Category: Bikes

1. A Biker's Dozen - 6 - Life's a drag

   Posted on 12:00pm Monday 15th Jun 2020

   We all do it, think about the what if I had the dosh? What would the hanger look like?

   So having been thinking about it for ages I thought I’d come up with my biker’s dozen, the top twelve bikes I’d be out looking for once when those six numbers came up.

   Back in the 80s there was only one muscle bike to aspire to own. The fastest accelerating production machine available to buy anywhere in the world, ladies and gents I give you Yamaha’s V-Max, shit yourself acceleration in a straight line - combined with a reputation for shit yourself-for-a-very-different-reason handling around the corners.

   Not owning a rear tyre factory or living on a wide open American prairie with a no more than ninety mile straight line road to the nearest petrol station and back, despite always being a bit awe inspired I never actually got to ride or think seriously about owning one.

   Mind you, having been concerned about the practicalities of handling all that power on English country lanes, all respect is due to the bloke I knew slightly when I lived in Tanzania during the early 90’s who imported a full power version. Good luck with that on a murram road is all I can say…

   Two videos for this one I think. You've had the sanitised corporate story, so here's the warts and all owners’ version. 

2. A Biker's Dozen - 5 - California dreaming

   Posted on 12:00pm Sunday 14th Jun 2020

   List of a biker’s dozen

   We all do it, think about the what if I had the dosh? What would the hanger look like?

   So having been thinking about it for ages I thought I’d come up with my biker’s dozen, the top twelve bikes I’d be out looking for once when those six numbers came up.

   Look when I was a kid I knew I could never afford a Harley. They were serious money.

   But there was something out there that had the American vibe and from my obsessive reading of the classified bike ads I might just, just scrape to the cheapest, oldest, knackeredist (look it ought to be a word OK?) rattiest example – Guzzi’s dressed up T3, the California.

   I had a poster of it up on the wall of my digs. And I reckoned if I just gave up the fags for a couple of years it might just be enough to make the difference.

   So I did. Quit them completely.

   Problem was I was pretty soon up to a dozen spliffs a day instead, so that plan didn’t really work out so well…