Author Archives: Jasper

Who remembers Pussy Galore?

Pussy Galore was a fictional character in the 1959 Ian Fleming James Bond novel Goldfinger and the 1964 film of the same name. In the film, she is played by Honor Blackman. She passed away this week at the age of 94.

Norton Big 4

How long it had been since she last rode a motorcycle I don’t dare to say but this was what she was known for; for riding a Norton Big 4 back in the 40s.

Some actors might have refused to play a character called Pussy Galore, especially in those days, but Honor Blackman reportedly loved the notoriety of the role she played in 1964.

Pussy Galore becomes Miss Galore

Even though notoriously conservative US censors refused to allow the name “Pussy Galore” to appear on promotional materials. Instead she would be shown as “Miss Galore”, this didn’t stop the fun-loving Honor Blackman from taking delight in embarrassing interviewers by repeating the character’s name over and over during a US promotional tour for the movie. My kind of girl 😊

The Avengers

Far lesser known fact is that, Blackman played motorcycle-riding, black-leather-clad Cathy Gale in the second season of British TV series The Avengers.  She even piloted a Triumph Speed 500 in an early episode but even prior to The Avengers, it turns out Honor Blackman had an already developed adventurous streak; her working life began as a motorcycle dispatch rider for the Home Office during the Second World War while she was in her teens.

Female dispatch riders

Because men were being sent to battle during WW2, nearly all dispatch riders were women. These riders played a crucial role in the war effort, delivering urgent messages and information between headquarters and remote field units. She was not only pretty, she was a Bond girl ánd motorcycle-riding war hero.

Parts of this article first appeared on Cycle World

Watch one of her scenes here

In these weird times a bit of fun can be the difference between having a boring and a not-so-boring day. Depending on where you are and what the Coronavirus measures in your country are, you could try this at home:

Transparent scratch stickers

A scratch on the bike directly hurts the emotions of a true biker. So, go ahead and stick some 3D scratch stickers on some part of your friend’s motorcycle. The moment he sees them, he would be forced to think of where such mishap must have happened.

Sticky notes

The sticky notes come with an aim to stick them to places so that you can write something you don’t want to forget. However, on April Fool’s Day, you can use them the other way round. Stick these notes on the motorcycle of the victim in a way that it takes an effort to take them off. Cover the entire portion of the vehicle with these sticky notes, which would eventually make it come across as funny and bizarre.

Fake sale sign

You can put a ‘For Sale’ banner on the two-wheeler of your friend with his phone number written at the bottom of it. The random calls he will receive for the purpose of selling his bike will blow him away.

Move the bike to a funny place

This prank could scare the hell out of the victim so be careful. Move the motorcycle of the person to another, preferably funny, place. After he finishes scratching his head looking out for his beloved machine, he should be able to find it at it’s new location.

Remove the spark plug

Remove the spark plug of his motorcycle to leave him puzzled the moment he starts his bike. The engine will start making initial start-up note but due to the removed spark plug, it will fail to start. Due to this, your friend will be forced to think that his bike might have gone into a malfunctioning state. I’d be pretty pissed off.

This article first appeared on: Bikedekho.com

What are the effects of the Coronavirus outbreak on the world of motorcycle riding?

Amid all the craziness of the past couple days I came across this article that explains why the Philippines ban motorcycle back-riding. It might help to flatten the curve, or not, but it is an interesting angle. It is actually part of the government’s guidelines for social distancing.

So is their new rule of limiting the maximum number of passengers in a taxi to 3. While I always thought that 3 passengers kind of filled up the taxi it is interesting to read another perspective.

Bikers attending Bike Week in Daytona Beach decided to not care that the event was cancelled and rolled in anyway. This clearly shows they’re not too bothered by the fear of the Coronavirus.

What do you think about this attitude of not allowing the Coronavirus to ruin your plan?

With the risk of sounding like someone’s mother I want to point out a few things you should keep an eye on before you hit the road again on your steel horse. The one thing we all would like to do is just mount it and pull open the throttle but here are a few things to keep an eye on. Best practices for riding motorcycles:

It feels like more and more people are driving their car while on the phone and perhaps even navigating the street from their GPS. This leads to decreased attention to the road and therefore to us; the impuissant motorcyclist.

Of course, there are plenty of motorcycle accidents caused by the rider, but the vast majority are caused by the actions of distracted car drivers. This can lead to serious injury or even death for the far more vulnerable motorcycle rider.

No matter whether you are new or old to the world of motorcycles: it is important that you stay vigilant. You need to practice defensive riding in order to ensure your own safety and security while on the move. Here are a the 5 best practices for riding a motorcycle that will help you to make it through summer unscratched.

Don’t get between a vehicle and an offramp

This may seem obvious, but many riders get into trouble by a driver who decides to exit at the last minute on a highway offramp. Passing on the right is a bad idea, but it is especially risky if you position yourself between a vehicle and an offramp.

Watch drivers’ heads

Most drivers will not lunge suddenly either left or right without first moving their heads in some direction, even if they don’t check their mirrors. Stay observant through the windows and mirrors of other vehicles for the head movements of the drivers. This way you may be able to predict their next move. You can see if they have noticed you and your motorcycle, or realize whether they are distracted on their phone, or about to make a sudden swerve into an offramp.

Running interference

It’s good practice to let larger vehicles run interference for you when you are crossing intersections. This simply means keeping a larger vehicle beside you as you cross, effectively shielding you if someone were to come flying through the red light. It’s for this same reason that you should never take off immediately as the light turns green, but rather try to be patient and have bigger vehicles provide a bit of coverage.

Be alert!

Another one of the 5 best practices for riding motorcycles to be ready for sudden changes in speed, either slowing down or speeding up. The ability to react quickly can save your life. Especially in traffic, can mean the difference between a serious accident and a close call when someone decides to merge suddenly into your lane. You should also keep your brakes covered and ready for action. This means a toe close to the rear brake pedal and a finger or two on the brake lever. But in some cases, you might want to speed up quickly in order to avoid an accident. Which means riding in a lower gear, so your bike is ready to accelerate rapidly if needed.

Be visible

Most accidents involving motorcycles are due to the fact that the other driver simply didn’t see them. This is why it is important to make sure you are noticed. You can improve your visibility to drivers and pedestrians by using your high beams during the day. Just make sure to turn it off when sitting behind someone in traffic. Brightly colored gear also helps, especially the color of your jacket or helmet.

That is it, the 5 best practices for riding motorcycles without getting into trouble. Riding is a great way to enjoy the freedom of the road and by keeping these 5 best practices for riding motorcycles in mind, you can help ensure that you will continue to enjoy it for many years to come. Make sure to check out this cool video by Greg, he uses Scenic to discover Japan!

This is an adaptation of an article that appeared on the fnlawfirm.com website in January 2018.

I noticed that some of us worry about fuel consumption. Although I love riding in sport mode I am sometimes shocked by how long (or short) my gas lasts. Before the riding season takes off, here are some things you can do to manage how much gas your bike uses.

What can we do to save petrol? I will give you 5 ways to improve your motorcycle fuel economy:

Firstly, it would be a good idea to service your bike before riding it because the number one reason for unnecessarily high fuel consumption is a dirty air filter. Pay special attention to that. With normal use you should change your filter after 20 thousand miles (+/-30k km) but if you hit the occasional dusty dirt road you might want to change it more often.

Also, try to take it easy on the gas. I know, that isn’t easy on a sportbike and you might have no intention to ever do so, but still. It is an option. Multiple short trips take much more gas than the same distance in one single trip, this is due to the engine heating up which costs a lot of energy.

Weight. Not only the cargo you carry but also your own weight makes a difference to fuel economy, so if you’re heavy on the scales yourself be aware that has an effect too. Winter is over, and the six pack can lose some of its insulation.

High grade fuel might cost a bit more but might actually save you a penny and therefore help you improve your motorcycle fuel economy. Something many people forget is that it isn’t smart to overfill your tank. If you try to get too much fuel into your tank it can cause issues. Gas needs to expand in your tank, and if you don’t leave room for that expansion then your fuel economy will suffer.

Tire Pressure

Make sure your tires are filled to the correct pressure. When the air pressure gets low, the area your tires cover will be larger, which increases drag and makes for poorer fuel economy. Filling the tires too much, on the other hand, will give you a rough ride and result in much faster tire wear. Remember that when the temperature changes tire pressures too will change, so check your tire pressure regularly.

Talking about tire pressure, the MIR team bought 3 TPMSs and will be testing them over the next couple months. Before the season really takes we will post the results right here. Last year Guido wrote about it in this article

Read more in this article by motorbikewriter.

Hate it or love it but sidecars are really something to consider when you are traveling long distance on a motorcycle. Or when you want to bring your dog along and look super cool. Besides the fact that it is totally different to ride with a drifter connected to your bike, it also matters whether you go for a metal or fiberglass construction. Read more about that here.

One of the most famous drifter manufacturers is located in Irbit, Russia, home of Irbitskiy Mototsikletniy Zavod, which literally translates into ‘Irbit Motorcycle Factory’, IMZ is a Russian maker of heavy sidecar motorcycles. We know it as the Ural factory and they have a presence in Redmond, WA. Check them our here.

Also in the state of Washington, in Buckly, you find DMC Sidecars and Motorcycle Accessories. DMC has created their Cargo Sidecar which allows for more than 14 cubic feet (over 28 liters) of storage space and looks pretty cool if you are into these things.

Have a look and please let me know what you think, is this just a fad or are they really making a comeback?