France 2008 Basic Help Needed

[teampots]

Hello to you all, after reading all the brilliant writeups in this section i have devised a plan to go on a tour myself and just wanted to make sure of some basics without getting lost in pages of topics

i know i need :
European Health Insurance Card
European Insurance and Breakdown etc
Panniers
Maps
Camping Gear

But i just want to make sure of other things

such as will i need my passport im mainly going to France etc but may get as far south as italy and with it all being Europe etc

also what about rough camping big no no in france but what about italy


i will be doing this myself so is there anything else major i might need or have missed off the list

any help would be brilliant, im planning but as such nothing has come to fruition
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Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[rovens]

ignore what i said.

[feef]

[teampots]

good good :] basically just going through getting everything renewed replaced etc and fixed so im not screwing about when i come to go

how long does the EHI Card last from issue then ?
____________________
Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[Paivi]

[dodger]

[dodger]

[Itchy]

NOOO!

To tyre weld buy a tyre repair kit the £20 stab through types , they last MUCH longer , and work in the rain and cold .

Bring a spare map , and another spare map,

Bring a compass,

Other things you need to bring:

Cable ties, lots of them , gaffa tape , electrical tape , jubliee clips
you can fix most things with the above.
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Spain 2008France 2007Big one 2009 We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. In the end, your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it is worth watching.

[teampots]

i always thought gunking the tyres would be a better idea
____________________
Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[dodger]

[feef]

Another vote for a proper plug kit.

I have a plug-kit and compressor on the FJR.

My reasoning is thus

1: tyre-weld, slime or any other gunky stuff will not win friends for you at the tyre changing place

2: tyre-weld, slime or any other gunky stuff might well work okay on large trail bikes (such as used by many of the riders on the ADV-rider forums, since they use innertubes) but CAN cause some unbalancing of tubeless road tyres at higher speeds

3: I like to know when I've had a puncture. I know that I can plug a tyre, maybe twice at most, if both plugs are far enough apart. If your holes are being sealed automatically, how do you know just how many holes are in your tyre? How do you know the underlying carcass hasn't been damaged? At least when I'm down on my hands and knees fitting the plug, you get a good look at thetyre, and can check for any surrounding damage

4: carrying a compressor also wins you friends when someone has a flat tyre, even on a car

5: A compressor and plug kit doesn't take up much more space than a can of tyre-weld, and fits easily under the seat of the Firestorm, or rattles about in a pannier. There's less chance of a compressor and plug kit being punctured or set off accidentally, and doesn't make a mess.

6 : Plugs, while purported to NOT be a permanant fix have, in my experience, provided a good, airtight and safe repair that lasts the lifetime of the tyre. It would still be recommended, however, to replace the tyre at your earliest convenience. That I chose not to is my own decision.

I've had to plug maybe 5 rear tyres on 3 bikes in the last 3 years. Nowadays, a puncture is a minor, 15 minute delay, and not a show/ride-stopper.

a
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Mudskipper wrote: feef, that is such a beautiful post that it gave me a lady tingle
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Blog and stuff - PlentyMoreFish dating

[dodger]

Fair enough, proper plug kit it is then...
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My Bikes: Piaggio NRG| Aprilia RS 125| Suzuki GSX-R 600|Yamaha Fazer Ducati 848
Europe 2008

[king kong]

A few mates from work and I are planning a 'long' weekend - early June perhaps to the Normandy D-Day beaches on our bikes and would appreciate if anyone could advise of any decent bike friendly camp sites.
Anywhere from Dieppe to the Cherbourg Peninsula would be good.

[teampots]

right then this is progressing well enough for me at the moment.


although i have just thought of something, can someone please tell me how easy it is to find bike friendly caming places in france or is there a map that would list them
____________________
Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[Toukakoukan]

Personally when I went touring in france I ignored the designated campsites and just camped somewhere where we wouldn't disturb anyone.
This lead to one of the most fantastic campsites in my life.
It was a 10 minute trek up a scree slope in the alps which was no more than a goat path, but at the top you realised you were on a rocky outcrop overlooking the whole valley.
It was a tiny places, maybe 20 feet on either side of the tent before it came to nigh-sheer cliff faces, I spent two nights there and waking up to that view each morning was sheer bliss... I wish I'd spent more time there!

[lazlo52]

A group of us are doing a tour of Northern France in May. Touring the battlefields and seeing the practice session at Le Mans. After reading this thread, I have ordered my Health card and think it's a good idea to carry the plug & compressor kit. Can anyone recommend one to purchase? I see Ebay have the type the AA & RAC use.
What do you think?
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I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!!

[feef]

[lazlo52]

Thanks feef, I shall now get right on it.
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I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!!

[map]

Have to disagree. Admittedly using a touring bike but...

[philb]

always used ultra seal in my tyres (bandit 1200 and now FJR1300)
put stuff in tyre, inflate and then go for a steady 5-10 mile ride so that it gets the inside coated evenly .
never had a balance problem (in fact it seemed better)
informed tyre fitters before removal and no mess.
i ve had a couple of small nails in tyre whilst away removed it spun tyre around a few times and it sealed fine.
much better than trying to locate and fix it in the pouring rain on a dark unlit road

[teampots]

currently trying to plan a rough series of destinations and was wondering what are the better roads through the south of France i cannot seem to remember any of the more popular ones.
____________________
Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[teampots]

Can Anyone recommend a decent set of panniers, i will have a top box that i can use as extra storage, but panniers are a bit of a worry as to how much i will need.

looking to take a few changes of clothes nothing amazingly big etc also will need some space for bringing stuff back
____________________
Current - Fazer 600
Prev - Bandit x2 (Killed) CB400 (Superfour) CBR125
Currently Restoring - Kawasaki S1 250 Triple (Slowly but surely)

[yambabe]

We've just come back from a long weekend in France over Easter, so as far as carrying stuff is concerned my advice would be keep it simple!

I took - clean underwear, 2x clean tshirts, 2x clean warm tops, 1x clean jeans, 1x spare boots, 2x spare gloves, pair of trainers, thermals, waterproofs, 1x spare jacket in the way of clothes. That was enough for 5 days! and fitted easily into my throwover panniers. I also had travel-sized shampoo & shower gel, deodorant, toothbrush & toothpaste, makeup and moisturiser, along with a small first aid kit and a hi-vis waistcoat.

Paperwork wise I was advised to take passport, licence, health card, insurance cert, breakdown card, MOT and V5 and you have to dsplay a GB symbol clearly on the rear of your vehicle.

I also took credit card, money (Euros), phone with google maps installed and a map of Northern France.

Himself had tools in his panniers, various spanners, carb cleaner (can help a reluctant bike to start), a litre of oil and a spare fully charged battery that would fit on either bike.

We didn't take camping gear, partly cos it was too bloody cold to camp and partly because you can find accommodation for a reasonable rate very easily. We could usually find hotels for under 60 Euros for a double room (about £45) or better still look for signs for chambres d'hote, these are the French equivalent of B&B and can be had from as little as 20 euros per night. However saying that there was certainly no shortage of campsites in the Normady/Brittany area that we explored - watch out for the camper vans though they are everywhere!

Incidentally M& P have some offers on luggage this week that you may want to look at.

https://www.mandp.co.uk/productsList.aspx?tier1=Luggage&tier2=Special+Offers


This is our bikes fully loaded.........

https://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a229/Yambabe/France%2008/BILD0337.jpg

All the valuables were in the tank bags, everything else in (me) the pannniers or (him) bag strapped to rear rack.
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Sod falling in love, I wanna fall in chocolate.

[EuropeanNC30R...]

Haven't seen your trip report anywhere babyyam

[yambabe]

It's in show and tell.......

I was sooo nervous before we went, but once over there and riding we had a fantastic time. Didn't manage the mileage we had originally planned cos of the weather but still loved it and can't wait to get back over there when it's not snowing, sub-zero temp and gale-force winds...........
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Sod falling in love, I wanna fall in chocolate.