge 8pm.
Oxford
Natter night, Dog & Partridge,
Riseley, nr Reading 8.00pm.
Southern Phoenix/Saddlers Arms. 20:00
Yorkshire 12:00 How Stean Gorge
Midland The Park Hall Tavern, Park Hall Rd,
Mansfield Woodhouse, Notts.
(01623) 460267 Pub meet 8.00pm
Mad March Hare Run Meet Scrabo
Car Park, Newtownards 10.30 am for
11.00 am
Western Visit to Castell Coch Meet 10.30 hrs
@ M4 Services - Junct. 33. Short
ride after - Haydn Reece - 01656
766006
Yorkshire EGM 12:00 at Gildersome conservative club
Mercia
‘The Blue Bell’, Beltring, near Paddock Wood, 12 noon.
Southern 14:00 Bring and Buy and Talk by
Bob Denman et al and Chris Stone
about their various travels. Rake Village Hall Nigel Page Tel 01730
817782
1015 hrs. Visit to Exeter Fire Station. See Section News for more
details. Chris Crocker 01884 252759
Western Meet for Breakfast Lockside Café
09:30am, Cumberland Basin,
Briatol. Ride after. Denis Bradbeer 01454 775786
25
S.East
Scottish Crook Inn, Tweedsmuir. A701 north
of Moffat. 12.30
Colin’s Run. Depart 10.30am from
the old Little Chef site, Charing, on
A20 Jct with A252. (Colin Ace 01304
364824).
Western Meet for Breakfast at 09.30 hrs
24 -26 Irish
North Yorks. Wandrings. Meet
Scotch Corner Services 10 for 10.30.
Phil Knight 01325 484288.
Scottish Hopeville Social Club, Harlaw
Road, Inverurie. 12.30
Southern 08:00 Pioneer Run. Meet at
McDonalds’s A3/ A272Junction at
Petersfield. Tel Jon Riche 02380
843519
21
N.East
Repton. 12 Noon
Yorkshire 20:00 Gildersome conservative club
29
Mercia
Four Counties Inn. 12noon
31-2 Western Slimbridge Camping Weekend- with
Hedingham Sidecar Club. Tudor
Arms Campsite, Slimbridge, Glos.
Good pub and food available and
B&B. Tel: 01452 382965.
April 2006
2
E.Anglia The Crossways Inn Scole Norfolk
1200
Midland Ride to RAF Cosford, Shropshire –
Free Entry www.rafmuseum.org.uk/
cosford/index.cfmDepart 9.15am
Donington services J24M1 Richard
Filipczak (07710) 834439
N.East
Go Karting! Contact Graham Walker
on 07931 710991 by 1 st March.
Northern Breakfast Run - meet Tesco, J43 M6
7AM
Northern Ride around Llangollen - meet at
Junction A49/A533 Café & Petrol
10AM
S.East
Hunt with The Hawk. Depart 10am
from lay-by on A20 at Jct with M26.
(John Hawker 01622 744665).
S.West
1030 hrs. Helen & John’s Rideout.
Meet at Moto Services M5 Exeter
Contact. Helen Beer. 01395 443246
Southern 10.00
Breakfast run to Wesson’s
café Horam, followed by a soup
lunch with Dave & Lesley Goldsmith
Western Ride-out - Castell Carreg Cennen to
Abergavenny. Meet at Brecon Mountain Centre - 12noon. Brian Price 01792 862152
3
Western Easter Compton Meeting - 13.30 hrs.
‘Kilimanjaro’ - Talk and Slides by
Ruth Croome, Sky High Adventures.
Yorkshire 12:00 - The White Swan Inn at
Blythe.
Yorkshire 12:00 - Cracoe village hall.
11
London Coach and Horses, Newgate St village 8pm.
Scottish Meldrums Hotel, Ceres, Fife. 19.30
Oxford
Scottish Gairdeners Arms, Paisley Road, Glasgow. 19.30
4
Mercia
Four Counties Inn
Midland The Fox, Grantham Rd, Ropsley,
7.30pm
Ulster
Club Meeting Corr’s Corner 8.00 pm
Western Evening Meeting - New Inn, Claines,
Worcs. - 19.30hrs Bob Dunn - 01384
390344
5
N.East
Belmont Community Centre 7.30
p.m. Members Travel Forum; your
stories.
S.East
8pm.
Southern 12.00 Station Cafe, Alton. “Old Gits
Run”.
Ulster
Wednesday Evening Run – Meet
Corr’s Corner 7.00 pm
Western Evening Meeting - Codrington Arms
- 19.30. Denis Bradbeer - 01454
775786
6
Oxford
Natter night, George & Dragon,
Erlestoke, Wilts 7.00pm.
Southern 20.00
The Flying Bull, Rake.
7
Northern The Briars Hall Hotel 8PM
8-9
National National AGM weekend (AGM Sat),
Chorley Conference Centre, Little
Carr Lane, Chorley, Lancs. (Northern section hosting)
9
E.Anglia The Chequers Wimbotsham Norfolk
1200
Irish
Cork Area 9am Run meet opposite
Ibis hotel
Irish
Limerick Area. Meet Matt the
Trashers, Birdhill. 11.00am. for run
to Scariff. Peter Deevy 0872570855
Southern 20.00
12
13
Ride out; Dave’s trip to Choky, Dave
Hawkins 01993 850862
S.East
Eagle Heights Run. Depart 10am
from the old Little Chef site, Charing,
on A20 Jct with A252. (Ken Hall
01227 792796).
Scottish Log Cabin Hotel, Kirkmichael,
Perthshire. 12.30
Phoenix/Saddlers Arms.
Mercia
Bull & Swan Inn
Ulster
Mercia
Cross & Bowling Green
Midland The Green Dragon, Blind Lane
Oxton, Notts (0115) 9652012 Pub
meet 7.30pm
14
S.East
‘The Green Man’, Ringmer. 8pm.
14-17 E.Anglia Easter weekend, The Oirschot Rally
in Holland , at the Tureluur Camp
Site in the village of Netersel which
is west of Eindhoven,off the A21
motorway. Bunkhouse accommodation is available booked with Cicile.
www.bmwcluboirschot.nl/ 0031402136775. Social Sec 0845
1560715.
14-17 S.East
St Audries Bay Rally.
14-17 S.West
Easter at St Audries Bay. Nr.
Minehead. See Journal Advert.
Contact David Little 01404 861285
or Keith Hackett on 01803 527760
14-17 Southern Easter. St Audries Bay
16
Mercia
Mike Fishwick RAF Cosford
Midland Ride to Mallory Park (Leics.) racetrack to see club member Alan Hurd
racing an R100 outfit. Discounted
entry with access to paddock area.
Needs prebooking and prepaying
(£12). Depart Donington services M1
J24 at 9.30. Martin Ellis
Yorkshire The Famous Yorkshire Alpine Run.
Details from Steve Lamb. S.A.E. to
24, Paterdale Drive, Rawcliffe, York
YO30
5TW.
or
[email protected] Star/
finish at The Highwayman Cafe on
A64, 3 miles NE of York. OS
Landranger map sheet 100 or GPS
required.
Northern Section Meeting At Chipping Village Hall 2PM
Oxford
Natter night, Waggon and Horses,
Southmoor 7.30 pm
Yorkshire 12:00 - How Stean Gorge Cafe.
16 -17 Irish
17
Carlow Bike Show
Western Easter Monday Carvery - Meet for
lunch at Tom Mogg Inn, Nr. Burtle,
Somerset. - 12 noon. Carvery lunch
and skittles. Jim Martin - 01242
672360
43
18
Midland The Park Hall Tavern, Park Hall Rd,
Mansfield Woodhouse, Notts
(01623) 460267 Pub meet 8pm
Midland The Queen’s Arms, Isham Road,
Orlingbury, Northants. (01933)
678258 Pub meet 7.30pm
Northern The Creek, Peel Isle of Man 7:30PM
19
N.East
The Waggon Inn, nr. Ponteland.
S.East
8pm.
Southern 12.00 Jack’s Fish & Chip Shop,
Bagshot. “Bikers Meet”.
Ulster
20
hrs for 11.00 hrs. Janet Wilson 01225 858876.
Western Skittles v. Moto Guzzi Club - 12
noon. Globe Inn, Somerton.
24
25
Northern The Haraby Inn – Carlisle 7:30PM
London
Oxford
Southern 20.00
26
Midland The King’s Head, Kingsway, Tealby,
Lincs (01673) 838347 Pub meet
7.30pm
N.East
Curry in St John’s Church Hall; 6.30
pm Bowburn Services. Philip Gray
0191 217 1690.
27
Northern The Glory – Loveclough. 8PM
21-23 Yorkshire Camping weekend at Riverside
Caraven Park, High Bentham. Phil
Rutt 01535 216645
22
Mercia
23
E.Anglia Cafe meeting at The Autostop Transport cafe on the Cambridge side of
Caxton Gibbet roundabout with
Cambridgeshire Police Motorcycle
Road Safety Unit , 10am.
Ians Breakfast Run
Irish
N.W.Area Run to Tuam for Breakfast at The West Wing at 10.00am.
Jim O’Connell 086-2805974.
London
Run to Southwold. 09.30am layby
under M25 Junction 26
Midland Cambridgeshire Police M/cycle
road safety unit display, at the
Autostop Café Caxton Gibbet,
Cambs. Martin Ellis (07970) 682972
N.East
The Lakes; meet Scotch Corner 9.30
for 10; Brian Stephenson 0191
5220217.
Northern Ride to Seahouses - Carnforth Railway Station 9AM
S.East
‘The Blue Bell’, Beltring, near Paddock Wood, 12 noon.
Scottish Hopeville Social Club, Harlaw
Road, Inverurie. 12.30
Ulster
Ride and meet for lunch – The
Wildfowler Inn, Greyabbey 12.30 pm
for 1.00 pm
Western Visit to Pewsey Wharf - Kennet and
Avon Canal Meet in lay-by on A46
just south of Junct 18 - M4. 10.30
44
Phoenix/Saddlers Arms.
Yorkshire 20:00 Gildersome Conservative
Club.
E.Anglia The Compasses Littley Green Essex
1900hrs
Mercia
The Chetwynd Arms
Mercia
Four Counties Inn (noon)
N.East
Lucky Few run; around the Borders.
Dep Safeway Hexham 10.00 a.m.
Peter Cullen 01434 674295.
Ulster
Wednesday Evening Run – meet at
Mercia
Whipping Stocks
N.East
Jackson’s Wharf at Hartlepool Historic Quays
Southern 20.00 The Flying Bull, Rake/ True
Lovers Knot.
21
Old Guinea, Ridge 8pm.
Natter night, Dog & Partridge,
Riseley, nr Reading 8.00pm
Northern The Whipping Stocks - A50 2 miles
South of Knutsford 8PM
28-1 Midland Camping (long) weekend at
Dollgellau, N Wales (Bank holiday).
Turn up with your tent, or book onsite B+B (Limited spaces) George
Gibson 07832 458585
28-1 Ulster
Ulster Section Scottish Bank Holiday Weekend at Angus Hotel,
Blairgowrie. Special Hotel and Ferry
rates. Leslie Allen 02828274127
or 07732643280
28-30 N.East
Aviemore weekend arranged by
Dennis Maggs; 0191 371 9610.
29-1 Western Camping and Caravan Weekend
Sunny Lyn Holiday Park, Lynbridge,
Lynton, Devon. All bookings ASAP
to be made direct with Sunny Lyn
Holiday Park - 01598 753384
30
E.Anglia National Motorcycle Museum Birmingham. Meeting Brampton Services McDonald’s at junction of A1/
A14 near Huntingdon at 10am followed by Corely Services on M6
south of Birmingham 11.30 am., and
on to venue.
Midland Lincolnshire Wolds Run (Formerly
Louth Lions run) Bill Rodgers
(01526) 834480
S.West
1200 hrs. Pub Meet. Good Knight
Inn, Cheriton Bishop.
Scottish Crook Inn, North of Moffat on A701.
12.30
AROUND THE COMPASS
March 24 - 25, 2006 Hotel weekend.- Irish 26-29 May (Fri-Mon) Long weekend in
Section. Creedons Hotel, Inchigeela, Co. Cork. 2 Northumberland (Midland section). (arrive
Friday, leave Bank holiday Monday),
nights B&B, dinner Sat. night. Cost E75 pp or
Winshields campsite is 14 miles east
Stg£60 pp. There are a limited no. of places
of Hexham (Hadrian’s Wall country)
available on this weekend so book early
on the B6318 Near the 'Once Brewed
to avoid disappointment. Contact Claire
J u n e 11 t h
Tourist info centre'). Bunkhouse
to
14th
Hotel
at [email protected] or phone +353
needs pre-booking with the site on
Week-End in
(0)71 9170887.
Cumbria
(01434) 344243 (mention the club)
Ride outs
or turn up and camp/caravan with
Sunday 16th April 2006 Alpine Run
no booking required. Organised
Howardian Hills – north of York. Join the
rideout with N.E section on Saturday
Yorkshire Section. Start and Finish
Highwayman Café on A64 3m NE of York. Required and discounted visit to Beamish open air
GPS or OS landranger sheet 100 Malton and village/museum, with free on-site parking
Pickering. Details [email protected] or (Sun). This event is being publicised by
SAE to Steve Lamb, 24 Patterdale Drive,Rawcliffe. multiple sections so book your B+B or
bunkhouse early.
York. YO305TW. 01904 626655.
14-17 April 2006 Easter At St Audries Bay
Camping and Chalet At St Audries Bay on the
North Somerset Cost. £69pp for 3 nights
Chalet. £45 for child under 14 for 3 nights
chalet. £53pp for 3 nights camping with hook
up. £38 pp for 3 nights camping without hook
up. Price includes Gala dinner on Saturday
night. Live band on Saturday and Sunday
evenings. Send Cheques payable to BMW
Club with SAE to: Dave Little,Corner Cottage,
Yarcombe, Honiton, Devon EX14 9BD
BOOKING ESSENTIAL
12th – 14th May 2006 Ulster Section’s North
West 200 road races camping weekend. The
campsite is only yards away from the racing
and there is a BBQ planned for the Saturday
night. Cost £10.00 per night. For further
details call Tommy Atkinson on 02893382312
Northern Section’s Holiday in Eire based at
Galway, 11-17th June, John Bell 01228
535173
Contact Martin Ellis (01623) 401405
[email protected] for B+B
numbers, or get all the info you need at http:/
/www.bmwmcc.co.uk/midland/calendar.htm
2nd-5th June Borren East Weekend In Memory
of Brian Langton- Yorkshire Section. 3 to 4 nights
hotel and all the East Yorkshire back roads you
can ride starting Friday 2nd B&B in Hull then
Saturday morning riding boreen roads of East
Yorkshire, dinner then up to Scarborough B&B and
e/meal. On Sunday more boreen roads stunning
views and countryside running up to Whitby area
B&B and e/meal and a good crac in the evening.
Cost will be approx £135pp. More details Ross
Cameron on 01482 879943
Entries are accepted here only when
they have been approved by the National
Social Secretary. This is to ensure that
the Club abides by the rules which
provide our insurance cover. Any other
events should be sent for inclusion in
‘Events not organised by the BMW Club’
Scotland Hotel week July 9 - 13 courtesy of
the Midland section. Five nights half board at
the 3 star Nethybridge Hotel in the
Cairngorms. (Monarch of The Glen country).
http://www.strathmorehotels.com/neth_site/
Fantastic value. Cheaper than you might
think. Places are limited so please book now.
Rob Harvey (01788) 393187
45
NATIONAL EVENTS 2006
Irish February24 - 27 Mini Thatch, Ballinrobe, Co
Mayo. Claire Mullen 00353 (0)719170887.
Irish March 24 - 26 Creedon’s
Hotel,
Inchigeela, Co Cork Claire Mullen
00353 (0)71-9170887.
Scottish
March 24 - 26 Camping Weekend, Glenluce. Mick Reed 01977
708608
Western
March 31 to 2 April
Camping
Weekend with the Hedingham Sidecar Club. Tudor Arms Campsite Slimbridge. Bed and Breakfast
available at Tudor Arms Pub. Alan
or Liz Robertson 01452 382965 Email
at
[email protected]
National
April 7 - 9 National AGM (organised by Northern Section),
Chorley Conference Centre,
Chorley (Lancs). Book accommodation direct with venue 01257
225225 (mention The BMW Club).
Additional accommodation 10 minutes walk from the venue. Dinner
reservations Bill Smithson 01539
736454
or
[email protected].
Camping info Bernard Tagg 01772
466205
or
[email protected].
Other queries Tony Cartmell 01253
768421
or
[email protected]
East Anglia
April 14 - 17
T
h
e
Oirschot Rally in Holland. Tureluur
Camp Site, Netersel, west of
Eindhoven, off the A21 Antwerp to
Eindhoven motorway. Bunkhouse
accommodation available, must be
booked with Cicile. Camping-just
come, www.bmwcluboirschot.nl Paul Brown 0845 1560715
South West
April 14 - 17 Easter
at
St
Audries Bay. Camping and Chalets,
North Somerset Coast. 3 nights
Chalets - Adult £69pp, Child under
14 £45. 3 nights Camping - £53pp
with hook up, £38pp without hook
up. Price includes Gala Saturday
night dinner. Live band on Saturday & Sunday evenings. Cheques
payable to BMW Club with SAE to
46
Yorkshire
Western
MidlandApril
Northern
South West
MidlandMay
Scottish
Northern
Yorkshire
Irish May
East Anglia
LondonMay
Dave Little, Corner Cottage,
Yarcombe, Honiton, Devon EX14
9BD. Booking Essential.
April 21 - 23 Camping Riverside
Caravan Park, High Bentham, Phil
Rutt 01535 216645
April 28 to 1 May
Camping
and Caravan Weekend, Sunny Lyn
Holiday Park, Lynbridge, Lynton,
Devon. Caravans and lodges available. Booking req’d ASAP. Food
available on site and at pub next
door. All bookings to be made direct with the site 01598 753384.
28 April - 1 May
Camping,
Dollgellau, N Wales (Bank holiday).
Turn up with tent, or book on-site
B+B, (Limited spaces) George
Gibson 07832 458585.
May
5-7 C a m p i n g ,
Rhayadar, Leon Wych 01270
767167.
May
5 - 7 Hamster
Rally
Gwythian Farm Campsite on
B3301, 7 miles North of St Ives.
Beach and pub nearby. Les Carr
01579 362086
11 - 14 Edinburgh hotel weekend.
Book now to avoid disappointment.
Bill Rodgers 01526 834480.
May
12 - 14 Bunkhouse Weekend at Lochearnhead. Book with
Steve 01975 564060
May
19 - 21 Sammy Miller Museum Weekend, Bill Smithson
01539 736454.
May
19 - 21 Camping, Eden
Tree House, Bradwell, Hope, Derbyshire, Keith or Kath O’Mahoney
on 01226 763883
20 - 22 Ulster Section N.W. 200
Camping Weekend. Jim O’Connell
086-2805974.
May
26 - 28 Camping,
The
Hadleigh Rally. For more information
http://www.hadleighsuffolk.co.uk/ Sue Bullimore 01638
578461.
26 - 29 French hotel weekend.
Mick Miles 01582 793 188. Early
booking advised.
Oxford May
26 - 29 Continental long weekend.
John Hillier 01189 332 152
MidlandMay
26 - 29 Northumberland Nr Hexham
Bunkhouse/B+B (pre-booking) or
camp/caravan. Visit to Beamish
open air village/museum, http://
w w w. b m w m c c . c o . u k / m i d l a n d
http://www.beamish.org.uk Martin
Ellis
(07970)
682972
[email protected]
Scottish
May
26 - 29 Hexham Weekend
with Midland section. Camping, B&B
or bunkhouses.
Yorkshire
May
26 - 29 Hexham Weekend
with Midland section. Camping, B&B
or bunkhouses.
South West
May
26 - 29 Camping, Innis Inn,
Penwithick, St Austell, 2 miles from
Eden Project £4.50 pppn. Robin
Wale 01726 824108.
Southern
May
26 - 29 French Camping
with Dave and Norma Harrison at
Chateaubriant. Dave and Myfanwy
Williamson 01428 751756.
Oxford May
31 to 2 June FIM Motocamp
Holland.
Yorkshire
June 2 - 5 The 1st Yorkshire
“BOREEN RUN.” 3/4 nights hotel and
all the East Yorkshire back roads
you can handle. Ross 01482
879943
Irish June
2 - 5 Support Yorkshire Boreen
Run. Claire Mullen 071-9170887
East Anglia
June 2 - 9 French Week in
Normandy at St. Aubin-sur-mer, D
Day anniversary week. Camping/
chalets at a Holiday Village with all
facilities/heated swimming pool.
Paul 01354 741168. See also http:/
/ w w w. c a m p i n g - c o t e - d e nacre.com.
Mercia June 9 - 11 Tony’s weekend. Keith
Hamilton 01283 516793
Yorkshire
June 9 - 11 Camping, Horton in
Ribbledale. Arthur Berry 01729
860269.
Northern
June 11 - 17 Holiday in Eire,
John Bell 01228 535173.
Vintage Register
June 15 - 18
Llwyngwair Manor Holiday Park,
Newport, Nr. Fishguard, telephone
Park on 01239 820498.
Western
June 16 -18 Camping Weekend
- Exbridge Caravan Site, Nr
Dulverton. Adults only. Advance
Irish June
Yorkshire
Scottish
Western
Scottish
Irish July
East Anglia
South West
Yorkshire
MidlandJuly
MidlandJuly
Oxford July
booking req’d. Dave & Anita Holland 01884 829295.
16 - 18 Camping Weekend. Details
later in Journal and on web site.
June 23 - 24 Camping, Naburn
Lock, near York, Mike Dorking
01977 613716
June 23 - 25 Longest Day Camping Weekend, Ullapool. Liz 01482
875158
June 30 to 2 July
7
t
h
Disserth Camping Weekend.
Disserth Camping and Caravan
Park, Nr. Newbridge-on-Wye. Off
A470 north of Builth Wells. Brian
Harrison 01594 530264
June 30 to 2 July
Camping
Weekend Dunnet Bay. Liz 01482
875158
7 - 9 Camping
Weekend,
Ballykeeran. 3 mile N. of Athlone
Bypass, Jan Browne 087 2790899.
July
7 - 9 Camping, hotel,
B&B., Porlock, Somerset http://
www.porlock.co.uk/ Please call for
list of hotels / B and B. Camping no
need to book. Site located adjacent
to several pubs and restaurants,
breakfast available, next to site.
Paul Brown 0845 1560715
July
7 - 9 Camping, Porlock
with East Anglia
July
7 - 9 Hotel, Youth Hostel
or Camping, Swallow Falls Hotel,
Betsy Y Coed, Wales. Roy Booth
0789614249 or hotel on 01690
710769.
9 - 13 Hotel week, five nights half
board at the Nethybridge Hotel***,
Cairngorms. Good value. http://
w w w. s t r a t h m o r e h o t e l s . c o m /
neth_site. Rob Harvey 01788
393187.
14 - 16 Camping
weekend,
Cadwell Park Racetrack, Lincs.
01507 343248 . Crew of Notts/
Lincs air ambulance on site Saturday. £15 per person for weekend,
includes camping, entry to the racetrack and events taking place. Pay
on arrival, no booking necessary.
Martin Ellis 07970 682972
[email protected]
http://brandshatchcircuits.co.uk/
cadwell-park/index.asp
14 - 16 Camping Weekend. Details
47
later in Journal and on web site.
July
15 - 16 Welsh Camping,
Llanddeusant, Brecon Beacons.
Phil Raymond 078999 54555
Yorkshire
July
15 - 16 Camping, Stuart
and Elaine West 01274 832309.
Northern
July
27 - 30 How
Caple
Grange Hotel Weekend, Tony
Cartmell 01254 768421.
MidlandJuly
28 - 30 Long Eaton steam/country/
vintage show. (J25M1) Free entry
to the show/free camping for those
who will park their bikes on the club
stand. Any age bike – MUST BE
BMW and MUST be pre-booked by
entry form or charges will apply.
http://www.bmwmcc.co.uk/midland Section Events – Event Reports Martin Ellis 07970 682972
[email protected]
East Anglia
July
28th - 30th
Long Eaton
Steam Rally camping weekend.
Admission is free for pass holders
but these must be previously
booked with their Social Sec. Martin Ellis 01623 401405 who has
more info.
Yorkshire
July
29 - 30 Joint Event with
Midland Section, Long Eaton Steam
Rally. Must be Pre Booked with
Martin Ellis 01623 401405.
Southern
July
29 - 30 C a m p i n g ,
Frensham, Surrey. Colin Young
01428 713906.
Scottish
August 4 - 6 Camping Weekend
with Dick Boyd. Book in advance
on 01343 870389
South West
August 4 - 6 Camping, Tudor
Caravan Park, Slimbridge with
Western Section. £5.50/tent per
night for 2 people. Keith Hackett
01803 527760.
Irish August 4 - 7 Boreen
Run
www.boreenrun.com Claire Mullen
00353 (0)71-9170887
Yorkshire
August 5 - 6 Cranedale Study
Centre weekend, Kirby Grinalyth,
Malton. Peter Wright 01724 783770.
LondonAugust 6 - 11 Run to the Ring. Dates may
change. See The Journal for details. Dave Ensor 020 8508 5223
Irish August 18 - 20 Rock View Hotel, Lough
Arrow (NW). Camping & B&B available. Jim O’Connell 086-2805974.
Southern
August 19 - 20 Popham Airfield
Southern
48
National
Northern
Bike Rally – Camping Nigel Page Tel
01730 817782.
August 25 - 28 National Rally (organized by Midland Section). Warwickshire College, Moreton Morrell,
Warks. If you can help, please contact event chairman Graham Parker
01623
467852
[email protected] or Martin
Ellis
07970
682972
[email protected].
September
1-3 Graham
Arms Hotel, Longtown. Derek Irving
01254 770862.
Northern
September
2 - 9 Camping &
caravan week, Grolejac, Dordogne, France, Arthur Allen 01745
550239.
North East
September
6-8
Camping
weekend at Waren Mill near
Bamburgh, Northumberland. Singles £6.50, doubles £9.50 per night.
Full details later on NE Section
website. Graham Walker 01207
528426
South West
September
8 - 10 D o r s e t
Camping weekend, see Journal for
details, Andy Allman.
LondonSeptember
15 - 17 Hotel, Malvern
Hills. Mick Miles 01582 793 188
Southern
September
16 -24 Camping &
Gite week Nr Bergerac, France
with Tim & Sarah Austin; booking
essential, Nigel Page 01730
817782.
Yorkshire
September
16 - 30 Spain, details and very early booking please.
Dave and Doreen Milne 01132
860604, limited places.
Yorkshire
September
22 - 24 Camping,
High Bentham caravan park, Lancashire. Harry Beadle 01642
781202.
Irish September
22 - 25 Thatch Rally –
Portumna Co. Galway. Tel: Claire
Mullen 00353 (0)71-9170887.
East Anglia
September
29 to 1 Oct
Camping, Pickering. The Black Bull
campsite, with Northern section at
Whitby. Rideout for Fish and Chips
Lunch
see
http://
www.blackbullpark.co.uk
Northern
September
29 - 30 Camping,
Pickering with East Anglia section,
Geoff Thompson 01706 629 206
Scottish
September
29 to 1 Oct
Glencoe Camping Weekend. Liz
01482 875158
East Anglia
October
13 - 15 Camping,
B&B, Whitehall Farm, Burnham
Thorpe. Visit to Muckleburgh Collection. Saturday evening meal at
The Lord Nelson in the Ward Room
round the “large” table amongst
original paintings of Nelson. No
need to book if camping but essential for B&B. Please ring Paul Brown
0845 1560715 if you are coming
as an idea of numbers helps.
MidlandOctober
14 - 15 “Forties” weekend, Pickering, N.Yorks. Could fill
up early - Bill Rodgers 01526
834480
Southern
October
27 - 29 H o t e l
weekend, Isle of Wight. Nigel Page
01730 817782.
Irish October 27 - 30 N.W. Donegal Hotel Weekend in Ardara. Claire Mullen 00353
(0)71-9170887.
South West
November
3-5 H i p p o
Rally, see Journal for details, Nobby
Donno 01726 812471.
Western
November
17 - 19 H o t e l
Weekend. See Section News for
details. Brian Harrison 01594
530264
Northern
November
24 - 27 Camping in
Wales, Rhys Jones 01286 881076.
Scottish
November
25
S
t
Andrew’s Night Dinner. Bookings
to Dick Boyd 01343 870389
49
IT’S A DOG’S LIFE ( Part 1 - of 3! )
Learning to Live with Marjory and Helga
John Thompson girds his loins ...
I
HAD READ THE BOOKS describing the
adventures of Ted Simon and Che Guevara,
and I had followed the progress of Julia
and Kevin Sanders, but what really did it for
me was the DVD set I got for my birthday: the
Long Way Round! I had to do something
adventurous on a bike before too much longer
– if I was going to do it at all. I’m no stranger
to long distance riding having ridden Land’s
End to John ‘o Groats (the length of the united
Kingdom) with only one overnight stop in
Perth (Scotland), and to the most northerly,
southerly, easterly and westerly points of the
UK with only a few overnight stops. I’ve ridden,
pretty much non-stop, from Nice to Calais
and all over the UK, France, Holland, Belgium
and Germany. But I’ve never undertaken a
real adventure!
50
What should I do? Where should my
adventure take me? I work for a living, so time
off is inevitably a limitation. I could allow
myself three weeks to complete my
adventure, and I decided to see how many
European countries I could ride through in
three weeks. I spent a few nights planning
my route, which I decided should take me
through France, Belgium, Germany,
Luxemburg, Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia,
Bosnia, Montenegro, Albania, Macedonia,
Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary,
Slovakia, Poland, Czech Republic, Germany,
Belgium and Holland, a total of 23 countries
(not counting England) in 18 days, covering
around 5,000 miles in the process.
W
HICH BIKE SHOULD I RIDE? I had a
choice of three: a 1973 R90S
(unsuitable, and too valuable), a 1998
R1100RT (which I have owned since new,
and which I thought would be suitable), and
a 1984 R80G/S* (which I bought a couple of
years back on EBay, paying far too much for
what looks a real ‘Dog’). There was no choice
really. The Dog was light, manoeuvrable, and
dispensable! The Dog was eminently
suitable. The Dog it was then.
*This bike was originally built for the U.S.
market (the first registered owner was one
Claude Moens of 14 Sentinel – wherever that
may be – who purchased the machine from
BMW of Marin), and had a number of
emission controls to satisfy state regulations.
How it came to be imported to the UK I do not
know, but the first thing I did was to strip off
all possible emission control paraphernalia
in order to reduce fuel consumption and
increase performance.
Planning was spread over the winter of 2004/
2005, and I decided to maintain a daily journal
describing my adventure. As my planned
departure date drew closer, the tension,
excitement and not a little apprehension
mounted. I loaded, unloaded and reloaded
The Dog a number of times in the week prior
to departure, finally deciding on the actual
load distribution the night before.
This then is the day by day, blow by blow
account of my adventure …
Eurotour 2005 - Daily Journal
Day 1 - 20th June 2005 – Northampton
(England) to Brussels (Belgium).
I depart in good weather, a bit of a heat wave
in fact, though at 05.30 the temperature is a
very comfortable 21ºC. Decide to blitz the
51
journey to Brussels, where I am due to attend
a two day business meeting. This is my
‘springboard’ for a journey of some 5,000 road
miles over a planned 18 days, and it is not
without a little trepidation that I set out on the
first leg. The UK motorways M1, M25 and M20
are, at this time of day, relatively quiet, and I
arrive at the Folkestone Shuttle terminal at
08.30 to buy a one-way ticket on the 09.20
train through the Channel Tunnel, which is
around 30 miles in length and rises to the
surface in France at Calais. I do consider
buying an open return ticket but, so uncertain
am I concerning the prospect of the bike
completing the journey, that I decide on a one
way ticket, reasoning that, if the worst comes
to the worst, I will push The Dog into the
nearest ditch and fly home directly from
wherever catastrophe had struck me!
Arriving at the head of lane 1 – the motorcycle
waiting lane (always the last to be called
forward for boarding) – I swell the number of
52
riders by 100%; there are now two of us, the
other being John Newman, a motorcycling
journalist and travelogue writer who is a
contributing editor to ‘The Riders Digest’, and
who also contributes to the BMF magazine
and a U.S. publication called ‘Backroads’.
Riding a brand new Moto Guzzi 750, on loan
from the UK distributor for evaluation (and,
no doubt, in the hope of some good free
publicity), John’s expedition is to take him
first to Freiberg, where he will ‘pick up’ the
river Danube and track it all the way to its
delta on the Black Sea coast in Romania.
The story of his journey is likely be published
first in ‘Backroads’ and then in The Riders
Digest, and I resolve to obtain a copy of one
or both editions featuring his story. Last year,
John had ridden down through Spain and
onwards through the Atlas Mountains to
Morocco. I also resolve that, if my present trip
is successful, I will contact him for advice
with a view to undertaking a similar journey.
If we are both successful in the first half of
our respective journeys, John Newman and I
will arrive at the Black Sea before turning for
home, though separated by some days due
to my business meeting - and because of
my much more circuitous route to Romania.
Funnily enough, one of the inspirations for
my present trip had been “The Long Way
Round”, and John is joining Charlie Boorman
(who is preparing for the 2005 Dakar Rally
on a BMW 650 GS) for a training weekend at
the BMW off-road centre in South Wales. I
believe that John will write up that event for
publication; it should be an interesting read!
We share past experiences during the short
Channel Tunnel crossing, before parting
company at the Calais terminal, where I head
for Brussels and he takes the road to Lille
and onwards south east through Germany
to Freiberg.
The ride along the E40 to Brussels is boring
and uneventful, and the Garmin GPS unit,
nicknamed Marjory (after the aunt of someone
who had written an interesting and amusing
review of the Street Pilot III in the BMW Club
Journal during 2003), takes me through the
city to my Hotel without fault. Marjory will prove
extremely useful later on … These two nights
in the Tulip Inn are to be my last in an hotel
for an indeterminate period, and I overdose
on the comfort and the fine Belgian cuisine
that (I imagine) I will miss later.
312 miles in 11 hours.
Day 2 - 21st June 2005 - at work (Brussels).
The weather is really hotting up today, with
skies completely devoid of cloud, not a breath
of wind, and the midday temperature hitting
36ºC. I need to plan tomorrow’s route and
riding gear, since the present cyclone looks
set to track my planned route!
Miles covered: 12; a gentle evening coolingoff ride around the centre of Brussels dressed in shorts and T-shirt. Not too risky,
though it makes me feel uneasy to be riding
without the usual protective riding gear.
Day 3 - 22nd June 2005 - Brussels to Freiberg
(Germany).
There seems little point in hanging around;
the early morning temperature is already
28ºC and rising fast, the scenery is going to
be uninspiring until I reach the Saarland, so
I dress for safety rather than comfort and ride
uneventfully and unremarkably through
Belgium, Luxemburg and France, using only
motorways, crossing into Germany near
Strasbourg. At this point, my right front
indicator housing begins rotating on its
bracket, which I fix with duct tape (wonderful
stuff). Marjory is loaded only with those maps
that relate directly to my precisely planned
route. This is a mistake, as I find when I
decide to deviate from the planned route to
see some places of interest in Saarbrucken
and Trier. The Garmin base map can be very
useful, as I am to find much later in my
journey, but lacks detailed information on
tourist attractions and other places of
interest. It also results in a less than helpful
positional accuracy on the moving map
display. Nevertheless, I manage okay without
the detailed maps, but resolve to make sure
that I have more digital maps on a spare
memory card next time.
Continuing due south, I reach Freiberg at
16.30 and find the Hertzberg camping platz.
This turns out to be quite a nice camp site,
with shop, laundry, good shower block (supply
own toilet paper!), internet access (€2 for 30
minutes), and an adjacent beer garden/
restaurant. Very convenient, and reasonable
at €10 per night. The basket of chicken, chips
and salad, consumed in the beer garden and
washed down with a bottle of vin rouge (or
half of it), is very tasty and good value at €18
(the cost of eating is later found to reduce
proportionally with the increase in geographic
latitude!).
364 Miles in 9 hours.
53
Day 4 - 24 th June 2005 – Freiberg to
Innsbruck (Austria).
Awake at ~06.00 with a headache. The wine
imbibed last night was not so good after all!
Another blazing morning so, from here on, I
plan to sacrifice safety for comfort, and stay
off motorways and main roads. I program
Marjory with my choice of riding, then
breakfast on croissant, ordered from camp
site shop last night, and fresh coffee brewed
on my own stove before breaking camp and
departing at 07.30.
My route takes me east on the B31, a pleasant
little road which at first leads through gently
undulating farmland to Neustadt, Engen and
Stockach in Baden Württemberg, then to
Ludwigshafen on the shore of Lake
Constance. I follow the northern shore along
the length of the lake (with nice views of
Switzerland on the south shore), for some
40 miles, crossing the A96/E43 where the
B31 suddenly becomes the B308 to
Lindenberg Im Algau. I cross from Austria to
Germany and back again, though I hardly
notice it. From here, I am riding on a road
marked on the map as an area of outstanding
natural beauty, and the terrain becomes more
undulating – seriously so - and the riding
more enjoyable.
At one point (whilst still in Germany) I pull
into a filling station to tank up and I see around
20 BMWs, all German registered and less
than 2 years old, the riders clearly gathering
for a group ride. I tank up, get a coffee and
croissant, and meander over to look at the
hardware; all nearly new stuff; makes my Old
Dog look just that! They take no notice of me
– after all, I’m probably riding something way
beneath their dignity to even look at, so I
select a likely looking pair – deep in
conversation – and introducing myself in my
best German (which is not very good).
I ask where they’re headed. They reply,
haughtily, “we’re on a dealer organised run
through France to Spain and back via Italy”. “A
marathon indeed” I respond. “Where are you
from and where are you headed” they ask. I
have been waiting for this and, having
rehearsed the reply to such a question, I say
“I’m from England, and I’m riding to Turkey
via, France, Belgium, Germany, Luxemburg,
Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro,
Albania, Macedonia, and Greece. And then
back to England via Bulgaria, Romania,
Hungary, Austria, Germany, Belgium and
France, a total of around 8,000 kilometres”.
At that point they began to take an interest in
the G/S, and I understand enough German
to know that they are speculating on the
54
probability of the Old Dog not completing the
trip. I decide to depart, making my best
attempt at a wheelie on pulling away from
the filling station. Pathetic!
Frequently switching roads now, I pass
through Immenstadt, Hinderlang and
Weissenbach to joint the B314 to Zirl and
onward to Innsbruck. This is the best ride so
far! Stunning scenery, perfect weather - if a
bit on the hot side at 35ºC (though I resolve
not to complain about this), and excellent
roads in terms of surface,
contour changes and bends.
The trouble is, I cannot fully
enjoy both the scenery and
the excitement of riding on
such good roads at the same
time, so I stop frequently to
look and take photographs
while maintaining good
concentration on the road
whilst riding. I ride over
stunningly
spectacular
mountain passes (figure
04), climbing to ~2,500m at
one point (according to
Marjory).
Arriving at Innsbruck, I visit the
Tourist Information Office,
having been guided by
55
roadside or walking to the nearest
“haltestellen” to catch the “schulbus”. Not for
these people the maniacal 4x4 school run!
They haven’t forgotten how to use their legs!
Marjory, bless her, and enquire about
camping. I am directed to a camping platz in
a quite good location, with decent amenities
and an on-site restaurant. Good, but not so
good as last nights’. Pitch tent, take a good
shower, and settle down at 17:30 to watch
others arrive and make camp.
On reflection, The Dog is performing better
than expected, but a little self doubt about my
own ability to complete the trip is creeping in.
At the end of today I feel quite exhausted after
the high level concentration required in
negotiating seemingly endless hairpin
bends, and I wonder if I’m really up to
completing the full trip. Anyway, I retreat to
the restaurant to enjoy a spaghetti
bolognaise and a couple of glasses of plonk
rouge, all for the very reasonable price of €15,
before retiring to my tent at 21.30.
Day 5 - 25th June 2005 - Innsbruck to Trieste
(at least, this is the initial plan!)
Programmed Marjory to keep me off
motorways and trunk roads, and set a couple
of waypoints (St. Johann in Tirol and Lienz)
that would ensure I covered some interesting
roads through the Alps and Dolomites.
This is a rural road in the real meaning of the
word. It has fierce undulations and bends
varying in severity, but the surface is good,
as is the signage. It links innumerable small
rural communities, all comprised of typical
Tyrolean chalets and sweet meadows of
grass and flowers being grazed by lovely dun
cows wearing collars and bells. And, yes, the
locals do sometimes wear lederhosen!
There are signs of wealth everywhere you
look; none of poverty.
I am so enjoying this ride. It’s going to be
another hot day but, for the first hour or so, I
am mainly riding in the shadow of the
mountains, occasionally bursting into bright
sun drenched sections where, like a lizard, I
gain a few degrees of body temperature
before, once again, entering the cool shadow
of the col. I find that getting the occasional
glimpse of the A12, an autobahn class dual
carriageway filled with commuters on their
way to a day in the office, factory, or whatever,
boosts my satisfaction no end. Yes, I’m
feeling rather smug about it all, and the self
doubt of yesterday has evaporated with the
rising sun and air temperature. This is going
to be a good day.
At Johann in Tirol I turn East/Southeast on
the B164 to Saalfenden, then south on the
B311. This is another road marked on the
map as an area of outstanding natural beauty,
From Innsbruck I take the rather minor, but
pleasantly rural and undulating B171 / B170
route that runs parallel with the A12 that heads
East/Northeast out of Innsbruck. Having left
the campsite at 07.00, I find that there are
lots of very smartly turned out and impeccably
behaved Austrian children waiting by the
56
and I consider this an understatement! I stop
and breakfast on Fruit at Zell am See, a very
upmarket resort, before again heading south
on the B107 through the most stunning
scenery I have ever seen. Again, it is
impossible to obtain maximum enjoyment
of the road and the scenery simultaneously.
This requires frequent stops to take it all in,
and to take quite a few photographs, before
remounting to revel in the hairpins and
spectacular ascents/descents of the Alps and
Dolomites. I shall remember this ride for the
rest of my life!
Pressing on south, the B107 becomes the
B110 and crosses the Austrian/Italian border
south of Mauthen to become the A23 to Udine.
Instead of joining the A23, an autostrada class
dual carriageway, I once again choose to ride
the parallel minor road following the
mountain river as it descends to the plains
and, eventually, to Udine, where the character
of the road and scenery changes for the
worst. Still, what a day! Truly the best riding
yet, but the last hour to Trieste is, by
comparison, awful. I should have taken the
autostrada from Udine and, because my
schedule had taken a bashing as a result of
the frequent photo-opportunity stops, I decide
not to stop for the night at Trieste, and to
continue on through Slovenia to Croatia
instead. Slovenia was traversed in less than
an hour: only 20 miles at this, its narrowest
point, and the scenery was uninspiring –
especially after the highlights of the day! I had
no fixed plans for any particular destination,
and continued on into and through Rijeka.
Upon emerging from the south east of the
city at around 19:00, I fell upon a ‘tourist board
camp site’ where I made enquiries as to
rates, facilities and refreshments (I was
assured that the bar/café at the entrance to
the site would remain open until around
22:00).
The camp site turns out to be a bit of a dump
– heaven knows what non-tourist board camp
sites would be like! The toilet block cum
showers are just functional and, as I find out
later, the café-bar serves no food. I dine on
nuts and beer, and resolve to find an early
breakfast stop next morning. Good job I had
57
a sandwich when tanking up near Trieste.
Still, sitting over my meagre rations gives me
time to ruminate over the day’s events, and
to plan the next stage of my journey. The Dog
has, once again, performed faultlessly. In
fact, it seems to get smoother by the mile. I
conclude that this is because of the slowly
falling level of oil in the sump, which I had
accidentally overfilled during my preparation
for the journey. My experience of air cooled
BMW parallel twins, built up during the
ownership of eight prior models, is that over
filling with oil causes rough running, I guess
because the crank throws are partially
immersed in the oil when the level is too high.
I must check the oil level daily. I have little
idea what fuel consumption is, or what fuel
prices are, since I can’t be bothered to work
them out at this stage. However, I am
recording the quantity and price of fuel
purchased, and the mileage covered
according to my trip milometer. Marjory, of
course, tells me precisely what mileage (or
kilometerage) I am covering each day – and
she maintains a running total. I certainly have
not been riding with a view to achieving
58
economical consumption, preferring to get
maximum enjoyment and performance out
of The Dog!
I have experienced only one problem so far,
and this is with the bike/load configuration; I
have a 60 litre BMW roll bag (highly
recommended by the way) strapped to the
pillion seat, and am unable to lift my leg high
enough to clear it when mounting. I have
therefore developed a technique of balancing
the bike off its stand with my left hand on the
handlebar and my right on the roll bag, and
standing on one leg whilst delicately feeding
the other between the humps formed by the
roll bag and tank bag; a bit, I imagine, like
mounting a camel! It’s certainly precarious,
and results, on two occasions, with the
complete plot falling away from me in an
undignified heap! Still, the bike doesn’t suffer
– it has crash bars – and I don’t care too
much about its appearance anyway. The
whole operation would be much easier if The
Dog had a decent prop stand. I must do
something about this before another trip with
a similar load distribution.
On reflection, I have brought far too much
gear, and I must use this experience to
compile a list of minimum requirements for
future reference. I conclude that, on the
clothing front, it might be better to buy and
discard ‘T’ shirts, socks and underware,
these being cheap and easy to find. Also,
when camping, there has been no need for
cooking and eating utensils so far, since I
have eaten in café restaurants (with the
exception of this night). On the other hand, I
could do with a slightly bigger tent, one that
is easier to erect, and which I can stand up
in. Also, perhaps some sort of chair, rather
than the uncomfortable tripod stool I have
brought along, would be better. Oh well, live
and learn.
I’m now navigating using Marjory’s base map,
there being no Mapsource coverage between
here and when I re-enter the EU at the Czech
republic (which, at this stage, I still plan to
do). Nevertheless, I am finding that the
Garmin base map provides sufficient detail
to enable good navigation between
waypoints, though positional accuracy on the
moving map is presently showing a margin
of error of up to 200 metres. However, in
conjunction with my large scale road map,
this is quite sufficient.
I’m calling home every night using my mobile
phone (I expect there’ll be a big phone bill
waiting when I get home). I’ve not yet
experienced any problems with reception, but
I shall be surprised if GPRS reception is as
good once I get to Turkey (which remains on
my itinerary at this point), or in Albania,
Bulgaria, and Romania.
There are loads of other riders on the minor
mountain roads today, but only a few coaches
and cars, which considerably heightens the
enjoyment of the experience and allows me
to ride at my pace which, although fairly brisk,
is nowhere near as rapid as the German
registered rice burners that frequently close
on me at a phenomenal speed. Tomorrow, I
plan to spend the night in or near Split (the
Capital city of Croatia), which is reputed to
be very beautiful. But the fact that I have made
better progress than planned today means
that I could head directly for Dubrovnik instead,
thus getting one complete day ahead of
schedule. This could be quite handy, for I
always like to have time in hand and, besides,
my youngest daughter is due to give birth to
her first child on around 1st July, and I would
like to be close to home, if possible, in case
there are problems. I exchange 50 for 400
Croatian Kuna, because it seems that one
cannot use the Euro here yet.
I enjoyed a good night’s sleep last night, due
to being exhausted after the ride. I wonder if I
shall have such a good night tonight, having
had no food to speak of? I retire at 10.00,
there being nothing else to do …
325, Miles in 11 hours.
Day 6 - 26th June 2005 - Rijeka to Dubrovnik
(Croatia).
My plan today is to ride Route 2, the coast
road, the full length of Croatia, from Rijeka to
Dubrovnik. This will be quite a distance, but I
imagine that the road will be good and I
depart the camp site, after a reasonable
night’s sleep, at 07:00, heading out of the
city suburbs and soon pick up route 2 without
problem. I get my first views of the Adriatic
and the numerous islands that make
Croatia’s seaboard a paradise for pleasure
cruising. The horizon is dotted with sails,
from schooners and sloops to dinghies, and
jet skis to power boats towing water skiers.
The road turns out to be as expected: a
relatively good surface with plenty of
sweeping bends giving excellent overtaking
opportunities for motorcyclists, and I soon
leave behind each ‘convoy’ of cars and
coaches that I catch up with. There are
numerous road widening works in progress,
with queues of cars and coaches up to two
or three miles long which, of course, gives
me great pleasure to observe as I cruise past
the occupants sweltering in their stationary
ovens! I get the usual hoots and rude
gestures from a few motorists who seem to
think that motorcyclists should not take
advantage of their ability to ‘filter’ in such
situations. Oh well, it takes all sorts …
59
The scenery is, in a different way from that of
yesterday, quite splendid. And the weather
is, as it has been from day one, hot and dry.
Perfect motorcycling – if one is prepared to
60
sacrifice safety for comfort and strap leathers
to the carrier - as I have done. I make good
progress early on, and stop for breakfast at
around 10:00 at a market in the small fishing
town of Karlobag.
Here I buy fruit, cold
cured meat and bread
at a ridiculously low
price, and sit on the
quayside watching life
go
slowly
but
pleasantly by as I
consume
my
peaches, plums and
a
banana,
interspersed with
mouthfuls of fresh
warm crusty bread
and thinly sliced
smoked
ham.
Delicious. I don’t really
feel like leaving this
place, but this is not
getting me any closer
to my next stop.
inexplicable reason. Helga it is then!
Dubrovnik is a town that suffered badly from
shelling during the Serbian onslaught.
Thankfully, the town (and most of the ancient
buildings have been more or less fully
restored. Having spent an hour or so in the
tourist area of the town, I head south east,
following numerous signs for ‘auto-camps’,
and settle for one, ‘on spec’, that has an
adjacent pizzeria. It turns out to be an excellent
camp site, and quite reasonably priced at €8
for the night. The toilet and shower facilities
are good, and it’s not even an official tourist
board recognised site. Lesson learned.
On then to Zadar, using 20 miles or so of
dual carriageway (the only section
encountered since leaving Rijeka), and
crossing a brand new toll bridge, where
previously there was a ferry service. Then on
again, without stopping, through Sibenik,
around Split, shortly passing (briefly) into and
out of Serbia without noticing, and on to
Dubrovnik. The views are stunning, if
repetitive, and the repetitiveness is amply
compensated for by the constant bends.
Here, I find that I can enjoy both scenery and
roads simultaneously without danger
because of open views of the road ahead. I
am spending around 40% of riding time
heeled over at highly enjoyable angles!
Having pitched camp, showered and
changed into clean gear, I retreat at 19:00 to
the restaurant and enjoy two large local
beers, a 16 inch pizza and a half bottle of
Chianti, all for a sum equivalent to €16.
Mulling over the days events, and planning
tomorrows route, I realise that, at 20:30, it’s
suddenly becoming dark – and it’s only four
days past the summer solstice. This is a
measure of how far south I’ve come. I’m now
one full day ahead of schedule, having
covered a greater distance per day than
planned. This should continue tomorrow as
I’m contemplating a 450 mile ride to
Thessalonica, which will put me 1½ days
ahead of schedule. This I am happy to do
since the news of number two daughter’s
pregnancy is that she is likely to give birth
later, rather than sooner, and I might, with
luck, be able to arrive back in the UK on the
7th July, hopefully before she gives birth to
our third grandchild. Also, having time in hand
is, for me, very comforting. I retire to my tent
The Dog is still behaving itself. Indeed, I have
to say that it is purring along (feline
undertones?). I hope that I’m not tempting
fate by thinking such thoughts! I’m beginning
to consider The Dog as having feminine
characteristics, but decide not to call her The
Bitch! Perhaps I should give her a name?
Helga comes instantly to mind for some
61
at 22:30, satiated and in good spirits.
Day 7 - 27 th June 2005 - Dubrovnik to
Thessalonica (over ambitious, as it turns
out!)
Departed at 06:30 after breakfasting on
remainder of fruit, ham and bread purchased
yesterday, for short run to Croatia/Montenegro
border. Crossing borders, until now, has
presented no problems. On joining a queue
of around eight vehicles at the border exit
from Croatia (07:00 ish), I begin to sense
that this is going to be a different experience.
I proceed through the Croatian border to the
Montenegrin border check point and rejoin
the queue in time to witness two vehicles
turned back after
having been refused
entry into Montenegro.
I have no idea why at
this point.
countries outside of the European Union that
I will traverse during my journey. What a stupid
b****r! It is pointed out to me, in a very surly
manner, that I do not have ‘the necessary
papers’ to enter Montenegro (deeper sinking
sensation), but that I can purchase green card
cover over there (pointing to a shed situated
in no man’s land). My passport and vehicle
documents are retained, as is Helga, and I
am directed to purchase ‘the necessary’ and
return to the police check point. Knocking on
the shed door elicits no response. “There is
nobody there until 09:30” I was told (even
deeper sinking sensation). I sit down to wait
for the arrival of the occupant of the shed and,
after around 30 minutes, a young guy pitches
up on a MZ. Having disrobed, he opens up
and enters the shed, motioning me to follow.
Once in the shed, despite the prominent ‘no
smoking signs, he lights a cigarette and asks,
in good English, “What can I do for you?”. “A
green card please” I respond hopefully. He
completes the necessary forms, issues a
green card, and asks me for “16 in respect of
insurance premiums”, which I willingly fork
out, asking “does this cover me for Albania,
Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, etc.?” As I have
already guessed, he points out that it will be
necessary for me to purchase a green card
for each country at the point of entry. I now
On reaching the
border
police
checkpoint, I am
asked, for the first
time, to present my
vehicle log book and
i n s u r a n c e
documents. I feel a
sinking sensation in
the pit of my stomach,
for I now realise that I
have unintentionally
omitted to obtain
green card insurance
cover for those
62
have a much deeper
sinking sensation in
the pit of my stomach.
If I am going to have
to go through this
routine at every nonEU border crossing, I
had better rethink my
itinerary. I return to the
police check point
with ‘the necessary
documents’
and,
grudgingly it seems,
am allowed to enter
Montenegro.
It
becomes
i m m e d i a t e l y
apparent that this is a
very poor country. The
signs of poverty are
all around, and you can smell it even if you
can’t see it. The stink of rotting garbage is
evident in almost every town and village that
is not directly on the tourist trail – and tourism
is, it seems, only a fledgling industry in
Montenegro at this point in time. Towns and
villages appear to be locked in a time warp.
However, it is also clearly apparent that there
is a huge amount of EU funded (as
announced on many signs) infrastructure
development. Why? This is not an EU
member state! I conclude that this is because
it is an ‘aspirant’ EU member state, and that
it has to reach a minimum standard before
entry with no hope of doing so without external
support. I also conclude, having already seen
the natural beauty of the coastal scenery that
this is the tourist ‘hot spot’ of the immediate
future, the prices presently being less than a
quarter of what we will pay in any EU state for
accommodation, dining, drinking and
clothing. Even petrol is cheap at less than a
Euro per litre.
Next in part 2 : the perils of Albanian
sheep dips, more border crossings
and Greece. Not necessarily in that
order ...
63
64
Where we meet
EAST ANGLIA: The Cossways, Scole Norfolk. 12:00,
1st Sunday ; The Chequers, Wimbotsham,
Norfolk,12.00 2nd Sunday; The Shoulder of Mutton,
Fordham, Essex. A1124. 12:00, 3rd Sunday; The
Compasses, Littley Green, Essex. 19:00. Last
Wednesday.
OXFORD: George & Dragon, Erlestoke, Wilts
7.00pm, 1st Thursday; Waggon and Horses at
Southmoor off the A420, 19:30, 2nd Tues; Dog &
Partridge, Riseley (off end of Swallowfield by-pass
[A33]) 19:30, 4th Tues; Village Hall, Uffington,
Oxfordshire, 14:00 occ. Suns
IRISH: Dublin Meetings, 2nd Weds, Strawberry Hall,
Chapelizod, Dublin 15. 8.00pm. Jim Sweeney (01)
6270613 (H) 6280969 (W). Limerick Meeting, 2nd
Tues 21.00, Woodfield House Hotel, Ennis Rd,
Limerick. Peter Deevy 087 2570855. North West
meeting , 2nd Sunday 11.00am Coffey’s Cafe,
Carrick-on-Shannon. Jim O’Connell 071-9182464.
SCOTTISH: Meldrums Hotel, Ceres, Fife, 19:30, 1st
Mon; Gairdeners’ Arms, 232 Paisley Road, Glasgow,
19:00, 1st Mon; The Log Cabin Hotel, Kirkmichael,
Perthshire, 12:30, 2nd Sun; Crook Inn, A701 north
of Moffat, 12:30, last Sunday; Hopeville Social Club,
Harlaw Road, Inverurie. 12.30, 4th Sun.
LONDON: The Old Guinea, Ridge (about 1 mile
West of M25 / A1 interchange at South Mimms)
20:00 second Tuesday. The Ace Café, North Circular
Road, Stonebridge, London, at 20:00 4th Monday.
MERCIA: Four Counties Inn, No Mans Heath. 19.30
1st Tues and 12 noon last Wed.; Cross & Bowling
Green, Branson Cross, on A435 at junction B4101.
Adj Q8 petrol station. 19.30 2nd. Thurs.; The Bull &
Butcher, Corley Moor, B4102 from Meriden towards
Fillongley, right before Motorway bridge, 3 miles on
left, 19.30 3rd Thurs; The Chetwynd Arms, A34 Brocton
Nr. Stafford, 19.30 4 th Wed; Bull & Swan, Diseworth,
Off A453 Nr East Midlands Airport 2nd Wed. 19.30.;
Whipping Stocks, A50 Peover, Nr. Knutsford – 19.30
4th . Thurs. (with Northern Section)
MIDLAND: All year round meetings - The Fox,
Grantham Road, Ropsley Lincs. NG33 4BX (01476)
585339 1st Tuesday 7.30pm ~ The Green Dragon,
Blind Lane, Oxton, Notts. NG25 0SS (0115) 9652012
2nd Thursday 7.30pm ~ The Park Hall Tavern, Park
Hall Road, Mansfield Woodhouse, Notts NG19 8PX.
(01623) 460267 3 rd Tuesday 8pm ~ The Queen’s
Arms, Isham Road, Orlingbury, Northants. NN14 1JD
(01933) 678258 3rd Tuesday 7.30pm ~ The King’s
Head, Kingsway, Tealby, Lincs. LN8 3YA (01673)
838347 3rd Thursday 7.30pm ~ Winter gatherings –
The Community Centre, Great lane, Greetham,
Rutland and The Rangers cycle clubhouse, off
Islington Road, Towcester, Northants – both
occasional Sundays, October to March – see Midland
website.
NORTH EAST: Belmont Community Centre,
Sunderland Road, Gilesgate, nr Durham.19.30. 1st
Wed: The Waggon Inn, on A696, 3m NW of
Ponteland, 19.30. 3rd Wed: Jackson’s Wharf Pub,
Jackson’s Landing, Hartlepool Historic Quays, 19.30.
Thursday following 4th Wed.
NORTHERN: The Briars Hall Hotel on A5209 near
Burscough, Lancs, 20.00 1st Fri.; All Saints Church
Hall, Hale Barns, A538, 14:00, 2nd Sun; The Glory,
Loveclough, nr Rawtenstall, A682, 19:30, 3rd Fri;
Harraby Inn, Carlisle, A6, 2 miles west of M6 J42,
19.30, last Monday; The Whipping Stocks, south
Knutsford, A50, 20.00, 4th Thurs.
SOUTHERN: The Phoenix Inn, Twyford, Hants, on
the B3335 1 mile south of M3, J11, 20:00 alt Tues;
The Saddlers Arms, Send Marsh, Nr. Ripley. 20.00
alt. Tues; The Flying Bull, Rake, on the B2070
between Liphook and Petersfield, alt Thurs;The True
Lovers Knot at Tarrant Keyneston, Dorset, 3 miles
east of Blandford on the B3082 Wimborne Road,
20.00. 3rd Thursday
SOUTH EAST: Riano’s, A26, Maidstone, 20:00, 1st/
3rd Wed; The Green Man, Lewes Road (B2192),
Ringmer, East Sussex, 20:00 2nd Fri; The Blue Bell',
on the A228 opposite the Paddock Wood Hop Farm,
4th Sunday, 12 noon; ‘The Wagon & Horses’,
Charing, 20:00, last thursday.
SOUTH WEST: Jamaica Inn: At Bolventor, off A30
east of Bodmin. (Signed from A30); The Globe: Exit
M5 J27 to A361 for Barnstaple and first left to
Samford Peverell. All meets 1200 as per calendar
of events. Good Knight Inn, Cheriton Bishop: off
A30 between Exeter and Okehampton as per diary
of events.
ULSTER: Corr’s Corner, Glengormley, Co Antrim,
20:00 1st Tues; Wed. Evening Runs, Corr’s Corner,
19:00 April, May, Sept, 19:30 June - Aug; Sunday
Morning Runs. Sandyknowes Roundabout (unless
specified), 10:30, most Suns, (July - Oct).
WESTERN: Easter Compton Village Hall - on the
B4055 (south of Junction 1 - M48)13.30hrs - 2nd
Sunday.New Inn, Claines, Worcester - 19.30 hrs - 1st
Tuesday. Codrington Arms, Codrington, Westerleigh
- 19.30 hrs - 1st Wednesday
YORKSHIRE: Cracoe Village Hall on B6265 between
Skipton and Kilnsey Crag, 12:00, 1st Sun; The Triton
Inn, Brantingham, N Humberside, 20:00, 2nd Mon;
White Swan Blyth, 12:00, 2nd Sun; The Coservative
club, Town Street Gildersome, 20:00, last Tues of
the month. How Steam Gorge Cafe, Lofthouse, near
Pately Bridge 12.00 3rd Sunday
Please send all changes to
Where we Meet to the Editor
65
Section & Register News
Social and Register Secretaries
Club Europa eV: Peter Dunn,
101 Station Road, Thatcham, Berks. RG19 4QH.
Tel: 07941 075165. e-mail: [email protected]
East Anglia: Paul Brown,
33a March Road, Wimblington, March, Cambs,
PE15 0RW. Tel: 0845 1560715 e-mail
[email protected]
Irish: Claire Mullen,
11 Knocknarea Villas, Sligo. Tel: 00353719170887,
London: Mick Miles,
Shepherd’s Ley, Lamb Lane, Redbourn, St
Albans. AL3 7BS. Tel: 015 8279 3188.
Mercia: Keith Hamilton,
12 Meridith Close, Horninglow, Burton on Trent,
Staffs DE14 2SL Tel: 01283 516793
Midland: Martin Ellis,
11 Mapplewells Road, Sutton in Ashfield, Notts.
NG17 1HZ Tel: 01623 401405
Northern: Geoff Thompson,
44 Bamford Road, Heywood, Lancashire. OL10
4TA.
Tel:
01706
629206.
e-mail:
[email protected]
North East: Tony Seed,
3 Friarswood Close, Yarm, Stockton on Tees.
TS15 9JG. Tel: 01642 785880. e-mail:
[email protected]
East Anglian Section
Paul Brown
We have had some very good turnouts
already this year to our regular Sunday meets,
despite what has been sometimes very cold
weather. If this continues then by the time
Spring arrives some of us will be struggling
to get served at the bar!
Looking ahead, it would be a wise
decision to book your ferry if you are
considering the Easter Oirschot Rally, which
is 14th to 17th of April. Quite a number of
Section members have chosen to book the
66
Oxford: John Hillier,
27 Stephens Close, Mortimer, Reading. RG7 3TX.
Tel: 01189 332152.
Scottish: Liz Sandland,
Tel: 01482 875158
email: [email protected]
Southern: Nigel Page,
6 Eversleigh Court, High Path, Easebourne,
Midhurst, W. Sussex. GU29 9BP. Tel: 01730 817782.
South East: John Smith,
12 Castleton Avenue, Barnehurst, Kent. DA7 6QU.
Tel: 01322 342320.
South West: Keith Hackett,
41 Primley Park, Paignton, Devon. Tel: 01803
Ulster: Michael Sweeney,
34 Edward Street, Downpatrick, Co Down, Nr.
Ireland. BT306JD. Tel: 028 44 615692.
Western: Brian Harrison,
Poolfield Court Cottage, Hewelsfield, Lydney,
Glos. GL15 6UJ/ . Tel: 01594 530264
Yorkshire: Dave Milne, 132 Sandgate Drive,
Kippax, Leeds LS25 7QR tel: 0113 2860604.
Dover - Calais route departing on the Friday
at 0925 and returning on the 17th at 1525
(French Time) P and O Ferries 01304
863464. Full details are on our Calendar
which is listed on the East Anglian Section
Chat Forum of the Club Website
www.bmwmcc.co.uk/forum.html The location
is the village of Netersel which is to the west
of Eindhoven about 170 miles from Calais
and 5 miles from the Belgian border.
Bunkhouse accommodation is available if
booked with Cicile on 0031 402136775
Camping is at the Tureluur Campsite in the
village. All we need is some good weather!
You may also like to book for the
Normandy Holiday, both ferry and campsite.
This is very flexible in terms of when and how
you travel, the period is 2nd to 9th of June to
take in the D-Day anniversary, with camping,
ready erected tents, chalets, or mobile
homes at St. Aubin-sur-mer. Again all the
details are on the Forum, or call me on 0845
1560715. The campsite, Camping de la Cote
de Nacre, is probably the best in Normandy it
has every facility and is very modern, clean
and tidy. They speak English on 0033 231
971 445.You could travel Dover-Calais or take
a ferry to Ouistreham (Caen) which is just
ten minutes from the site.
Whilst travelling outside the U.K. it is
a good idea to have with you the E111
replacement in its new plastic card format.
These are available by post from The Work
and Pensions Agency, by telephoning 0845
606 2030 with your National Insurance
number to hand.
The Stay At Home Rally has been
changed to a 1 day event on 1st April this year
to minimise the usual complaints about
camping facilities or poor hotel service etc.
George Davidson, the organiser, tells me that
entries for the shortest distance travelled
award will not now be accepted if the machine
is held on a SORN document, this was not
considered as being in the general spirit of
motorcycling. There are several prizes this
year, in addition to the Sloth Trophy, a well
known manufacturer has kindly donated a
brand new battery charger, which is designed
for constant float charge, to be awarded to
the runner up, just the job for those summer
months when your bike lingers in the garage!
The popularity of this rally is causing some
concern and it may well be that it will be
repeated at other dates throughout the year.
There is no need to even bother to book, just
don’t turn up on the day. If you are entering for
the Trophy please do not forget the tie breaker
“I prefer my sofa because…..”
Sunday 19th of March is our Auction
Sale at Wimbotsham at 12.00 with Robert
Bensley as your autioneer. Try and bring some
of your better quality camping/leisure/
motorcycling items for sale, the proceeds are
yours, no commission is being charged, but
if you want to put anything in the pub collecting
box its up to you. We will be meeting at the
Little Chef just off the roundabout where the
A142 joins the A10 at Ely Cambs. at 1030,
leaving with the Midland section at 1130 for
the ride to The Chequers
Sunday 26th of March is a café meeting
from 1030 at The Silver Ball Café just south
of Royston on the A10 . This is our first time
at this venue it will be interesting to see what
charms it holds, I am told it is motorcycle
friendly, so we are in with a chance!
On Sunday 23rd April at The Autostop
Transport Café near Caxton Gibbet is our
meeting with Cambridgeshire Police
Motorcycle Road Safety Unit. A display caravan
and Police BMW motorcycles will be available
for all to see. The following Sunday the 30th
April is our ride to the National Motorcycle
Museum in Birmingham, more information
on both of these in next months Journal or
see the Website.
26th to 28th May is of course the date
you have put in your diary to avoid missing
the Hadleigh Rally, camping and breakfasts
cooked on site in the bar. Last years event
was blessed with really wonderful hot
weather, lets hope its as good this year!
Organised by Sue Bullimore, for up to the
minute information you can contact her on
01638 578461
Well, that’s about it until next month,
safe riding and don’t forget more up to date
Section information is available on the Club
Website in the “East Anglia Section Chat”
Forum
Irish Section
Jan Browne
At last the end of the winter is in sight,
personally I absolutely hate winter. I expect
you are all tuned up and rearing to go. By the
looks of the calendar it should be a good
year.
I think that Paul Browne’s heart
skipped a beat on Sunday 28th January, when
over 100 bikes showed up at Joe Duffy BMW
Motorrad and then at least 150 were at
Breakfast, in Laragh.
It was absolutely brilliant to see so
many people at the breakfast, and I know
everyone really enjoyed it, people saw ‘old
friends’ that they hadn’t seen for ages and
on behalf of the BMW Club, we would like to
thank Paul and Joe Duffy – BMW Motorrad for
67
their kind invitation and generosity. The what
has now become the annual hill walk took
place on 15th January, 8 people completed
the walk ending up like drowned rats on a
horrible wet day. We were joined on the walk
by Marco Cremonesi a member of the BMW
Club Seefeld, near Munich in Germany who
is on a short stay in Ireland learning English.
He also joined us for lunch and was made
very welcome; we have invited him over on
his bike, next time. Another 24 people joined
us for lunch in Roundwood, lunch was really
good:
I have been asked to advise members
that a 2nd monthly meeting is being
organised which will be held on the 4th
Thursday of each month in the West County
Hotel, Chapelizod, at 8.00 pm. (Just to let you
know if you are coming straight from work,
that you can have ‘pub grub’ in the Lounge)
The Christmas party in “The Hodson
Bay hotel” saw 22 enjoying the wonderful
facilities that the hotel had to offer, while
other’s opted for a spot of fishing, and of
course Brendan Grace after dinner a very
good dinner. “Someone” produced a guitar
later on and no one saw their bed until a lot
later than anticipated. Let’s hope more
weekends like this can be enjoyed.
On behalf of the Irish section and
myself, I would like to send sincere
condolences to Shirley Kenny and family on
the death of her husband George. Many of
you will remember them on their Metallic Blue
R/65 outfit, and of course the now defunct
“Timber tasting” competitions. My personal
memories of George are of a real
“Gentleman” who had great warmth about
him and a great love of life, people and his
family. Also was his love of the land, horses
and of course bikes. Rest in Peace George.
Mercia Section
Keith Hamilton
Sun 12 th march Derek&Vi,s Bowling at
Tamworth start time 11am, lunch at 1pm
£12.95 per person = two games plus lunch
or lunch only for none bowlers £5.95
To book please phone direct to Derek & Vi on
01827712613 or print a booking form
68
The mercia web site .Address/ Stryker Bowl
Castle Grounds River Drive Tamworth. Just
off the A542
Sun 19th March Repton Village Hall 12 untill
2pm tea coffee and tyre kicking
Sat 25th March don’t forget Tony Kingston,s
Clay Shoot near Rugby this date has changed
from last months journal my apologies
.Unfortunately Tony has cancelled his mid
week ride outs for personal reasons so if
anyone would like to take over give me a call
New Year Breakfast this is the first
chance I’ve had to report on this event the
first time at Repton and a great venue. 57
members attended and all ate a hearty
breakfast. So many of you braved the cold
and arrived on your bikes. It was nice to see
the car park full. I would like to welcome new
member Nick from Ashbourne who attended
his first event hope to see you at many more.
Now to say thanks to all who helped out. A
special thanks to Doris Nicholls for ordering
and cooking also Margaret Mollie and Trisha.
We must not forget the washer-uppers! I have
heard that Keith Nicholls has the softest
hands in the Mercia Section. Thanks to
Rosemary for sorting the raffle. This event
should be a yes for next year.
This year’s diary is filling up nicely but
still room for more runs. Mike Fishwick has
offered to give us a guided tour at RAF
Cosford on Sunday 16th April - I will sort a ride
in start point to be arranged. Admission to
the museum is free and there is a good
restaurant on site too. I will arrange to be on
site for about 11.45am for lunch and start the
tour with Mike at 1pm
Don’t forget Saturday 8 th April: the
National AGM at Chorley. The more members
there then the more votes can be counted.
Chorley is not that far for most Mercia section
members - don’t forget this is your club. The
temperature will soon be rising to let us
summer riders back out on the streets. Our
first trip away in early may will be to
Northumberland and the Borders not spent
much time in those parts so looking forward
to it. We have just spent a a long weekend in
Poland (Gdansk) 1 penny with Ryanair what
a cold time -28 and 10 inches of snow but
still a great place to visit its people are so
friendly. I would like to go back some time on
the bike (but in the summer!) as the food and
alcohol are very cheap’
Last but not least our Mercia Section web
pages: Ray Smith has put a lot of effort into
revamping the site. Its well worth a look for
all the latest news dates and times of runs.
That’s the place - cheers Ray. Thats all for
this month - Safe Riding.
Midland Section
Martin Ellis
Bill Rodgers’ well organised post-Christmas
meal at The Fox, Ropsley, went really well,
will all diners having a very enjoyable evening.
Our thanks to Bill for taking the time to
arrange this for us.
Apart from the clay pigeon shooting
day mentioned last month (this should
already be full by now, but you never know),
we’ve three other events in March which are
worthy of an extra mention. The first is an
invitation from East Anglia to a bike-andcamping-bits auction at Wimbotsham nr
Downham Market in Norfolk on the 19th, and
the second is a ride to Kelling on the Norfolk
coast with section member Ian Griffin on the
25th. This is Griff’s first run for us and I hope
that he gets a good turn out. Please note that
this is a SATURDAY.
The third event to mention is the
Sunday meeting at Greetham on the 12th (last
one until October), which is being catered by
Bron and Terry Collier from Oakham who, like
others stepped in to help when we needed it.
If you’d like to lend them a hand, contact them
on (01572) 755292 or [email protected]
Don’t forget also that at the March Towcester
meeting there will be a bring and buy for
motorcycling related items only please. 11.30
setup. (45 people at Towcester in Feb and
55 at Greetham in Jan– superb turnouts).
Looking forward to April, rather than sit at
home on Easter Sunday (16th) why not ride
with us to Mallory Park racetrack in
Leicestershire http://www.mallorypark.co.uk/
default.asp to support club member Alan
Hurd who, with his son-in-law races (under
the name of Adako racing ) a BMW outfit based
on an R100 which Alan personally imported
and collected from Norway. There will be a
full day of vintage and classic racing,
including practice if we get there early
enough, so the discounted entry cost of £12
per person is good value. For this we will
also be given reserved parking for our bikes
and free access to the paddock area as
concessions, but in order to receive these
extra benefits, booking in advance is required.
Please make cheques payable to The BMW
Club and send them to me, Martin Ellis
(Mallory), 11 Mapplewells Road, Sutton In
Ashfield Notts. NG17 1HZ by 10th April at the
latest. Let’s go and give him some support
and have a good day out in the process. Meet
at Donington services M1 J24 anytime from
8.30 for breakfast and depart at 9.30.
I know it’s still early in the year, but the holiday
season will be upon us soon, and to that
end, some of our events which need
booking…should be booked! Rob Harvey’s
week in a Scottish hotel (July) is one such
event. This is 5 nights (Sunday to Friday) halfboard at a good quality hotel in the
Cairngorms (Monarch of the Glen country)
and at a really good price. Limited places are
available so get booking on (01788) 393178.
More info on the hotel can be found at http://
www.strathmorehotels.com/neth_site/ and
the other usual sources, mentioned below.
Entry forms for the Long Eaton steam rally
weekend in July should also be being
requested from me (or downloaded) about
now, and you should be booking your
accommodation (if needed) for Dolgellau and
Northumberland.
Due to an administrative error ( I sent the
wrong file in to the Editor), there’s a possibility
that some dates may be wrong in March’s
diary section of this Journal. If in doubt consult
your yearcard (which is correct) or phone to
check. Other sources of information and
downloads can be found at http://
www.bmwmcc.co.uk/forum and the Midland
website http://www.bmwmcc.co.uk/midland
As always, if I can be of assistance I can be
contacted on (01623) 401405 or
[email protected]
69
Northern Section
Geoff Thompson
The January meeting at Hale Barns was
rather poignant in that it was the last time we
saw Alan Clark before his untimely death. He
was a long standing club and section stalwart
and I’m sorry I did not get to know him better.
I’m sure a full obituary will be printed
elsewhere in this edition of the Journal (its
on page 4 as my tribute to a inspirational
past Editor). I didn’t win anything at the raffle.
There were some excellent prizes to be had
and, once again, its thanks to Ashley and Vera
Hunt for organising it so well. The Hot Pot
seemed to be very popular again too; thanks
to Jim Hough for collecting it! The post
Christmas Dinner was January’s other
social event and I’m grateful to Keith Bennett
for this report:
There were about 600 Northern
members missing but those who made the
effort had a most enjoyable afternoon and
evening. Some very welcome new faces who,
I think also enjoyed themselves. Good
surroundings, good food and good company.
Between courses we had some Yorkshire
dialect phrases to translate into English. I’m
pretty sure there’s been some inter-breeding
because one or two people were “Reet
goodatit, tha nose”. About 14 people stayed
overnight. All this wouldn’t have been possible
without Clive and Alison Talbot’s hard work.
They put in a lot of time and effort - buying
raffle and table prizes and generally making
sure everybody had a good time. Many
thanks, both of you. PS I think some people
had been practising the drinking beforehand,
because nobody was drunk and disorderly
by the end of the evening!!
I would like to add my thanks to Clive
and Alison too. They worked very hard to
arrange the post Christmas Dinner yet only
20 or so people attended. A few years back
around a 100 could be expected to attend
this event so clearly people’s preferences are
changing. Any comments on whether this
dinner should remain in the Social
Programme will be welcome.
By the time you read this the first run
of the year will have taken place and the social
riding season will be well underway. So now
70
let’s have quick look into my crystal ball. This
month sees the Section Gathering at Hale
Barns on the 12th and Tony Cartmell’s Lunch
in Lancashire Ride on 18th. April is really
busy with John Bell and Neil Plunkett leading
separate rides on the 2nd, The National AGM
is at Chorley Conference centre on the 8th,
our Section Meeting at its alternative venue
of Chipping on 9th. Details of all these events
can be found in Diary of Events Section.
North East
Tony Seed
The first club night of the year was a
presentation by Cleveland Police Motorcycle
section, given by PC Andrew Worsey. Andy
was right on top of his subject which dealt
with the education of riders through continued
training of anyone, at any stage of their
involvement with the sport. So the Force will
give you an assessment training ride anytime
by arrangement. Why not give them a try to
improve your safety?
The informal club night at Hartlepool
Historic Quay was well attended and we had
a good natter; welcome to new member Gary
Musgrave, a GS beastie rider who is enjoying
himself
on
it
quite
inordinately.
I didn’t get to Ponteland as the weather was
a bit inhospitable; maybe next month!
Otherwise it doesn’t take me to tell you
that opportunities for getting out were a bit
scarce during the month, and at the time of
writing at the end of January it doesn’t seem
like much change is coming. It will soon be
right though!
Our first run is scheduled for the end
of March, the 26th, so it’s to be expected that
everyone will be champing at the bit by then.
We will have Mike Prohock of Starcom at
Belmont on the 1st March and then the normal
club nights.
In April, on the first Wednesday, we will
have a travel forum night where members
can get up and present their travellers tales,
strange and exciting experiences, and advice
on things we should and shouldn’t do. So
please prepare some of your stories and tips
about getting away on bikes.
And a repeat here re the karting on Sunday
April 2nd being organised by Graham –
please call him before 1st March if you want
to join in.
Details of the Durham Police Easter
Sunday Easter Egg run will be published
when we get them.
And a reminder to call Ann if you want
to attend the AGM in Chorley Lancs on
Saturday 8th April; the bus leaves Bowburn
Hall Hotel at 8 am, - £5 a head for petrol.
Dennis Maggs is finalising his trip to
Aviemore but you can try for a late place..…
and also Mick Taylor re his European trip in
the summer.
So it must be March or nearly by now, and
surely the powers above are arranging say
alternate good days for getting out and all the
salt is being given to the cattle, and we’ve
arranged to get astride the K1200GT or the
R1200GS Adventure on the 25th March launch
date. It must be getting better, so I hope you
enjoy it all.
Oxford Section
John Hillier
Our bring and buy sale at Uffington was well
attended as usual, it was a pity that the local
dealers did not show even though they were
invited, people came from far and wide, a
group of riders came from the south-east
section others came from South Wales, I hope
that next years event will be as good.
This month’s meeting at Uffington, at
the moment is a mystery, it should have been
a talk about the land speed record but
unfortunately the speaker will not be able to
make it, so I am looking about for a
replacement?
The number of people coming to the
pub meetings is high, at Riseley we had
sixteen people, some even came by bike and
that was in January!!
Next month is packed with things to
do, as the weather will be warming up. On
the 1st and 2nd of April it will be Bikesafe at
Cheltenham racecourse, a chance to try the
latest BMW’s also the competition from
Honda, Yamaha etc. The test rides are all
escorted by a motorcycle policeman and he
will give a debrief on your test ride, dare you
go for test ride with a policeman in tow? Also
on the 2nd of April the Oxford section has
been invited to an Easter egg run that starts
from Reading, if this is of interest phone me
on 0118 9332152.
The club’s national AGM is on the 8th
of April and the next day is the first ride out of
the year and it will be Dave’s trip to choky,
that is the museum of penal servitude at
Northleach, phone Dave Hawkins on 01993
850862 for more information.
South East Section
Brian Shears
January is New Year Party time and true to
form we all thoroughly enjoyed another
opportunity to over indulge in the food and
drink department. The buffet, provided by the
Poultwood Golf Centre, was very good. The
dishes and platters were stacked high with
fried scampi, pastries, sandwiches,
sausages, hot birds legs, tasty tarts and an
assortment of other satisfying sundries. Sixtyfive members proved themselves worthy of
the title of ‘The Gastronomic Gourmet Guzzler
Of The Year’ by reducing the piles of food to
just a few crumbs, in an incredibly short space
of time. Luckily, the chef had anticipated the
locust like eating frenzy and made sure that
reserves were at hand to satisfy those not
strong enough to stay on their feet in the first
wave of bodies! At the beginning of the
evening it was particularly noticeable that
certain members made a beeline for a table
that was going to be nearest to the buffet.
Sure enough, as soon as the first platter of
food landed on the buffet tables they were on
their feet and darting forward, plates in hand.
You would think that to name them would
shame them. Not on your Nellie … these
boys are professionals and I am only jealous,
because I miss-timed my dash to the buffet!
As at all New Year parties I had the
pleasure of handing out the awards for the
Best Bike and Photographic Competitions.
The names and details of all the winners
were given in Section News in the September
and November 2005 Journals so I will save
space by not repeating them here. It was a
most enjoyable evening and we thank you all
71
for coming along. May I also thank you all for
the presentation that was made to me. It
was very much appreciated and I can assure
you that I will imbibe it neat and slowly, with
great passion and a wonderful sense of
wellbeing! Thank you very much indeed.
There is one thing that I forgot to
mention in December’s Section News and
that was an award that was given by Margaret
and myself for a genuine act of
thoughtfulness. The recipient was Ian
Campbell. The reason … well, it is not a
secret but I am sure that Ian would like me to
leave it at that.
In spite of some cold weather, Club
Nights and events in January have been very
well attended and I am sure that most of us
are looking forward to getting out and about
in 2006. Your ‘Diary of Events’ looks at the
whole of the year ahead but I am going to
give you a few reminders for some events for
which you will need to book.
10/11 th June. The Garden of England
Motorcycle Show at Paddock Wood. We need
to know if you would like to display your bike
or help out.
17th June. First Summer BBQ. We need you
to book so that we can cook for you.
12th August. Second Summer BBQ. We need
you to book so that we can cook for you.
For all of the above please telephone
Margaret on 01474 566142.
We are now using ‘The Blue Bell’, on
the A228 (opposite the Paddock Wood Hop
Farm), for our fourth Sunday in the month
midday lunch meeting and we look forward
to seeing you there.
Finally, a reminder that we have The
Kent Air Ambulance coming to ‘Riano’s’ on
the 15th March. We hope that you can spare
the time to support the people that would
support you if you needed them.
South West Section
Les Madge
An increase in the number of BMWs taking
part in the recent Exeter Trial was noticed.
This time I think Beemers even outnumbered
AJS & Matchless.
72
As per usual the Jamaica Inn January
meeting was well supported with one well
know couple travelling all the way from the
Bristol Area.
Bookings continue to come in for the
Easter Weekend at St. Audries Bay, it looks
as if it we are heading for a full house. If you
are considering attending book well in
advance to avoid disappointment. There will
be ride outs, a band on the Saturday as well
as the Sunday Evening. The organisation of
several other activities is well in hand. For
those that wish to take the independent route
attractions in the area include The Somerset
Steam Railway and coincidentally The Land’s
End Trial takes place over the Easter
Weekend. Spectating in the local area comes
highly recommended. We look forward to
meeting some of you at St. Audries. Safe
riding.
Southern Section
David Williamson
Your usual scribe is away at time of writing.
He’s swanning around N.Z. with his keeper
and has asked me to step in and supply
March’s article for the section news.
It was strange going back to the old
Thursday haunt at the Flying Bull in
Hampshire and West Sussex for the new
meeting place. Those of you who are familiar
with the pub know what I mean by saying
“Hampshire and West Sussex”. For some
peculiar reason the county boundary line cuts
through the bar and a notice to that effect
hangs over that line in the bar.
Some ten members braved the winter
weather to kick the new venue off to a start. In
the past it was very well attended. Let’s hope
that it proves popular once again. But, like all
our club activities, it relies on you the
members to make it happen.
Sunday the 15th January saw around
16 members gather at the breakfast meet at
Shoreham airfield. Helen Page had found out
that the former Royal Palace in Brighton (the
one with the minarets and onion shaped
domes) was open to the public at a greatly
reduced (free) entrance fee. It was a golden
opportunity to see over this architectural gem
and learn about its history. Around half of the
Shoreham group made the short trip to visit
the palace and all were glad they did.
Sunday January 22nd. Lunchtime meet
at the Flying Bull followed by a short walk to
the village hall. This was for the talk given by
John Fulton ably assisted by Brigitte Fulton
in charge of the IT side. They run tours for all
sorts of activities such as walking, mountain
biking and motorcycling in Morocco and
various parts of the near East. It drew some
forty odd attendees. We were shown slides
of the tours he runs in Morocco. I must say,
the tour looked very interesting and I’m sure
he will sign some more members up for future
tours. A big thank you to Helen and Carol for
the refreshments. The Wednesday lunchtime
meet at Jack’s fish and chip café on the A30
in Bagshot is underway (see your diary for
details or phone me on 01252 838384). As
the weather warms up, there will be
increasingly larger numbers of old British
bikes/riders there as well as meeting up with
some fellow members for a chinwag, a
cuppa and a chat with some interesting
motorcyclists.
March
On the 5 March come and learn how you
should ride when Phil Raymond runs a M/C
training day. See calendar for details;
booking essential.
Then on the 11 th Gail runs a treasure hunt
starting from Winchester.
Join Jon and Jackie Riche on the 19th for an
early start (08.00) to see the pioneer run.
But don’t let all this activity stop you searching
the house for all those motorcycle related
items that you can sell at the bring and buy
on 26 March. On this day we are combining a
bring and buy with talks and slide shows from
Bob Denman et al on the Grand Canyon and
Chris Stone on some of his many travels. A
bumper afternoon!
April
The 2nd of April sees the 3rd breakfast run of
the year, this time to Wesson’s Café in
Horam. This will be followed by a soup lunch
with Dave and Lesley Goldsmith at East Dean
near Eastbourne.
Over Easter we are joining the SW Section
for their St Audries Bay event.
Vintage & Classic Register
Malcolm Mc Nair
An assortment of things to report this month
starting with news on the National Club Rally
being organised by the Midland Section for
the August Bank Holiday weekend. The
Register will be represented with a ride-out
specifically for the older machines. Bike
awards, technical discussion and various
demonstrations etc. are planned. If you have
any ideas or would like to contribute in any
way please contact me.
A ‘Ride It (or Drive it) Day’ has been
set by the FBHVC to raise the profile of the
older, and historic, machines. The day in
question, Sunday 23 rd April, is most
appropriate as on the same day in 1900, 64
cars set out from London on the first day of
the famous Thousand Mile Trial - an
incredible undertaking by those early vehicles.
As the Federation rightly point out ‘ what’s the
point in fighting for a freedom if we don’t make
the best possible use of it?’
I had an interest email arrive that on
first sight didn’t appear to be of interest to
Register members’ machines. It then
occurred to me that the /5 ‘Toaster’ BMW’s
have chrome side and tank panels so this is
the ‘blurb’ : ‘We have found that some people
have vintage or classic bikes with chrome on
the panels which when they have come to
restore them have been unfit to be chrome
plated. We have been painting panels for
them in chrome paint so they can still have
the chrome effect. This paint is as durable
as any automotive paint, looks and feels like
chrome and gives the authentic look to the
restoration. Any metal or plastic part can be
painted as long as it is not a part that exceeds
70c. If anyone should have a need for this
service we would be more than happy to give
a free quote. We also of course carry out
repairs to accident damaged vehicles and
restorations.’ Interested? Contact - Cycle Art.
Tel: 01204 388663 email: [email protected]
http://www.cycleartbolton.co.uk
I’d like to remind everyone that Wendy
and I are not organizing the Club stand at the
Stafford Classic Motorcycle Show in April. Any
queries please direct them to Mike Fishwick
email [email protected] or address
73
to Sirgon, 24250 Daglan, France. Thanks.
Advance notice now of three events
that are not official BMW Club but the
organization involves our members. The first
is The Belvoir Castle Steam & Family Show
to be held over the weekend of the 20th/21st
May and the Sleaford Historic Vehicles &
Motorcycle Show is on the 2nd September. For
more information on these two contact Bill
Rodgers 01526 834480 or email
[email protected]
The third, and new for the Register, is
the Calne Classic Bike Show. For details here
contact Ken Spreadbury on [email protected]
or Peter Mapes Secretary of the Oxford
Section. The theme will be ‘thru the decades’
with possibly a R90S being the most modern
and five other machines from earlier years
on display. If you are prepared to show a
vintage or classic please get in touch.
Incidentally, Calne is south of Swindon, which
makes a change from the midland area
where most events seem to be held.
Chepstow and would have had a clear view
right out to the Severn Estuary. Very
impressive , but would hopefully have been
less draughty in its heyday. most of us found
a sheltered sunny spot in the castle grounds
where we were able to sort out the worlds
problems before diverting to the pub to refuel.
Coming up in March we have the
Breakfast Meet on 19th, the visit to Castell
Coch on 26th and the Slimbridge Camping
Weekend 31st March/2nd April. If you don’t
wish to camp why not just call in for a visit
anytime over the weekend.
Advance information on the Hotel
Weekend - Nov. 17/18/19th. The venue will
be The Carlton Hotel, Ilfracombe, N.Devon.
Bookings with a deposit only of £10 per
person to: Miss Alison D’Rozario or Mr Chris
Bates, 12 Earlsmead, Stapleton, Bristol BS16
1TP Tel: 01179 657757 or leave a message.
Cheques payable to BMW Club. The total cost
is £63.00 per person for 2 nights.
Western Section
The following report has just been
received from Jerry Riches giving further info.
about his Blooms Garden Centre visit.
Brian Harrison
We have had a good start to 2006. The first
meeting at Easter Compton came with a talk
and instruction from Mark Harris on First Aid
for Motorcyclists. Thankyou Mark and your
colleagues for a very interesting and
informative session.
Thanks also to the staff at the Royal
George Hotel in Tintern for looking after all
of us hungry riders ( sorry, drivers!!) , at our
annual club dinner. I hope everone enjoyed
the meal.
All those members who ventured out
to Blooms Garden Centre the week after
needed a few extra layers to combat the cold
and the fog that the weather people lined up
for us. About 18 riders came and spent a
fortune on soup and coffee in order to warm
up ready for the trip home. Thanks to Jerry
and Fi for suggesting the visit.
The Chepstow Castle visit
encouraged a similar number to turn up and
check out the intricacies of 12th century
stone masonry. The castle commands a
fantastic position over the River Wye at
74
For the majority the day dawned with a blue
sky and bright sunshine and given the
Christmas/New Year rest for many, this was
clearly the ideal invitation for a January ride.
Unfortunately, the weather in
Gloucester was cold and foggy, but being on
the road, members including two first timers,
John and Alan, arrived at Blooms, which was
warm, dry and very inviting. Inside, Blooms
Garden Centre is more like a department
store, with a large cafe area. It therefore
proved an ideal venue as those who wished
to talk about biking plans for the coming year
were able to do so while eating and drinking.
Meanwhile others, now I don’t wish to be
sexist, but it was mainly the ladies, were able
to indulge in a little ( limited carrying capacity
enforced ) retail therapy.
This was the first ‘meet’ I had hosted
and thank everyone who turned up to keep
me company.
Yorkshire Section
Elaine West
Over 80 members from all sections enjoyed
our New Year buffet at Cracoe we even gave
party bags to the over 60s to take home!
Thanks to all who made this a success,
especially to Tony for his delicious home
made soup, and for those who couldn’t make
it, a very happy New Year. Someone left a
mans grey fleece, I will bring it Cracoe on 5th
February sorry but I’ve spent the £20 note I
found in the pocket.
Looking forwards to Sunday 5th March
our Bring and Buy at Cracoe doors open at
12noon. As usual hot refreshments will be
on offer.
One important diary date, we have the
extraordinary AGM at 12noon on 19th March
at Gildersome. There are some very
important issues to be discussed one of
which is the proposed? decision to leave
Club Europa at very great expense (16k/17k)
to all members, as we shall surely have the
costs passed down to us in one way or
another.
Sunday 16th of April the Alpine rally
contact Steve Lamb, 01904 626655 or
[email protected]. The weekend of
21st/22nd April we have Camping at High
Bentham with Phil Rut 01535 216645. Those
of you who went to this venue last year will
remember the much-improved facilities.
Including the very handy football club and its
good food.
Our section diary should be with you,
If you have renewed your membership, there
are still spaces to be filled with new events
so come on don’t be shy why not give it a go
and arrange something. If you need any help
give Dave our section secretary a bell. We
are still holding several awards together with
a trophy.
Events not
organised by the
BMW Club
The BMW club provides the following events
for your information and has no responsibility
for these events or the accuracy of this
information
MOA French Connection Rally – 25/28 May
2006 at Chéniers in Limousin, France. Details from
Arthur Brown – tel. & fax 01270 873172;
[email protected]
The Irish Motorbike & Scooter Show 2006
3-5 March 2006, RDS Dublin.
(Bikes park free at front entrance)
www.irishmotorbikeshow.com
22-25 June 2006 Horizons Unlimited
Travellers Meeting held near Ripley,
Derbyshire. Of interest to everyone who has
or wants to do a big trip by motorcycle. Slide
shows, talks, green lane ride outs, specialist
stallholders and a large bonfire make this a
unique event. £15.00 in advance.Details
www.horizonsunlimited.com
The Pyrenees and Hidden France 8 - 17
September 2006. A Motorcycle Sport &
Leisure Tour exclusively for BMW Club
Members and friends. Price includes
overnight ferry Portsmouth/Caen, 2 berth
cabin & daytime return to Portsmouth. 8 nights
dinner, bed & breakfast in quality hotels, (2 in
a Paradore). 2 persons 1 bike shared room
£725 per person. 1 person 1 bike shared
room, £799. 1 person 1 bike single room,
£999. £95 deposit. Bookings and further
details, Contact: Alan Steed Tel. 01243
862261 or email, [email protected]
75
Mutual Aid
Mutual Aid Adverts are to enable BMW Club Members to buy or sell motorcycles or related items that they
own. The service is free but subject to the rules below and excludes trade advertisers.
1. Note adverts are NOT accepted over the phone send them by post
to the Mutual Aid Officer: Owen Vaughan, 16 South Meadows,
Pembroke,
Pembs.
SA71
4E,
or
by
e-mail:
[email protected] (Please remember to include
your full postal address). Phone queries only between 10:00 – 20:00
please, to 01646 683188. .
2. All adverts should be readable and punctuated. Please TYPE,
PRINT or e-mail clearly using a standard font. Fancy script might
look pretty but is hard for us to read!
3. The maximum length is 50 words, excluding your phone number
and name. If you wish to use more than 50 words your option is to
pay for the advert at 20p a word for the WHOLE advert. Payment
with advert before submission. Note one advert/month per section.
At the editor’s discretion adverts can be edited where deemed
necessary due to space.
4. In your advert, include your forename and one phone number.
Extra phone numbers, times to call, e-mail addresses, web sites etc
will be excluded.
5. You must include your name, full address, Section and
membership number; these will not be published but we will check
membership.
MOTORCYCLES FOR SALE
F650GS, 2000 ‘W’ reg, 10,500 miles, Red. T&T 11/
06, recent full BMW service, gd tyres, h/grips,
topbox, gd cond, excellent commuter, £2500.
Graham Tel 01629 825009 (Derbys)
F650 STRADA 1997 ‘P’ reg, 22,500 miles, Dark
Blue. MOT 07/06, Tax 07/06. H/grips, city cases,
BMW tank bag, Hd/protectors, BMW taller screen,
Scott oiler, Ex cond, one lady owner, £1700 Terry
Tel 01926 497705 (Warks)
K1 1990 43,000 miles, Blue/Yellow. “ owners,
immac cond, MOT, Tax 09/06, FSH, ABS, tool kit,
panniers, high screen. All original parts kept £3000
ono Malcolm Tel 01302 885183 (Yorks)
K1 1991 21,832 miles, Metallic Black. Classic bik,
immac cond, FSH, new bridgestone 010 tyres,
sumertime use only, 3 owners MOT 07/06 £3395
ono Steff Tel 07786 962561 (Norfolk)
6. Mutual Aid Adverts are accepted for a one-month insertion only.
Any subsequent submissions are the responsibility of the
advertiser.
7. Please note the copy deadline in the Journal and understand
which edition it applies to before querying why your advert hasn’t
appeared two weeks after you sent it! Please do not leave it to the
copy date until you send your advert as we are very busy then: It’s
First Come, First Served at closing time!
8. The BMW Club cannot be held responsible for the quality or
availability of items or goods or for any arrangements for delivery
or payment.
9. Adverts from non - club members may be accepted in special
circumstances. For information, please contact the Mutual Aid
Officer.
Business Advertisement (Disclosure) Order 1977
Any advertiser who places an advertisement concerning the sale of
goods being sold in the course of business shall clearly indicate this
fact. This applies whether the advertiser is acting on their own behalf
or for another party. If you have reason to believe that you have been
misled as to the status of any advertiser, please inform your local Trading
Standards Department and the Editor immediately. The fine for
breaches of this order is up to £1,000.
NOTE APRIL’S JOURNAL COPY
DEADLINE IS 1ST MARCH
Peter Tel 01573 228113 (Scotland)
K100 ‘B’ reg, 27,000 miles. gd tyres, no MOT, home
made easy to remove sidecar . Suitable for spares
or project was accident damaged, ring for details,
buyer to collect. £600 Simon Tel 07748 872385
(Yorks)
K100LT 1987 ‘D’ reg, 35,000 miles, Red. Panniers
& top box, Tax 03/06, MOT 09/06, nice cond, jpegs
on request £1500 ono Dave Tel 01706 601398
(Lancs)
K100LT 1987 ‘E’ reg 38,000 miles, Metallic Gold.
FSH, T&T, new tyres & battery, 2 owners, mine
last 15 years, immac cond, tank bag, coded panniers & top box, inner bags, face off radio cassette, High & original screen, custom Dash £1750
ono John Tel 01224 823689 (Scotland)
K1 1993, Blue. SH, full s/s etc, & soft luggage,
offers around 2,500. Clive Tel 01889 576 578
(Staffs)
K100RS 1985, 5, 400 kms Metallic Silver. German
import, Tax 08/06, MOT 03/06. Pannier rails, gd
cond for year £950 Dave Tel 01326 574806 (Cornwall)
K75 Ultima 1996. Panniers, rack, Datatag, electric
screen, BT020’s, comfort seat over 60 mpg, gd
cond, T&T 07/06. Consider part ex plus cash for
R850/1100GS Chris Tel 01538 754170 (Staffs)
K100RS 16v 1990 ‘G’ reg, 57,000 miles, Astral Blue.
VGC, gd tyres, colour coded luggage, MOT 01/07,
Tax 06/06. Must sell, need space for next bike.
£1850 ono Terry Tel 01572 755292 (Rutland)
K75LT, 1991 ‘H’ reg, 29,000 miles, Black. MOT 06/
06, ABS, ex cond, comfort seat, pannier rails.
£1600 ono tony Tel 01485 520052 (Norfolk)
K100RT ‘F’ reg, 75,000 miles, Green. Past SW club
concourse winner, fully loaded, 1100 paniers, colour matched, electric screen, radio, h/grips, Data
tag, FSH. £1950 ono Mark Tel 01271 862937
(Devon)
K75RT 1992, 52,000 miles, Red. ABS, panniers &
Givi top box, MOT 04/06, Ex runner. £1950 ono
76
K1100LT 1992 ‘J’ reg, 57,000 miles, Green. Panniers & top box, 3 owners, Tax 03/06, MOT 05/06,
alarm, ABS, average cond for year offers around
£1000 Arthur Tel 07850 235255 (Derbys)
K1100LT IC 1996 ‘N’ reg, 27,600 miles, White. Tax
12/06, MOT 07/06. ABS II, h/grips, elec screen,
crash bars, dual seat, toolkit, gd tyres, panniers,
reliable bike £1700 Syd Tel 01744 894944 (Lancs)
K1100LT SE ‘N’ reg, 12,917 miles, Maroon. Ex cond,
£4500 Richard Tel 0161 797 8594 (Lancs) (Non
Mbr)
K1100RS 1994 ‘M’ reg, 49,000 miles, Classic Black.
ABS, Datatag, some history, all MOT’s, pannier rails,
BMW tank bag, top box ex cond £2350 Paul Tel
07901 977793 (Kent)
ter project, may deliver £2100 ono Keith Tel 01946
725152 (Cumbria)
R100RT 1983 ‘Y’ reg, Smoke Green s/s fixings,
panniers, 2 owners from new gd cond, 6,000 miles
since total rebuild. £1250 Jil Tel 0115 9526181
(Notts)
R100S 1979 ‘V’ reg, 34,000 miles, Blue/Silver. Ex
cond, crash bars, krauser panniers, new battery,
T&T, can deliver £1750 ono Willie Tel 01324 870464
(Scotland)
R1100GS 2001 ‘Y’ reg, 26,000 miles, Silver. ABS,
panniers, h/grips, Datatagged, spots, new battery,
ex cond. £5800 Steve Tel 01663 734452
K1200LT SE Aug 1999 ‘T’ reg, 43,000 miles Champagne. FSH, MOT 09/06, one owner, h/grips &
seats, computer, radio/cassette, BMW rack with
brake light. £5600 Alan Tel 01522 879258 (Lincs)
R1100RT 1999 ‘T’ reg,20,000 miles, Opal Blue. Ex
cond, MOT 02/07 Tax 07/06. ABS, h/grips, cyl/protectors, hazards, fenda extender, BMW panniers
& top box. Front tyre 1,000 miles old, FBMWSH,
serviced at 17,000 miles. £4595 ono. Mike Tel 01604
404864 (Northants)
K1200RS SE 2002, 20,000 miles, Blue. One owner,
FSH, T&T, ex cond, garaged, ABS, h/grips, standard & high screens, standard & comfort seats, gd
tyres. Alarm / immobilizer, full luggage, inners &
tank bag. Cabling & cradle for GPS Navigator II.
£4750. Anthony Tel 01732 360884 (Kent)
R1100RT 2000 16,960 miles, Blue. Ex cond, Tax 9/
06, MOT 9/06 always garaged, standard & high
screens, h/bar risers, h/light guard, fender extender, cyl/guards, BMW top box, new tyres, service for new year £5575 ono Bill Tel 07751 329130
(Ulster)
K1200RS SE May 2003. 21,000, Orient Blue/Alpine
White. Garaged, FBMWSH. Tax 10/06. ex cond,
ABS, wide rear wheel, h/grips, high bars & screen,
hd/protectors, Thatcham META alarm/immobiliser,
Tank bag, Colour coded panniers & liners. £6750
Dave. Tel 0117 9771453 (Avon)
R1150GS 2000, 24,500 miles Mandarin Yellow.
MOT, garaged, mostly long distance, K&N air filter,
new ABS unit, h/grips, BMW alarm/immob, FSH,
Wunderlich seats & engine bars, tank bag, panniers, Pics available £4400 ono Jan Tel 07801
261110 (London)
R60 Classic 1960, low mileage. Duel seat model,
supurb cond. Present owner 25 years. Recent
MOT and dealer overhaul. Ring for full history.
£4750 Paul Tel 01271 864 464 (Devon)
R1150GS 2001, 15,000 miles Black. FBMWSH,
sports gearbox, h/grips, touratech side panels,
centre stand plate, hugger, new rear tyre, immac
cond, garaged. First to see will buy. £5800 ovno
Bob Tel 01576 510286 (Scotland)
R65 1982 30,000 miles Blue. T&T, RT fairing, panniers & topbox, Jpegs available £850 John Tel 0151
6380371 (Merseyside)
R65 Monolever 1988 ‘E’ reg, 63,000 miles, Black.
CS fairing, panniers , h/grips, crash bars s/s exhaust system, T&T. Lots of new parts fitted, £995
ono Pete Tel 01992 650779 (Herts)
R80GS 1986, 38,000 miles. VGC, MOT/SORN, pannier frames, n/s pannier, rear rack, s/s exhaust,
,h/grips, tool kit, braided brake hose, PFM disc,
£2150 ono Chris Tel 01937 832705 (Yorks)
R80RT 1990 ‘G’ reg, 18,000 miles, Silver grey metallic. Two owners, present last 12 years, panniers, top box, tall & standard screens, clock, voltmeter, twin-tone horns, new fork seals, VGC. Tax
11/06 MoT 09/06 £1750 David Tel 01482 876702
(Hull)
R1150GS 2001, 28,000 miles, Silver. Non ABS, FSH,
Tax 10/06, MoT 02/07, top box, panniers, other
useful extras. As new cond £5250 Gordon Tel
01902 897948 (W’hampton)
R1150R 2001 ‘Y’ reg, 1,200 miles, Black. VGC, T&T,
FBMWSH, c/stand, top box, BMW luggage, h/grip,
hd/protectors, touring screen & remus exhaust.
Can meet Bristol / Dorchester for serious negotiation £4500 ono Jon Tel 01752 217256 (Devon)
R1150RS 2002 11,000 miles, Blue. T&T, full luggage, new tyres, h/grips, FBMWSG, VGC £5500
Tony Tel 01278 425658 (Somerset)
R1150RT June 2001, 10,500 miles, Silver. FSH, h/
grips, radio, top box, panniers with inners, tank
bag, Autocom. £6750. Ian Tel 01628 822356 (Berks)
R80RT, 1991, 70,000 miles, Dark Metallic Blue. H/
grips, fork gaiters, Corbin seat & backrest, T&T
08/06, one owner from new, all receipts & bills,
VGC, £1550 Chris Tel No 01308 861326 (Dorset)
R1150RT 2002 ‘52’ reg, 17,400 miles, Titan silver.
Ex cond, FSH, BMW panniers & top box all mono
keyed, cyl guards, h/grips, Meta alarm/immobiliser,
Datatagged, dual horns, comfort seat, garaged,
£6100 ovno Andy Tel: 01772 455512 (Lancs)
R100RS Motorsport 1978, 39,000 miles T&T, new
brake pads, progressive fork springs, grips, choke
cables, fork seals, & seat re-padded. Gd cond,
just needs minor cosmetic to make VGC, easy win-
R1150RT ‘53’ reg, 10,700 miles, Silver. FBMWSH,
serviced, new tyres, immac cond. H/grips, panniers, electric screen, ABS, pannier bags, top box,
intercom, tank bag, tail pack, garaged. Tax 09/06.
77
£7000 ono Michael Tel 07976 612156 (Lancs)
R1200C Independent 2004 Feb, 6,500 miles, Silver/Red. ABS, servo brakes, h/grips, cyl/guards,
speedster screen, pilot/pillion comfort seats, panniers, garaged, FBWSH, £6500 Wilf Tel 01756
760800 (Yorks)
R1200GS 2004 ‘04’ reg, 9,000 miles, Rock Red/
Black. ABS, h/grips, BMW panniers, factory alarm,
warranty 03/06, new tyres. One owner, immac
cond, cost £10,000 sell £7650. Roy Tel 01179
733168 (Avon)
R1200GS 2004, 18,000 miles, Red. ABS, h/grips,
immac cond, panniers, Givi top box. £7300 Ron Tel
01778 349465 (Lincs)
Honda Silverwing 600 twin super scooter, ‘54’
reg 4,600 miles, Blue. Topbox, Honda garantee to
09/06, very comfortable, suitable both touring &
town use. £3950 Ricky Tel 01933 624257
(Northants)
KAWASAKI Eliminator 400cc, Low miles, Black/
chrome. 4 cylinder, shaft drive, low seat, lady
owner VGC, garaged. Airhawk screen & h/grips,
T&T £1350 ono Vince Tel 01239 710829 (Wales)
Suzuki Burgman 650 Scooter 2003, 8,500 miles,
Blue. Automatic, Sports mode or 5 gear selection.
One previous owner. Tall & standard screen. Pillion backrest, h/grips, progressive fork springs,
ex cond, £3450. Swap 650/1100GS, cash adjustment Kenneth Tel 01706 624069 (Lancs)
Suzuki DL1000 V-Strom, 10,000 miles. MOT 07/
06, alphadot, scottoiler, centre stand, full givi luggage, tall & original screen, garaged. Pensioner’s
summer tourer £3250 ono Ron Tel 01597 851449
(Powys)
Truimph Speed Triple 955i 2002 ‘52’ reg, 12,000
miles, Black. VGC £4500 Paul Tel 01935 412327
(S’set)
Dainese Gents Goretex jacket, black, XL, fully
armoured, worn once, as new, £165. Hein Gericke
ladies Hi Dri jacket & Motoline jacket, both small,
waterproof & ex cond £30 each. Geoff Tel 01484
686220 (Yorks)
For K100, comfort seat, Black £50. Nivomat shock,
9,000 miles £120. Both plus p&p Owen Tel 01723
863248 (Yorks)
For R75/7, one front brake disc in gd cond, A set
of new EBC brake pads £20 plus p&p Owen Tel
01723 863248 (Yorks)
For R100/R/GS 1988 – 1994, LH Exhaust pipe, no
balance pipe. Part no EXA52399A, new still in original wrapper. Cost £75, sell £35 ono plus p&p
Anthony Tel 01732 360884 (Kent)
For R1100/1150RS Bagalux tank bag in silver £50
ono plus p&p or buyer collect. Mick Tel 01530
560001 (Leics) (non mbr)
For R1100/1150RT, BMW top box £85, BMW Inner
bag £15. Both for £95 & in unmarked cond. Alan Tel
01200 425150 (Lancs)
Fournales oleo pneumatic rear suspension unit
for R850/1100R, complete with air adjustment pump.
Possibly superior to standard shock £130 Paul Tel
01935 412327 (S’set)
Haynes Manual’s. Twin /5 & /6 498 – 898 cc
1970 on. Twins /5 - /7 498 – 980 cc 1970 – 78,
both used £5 each. Honda ST1100 Pan, 1990 –
2001, new £12 All inclusive p&p Mike Tel 01558
685058 (Wales)
Hepco & Becker aluminum panniers & top box
for R1150GS £300 James Tel 01749 344925 (Somerset)
K12 BMW private registration plate. Offers over
£3500 considered. James Tel 07930 424293
(Lancs)
BITS & BOBS
K1200RS, seat new £30. Panniers with inner bags
£150. Tank bag £40. K100RS 16V tank bag £40 All
ex cond & plus p&p or collect Brian Tel 0115
9216146 (Notts)
Airhawk seat used twice. Best offer over £60.
R1150RT Pannier liners, VGC, used twice £40. Both
plus p&p Geoff Tel 0151 630 6291 (Ches)
Leather flying jacket, size 36 chest, gd cond
£70. Hein Geric w/proof gloves finger together for
warmth, gd cond size large £30 Simon Tel 07748
872385 (Yorks)
Bike Trailer/Caravan, 12ft, converted to take a
bike and use as a two berth Caravan. Ideal rallies,
elderly but in gd cond with new tyres. £500 or
sensible offers Jerry Tel 01239 821023 (Wales)
BMW system 4 helmet 52/53 gd cond £50 Steve
Tel 07968 143979 (Sheffield)
BMW unisex trousers, size S, w/proof,
removeable lining, never worn £45. Honda screen
& fittings for NTV £15. Tel 0115 9721149 (Notts)
Cherished number L15 OGS, for 1150 GS,
available now £500 ono. Bob Tel 01576 510286
(Scotland)
Clymer Manual Twins 500 – 1000 cc 1970 –
1978, used £7. Exhaust spanner for boxers £9.
Both including p&p Mike Tel 01558 685058 (Wales)
78
Ohlins Rear Shock for R1150R. Remote preload
& rebound adjustment, 3,900 miles, VGC. Comes
with additional slightly softer spring. Buyer collect
£300 Kennedy Tel 01302 536373 (Yorks)
R26 or R27 wheel hub, vapour blasted, VGC,
with unworn drive splines & good steel brake surface lining £75 plus p&p Peter Tel 07941 075165
(Berks)
R100R Paralever rear shock. Fournals air unit,
ex cond with collets came spare with bike. £80
plus p&p Tony Tel 01455 457382
R100RS tall tinted screen £20. R100 Mono standard fork springs £10. Early type krauser panniers
with keys & rails, in gd cond £75. All plus p&p Paul
Tel 07901 977793 (Kent)
R1100/1150RT genuine BMW top box, £90. K series genuine low seat kit complete, £120, both plus
p&p or buyer collects John Tel 01280 823111
(Bucks)
R1150GS REMUS s/s exhaust & ‘Y’ piece, bought
second hand never fitted. £210 Mike Tel 01246
811370 (Derbys)
Set of cheap K series integral panniers, condition
not important Tel 0115 9721149 (Notts)
Tank bag, cover, harness & fittings to fit 2002
R1100RS. Colin Tel 01272 813106 (Sussex)
R1200GS Inner bags £60. R1100RT top box £100.
2 extra lage pannier lids to fit R1100RT/RS type
panniers £60. Mick Tel 01405 839596 (Yorks)
Sonic intercom, plus 3 head sets £80. 12 new
spark plugs for R1100GS £30. 2 pairs of Motor
Cross boots size 8 £30 & £60 ono Simon Tel 07748
872385 (Yorks)
Speed shield universal screen, fits most bikes
£25. Protectorl lined Jacket, size M, as new £20.
Both plus p&p. Paul Tel 07901 977793 (Kent)
Tank bag & fittings for 1995 R100 GS/PD, gd
cond. Grant Tel 07797 836900 (Yorks).
TT one piece leather suit, retro style red/white
6ft, 40 inch chest, £85 Geoff Tel 01484 686220
(Yorks)
WANTED
Comfort or standard seat for R1200GS.
Aeroflowe suit or equipment size 50. Geoff Tel
0151 630 6291 (Ches)
Corbin Dual Sport Seat with backrest, in perfect
cond, for R1100S in Mandarin. Allan Tel 07890
979767 (Herts)
Engine crash bars for K75S must be gd cond.
Mike Tel 01978 759886 (Nth Wales)
S type fairing & fittings, Leg & Hand shields &
mirrors for fairing. For pre 85 boxer, Corbin or comfort seat, fork brace, springs, top triple tree, rear
shocks & cast disc. rack & pannier frames. David
Tel 01623 402734 (Notts)
Not only to contribute articles, photos, product
reviews, road tests and entries for the
Caption Competition, but also to let the team
know how we can make the Journal better. If
its at all interesting - and not intended to be
offensive, libellous or slanderous, of course
whereupon the Editor will exercise his
Prerogative (whatever that it is - “does it need
feeding ?”, he asks, or is it something to do
with the red pen / blue pen scenario which
gives him headaches) then all of your
contributions and suggestions will eventually
appear. We are trying to get the balance of
the Journal right - everything from travelogues
to technical articles to reports about club
activities undertaken on your behalf should
be there on a regular basis but in order to get
this balance right we need your help,
participation and feedback.
Salopettes, in black leather prefer either by Stein
or Weise, similar quality considered, to fit 36” waist
5ft 10” high. Dave Tel 0117 9570926 (Bristol)
Please keep them coming !
F650GS panniers. Gd cond Michael Tel 01246
456381 (Derbys)
K. series combination. Must have leading link
forks & gd cond or W.H.Y. Vince Tel 01239 710829
(Wales)
Low Seat for R1200RT (black), exchange with a
high seat. Ronnie Tel 02870 343629 (Ulster)
Pillion comfort seat for 1999 R1200c 99 model,
also rear carrier & top box. Tel 0151 423 3775
(Ches)
R series S or CS genuine cockpit fairing in gd
cond. John Tel 01280 823111 (Bucks)
R90S in smoked orange & R75/5, for good home
Mint & low mileage. Will travel to view Keith Tel
01946 725152 (Cumbria)
79
SMALL BUSINESS ADVERTS
Small Business adverts are available to any individual or business. For rates and terms please
contact: Owen Vaughan - 16 South Meadows, Pembroke, Pembs. SA71 4EW.
Phone: 01646 683188. Email: [email protected]
4 STAR B&B in MACHYNLLETH.Luxurious
bungalow,stunning Mid-Wales scenery. Hearty
breakfasts,traffic-free roads.Lock-up garage.
01654 702562 www.dyfiguest.co.uk
here or spend a few days riding the local roads,
enjoying the hills and bends. Club member. Chris
01683 220378 see
www.buchanguesthouse.co.uk
4 STAR B&B IN WONDERFUL PERTHSHIRE.
Luxury en-suite accommodation in tranquil
Balnaguard 5 miles south of Pitlochry. Sensational
breakfasts, spectacular views, £25 pppn. Lockable garage for m/cycles. Ann Croft Tel: 01796
482627. e-mail: [email protected]. Website:
www.balbeagan.com
BED & BREAKFAST, PERTHSHIRE, CENTRAL
SCOTLAND. Situated in Auchterarder in the beautiful Strathearn Valley, close to A9. Comfortable
en-suite rooms with colour TV, tea & coffee facilities, off-road parking. Pubs and restaurants within
walking distance. Enjoy the stunning scenery and
fantastic biking roads. Club member. Andy & Paula
01764 662928
AE AVENTURES BASED NEAR TO SPA in a quiet
village providing B&B and half board, secure garaging, recommended touring in the Ardennes and
Eiffel and escorted Nurburgring experience. Motorcycling adventure only 3 1/2 hours from Calais,
that’s a bit special. See www.aeaventures.com
or phone /fax Neil or Ann on 0032 80398788
ALMERIA VELEZ RUBIO. Farmhouse B&B 15 Euro
PPPN. Also self contained apartment sleeps 4, own
private courtyard, pool, BBQ 200 Euros per week.
A92N 3km, Granada 1 ½ hours, beach 40 mins.
Secure parking. Phone Pat or Chris Payne 00 34
690152979
AN CALA GUEST HOUSE, Grantown-on-Spey. AA
5 Diamonds. Ideal base for Highlands. Kingsize
doubles, magnificient 4 poster. All rooms en-suite.
On site parking, also garage. £25-£30pp b&b.
01479 873293 www.ancala.info
AUSTRIA (Southern) – Summer/ Winter Sports.
Self Catering fully equipped flats (Sleep 2-6). Superb touring roads & mountain passes. Close Italy/
Slovenia. Excellent amenities. Secure Parking. Cyril/
Liz Cannard (Bikers). Tel/Fax: 0043 4769 26415.
B&B / SELF CATERING near French Pyrenees.
Tel. 0033 56194 1045. www.goodierpyrenees.com
B&B CALVADOS / NORMANDY. Destination Normandy or en-route stop? Great meals, secure garage/drying, ideal UK ferries. Details http://
perso.wanadoo.fr/bandbjanville/ or phone / fax +33
(0)231391037
B&B Edinburgh, secure garage parking, colour
tv, tea & coffee, 15 minutes from city centre £30
pppn Tel 0131 669 3570 or 07931 718584
BARCELONA, 2 bedroom/2 baths city centre apartments. Very close Las Ramblas and all transport
links. Easy walking distance to seafront. Short
breaks available. Tel 01752 663589.
www.barcelonaflats.net
BED AND BREAKFAST, MOFFAT, SOUTHERN
SCOTLAND, B & B, garage parking, wonderful
biking area. One mile from M74 J15 on Edinburgh
scenic route. Why not break your long journey
80
BED & BREAKFAST, YORKSHIRE DALES,
Greenhills in Leyburn. Comfortable en-suite rooms
with colour TV, tea & coffee. B&B from £25.00pppn.
Lock-up garage available. Tel: 01969 623859, Email: [email protected], web-site:
www.greenhillsleyburn.co.uk
BRITTANY - TOP QUALITY MOBILE HOMES on
coastal 4 star site in this tranquil region. ideal for
family holidays or Section rallies (as Westenr Section June 04). great biking are with masses to do
and see. Big savings on ferry costs.
www.benodetbreaks.com or call Steve Jackson
on 01543 473089
DORDOGNE. Self-catering cottages sleeping up
to 8. Garage parking. Pool. Club members.
www.lesflamands.com/bikes or telephone 0033
553 50 12 39
DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY, South West Scotland - 2 cosy wee s/c cottages each sleeps 2 in
twin beds. Quiet location adjacent our home. 4
miles from Wigtown, 22 miles from Stranraer ferry
terminal. Beautiful scenery and great biking roads.
Shopping service on request. Short Breaks available. Sorry No smoking/pets. Tel: 01671 830422
mail:
[email protected]
www.duddingstonelodge.co.uk
FRANCE-CHARENTE MARITIME REGION, House
sleeping 6/8 people in riverside village, just five
minutes to local amenities. 4 hours from St Malo,
surrounded by quiet biking roads. Lockable garage, english house keeper, private garden. Contact Lee or Viv on Phone /Fax 01526 345866 Mob
07947439630 / Email [email protected]/
website www.charentehouse.co.uk
FRANCE - HONFLEUR, NORMANDY. Delightful 17th
Century Cottage in quiet area. 4mins walk from the
picturesque ancient port. Popular with bikers. 23hrs from Calais, 20mins from LeHavre. 2 double
bedrooms, lounge/diner, new fitted kitchen,
shower room. Central heating. TV/DVD/Radio/CD,
fridge, microwave, washing machine. Tastefully
decorated. Beautiful views. Sleeps 6/7 people.
Available all year.
Telephone Brian Ashley 0033 231 643526. Email:
boudincottage @hotmail.com
FRANCE – LOIRE ATLANTIQUE REGION Farmhouse, tranquil location, close to Chateaubriant,
Le Mans an hour away, surrounded by miles of
quiet motorbiking roads. B & B plus 2 gites, sleeping 8 and 4. Evening meals available, swimming
pool. Mature owner active motorcyclist. Phone (00
33) 2 40 97 08 44, e-mail [email protected]
Website www.la-janais.com
FRANCE CHARENTE / DORDOGNE border. VilleboisLavellette. 3 bedroomed, self-contained gite. Sleeps
6. private pool, English bike owners on site. secure garage parking. With neighbouring gite can
increase to 12. Mona Warburton. For brochure Tel:0844 837 6836 or 0033 (0)545 60 36 51. Email
[email protected].
Site
www.jomowarby.com
FRANCE WELCOME TO THE LIMOUSIN REGION.
1 bed cottage sleeps 4 or spacious barn. Country
based, great biking roads. BMW member, 1150GS
owner. Clive & Lesley Gibson. Tel 00 33 555
637032
FRENCH ALPS - ST. GERVAIS. Beautiful 4th floor
south facing apartment in luxury residence with
lift. Superb mountain views. 2mins walk from
telecabin. Gorgeous environment, paradise for
skiers/walkers. 2 double bedrooms, lounge/diner,
shower room, fully equipped kitchen area. Fridge,
washing machine, dish washer, cooker, TV. Balcony, garage, ski locker. Sleeps 6 people. Telephone: Brian Ashley 0033 231 643526. Email:
[email protected]
GERMANY, BRITISH B&B,17th century
house,rooms ensuite. Ideal for Rhein, Mossel valley Nurburgring, Mohn Dam, Cologne. Drying and
Laundry facilities, well stocked bar,Bar food.Email
[email protected] www.vinecottage.de Tel
00492742911728
GERMANY, BEAUTIFUL HARZ MOUNTAINS. 10
bedrooms all en-suite. Huge bar, conference room,
restaurant. 2 underground garages, drying room,
fantastic roads, scenery & architecture. Friendly
biker hosts that make you feel part of the family.
Inexpensive, warm & cosy. [email protected]
www.hotelharmoniebadgrund.org.uk Tel 0049 5327 869860
ITALIAN RIVEIRA 12th century house near
Monacco,14 kms coast , great mountain rides.
www.vine cottage.de bob@vine cottage.de 00 492
7429 11728
LAKE DISTRICT holiday bungalow – comfort for
four plus garage. Ideal touring location & available
April to November. Member owned. TEL: 01695
422210
den. Secure indoor bike space. Non-smoking.
Breaks available. Tel 01229 885643 or
www.townyeatbarn.co.uk
LOIRE ATLANTIQUE FRANCE, small friendly B &
B quiet country location,meals available.Tel Dave
& Norma Harrison 00 33 2 40 07 06 71 e mail
[email protected] Web site http://
perso.wanadoo.fr/bandbcouetoux/
NORTH PORTUGAL- MINHO VALLEY.Penedes
Nation Park and Galicia.Interested?. We offer farmhouse self catering and luxury B&B both with pools.
Come and sample the real Portugal see our Website.
www.portugal-holidayvilla.co.uk. Tel Maggie on
00351-251648107 or Mobile 00351-912860707
PLYMOUTH, En-suite accommodation very close
to continental ferryport. Secure parking for bikes.
Early breakfast for ferry passengers.Caraneal
Hotel. 12 - 14 Pier St. West Hoe. tel 01752 663589.
email; caranealhotel@ hotmail.com
PORTUGAL – Explore Central Portugal all year
round. Spectacular mountain roads and trails.
Luxury lakeside villa with use of BMW F650GS
Dakars. Guided tours and trail rides, riders with
own bikes, self catering, half board, b&b and
family rates available.
www.thrustforthmotorcycleholidays.com Tel: 00
351 235 296452 E mail: [email protected]
SCOTLAND - TAIN- SELF-CATERING 18th century cottage, sleeps 4, off street parking, situated
in the old part of Tain, 2 mins Pub/ Hotels, Railway
and Bus station, Good base for touring the Highlands, details & price contact 01862 832797 e.mail
info@ arabella travel.co.uk
SOUTH OF FRANCE, NARBONNE. Choice of B&B
or self catering apartments. Awesome roads, &
stunning scenery, Close to Mediterannean, Andorra, Pyrenees, Corbieres, Minervois & Spain.
Guided Motorcycle Tours available. All with secure garaging. Call Martin on 0033 468333671.
email: [email protected], or visit
www.st-georges-fr.com. 5% discount for BMW
Club Members
SW FRANCE - HEART OF COGNAC COUNTRY.
B&B (dinner optional), secure parking, swimming
pool. Easy days run from all west coast ports. 5
mins from Angouleme by-pass. Call Maggie on
(0033) 545 691003 or e-mail maggie.teal
@wanadoo.fr
SW FRANCE, DORDOGNE, GITES , B&B. 20kms
S. Bergerac, comfortable gîtes sleeping 4 or 7,
plus en suite B&B in the farmhouse, with pool.
Safe,
lockable
bike
storage.
www.frenchoasisholidays.com Call Gordon &
Jane Tel: 0033 553 233394
LAKE DISTRICT B&B IN BOWNESS-ON-WINDERMERE. Panoramic views of Bowness and lake.
En-suite. Covered/lock-up parking. Leisure facilities.
015394
88658
Web:
http://
www.abovethebay.co.uk
SWITZERLAND GRINDELWALD, in the heart of
the alps. Small hotel with new rooms en-suite.
Extraordinary view to the mountains. Restaurant
and Bar. Save bike parking. Hotel Alpenblick, CH3818 Grindelwald; www. Alpenblick .info Tel 00
41 (0)33 853 11 05
LAKE DISTRICT. Peaceful 17th century barn in
lake shore hamlet - just for two! Log fire. C.H. Gar-
LYNBROOK INSURANCE for Special Member’s
Schemes including Classic and Modern motorcy-
81
cle insurance (all makes) - plus Travel and Overseas Breakdown arrangements. TEL 0845 130
4662
BUYING PROPERTY IN SPAIN?. Let us help you
with every aspect of purchase. Support services
in Spain and UK. From independent lawyers, to
furniture pack. Contact, Homelife International Properties.
01242
663759.
[email protected]
GOING OUT FOR A RIDE THIS WEEKEND? Need
an accurate weather forecast ? Then check out
the free 5 day forecast from Weather Commerce
Ltd. For National, European and Regional 14 day
forecasts log on to www.weathercommerce.net
Director Chris Blowes is a member of the BMW
Club and is happy to take consultation calls from
fellow members
SHEEPSKIN m/cycle seat covers, custom made.
01604
714103
or
www.easirider.com/
motorbike_sheepskin.htm
BMW seat specialist, 20 years experience comprehensive service, SAE for information.
www.motorcycleseatworks.co.uk. 366 to 370
Woodside Road, Wyke, Bradford. BD12 8HT. Damon
Tel 01274 604672
Pannier Inners R80/100/1100/1150RT/RS/GS/
850GS. Standard £60 Extended lid width £66 pair.
K75/100/1100/1200RS Standard £60 pair. 35 litre
top case £26, K1200LT three piece set £95. Three
piece to fit Adventurer Aluminium £89. R1200GS
expandable £75 pair and £99.50 three pieceBlack/
Royal Blue piping all incl P&P. Send cheque to Mane
Event, 8 Cornhill Road, Davyhulme, Manchester
M41 5TJ, Telephone 0161 747 3939
www.maneevent.org.uk
STRONG STEEL BIKE SHEDS, with maintenance
free PVC coated steel cladding, tile effect roof,
anti condensation roof lining, extra wide access
door, optional wooden floor, optional double glazed
windows. For more details Tel. 01291 673950/
07968 202708 or E.mail Fortknoxb @aol.com
Try Motorworks for Ohlins, Hagon, Remus,
Hawker batteries, Keihan, Goodridge, PFM brakes,
Metzeler/Continental tyres, Seats, Screens, Luggage, Service items, Clymer, Haynes, Huggers,
Mudguard extenders, Heated jackets, Tuffmaps,
genuine parts, performance chips..much more.
Used guaranteed spares for all models. BMWs
1970-2006 wanted for breaking. Free catalogue.
www.motorworks.co.uk Tel 0845 458 0077
ADVANCED MOTORCYCLE TRAINING Qualified
trainer; full commentary, demonstrating, pointing
out, adjusting and explaining how, why and the
advantages of doing it the correct way. Terry 07850
518372 www.swiftlysorted.info
ANDY METCALFE Motorcycles (formerly “Just
Beemers”). Independent BMW specialist. Restoration, Servicing, Repairs Tel 01642 475600 Moblie
07773 217591
£2,650. Some new 1957 models in stock, LH/RH
sidecars plus OHV machines available. Machine
tools for the small/home workshop, including Chester MultiFunction lathe/mill/drill. Parts made to pattern or drawing. S.A.E. for specification and services or visit our website. 2 Forman Street, Derby
DE1 1JQ. Phone/fax 01332 298523. Eves & w/
ends 01332 824334, www.bemw.co.uk
CENTRAL LONDON BMW SPECIALISTS - All
models to date 2v, 4v, BMW Diagnostic equipment,
ex dealer Tech, 30 years exp. Servicing, repairs,
insurance work.Tyres, spares from stock. 5 star
workshop - full facilities.BMW authorised
supplier.Bikes bought/sold - see Biketrader web
page.Jap & German 102 Druid St, London SE1 2HQ
Tel:0207 237 2299, www.japandgerman.co.uk
CRAY ENGINEERING. BMW road and race performance specialist. Tuning packages to suit your requirements. Fully equipped workshop. Engineering, servicing, repairs and rebuilds. New and used
spares. Tyres fitted and balanced while you wait.
Phone/ fax Jim Cray 01795 431444 Sittingbourne,
Kent.
EURO CLASSICS. A small family firm dedicated to
servicing, repairs and renovation of BMW’s. We
build bikes to order (GS a speciality). Insurance
work carried out. Supply and fitting of tyres. New
& second hand parts. Exchange drive shafts, Varta
batteries. BMW’s for sale. or sell your BMW at no
cost to you. Please phone Phil or Dinah on 01604
591222 or www.euroclassics.co.uk.
MAINLY BOXERS AND BRICKS in SCOTLAND.
Professional motorcycle servicing and repair at
realistic rates Telephone Jim Downie 01505
850341 or 07973 326928 Near Neilston G78
MICK BARR INDEPENDENT BMW SPECIALIST.
Trained BMW Technician, GEARBOX SPECIALIST.
Twin spark head machining, mail order parts for
classic twins from 1953. Service and repairs at
my home workshop, Scraptoft, Leicester LE7 9UL.
Call Mick or Glenyse 0116 2419316, Monday to
Thursday to 6.30 pm.
NORTH OXFORDSHIRE, WARWICKSHIRE,
GLOUCESTERSHIRE BORDER. BMW Quality service, repairs, restoration and special tuning work,
on all models. Collection and delivery arranged.
ANDREW SEXTON MOTORCYCLES Tel 01608
730111
SERVICING, REPAIRS, SPARES: Boxer & K servicing; Breakdown & crash repairs; Pickup and delivery service, weekend work, loan bike available;
BMW’s always being broken; Only BM’s worked
on. Tel: Neil on 0208 546 2600 (S.W. London)
THE BOXER MAN – THE INDEPENDENT BMW
SPECIALIST. Full Service, Repair & Restoration
facilities for R and K Series machines. Mobile service available within an 80 mile radius of LEICESTER. Call Phil on 0116 2668913 or 07860 588076,
www.boxerman.co.uk
B.E.M.W. For competitive prices on: Restorations,
repairs & spares. Spares for vintage/classic BMW’s
from 1935. CJ750, copies of 1938 BMW R71, FROM
82
83
84

journal - BMW Club Journal Archives - bmw

Transcription

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