September 2020 · 2020. 9. 17. · 2 Slipstream September 2020 tvam.org Airbag Vests and Jackets...

tvam.org Slipstream September 2020 1

September 2020

2 Slipstream September 2020 tvam.org

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CONTENTS4 Roll of Honour4 Virtual St Crispin’s5 From the Chair6 The Hidden Costs An interesting review of motorcycle running costs and what it means for you

14 The Diamond Races - The Wight’s first TT18 Isle of Wight map20 The Hidden Costs (continued)24 Long Way Up26 TVAM Calendar32 Team Meets33 Club Contacts

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I hope you have all been taking advantage of all the social runs put on by the local teams. I know many of you are itching to get back to normal club meets and runs, as am I, but making the best of it is what we must try to do. I know that some teams have now finished the weekly evening runs as the light fades faster but hopefully all will continue to provide some weekend rides of varying lengths through the autumn.

I can’t believe the main riding season is drawing to a close when I’ve hardly seen any of you all year! I know some of you have been test riding bikes, so how many of you have bought? How are you finding your new purchase, any reviews to share here of bike, new kit or anything riding related? Do you have any interesting tales of places you have ridden, trips you have made or projects you have finally completed?

Regarding this month’s articles, a couple of dates for your diaries, the series for Long Way Up starts on September 18th (see page 24), and next October 2021 sees a new series of races proposed on the Isle of Wight (see page 14). Nick Tasker has gone into depth on the servicing and running costs of the major manufacturers, so perhaps, before you buy that new bike, you may like to see what it’s going to cost to keep it on the road or, if you have already made your purchase, have a read about what you may be spending! Reviews for the Moto-Guzzi V85TT and Kawasaki Ninja 1000SX coming next month.

Again, the September St Crispin’s will be an online Zoom meet - will October be any different? Who knows! Fingers crossed the September/October weather might be an improvement on August’s, so get out there and enjoy it!

Slipstream Editor

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DO YOU KNOW YOUR HIGHWAY CODE?EXPANDED QUIZZES NOW AVAILABLE ON TVAM.ORG


New Members in August 2020

National Observer ValidationsSid Collyer Lance Gibson

Local Observer Validations Siggi PeturssonJohn SinclairTrevor Warwick

New Run LeadersKeith Bradford, Paul Gilmore, Tony Mayes, Cheryl Purser, Darren Robinson

Michael Davies Daniel Flynn Thomas Lange

Adrian Lawson Owen Mayes Tamas Palinkas

Stephen PalmerTom PeckGurvinder Raino

Alexander Watts Stephen Whitford

Roll of Honour

Test Passes Achieved

Retaken Test to Achieve F1RST

Observer F1RST Pass Ian Andrews Kevin Buchta Robert Annan Steve SelbyF1RST Pass Adrian Ash Carole Hooper F1RST Pass Raymond Collins Andrew Hunter F1RST Pass Dana Gottschalk Andy BoudierF1RST Pass Andrew Holden Vanessa Turner Anna Hollebon Geoff Pretty

Observer Piotr Kustra James BatesF1RST Pass Philip McConkey Peter Dalgliesh Rashpal Samra Geoff PrettyF1RST Pass Robert Searle Pat Coneley Sean Snow Andrew McWalter Natascha Stagg Amanda Coneley Paul Warner Kevin Dunwell

F1RST Pass Bob D’Mellow

ST CRISPIN’S ONLINE MEETDetails of the Zoom meeting are below and when you join, don’t forget to enter your full name so everyone knows who is who.

Topic: Virtual St Crispin’sTime: Sunday, September 20th, 2020 - 9am-10amJoin Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82224828625?pwd=WlpOWTJmV0tqREhNWTdTRlNra3kzZz09Meeting ID: 822 248 28625 Password: 8831151790


Roll of HonourFROM THE CHAIR

Hi everyone

This year has probably been the most challenging for the Club since our foundation 22 years ago. The Spring of 2020 started almost immediately with a lockdown of all riding activities for three months and since then we’ve been restricted to gatherings of 6 riders. And of course we’ve not been able to hold our monthly St Crispin’s meetings.

But TVAM’s Members are not easily restrained or held back - after all we’re bikers!

In the past two months lots of Club activities have been underway and I thought I would share a few numbers to reassure you that we’re still a very active and thriving Club, despite everything going on around us.

During July and up until the 25th August there were 206 Observed runs with Associates, 31 Cross Checks, 28 IAM tests, 4 National Observer validations, and 28 Trainee Observer runs.

In the same period there were 75 social run reports submitted with a total of 430 riders recorded as participating. I’m sure there were quite a few other social rides organised in addition and I know of members travelling further afield for weekends away around the UK with partners or small groups to comply with the social guidelines.

Membership has also been busy with 32 new members joining the Club during the past two months. A few are returning to biking as a means of getting to work rather than using public transport and want some coaching. The Club currently has a healthy total of 1,052 members.

We are also getting an increasing number of requests for ‘Introductory Rides’ from prospective members. This follows up on the Father’s Day voucher scheme and replicates what we normally offer at St Crispin’s. If you know of a mate who’s interested in joining but hesitating to take the next step get them to contact [email protected] to request a free ride-out with an Observer.

So, if by any chance you’ve been sitting home-alone wondering if TVAM membership is really worthwhile, get onto the Club’s groups.io pages and ping your Local Team to see what’s going on. If you’re an Associate phone/email/badger your Observer and get them to take you out on another run. If you’re a Full Member why not organise a social run of your own and take 5 mates out to your favourite cafe via those roads you love. It’s the best way to ensure you’re on the run!

Team Leaders will help you organise the run registration process. Just email them (email addresses at the back of Slipstream) or ask your local team online how to do this and help will be forthcoming. What we’ve seen is that these smaller runs are very popular with members who’ve not led runs before and the participants. Knowing the run is restricted to 6 riders makes life as a run leader so much easier as you don’t have to book stops/cafes ahead but just turn up as most can handle 6 customers at a time. Just remember to complete a Social Run Report when you get back (tvam.org then dropdown menu ‘Forms’).

And if you are missing the St Crispin’s banter and announcements then join the St Crispin’s Zoom call on Sunday morning. Everyone is welcome and it’s another chance to ask questions and find out what’s going on.

Happy riding…..

Andy SlaterChairman


TheHiddenCostsHow much does a modern motorcycle cost? As with perennial questions regarding the length of a piece of string, the answer is always “it depends”. But it’s easy to forget that the showroom price tag is just the tip of the iceberg. Every year you pay for your share of the potholes with the road tax licence, shield yourself from unforeseen events with insurance, and pay your local MOT tester to confirm that your machine meets the minimum possible safety standards. On top of that you’ll be paying for fuel and servicing, both of which increase proportionally along with how much you actually ride.

These are the costs that are often forgotten when the smiling salesperson at your local motorcycle dealer is explaining just how cheap owning a brand-new high-tech, high-powered dream-machine could be. They’re keeping you focused on the cost of the equipment, and you’re forgetting that the cost of actually using it can be far higher. I’m sure that I’m not the only person who’s ever been caught in horrified surprise when the bill for the annual service is presented.

“£1,000”, they said. “I’ll do it myself”, I replied.

Are cheaper bikes actually cheaper to own over the long haul…?


I’m always shopping for new bikes in one way or another, and at the moment I’m semi-seriously planning for my V-Strom 650’s eventual retirement. With my annual mileage, I could easily see 100k on the clock before the end of next year, which seems like a reasonable life expectancy for a well-maintained modern machine. It’s wearing its miles well, but I’ve decided that it’s time to figure out what I’m going to be riding for the next 100k. The great news is that there’s never been a better time to shop for an upright do-it-all motorcycle, so it’s time to do some maths.

My loose requirements have led me to a long list of Adventure-Sport and Sport-Touring motorcycles which, in their base spec, can be ridden away for £13,000 or less. That being said, I usually choose a higher-spec to start with and it’s always worth remembering that adding luggage usually costs extra still. Comparing apples to apples is very difficult indeed. I’ve used www.fuelly.com to estimate real-world fuel economy to the nearest 5 mpg (UK), and used my current local petrol prices of £1.069 per litre to calculate the cost-per-mile to fuel each bike.

I’ve also contacted dealers for each manufacturer to confirm the service intervals and pricing for each bike on my list. Some brands were a pleasure to deal with, and for some brands it was like trying to get blood out of a stone. Special mention must got to Blade Motorcycles Cheltenham who had one of their service managers call me directly to answer my questions and provide some valuable insights. Sales staff are trained to be friendly when they’re trying to take your money; knowing your dealer has a similar approach to their after-sales service is well worth while.

I’ve given up trying to get numbers from Honda, so their bikes aren’t represented in my data. I’ve called and emailed half a dozen dealers, and was basically fobbed off or ignored entirely. It’s also worth remembering that while manufacturers will specify the number of hours each service takes and the parts needed for each one, individual dealers control their own labour rates and part markups. The data I’ve gathered should be used as a guide only, and I always recommend getting quotes in writing from your local service department for any motorcycle you are considering, and then follow up with your own calculations.

Despite my considerable efforts, the miles are starting to take their toll.


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Most bikes have a different service schedule, but all follow a fairly similar pattern that then repeats as mileages continue upwards. For example, every bike I’m looking at needs a break-in service at 600 miles, and most then follow with minor/major alternating services at fixed mileage intervals. In most cases, a major service includes a valve clearance check and adjustment, which dramatically increases the cost due to the time involved. Moto-Guzzi’s air-cooled engines need their clearances checking and adjusting at every service, but Yamaha’s only need doing every 4th visit.

To smooth things out and give a realistic estimate of long-term total cost of ownership I added up the total cost of servicing up to the point when it started to repeat, and then divided that by the number of miles it took to get there, giving me an approximate cost-per-mile for maintenance that I could extrapolate from. None of this included suspension servicing, time-based maintenance such as brake fluid or coolant changes, and tyres and other consumables need to be added on as well. But without any reliable data to draw from, estimates for those costs would be so inaccurate as to be worthless, and so I’ve ignored them here.

Finally, in order to get a comparable lifetime cost, I’ve assumed 100,000-mile ownership, multiplying the

I’m making a couple of assumptions (purchase/petrol price) but the numbers don’t lie.


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cost-per-mile of fuel and servicing by that number to get those total costs, then adding them to the original base-model purchase price of the vehicle. Again - these numbers are for comparison only, and your mileage will literally vary. But what we do see in these results is very interesting indeed.

Sorted by total cost, the results are somewhat surprising

First up, some motorcycles and brands are incredibly expensive to maintain. Secondly, while some bikes are more expensive to buy up-front, their reduced fuel consumption and servicing costs can make them more competitive than they would initially seem. The obvious example here is my wildcard electric motorcycle, the Zero SR/S. Almost £20,000 for the base model with no extras, but cheap(er) servicing and tiny fuelling (electricity) costs mean that it sits right in the middle for total cost of ownership. An interesting detail here is that Zero want you to bring their bikes in for a service every 4,000 miles, something their dealer was unable to give me a good explanation for. An electric motor requires no servicing, so the only things your dealer is charging you (hah!) for are checking that nothing’s worked loose and inspecting the brakes and tyres. If there was ever a candidate for home-servicing, it would be this one.


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Triumph unfortunately lose this competition right away. Not only are their bikes priced quite high thanks to their features and technology, the relatively frequent servicing costs are truly eye-watering. The bigger Tiger 1200 fares a little better here with its impressive 10,000-mile service intervals, but the thirstier engine and high purchase price cancel out the gains almost exactly compared with the cheaper Tiger 900. Clearly Triumph’s engineers are placing ease of servicing very low on the priority ladder. That being said, the tick-sheets I’ve seen suggest that some of this is at least due to a far more thorough schedule of work - no other manufacturer that I know of includes greasing suspension linkages and changing fork oil as official service items.

Seeing Ducati taking a dishonourable second place shouldn’t really be a surprise - they’re expensive to buy, you expect them to be expensive to service, and that turns out to be true. The Italians have tried to improve matters in recent years by increasing the intervals with which your dealer will empty your wallet, but empty it they will. More surprising is to see Kawasaki nipping at their heels, with the Z1000SX and Versys 1000 siblings costing almost as much to run in the long term. It’s a triple-threat here, with Kawasaki pushing their pricing up in recent years as they’ve piled on

the technology. This combines with frequent and expensive servicing and a relatively ancient engine design that delivers fairly shocking fuel economy figures.

Almost as surprising was to see Suzuki’s V-Strom 1050 close behind. Suzuki is another once-budget brand that has recently developed up-market aspirations, and the elevated purchase price coupled with eye-watering

Here it is: the most expensive all-round motorcycle you can own


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(continued on page 20)

service costs make for unflattering comparisons with the competition. BMW’s big 1250cc boxer needs servicing slightly more often than Suzuki’s venerable v-twin, but the ease with which the mechanics can access those exposed cylinder heads means that servicing is some of the cheapest around. You can push the purchase price up with frightening ease once you dip into the not-really-optional extras, but it’ll still work out cheaper in the long run than the decidedly less sophisticated Suzuki.

Yamaha’s Tracer 900 suffers from the same problem as other Japanese motorcycles. It’s becoming an expensive bike, especially if you start adding on luggage and opt for the better-equipped GT model I recently reviewed. But because valve clearances only need checking or adjusting every 24,000 miles, maintenance costs are kept under control, and like the big BMW it manages impressive fuel economy for such a powerful motorcycle. I’ll get to this later, but I’m also more inclined to believe that the Tracer 900 would last 100,000 miles without too much trouble, whereas I’m not sure the R1250RS would.

Modern design and electronics, but thirsty and diffi-cult-to-service engine raise costs.

Cheap to buy, frugal on fuel, and low-cost servicing, but questionable reliability.

Our two oddballs come next, coming within spitting distance of each other. In KTM’s case, it’s because the 790 Adventure only requires the attention of a mechanic every 9,000 miles, and owners are easily returning an impressive 60mpg (UK). Reliability is a concern, with recent KTMs becoming infamous for requiring unscheduled dealer visits even during the warranty period. Not a problem for some, but a deal breaker for me I’m afraid. The Moto-Guzzi needs more frequent servicing, but that work is very cheap thanks to the exposed cylinder heads and relatively low-tech engine. The V85TT also boasts shaft-drive meaning that chain and sprocket replacements will never be necessary. What’s more, an air-cooled engine means it will never need coolant changes, a further cost saving compared to all the other bikes I’m considering. A very tempting choice indeed.

Next comes another surprise. Despite featuring an increasingly-common parallel twin engine layout, the BMW F750GS and F900XR are apparently very easy to work on, resulting in very cheap servicing, even at a BMW main dealer. They’re not cheap to buy, especially when you pile on the usual practically-mandatory option packs, but genuinely impressive fuel economy helps to push ownership costs down further still. These new engines are made in China, not Germany, so reliability remains to be

Same exposed cylinders, and alsono chain or coolant to replace.


The Isle of Wight’s first TT Wednesday 13th - Sunday 17th October, 2021

The Diamond Races is an all-new motorcycle road racing festival, featuring some of the top names in the sport and expected to attract around 50,000 people, extending the island’s summer season.

The Isle of Wight’s first TT is looking likely to be held on the above dates (at the end of the 2021 British Superbike calendar), with a 12.4 mile-long course (see centre pages 18-19) in the south of the Isle of Wight playing host to the event.

Gary Thompson was Clerk of the Course at the TT, Classic TT and Manx GP for ten years and set the course. Three quarters of it is very technical and curvy, and competitors will complete time trials through the picturesque villages of Chale, Kingston, Shorwell, Limerstone and Brighstone, often flanked by trees or bushes before hitting the last third which runs along the coast via the Military Road and is

Steve Plater and James Hillier check out the course along the Military Road


said to be a stretch at least as fast as the Sulby Straight at the Isle of Man TT with 200mph+ in the offing. The section is about twice as long as on the Isle of Man.

The technical part will also offer fast passages, some of which are driven in fourth gear, but also many tight bends or blind crests. The road surface is described as good with no potholes or bad surfaces.The start/finish and the hospitality unit will be set up on the Military Road,

The key players behind the conception and organisation of this event include Gary Thompson MBE (Isle of Man TT Clerk of the Course), Steve Plater (past Isle of Man TT Senior winner and ex British Champion), Neil Tuxworth (ex-Honda Racing Manager) as well as James Kaye (exBritish Touring Car Championship driver and Diamond Races co-founder) and Matt Neal (three-time British Touring Car Champion and Honda UK ambassador), not forgetting James Kaye and Paul Sandford, the two Isle of Wight residents who first came up with the idea.

The races will see two days of practice, on the Wednesday and Thursday, as riders get used to the course. Friday will be a rest day and everything kicks off at the weekend, with Saturday being race day. Sunday may include some limited public riding. In its first year there are expected to be somewhere between 30-36 riders, with the bikes setting off from the start line every ten seconds.

If you are a keen TT attender, it’s another one for the calendar - let’s hope it happens!

Watch out for more news as organisation continues - https://www.diamondraces.com

Steve Plater and James Hillier

Is the Wight ready for this....?

tvam.org Slipstream September 2020 17 16 Slipstream September 2020 tvam.org

Visitor informationpoints

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Red Funnel ferry

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Red Jet Ferry

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Ryde

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Ventnor

YarmouthNewport

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Shanklin

to Lymington to Southampton to Portsmouth to Southsea

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Garmin and Tomtom files are in the website library at www.tvam.org/members-area/library If you have a favourite ride you would like to share on these pages, please get in touch to add it to this series - [email protected]

Richie’sDiner

A3020

Isle of Wight - Diamond Races13 - 17 October, 2021If you plan on visiting for the first of these annual races then maybe stop awhile and explore the Wight.Plenty to see and do, some great beaches, quaint villages, historical sights, wildlife centres, water sports,open countryside, parks and plenty more.

Dawnie’sCoffee House

Military Road

ChessellPottery Cafe

tvam.org Slipstream September 2020 19 18 Slipstream September 2020 tvam.org


The Hidden Costs ... continued from page 13

proven, and BMW haven’t exactly been winning awards on that score of late in any case. But if you got lucky, either bike represents a very affordable way to enjoy that BMW ownership experience.

Bringing up the rear in the best possible way are the quartet of Kawasaki’s Versys/Ninja 650 pairing, Yamaha’s smaller Tracer 700, and in last (first?) place, Suzuki’s own V-Strom 650. I didn’t do these sorts of detailed calculations before choosing my own V-Strom back in 2015, but it’s interesting to see that even if I’d bought new and paid a dealer to take me all the way to 100,000 miles it would still have been the cheapest bike in the segment to own. In my case I’ve saved money by doing my own maintenance, then spent it again on performance modifications, but so far my own records suggest that I’m coming in way under-budget. This is important, as all four of these smaller-engined ~70bhp machines still require a big-bike-sized amount of regular maintenance. Good fuel economy and low purchase prices help keep the numbers down, but their comparatively low-tech nature makes them prime candidates for learning to change your own oil and check your own valves.

We can draw some interesting overall conclusions from all of this. Firstly, while recommended retail price is a good indicator of lifetime ownership costs there are enough outliers to warrant closer inspection. Secondly, if a bike looks easy to service, then it probably is. Exposed cylinders make for quick, and therefore cheap, valve clearance checks, while complex multi-cylinder engines are generally difficult to work on. Thirdly, the Japanese manufacturers may want to be careful about how quickly they’re moving their products up the premium bike ladder. Most consumers - and in some cases, their own build quality and dealership/ownership experience - still mark them as more budget offerings compared to their European competition. If they drive pricing up to far too quickly, they’ll find that they’ll lose more budget-oriented customers to previously-dismissed players like Moto-Guzzi, while still being unable to tempt customers away from their new premium competition at Triumph, Ducati, and BMW.

Fourth, Triumph needs to get their act together. I stopped taking my own Street Triple R to my dealer very early

Surprisingly cheap to own, but BMW reliability has been slipping of late.

Mechanically simple engines present a realistic home-servicing opportunity.

With rising price tags, the Japanese bikes are now competing directly with the Europeans.


on because of the laughable quotes I was being given for scheduled maintenance, and it looks like the latest evolution of that engine is even more expensive to work on. Ducati has worked hard to shed it’s expensive-to-maintain reputation because it was genuinely hurting sales. If Triumph can’t engineer their bikes to be easier and therefore cheaper to service then it won’t be long before they pick up that particular thorned crown.

Fifth, electric bikes are getting very close to where they could be seriously considered as sensible all-weather, all-purpose commuters. The range and charge time mean that touring is out of the question, but if you rack up big mileages riding to work you can just about break even with the petrol-powered competition. Just as we’ve recently hit a breaking point in electrically-powered cars, practical home-charged motorcycles could be just around the corner. It will be interesting to see what Fuell’s upcoming offerings look like in this regard, and even Honda are said to be preparing an electric version of their CBF300 with a focus on affordability.

But as I’ve suggested earlier on, you’ll want to do your own calculations and see how the numbers stack up for you, but this should at least get you started and it’s enabled me to draw some interesting conclusions. Most bikes will never see the sort of mileages I’m suggesting, which is just as well as I don’t trust a lot of them to last that long. What’s more, while bikes like my V-Strom are proven to be reliable well beyond their warranty period, owning the likes of a BMW could potentially get very expensive once coverage expires. I’ve never seen a high-mileage Multistrada, but don’t know whether that’s because no-one rides them that much or because they all explode long before they reach six digits. I do know that my local independent Ducati mechanic is always over-subscribed, but maybe their newer engines are more long-lasting than their old air-cooled stuff.

One final point to remember is that every motorcycle is designed to a brief - it’s designed to fulfil certain criteria, and longevity is one of those. Honda know that Goldwing riders will hit six digits with ease and regularity, and a reputation for reliability is what keeps them coming back. That’s why Honda’s engineers spend extra time, money, and resources ensuring that those bikes probably will hit 100,000 miles without breaking a sweat. And I’ve seen a 50,000-mile tear-down of a modern Tiger 1200, and absolutely everything was still perfectly in-spec, a good sign that the engine had been designed to do big miles.

Sky-high purchase prices are coming down but frequent servicing is a puzzler.

improved reliability, but would you trust it to last 100,000 miles? Doing high mileage? Buy a bike that can handle it.


BMW once told me that their customers trade their bikes in for a new one on average every 20 months, after which the bike is sold into the used market. Cynically-speaking, that second owner matters far less to BMW than someone who guarantees them a regular income for years to come by buying their bikes brand-new. If that first-owner, the person they’re trying to impress and keep coming back never sees 30,000 miles on any one bike, how much effort and money do we really think their engineers are spending to ensure that those engines will last two or three times that long?

But just as important as the design brief are your requirements as a customer, as a motorcyclist. If you like buying new bikes fairly regularly and never rack up big mileages, then long-term servicing costs probably won’t matter to you. If you ride infrequently, then the difference between 40 and 50mpg is completely irrelevant. And if you don’t depend on your bike for daily transport or regularly take long trips, then maybe you’re happy to risk needing that warranty every now and again. And let’s face it, thanks to PCP, a lot of people spend more on their monthly phone contract than it would cost for some new motorcycles. If that’s you, then knock yourself out - go enjoy the incredible variety of choice available to you at your local showrooms.

But if, like me, you want to buy and keep a bike long-term and expect to put big miles on an engine without dealing with unexpected repairs, I suggest you be a little bit more discerning. Choose a bike that the manufacturer intended for that purpose. Do the maths and make sure you aren’t going to encounter any nasty financial surprises, and maybe you’ll find that some options you’d previously dismissed become viable choices after all. Do your homework and you can sometimes extend that new-bike honeymoon period to the full 100,000 miles.

Nick Tasker

Honda has an incentive to ensure Goldwing owners’ reliability expectations are met.

Money or reliability no object, my perfect motorcycle. But sadly, both are factors.


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Soon after I arrived in Orange County, California for my winter stint late last November, Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman passed through as they concluded their new adventure in the Long Way series, finishing in Los Angeles. Their timing was most fortunate as had they travelled a few months later, this third instalment in the series following Long Way Round and Long Way Down, would have been seriously disrupted by Coronavirus.

However, the two arrived in LA before borders closed and the world changed to the ‘new normal’. The most interesting thing about their trip was the choice of two wheels - the Harley-Davidson LiveWire electric bike - which might seemingly pose a few charging problems in the remoter parts of South America!

I had heard of various glimpses of the two and their sizable retinue on social media over the previous months as they made their way up through South and Central America, but never more than a whisper of their progress. Starting from Ushuaia, Argentina, they took 3 months to complete the 13,000 mile journey. Evidently the choice of bike was nothing to do with sponsorship but Ewan’s curiosity about e-vehicles and what they offer as we go forward with the move away from fossil fuelled transport.

I’m sure there is going to be some very interesting footage and I’m hoping for an entertaining series. It all starts this month - the first of 10 episodes is on Apple TV+ this Friday, 18th September.

Editor


COVID-19 NOTICE REGARDING RUNS AND TRIPSLOCAL TEAMS ARE VENTURING OUT IN GROUPS OF UP TO 6 ON SOCIAL RIDES AS ALLOWED UNDER THE COVID-19 GUIDANCE. IF LOCKDOWN RULES ARE ADJUSTED WIDER SOCIAL RIDES WILL BE LISTED HERE AGAIN. PLEASE CHECK THE GROUPS.IO CALENDAR FOR CHANGES MID SEPTEMBER GOING FORWARD. FOR RUNS THAT HAVE BEEN CANCELLED, WE HOPE RUN LEADERS MAY LIKE TO RE-BOOK AT A LATER TIME WHEN WE ARE ONCE AGAIN ALLOWED LARGER NUMBERS - UNDERSTANDABLY IT MAY BE NEXT YEAR BEFORE THESE CAN BE RUN. PLEASE CONTACT [email protected] or [email protected] WITH ANY INFORMATION.

SEPTEMBER 2020SUNDAY

20ST CRISPIN’S SUNDAY - ONLINE ZOOM MEETSee top of this page for normal meeting details. with restricted numbers we will again meet online. (See page 4).

OCTOBER 2020SUNDAY

18ST CRISPIN’S SUNDAY - OBSERVED RIDE - We live in hope!See top of this page for meeting details.Chris Arnold Memorial Ride10.30am from St Crispin’s - 100 miles to finish at Loomies on some of Chris’s favourite roads. Run Leader Mark Spittles 07753 931570

TVAM Calendar - Covid depleted once moreSOCIAL RIDES, T-RUNS, TRACK DAYS AND OTHER EVENTS IN 2020

St Crispin’s Sunday - Monthly Meet - Observed Ride Every 3rd Sunday of the month. Meet 9am at St Crispin’s School, Wokingham (see p32 of Slipstream for map). All those currently involved in observed runs will be allocated an Observer. Slow riding skills practice is available. Social runs available for full members start at 10am if run leaders are available on the day. If you are willing to lead a run please email [email protected] or contact Alan Hudson at [email protected]

Social Runs St Crispin’s Track Day/Training Run Events Green Team

By supplying your details for entry on these pages you are agreeingto them being publicly available.

Check the latest calendar at https://tvam.groups.io/g/allmembers/calendar

For any TVAM courses - please check on groups.io and the web shopas we are not sure when or if these will be restarting this year.

TVAM Run Ratings A: Skilled/progressive for confident riders on all types of road. Aimed at smaller groups. B+: More progressive pace for the confident, focused rider. Overtaking permitted. B: Medium paced, relaxed ride. Overtaking permitted. C: Leisurely pace - NO overtaking within the group. Suitable for first timers or those looking for a slower pace. T: Team Training Run - observed/social ride with an element of coaching run by each of the local teams


Oil your chain, not your back wheel!

[email protected]

Update on TVAM’s Affiliation with

Last May a member pointed out that the MAG website doesn’t list TVAM as one of its affiliated clubs, so we asked them to correct it. Embarrassingly it turned out that actually it was TVAM’s fault as we’d not paid our affiliation fee since 2018. This was an unfortunate oversight, but as we’ve looked into remedying it, it’s become apparent that our affiliation could be legally problematic.

TVAM is a road safety charity and as such is bound by Charity Commission rules. MAG has two arms to it. The first is a commercial not-for-profit organisation (The Motorcycle Action Group Ltd) that actively lobbies politicians for riders’ rights. It’s this activity, for the most part, that gets publicised to TVAM members. However as it’s a commercial organisation Charity Commission rules mean that TVAM is not allowed to financially support it.

The other arm (The MAG Foundation Ltd) is a separate organisation sharing the same offices and is a ‘registered charity set up to support initiatives into motorcycle and scooter safety and security matters’. As such, TVAM could in principle affiliate to it. However, according to the MAG Foundation director, while busy it’s been focusing more on security than road safety, for example funding stolen vehicle recovery schemes, Lock 2 Lock signs, subsidising disk locks, etc, and TVAM officers would need to see more evidence of road safety activity to feel legally comfortable affiliating to it. That said, it is planning to increase its activity and if they do and put more emphasis on road safety TVAM affiliation remains a possibility. We’re continuing to talk to them.

The loss of TVAM affiliation has cost MAG overall around £375 per year which is particularly unfortunate right now: MAG has taken a big financial hit during the lockdown as most of their fund raising is done through their rallies. Ian Mutch, MAG President is worried, “I’d been hoping we can really build membership dramatically this year but so far it’s refusing to rise though at least it isn’t declining which is something I guess, but I can’t see how we are going to get through next year without a massive rise in membership given the loss of so many events.”

We’re sorry TVAM has had to stop our financial support - MAG remains the most active riders’ rights lobbying group on the UK motorcycling scene so it would be very bad news for biking were we to lose it. But TVAM will continue to provide any help it can, including continuing to circulate their press releases and other material and encouraging our members to sign up or make a donation. Either of which you can do here - and we urge you to please consider doing so.

If you’re not on the TVAM groups-io all members list but want to be emailed MAG updates drop Nick Vale an email ([email protected]) to be included.

Nick Vale, Andy Slater www.mag-uk.org


Why do people decide to do theIAM ROADSMART ADVANCED RIDER COURSE?

I suspect the answer to that question is different for every new associate that signs up. Some need the qualification to ride blood bikes; others want the insurance discount; some want the accolade of an advanced riding certificate; some have been on Bikesafe courses; and others just want to improve their riding. (I suspect there is a whole host of other reasons I haven’t thought of).

I have ridden motorcycles since I was 10 years old, I’m now 53 - yes that’s me on my fist bike, an Italjet two stroke 80cc scrambler. Motorcycles have been my life and my passion ever since.

I have had two serious motorcycle collisions on the road, one in 1990, the other in 2009, neither of them my fault, and neither would have happened if I’d been riding like an advanced rider. Hindsight is a wonderful thing!

Well my reason for doing the Advanced Rider Course is a simple one - I thought I was an amazing rider when in fact I was rubbish.

So my journey starts there.

For no particular reason, I had decided that I was going to do loads of motorcycle courses in the summer of 2018. Between April 2018 and July 2018, I did a knee down course, two wheelie courses, and an advanced machine control course - all at Rufforth Airfield near York.

Another of the courses I had booked was the Bikesafe course with the police. I went to Humberside Police’s Beverly office for the day-long Bikesafe course on 11th August 2018. I had thought that with 30 unbroken years of road riding experience that I would be better than any of the riders there, and probably on a par with the police riders. Pride comes before a fall!

The Bikesafe course shocked me by highlighting just how badly I had been riding my motorcycles on the road for over 30 years! How I was still alive was a miracle!

So to correct those highlighted deficiencies in my riding, I decided to do the advanced rider course with IAM RoadSmart. On 13th August 2018, I booked online and was directed to my now beloved West Yorkshire Advanced Motorcyclists (WYAMs). I say now beloved, because I didn’t actually want to be in a motorcycle club when I booked the advanced rider course. I just wanted to learn to be a better rider

and perhaps even pass my advanced test. I had absolutely no interest in being in WYAMs. I could not see the point or necessity of of having to join WYAMs - more about that singularly mistaken belief later.

I was lucky enough to get Stuart Fielden as my observer. Some of the associates and newer members may not know Stuart very well, but he is not only a very accomplished and experienced motorcyclist and observer, but he’s an amazing human being too. We became very close friends as he taught me how to be a better rider, and to this day, I’m pretty confident he has no real grasp of how much his sessions saved my life and rescued my crippled mental health. Because in between starting the advanced rider course and finishing it, I underwent a cataclysmic breakdown in my domestic situation, and I was at rock bottom. The advanced rider course literally saved my life, and Stuart’s sessions were the lifeline that I needed to


help me out of the emotional hell hole I found myself in. Motor Cycle News recently ran an article about riding motorcycles for mental health - never a truer word has been printed. My bike, and Stuart’s sessions saved my life - literally.

My test took place on a filthy, rainy mid January morning. It remains a completely blurred memory to me. Dudley Martin was my examiner. I do remember it felt like the worst I’d ridden in a really long time, and yet I passed. Dudley later said that I would have got a first if I hadn’t skidded on the cattle grid on the slip road just off J22 of the M62. Fortunately I stayed on the bike, but he was right I hadn’t ‘observed’ the cattle grid because I’d been going too fast as I went over it turning left - hence the skid. A costly mistake!

Anyway I passed. Now what was I going to do? The structured sessions with Stuart were at an end, and whilst we had become very firm friends and remained in close contact, my emotional lifeline had gone. How was I going to survive that loss of regular structured riding with Stuart that had become my lifeline? Well, the answer came in my second guardian angel from the club - Terry Dutchburn. Some of you know Terry very well, other newer members and associates may not. But Terry, like me, is a Geordie. So basically we are brothers, or cousins, or related somehow. We got on like a house on fire from the get go. The reason Terry became involved with me was because Stuart, knowing how important structured riding was to me and my emotional wellbeing, had suggested that I consider observer training. I agreed, got the approval from the committee, and Terry became my observer trainer.

Once again, and I’m sure without even knowing it, the club had provided another experienced trainer in Terry who had unwittingly rescued me from the abyss of facing extreme challenges in my personal life without any diversions.

I had the familiar structure of regular training sessions, this time as a trainee observer. It was another life saver. I passed the observer assessment process and I’m now the club’s newest local observer.


Looking back, I view the dual processes of instruction for my test, and instruction to be an observer as not only incredibly informative, but also as transformative of me as a rider. I have emerged from the personal nightmare of 2018 - 2019 as a stronger and more healed man than when I started, and without even knowing it, WYAMs helped me through it when there was nobody else that could. Motorcycling is my life and Advanced motorcycle training has saved my life. The whole advanced riding journey has been a truly Zen like experience for me.

But the most unexpected surprise for me was the club - WYAMS. Because as I said, when I booked my Advanced Rider Course with IAM RoadSmart online way back in August 2018, the last thing I wanted was to join a motorcycle club! And ironically being in WYAMS is the part of the whole process that has nourished me, and enthused me, and helped me recover as well as making me a better rider.

Two of the most memorable motorcycling days that I have ever had have been club runs! One Tuesday run to the Lakes and one John Burrow’s Sunday run to Whitby. Bearing in mind I have been riding motorcycles pretty much non stop, on and off road, for over 40 years, in Europe, America, Asia, and Australia, to say that two of my best days riding ever has been with WYAMs, in the last 12 months, is truly saying something!

So here’s my impassioned plea to associates, and new and old members alike. This is your club, our club! All of us have one thing in common - we all love motorcycling. The strength of the club is in how the individuals interact. It’s for the long standing members to share their knowledge, experience and skills and for the new members and associates to soak it up! I can promise you this, if you disengage after you pass your test, you are missing the best part of your advanced training. The absolute very best part!

I know it’s difficult coming to any new club and not knowing anyone and feeling like you don’t belong - but you do belong - you are one of us now!

The wealth of riding experience on the training and club runs is probably unparalleled. I defy anyone to go on a club run and not be beaming from ear to ear inside their helmets. I defy anyone who goes on a club or training run not to learn a huge amount from watching the riding of the elder statesmen like John Burrows and Allen Davey to name but two of so many.

Your Advanced Riding journey doesn’t stop at your test pass, but rather that is where it begins! Undoubtedly your riding will improve as you deploy these skills riding solo, but in observing other experienced advanced riders on club or training runs you also learn by osmosis. You critique your own riding by conscious and unconscious comparison. You improve as you ride with good riders. Simple! You cannot buy that quality of training - and you don’t have to it’s free on the club and training runs!

My zest for all things Advanced riding didn’t end there. In fact, that’s where it really began for me! I reached out to a number of other affiliate clubs including Sheffield Advanced Motorcyclists and Thames Valley Advanced Motorcyclists. I wasn’t sure what kind of reception I was going to get as an “interloper”. However, the IAM RoadSmart family has not disappointed, I’ve been made to feel very welcome by both. I spoke to Chris Brownlee, a fellow North Eastener, and chief Observer for TVAM. He could see I was deeply


enthusiastic about how TVAM operate, and so he invited me to join TVAM and I did, and was invited on the TVAM Observer weekend which was sadly cancelled but I’ll be there next year!

We may all have started our advanced motorcycling journeys for different reasons, but we all share the same passion - two wheels.

Looking back, I guess it was silly of me to think I wouldn’t be welcomed by “my tribe” even though they are at the other end of the country!

I’m so glad I didn’t do what I had planned to do when I was at rock bottom. And if this article gives just one person the strength to “hang in there” for another day, then another, and another, until that dark pit is a distant memory, then my advanced motorcycling journey won’t have just saved me, it will have saved someone else.

Chris Dunn

We are now

OPEN6 High Street

Sonning, RG4 6UP

for groceries,

delicious cakes

and cold drinks


CLUB MEET - During lockdown there is no monthly meeting

Monthly meetings are held at 9am on the 3rd Sunday of each month at St. Crispin’s School, London Road, Wokingham, RG40 1SS. Observed rides for Associates and first time attendees, social runs for Full Members.

LOCAL TEAM MEETS - Many have gone online during this period - contact your local team

Basingstoke (BAR) When: First Monday of the monthWhere: Jekyll & Hyde, Hartley Wespall, Turgis Green, RG27 0AX Time: 7.30pm

Camberley (CLAMs)When: 1st Tuesday of the month, every other month Where: The Bee, School Road, Bagshot, Windlesham, GU20 6PDTime: 8pm (Apr, Jun, Aug, Oct, Dec)

Great Northern (GNATs) Meet 1: Saturday before St. Crispin’s - check with

[email protected] for locationMeet 2: After each St. Crispin’s for coffee at The Farm

Café, Ashridge Manor Garden Centre, Forest Road, Wokingham, RG40 5QY.

Meet 3: Rideout first Sunday of the month.

Reading (RAMs)When: First Tuesday of the monthWhere: Fox and Hounds, Theale, RG7 4BETime: 8pm

Slough (SAM) When: First Saturday of the monthWhere: Jenners Riverside Café, Ray Mead Road, Maidenhead, SL6 8NPTime: 9am - Contact [email protected]

Wantage & Newbury (WAGs)When: Second Wednesday of the monthWhere: Ye Olde Red Lion, Green Lane, Chieveley, Berkshire, RG20 8XBTime: 7.30pm

Wokingham & Bracknell (WOBMOB)When: 3rd Tuesday of the monthWhere: Binfield Social Club, Binfield, West Berkshire, RG42 4HPTime: 8pm

Green Team (Full Members)Meet 1: Last weekend of the month - see Slipstream or web calendar for social run information.Meet 2: Wednesday following St Crispin’s at The Crown, The Street, Swallowfield, RG7 1QY at 7.30pm - Contact [email protected]

Thames Vale Advanced Motorcyclistsmeet at St. Crispin’s School, London Road, Wokingham, RG40 1SS

every 3rd Sunday of the month at 9am

Coppid BeechRoundabout

A329M

St. Crispin’s School

A329 London Road Binfi

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OBSERVER RELATED CONTACTSAardvarks Simon Whatley [email protected] Allocations Peter Browne [email protected] Assessments Andy Wedge [email protected] Bike to bike radios Chris Brownlee [email protected] Cross Checks Simon Whatley [email protected] Cross Check link www.tvam.org/cross-check-requestObserver Health Checks Andy Wedge [email protected] Observer Interest Andy Wedge [email protected] Observer Training Chris Brownlee [email protected] Run Reports Chris Brownlee [email protected] Test Passes Peter Browne [email protected] Observer Coordinator Hev Smith [email protected]

Observer Forum (mailing list): Observer Group https://tvam.groups.io/g/observers

LOCAL TEAM CONTACTSTEAM LEADERS ([email protected]): Quarterly meetings - 22nd September, 24th November. Held in Binfield Basingstoke (BAR) Steve Dobson and Dennis Lutley [email protected] (CLAMs) James Bates and Doug Brown [email protected] Northern (GNATs) Gary Jackson [email protected] Reading (RAMs) Vanessa Turner , Andy Boudier [email protected] (SAM) Ally McCulloch [email protected] Wantage & Newbury (WAGs) Keith Miller [email protected] & Bracknell (WOBMOB) Andy MacWalter, Ian Gaitley [email protected]

SOCIAL CONTACTS ([email protected]): Basingstoke (BAR) Mark Spittles [email protected] (CLAMs) Caroline Harvey [email protected] Northern (GNATs) Gary Jackson [email protected] (RAMs) Vanessa Turner, Andy Boudier [email protected] (SAM) Ally McCulloch [email protected] & Newbury (WAGs) Keith Miller, Mimi Carter Jonas [email protected] (WOBMOB) Andy MacWalter and Ian Gaitley [email protected]

is affiliated to

Slipstream editor and designer: Salli G - [email protected] team: Kathy Drogemuller, Nick Tasker, Robin Hennem

Copy deadline: 3rd week of the month. To ensure your article or information is includedplease inform the Editor to book space - slipstream@tvam at the earliest opportunity,issues are planned well in advance of print date which is the first Friday of the month.

Advertisement sales: [email protected] enquiries: 0118 402 4800 TVAM Website: www.tvam.org

© 2020 Thames Vale Advanced Motorcyclists. The views expressed are not always those of TVAM or the IAM.The editorial team reserve the right to edit submissions. Slipstream is published by Thames Vale Advanced Motorcyclists.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any manner without the express written permission of the publisher.TVAM is a charitable company limited by guarantee and it is a group within the IAM.


TVAM CLUB CONTACTSPresident: Vice Presidents: (Position under review) Nigel Fowler 1996, Richard Tickner 2005, Nigel Taylor 2010, Charon Willis 2016

Committee ([email protected]): Who are they? Photos on groups.ioChairman Andy Slater [email protected] Chief Observer Chris Brownlee [email protected] Adrian Ellison [email protected] Treasurer Paul Taylor [email protected] Membership Secretary Dave Simmons 0118 402 4800 [email protected] Slipstream Editor Salli Griffith [email protected] Events & Promotions Phil Donovan [email protected] Team Leader Alan Hudson [email protected] Committee Meetings: These are held at James House, Mere Park, Dedmere Road, Marlow, SL7 1FJ Next Meetings: (M - Marlow / Internet), 13th October 2020 (I), 10th November 2020 (I) - all meetings normally on second Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm and generally alternate monthly between Marlow and Internet meetings.

Special Roles: Advertising Salli Griffith [email protected] Bike Control Chris Caswell [email protected] or [email protected] Bike Maintenance Phil Ryan [email protected] Bike Craft Di Woodcock [email protected]é and Stopover Database Chris Brownlee [email protected] Advanced Plus (previously EAR) Mike Walden [email protected] Events Diary (non-run events) Phil Donovan [email protected] Girl Torque Alie Ball, Salli Griffith [email protected] Groups.io Support Andy Wedge, Chris Brownlee [email protected] Reporting Training Team [email protected] Leaflet Supply Phil Donovan [email protected] Lean Roll Karen Joy [email protected] Merchandise (to order items away from St Crispin’s) [email protected] Midweek Runs Ken Jeddere-Fisher [email protected] Riding Clive Marsden [email protected] Pillion Rider Course Alan Hudson [email protected] Zone Mel Hakhnazarian [email protected] Training Team [email protected] Leader & Back Marker Course Issy Griffiths [email protected] Run Co-ordinators Salli Griffith /Phil Donovan [email protected] St Crispin’s Sunday Runs Alan Mossman [email protected] Tea & Coffee Bar at St Crispin’s Roger and Marianne Lindsay [email protected] Toy Run Steve Harris (volunteers for Dec Toy Run) [email protected] Track Skills Days (Training) Dave Hepworth [email protected] Steve Dennis [email protected]

Website: TVAM Website www.tvam.orgThe website gives you access to the web shop for booking courses, trips, training and track days. TVAM Groups.ioGroups.io is the system used by TVAM to share details of news, events and much more. https://groups.io/groupsYou will automatically be added to the system when you join TVAM so you can get involved in the conversations with other members. There are local team and special interest groups available for you to join also. Get involved and find out what’s happening. Correspondence Address & Telephone: 23 Comet Way, Woodley, Reading RG5 4NZ 0118 402 4800

Registered Office: Thames Vale Advanced Motorcyclists is a charitable company limited by guarantee, and is a group within the IAM. c/o Durrants Accountants, 24 Wellington Business Park, Dukes Ride, Crowthorne, Berkshire, RG45 6LS. Registration Number: 03556042. Charity Number 1069767.


DKJ-Construction LtdConstruction to the highest standard

ContactDrew Holdaway07860 382224

[email protected]

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