Club Night - 10th May Eastham Ferry Hotel Ferry Road Eastham CH62 0AU
Issue No 215
May 2016
W I R R A L A D VA N C E D M O TO R C Y C L I S T S Group Council 2016-2017 Web Site
IAM Group 5115 http://www.w-a-m.co.uk
Chairman
Tim Brown
chairman@w-a-m.co.uk
Vice Chairman
Ken Smith
vicechairman@w-a-m.co.uk
Honorary Treasurer
Tim Holme
treasurer@w-a-m.co.uk
Membership
Nina Jeffries
membership@w-a-m.co.uk
Associate Coordinator
Derek Jeffries
associatecoordinator@w-a-m.co.uk
Chief Observer
Mike Boston
chiefobserver@w-a-m.co.uk
Honorary Secretary
Rob Cooper 0151 648 4503
secretary@w-a-m.co.uk
Events Organiser
Dave Spotswood events@w-a-m.co.uk
Newsletter Editor & WebMeister
Peter Lovatt
newsletter@w-a-m.co.uk
Minute Secretary & Social Media
Steve Lord
socialmedia@w-a-m.co.uk
Group Shop
Martin Titley 0151 632 3570
groupshop@w-a-m.co.uk
Gift Aid Coordinator
Tim Holme
giftaid@w-a-m.co.uk
Ride Out Coordinator
Rob Tutchings
rideouts@w-a-m.co.uk
Other Council members Lindsay Boston Carl Mason Cliff Evans Graeme Thow
MAGAZINE TEAM:
CONTACT WAM
Editor: Peter Lovatt
Rob Cooper Coopers Upholstery The Old Bank Everton Valley Liverpool L5 0RH
Duplication: C3 Imaging, Liverpool Distribution: The Post Office! 2
Welcome to the May edition of the WAM magazine. Well, it was a big Thank You to Richard Gladman (Head of driving and riding standards) at the IAM. This was following the recent retirement of Mark Lewis who was initially pencilled in to do the April Club Night. Richard gave a run down of the latest changes in the pipeline. Here are a couple of pix from the night…..
Richard Gladman gave a interesting talk in April about the revised IAM standards
This month, we are going to try something a bit different. We are going to try and do a Techie Night at the May Club night. This one is going to be about GPS, from how t o create a route to uploading it to your sat nav and then using it! And other stuff too, like tips and tricks. It’s still in the grey planning stage as I type this (at the end of March), so all will be revealed (or not!) at the May club night. As my bungalow is in the middle of a major refurbishment, this editorial is going to be brief, I’m trying to get this issue mostly done before the major stuff begins and I have no electric, etc, etc, - and I’ll be camping in the garage... So there are articles form various sources for this months issue, (thanks to members for their contributions—keep ‘em coming!!) Enjoy! Pete
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Motorcycling in Queensland & Bali 2016 A contrast in cultures It was dark, cold and grim in the UK when my Wife & I commenced our long journey to Brisbane, from Manchester on Emirates flight EK022 to Dubai. We took off @ 08:45 on Monday, February 1 2016 on the 7 hour flight. In Dubai we boarded another aircraft for the slightly longer leg on to Singapore. We had a 6.5 hour wait in the airport, long enough for a refreshing dip in the rooftop swimming pool there, before taking off on the 7.5 hour flight to Brisbane. We finally arrived in Brisbane @ 00:45 on Wednesday, February 3 2016. Our Eldest Son, who lives there, met us in a motor car and took us back to his apartment, {which he was about to move out of!}, in the Greenslopes area of Brisbane. Our bodies had to quickly adjust to the heat of the Southern hemisphere summer in Queensland! It is important to drink plenty of liquid & do not forget the greens! See photograph 1. Photograph 1. "Greens are an essential part of one's diet in Australia". After a hard day in the saddle a "Green can" Victoria Bitter - is a most pleasant beverage. Interesting fact: It is also sold in the United Kingdom as “Victoria Beer “. The name change from Victoria Bitter was necessary as the beer is a lager and not a true bitter in the technical sense. (There is little distinction between a bitter and a lager in Australia and the names are often used interchangeably). Brisbane is an attractive City with an excellent infrastructure making it an attractive place to visit. It is quite easy to move around on the clean and efficient integrated network of railways, busways, ferries as well as the numerous bikeways. See photograph right The suburban network of trains covers a huge area, from Gympie-near the Sunshine Coast region,
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some 100 miles to the North of Brisbane City right down to the Gold Coast region, about 50 miles to the South. This excellent infrastructure and the wide open spaces, together with beautiful mountains to the West make this ideal territory for bikes-especially the large capacity, laid back cruisers. We took a drive out to O'Reilly's Rainforest retreat in the Lamington National Park, in the mountains, some 25 miles to the South West of the Gold Coast region. Views are spectacular and on the journey we stopped in Canungra, which seemed to be a popular place with the biking community. There was some impressive machinery on display in Canungra. Especially noticeable were the significant numbers of Indians and Victorys, as well as Harley Davidsons. See photographs 6, 7, 8 & 9 on this page
Photograph 8. More large bikes at The Outpost CafĂŠ in Canungra. Outpost pies baked daily.
Photograph 9. Tim reviewing the bikes parked up in Canungra. W ish you were here? 5
The road up to the Retreat is quite steep and twisty and would be a handful for these large bikes. I did spot a nice Triumph, though, at the retreat. See photograph 10, right The Owner and his passenger reported that they were well pleased with the machine. Sadly, I did not have the opportunity to ride a motorbike this visit to Australia. I did however borrow my Son's Hyosung scooter to have a brief ride locally. See photograph below. Verdict: Far too small an engine and unsuited for the conditions there. "A fish out of water". The twist and go machine does the job, though for his daily ride to the railway station at Nerang on his commute to work in Brisbane. I was offered a ride on a sporty looking Hyosung 250 machine. See photograph 12. Lack of time and not having my gear meant I felt unable to take up the offer. I was, however, impressed with the look and finish of this Korean machine. By all accounts Hyosung is offering real competition to the big Japanese four manufacturers, in many markets of the World. According to the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries website: "Australia’s new motorcycle market was steady in 2015, with motorcycle, ATV and scooter sales reaching 108,711*—on par with 2014 figures. Scooter sales continue to decline, with total sales in 2015 down 22.7 per cent on 2014 sales figures. Vespa topped the list in the scooter market, selling 19.4 per cent (1,044) of the total 5,389 scooters sold". {Current population of Australia 24 million}. Another plus for riding is Australia is that petrol is about half the price it is in the UK. …………...To be continued next month!!!
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WIRRAL ADVANCED MOTORCYCLISTS
Diary of Events www.w-a-m.co.uk *************************
May
10th Club Night - Techo Night - GPS and stuff *************************
This is the link for the WAM Official Forum, set up for Members of Wirral Advanced Motorcyclists ONLY. It is a forum for Associates, Observers, and members of WAM to discuss Official Group Rides out, riding techniques, FLC matters, and similar topics. To join you MUST give your name and Postcode when you Subscribe. Group name: WAMOfficialForum Group home page: http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/WAMOfficialForum
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WAM Dates
FLC 2 is 4th June to 9th July FLC 3 is 4th September to 15th October
Proposed official ride out dates - subject to confirmation Sunday 1st May, Sunday 24th July, Sunday 28th August and Sunday 23rd October. S unday 1st May is a joint WAM and Chester Motorrad ride out (provisional - to be confirmed) Bikesafe dates April 2nd/3rd, May 21st/22nd, June 18th/19th, July 16th/17th, August 20th/21st, September 10th/11th, October 8th/9th
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White Lines - to Have or Have not? Early this month (February), news reports told us that in several parts of the country, certain resurfaced roads had been left without their central white lines, as an experiment. What triggered the reports was the announcement from one of the areas, Norfolk, that the scheme was about to be extended, “...including on the A148, close to the Queen’s Sandringham estate” – it’s not clear if this information was meant as a warning to us or to HMQ (or both). A council spokeswoman said that fewer road markings can improve street safety for everyone by making drivers more cautious, increasing awareness and lowering speeds. Well, how satisfying it is to be able to say that you read it here first (ten years ago)! This is what I wrote in my May 2006 column: “The white line gives drivers far too much confidence that oncoming traffic will stay the other side of it. Vehicles are thus positively encouraged to pass each other, inches apart, at relative speeds of up to 120 mph (on out-of-town roads). The slightest lapse of concentration or twitch of the steering wheel can bring death and disaster. Centre lines should therefore be painted out, to force drivers to think about the inevitable hazards in two-way traffic and make allowances for them.” Now you might say that a basic flaw in my proposal is that you can’t paint out a white line! I mean, whatever colour is put down over it you will still be able to see where it was. The advertised technique nowadays, however, is to use ultrahigh-pressure water jets to remove the line completely (though if this works, it’s no wonder that new lines wear away as quickly as they do...). But back to the recent news: the reports quoted an impressive figure of 13% for the reduction in average speeds, after the lines had gone. Then later I came across a Transport for London (TfL) report from 18 months ago, looking at speeds on three lengths of suburban A-road (all were uncluttered, so the 30 mph limit was often easily achieved) – before and after resurfacing plus widening of existing cycle lanes, and non-reinstatement of the white line and/or central hatching. Average speeds were measured in each direction on each of the three roads: before the changes, five out of the six averages were above 30 mph. Afterwards, five were below 30. The reductions ranged from 3% up to 13%, and I suspect that the higher figure was the one that some of the media picked up and quoted as if it was typical, rather than the largest (average) that had been recorded. But in fact the outcome was even more impressive than it appeared in the news: the researchers guessed that if a road is resurfaced and nothing else is changed, speeds are likely to increase, since drivers know their vehicles will have a smooth run. To confirm this, a fourth length of road was renewed with its white lines restored afterwards, to act as a ‘control’ for the other stretches. And the average speed did indeed go up – by about 15%. Now assuming that this rise would have applied equally to the other three roads, 12
the full effect downwards of removing their lines was presumably that much bigger (than the 3% to 13% observed)! And so finally, in the TfL report, the effective overall decrease in speed because of doing away with the lines was estimated to be 22% or around 7 mph. There may be one or two dubious logical steps here, but the general conclusion can’t be in doubt: centre white lines encourage higher speeds. The big question, though, is whether removing them cuts the accident rate. The trials to date (even taken together) were too small-scale to answer this reliably, but it’s widely accepted that the number and the seriousness of accidents on any road are correlated with speed. And anyway, if drivers are not just going more slowly but also being more cautious and paying more attention, who can argue that taking the lines away won’t make roads safer?
Actually, quite a few people can! Here’s a spokesman for the AA, responding to the recent reports: “Authorities should be looking to increase road markings, rather than decrease them. They have a vital role in keeping road users safe. Unlike road signs, markings are already less intrusive but still help road users.” And this from the RAC: “Their removal would likely lead to an increased ‘fear factor’ of driving and accidents, for the majority of motorists who take confidence from clear road markings.” The national director of the Road Safety Markings Association (yes, it really exists) said: “There is no proof that removing markings makes roads safer, or that drivers confused by a lack of clear guidance are somehow safer drivers.” A man from Brake (the road-safety charity) agreed: “The TfL data only seems to look at a possible reduction in average speed, and not the number and nature of any collisions.” This is true enough. But the problem is that even though more than 1700 people are killed and more than 20,000 seriously injured on our roads every year, it would take a bigger investigation (than we’ve seen so far, I mean) to allow an accurate assessment of the safety benefits of removing centre lines, by possibly making a dent in these figures. And first someone would have to decide which roads to investigate – busy shopping streets? Fast suburban roads (as above)? Winding rural routes? Regional single-carriageway A-roads, right up to a 60 mph limit? Any of these categories might prove to be more hazardous with the lines removed. Also, we can expect complaints from drivers who have already invested in a car with built-in white-line detection! In any case, accidents would occur on the modified roads just by chance, leading to calls for the trial to be abandoned. Ten years ago I took the view that centre lines were a bad thing. Now I’m thinking that they might be better left as they are... Peter Soul Thames Valley Group 13
Riding with Wind This week the IAM’s director of standards, Mark Lewis, offers motorcyclists six top tips on riding safely in wind. 1. Take control of your bike in strong winds by using the throttle and counter steering to balance out the effects where possible. 2. Remember loose clothing will flap around and cause distraction – make sure it is done up correctly. 3. Anticipate where you think gusts of wind will be worse, such as gaps in buildings or exposed bridges – side winds can be equally challenging, so be prepared to lean into the wind. 4. If you’re being buffeted and feel like you’re losing control ease off the accelerator and reduce your speed. 5. Larger vehicles can offer shelter. However, make sure this does not make you vulnerable to another vehicle being blown towards you. 6. Give other road users more room when filtering through traffic. If roads are congested and you or any other road users are vulnerable to high winds simply avoid overtaking.
Mark said: “Keep your eyes peeled for anything being blown about on the road, giving anything on the ground a wider berth to avoid it flying up in front of you. Riding in the wind can be challenging but these tips should help you have a safer and more enjoyable ride.” Additionally:- If very strong winds are forecast, or there is a tornado alert, choose a route that avoids the windiest area, or abort/pospone the ride until conditions improve. This scenario did happen last year on an Official Ride out. The ride was aborted.
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Dear Pete, This may amuse you, if you have not seen it on the internet. Spot the Wife! My Wife sent this to me after she saw it on Facebook. {I do not use fb}. Basically it means, in Indonesian, "Wives making a sacrifice!". i.e. being tolerant. Cheers Tim 15
DISCLAIMER:-
The articles published herein do not necessarily represent the views of the Institute of Advanced Motorists Ltd, or the Wirral Group of Advanced Motorcyclists. They are the opinions of individual contributors and are published with the view that free expression promotes discussion and interests. So you have been warned. Interested in doing the Advanced Car Test? Wirral Advanced Motorists are the people to see. Go to www.wirraliam.co.uk