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| sagalout |
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sagalout
Nearly there...
Joined: 09 Jun 2006
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 Posted: 17:43 - 05 Aug 2007  Post subject: Dales and Lakes in a day |
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After buying the bike this week, and going on holiday tomorrow, I decided to get up early and make the most of some decent british weather for a change. I live in North Yorkshire, so have the dales and the lakes on my doorstep. I'm not into trails riding (yet) so this was to be roads only, but some very minor unnamed ones - the sort I've never been down before on a sportsbike.
I planned the route using the excellent googlemaps and https://houghi.org/tomtom/index.php - which allows you to plan your routes using google maps, dragging out the roads and routes, then paste the link into that site and it creates the waypoints as a TomTom ITN file.
Heres the route
All started off well - I actually got up on time for once and headed out towards Ripon/Masham. The bike feels lovely, with that distinctive triple whistle and bags of torque, making the windy country roads a real pleasure.
Just north of Leyburn:
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1038/1017957873_bb0c34d013.jpg
Continued to head on through some fantastic scenery - unnamed roads I hadnt ever been on before and they are right on my doorstep.
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1093/1018821712_84b1d6da80.jpg
Then came near disaster  After taking the shots below just passed buttertub pass, I got back on the bike and headed back toward the road. Unfortunately the mud was a lot softer than I realised, the wheel spun up and the bike went down. I should have got a shot of the poor downed tiger, but I was too pannicked and just wanted to haul it back up. Damage is minimal - a smashed indicator lense and a scratched handguard and tank. Gutted though as it was pristine before.
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1284/1018826508_dc93f0437d.jpg
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1006/1018828138_9f6f158f9d.jpg
I was so ****** off I was really considering going home, but decided to ride to Hawes first, a lovely little market town with a great bikers cafe. A cup of coffee to steady the nerves and a good look around the bike and I decided to press on. It was only the front right indicator that wasnt working - I'd just have to be extra careful when overtaking!
So, pushed on towards Kirkby Stephen, when the sun began to really shine and the roads opened up into some glorious twisties. The bike really surprises me here. I'm pretty sure I'm no slower than I was on the sportsbike point to point - you just have to be a lot smoother, which is a rewarding way to ride anyway.
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1408/1018832240_b408c6c93e.jpg
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1394/1017974069_74b5cb8f0d.jpg
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1362/1018836036_901ffb7cd5.jpg
By now I was about 90 miles in, and within Cumbria/The lake district. I found a little road down to Haweswater, which is a lake I havent been to before. Unfortunately it came to a dead end so I had to head back towards Ullswater, one of the major lakes. This was taken over some estate land on single track roads/lanes. Very pleasant just cruising along and not meeting a single other vehicle.
Haweswater:
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1242/1017978869_3529b20ae8.jpg
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1154/1018843002_3d329166b1.jpg
Ullwater:
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1406/1017989267_d572859436.jpg
From Ullswater it was a climb up Kirkstone pass, a 25 degree climb that the Tiger just devoured. Stopped at the top for a quick beer - same pub we stopped at last week on the Northern run.
View from the top of kirkstone pass:
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1004/1017993623_bd77b02aae.jpg
From here I was running out of time, so took the main A65 road back home, stopping at Devils bridge, which is a fairly major bike meet point through the summer. Again, the bike provided ample power to cruise between 60 and 100mph on the short dual carriage ways and A roads home
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1145/1017996627_c9701dd290.jpg
https://farm2.static.flickr.com/1323/1018860306_41425cd8bf.jpg
So that was my ride. 205 miles and I feel like I'm starting to get used to the bike. No real aches or pains when I got home, so thats all good. its just the manouvering around I'm struggling with. I was terrified of dropping it after earlier in the day. I think I need to find a car park and just practise slow control and balance - its so different to the zx9 which I could ride at walking pace no problem.
More to the point I'm loving the ability to tackle roads that the ZX9 just wasnt happy on. Whilst they look smooth in the photos, they are bumpy and potholed as hell on a sportsbike. I've found about 100 miles of roads today I've never been on before, and these are all close by. With the googlemaps routeplanning it seems to have opened up a whole new world of biking, and for the first time ever I'm actually taking in the scenery  |
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| stinkwheel |
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stinkwheel
Bovine Proctologist
Joined: 12 Jul 2004
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Posted: 22:07 - 05 Aug 2007  Post subject: |
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| Quote: | I think I need to find a car park and just practise slow control and balance - its so different to the zx9 which I could ride at walking pace no problem. |
Just remember not to give it too many revs. You don't need to on a triple, it has loads of low down torque, just let it lump about, it'll trickle along at no speed whatsoever with the clutch out at tickover in first. Should pick up smoothly from zero throttle too. I've had a couple of motard-type bikes and have ridden tigers a couple of times and I find the best bet is to keep off the clutch, use the throttle to control your speed. Just remember if it does stall, you'll stop dead because the starter motor will engage so do cover the clutch.
Keep off the front brake if the going is soft, if you feel it sinking in, 'pulse' the throttle a bit rather than burying it to the axle (the smoothness of a triple is a bit of a disadvantage in this case).
It's probably more that you need to get used to the boinginess of the suspension, it feels like it's going to go over but it actually isn't, until you start with the spider-legs that is. So practice the slow riding, but using the throttle rather than CBT style clutch slipping. Also practice standing on the pegs, gripping the tank with your knees and bouncing it about a bit.
You'll also probably find you're riding it over ground you'd never have taken the sportsbike on (like the bit where you dropped it?). I'm no expert offroad but I got a couple of tips from a mate who rides big enduro bikes.
One of them is "Momentum overrides grip". If the going is soft, your bike will tend to keep travelling in the direction it is already going. In practice this means that if there is a soft bit, make sure you have enough momentum to carry you through and keep the wheels pointing in the direction of travel. You can sort out the direction of travel once you find some grip. Not how you'd ride a crosser but you haven't got a crosser, you have a 450lb, 88bhp adventure tourer.
The other is the fact that if you are on a dirt track, ride through the puddles. On a dirt road, water pools where there is a solid base so if it's muddy, the puddles are where the grip is at. This is not the case totally offroad but if you find yourself in that situation, you're on the wrong sort of motorbike.
____________________
“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles. |
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| phil2alp |
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phil2alp
Nitrous Nuisance
Joined: 22 Oct 2006
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