Modern Vespa

Well done today!

You did fine on the roundabouts - remember to not go over the white circle on mini-roundabouts, and 'stay in lane' on other ones, even if there are no lane markings.

"- stay closer to the curb when doing a right or left turn"

Get closer to the kerb on left turns, closer to the middle of the road on right turns.

Normal dominant road position to be roughly where the driver is in a car, not the middle of the lane where all the debris is.

One thing we didn't cover (and we hardly did any of these) - when turning right into a minor road, make sure you don't cut the corner and stray into the wrong lane of the minor road.

Well done with the U-turns - practice slow-speed control using the back brake with constant throttle (clutch just engaged).

At least we found where the test centre is, always a useful thing to know! Have fun on Friday.

*glup* I'll try and have fun on Friday!
8)

Well went for a ride today ... had an hour last weekend but today ventured a bit further.. Not been out since November. You know what !! ?? !! How Fuckin Boring, there I am full throttle up the A3 with a quest for the need for speed did I get me thirst quenched ? Did I bollox. So back roads twisties A272 midhurst to Winchester, pants total pants.If I'd pushed the sccot much harder I would have met with the hedge row, just no acceleration buzz, Not been so bloody bored for a very long time. Terrbily sad but the little scoots just don't do it no more, gonna have to go back to a big bastard, get next weekend to Le Touquet out the way, just for you Bill.!!. If I'm still like it after the day out then it will be gone by the weekend after for sure.
What a shit day.

Bill Does your G/F know you posted that Gem ?

I will burn a candle.... 8)

Pleased to say that his nibs managed to complete the CBT yesterday, and so today we went to buy a *whisper* Honda from a part time Scottish dealer who operates out of his front room. Test rode his GTS 300, which being broken in and having a LV was much peppier than mine is.

We bought an immaculate SH 125 with a funky little top box. Obviously I think it mings but I did take it for a little run and it just confirms that Hondas are a lot of fun, even if not pretty. It makes a growly growly noise and has massive wheels.

Then rode back across town with his nibs in the rear view mirror all the time. I felt terribly responsible for him, and remembered what arseholes drivers can be if you have L plates. Bit of filtering, crafty u turn, dropped into a dealer to buy the Honda a bit of jewellry, and then mentally through the heart of town along Green Park and Knightsbridge to see if I could scare the living bejesus out of him.

I failed.

He took the lead in the home strait so I think we have another scooter victim on our hands.

Now that is funny! Well done!

Oh and it doesn't ming really. Well maybe just a little bit!

Just a little.

But I'd be lying if I said I will never ride the Honda. I couldn't bear to touch the Sh 300 again, if I did I'd be looking at throwing all my savings at one.

mmmmmmmmmHonda.

hondas appeal to me very much in terms of engineering integrity and build quality.

if only someone could transplant the sh300's innards into a gts body.

actually, scrub my last comment.

i just remembered the alfa romeo arna from the eighties...

Ah the Cherry Europe What a disaster!



I am afraid that the Honda SH300 absolutely rocks. But then so does the GTS!

Unfortunately mine is already corroding. It is especially noticable with the white paintwork. Mine got a good dose of ACF50 underneath today. At least the brown has turned back to a black colour now. Meanwhile the Honda which is a year old has not one speck of corrosion on it....

One thing we didn't cover (and we hardly did any of these) - when turning right into a minor road, make sure you don't cut the corner and stray into the wrong lane of the minor road

+1

I got a demerit on my test for just cutting across the corner of the white road-marking as I turned right.

Glad you had such a fruitful day.

My one demerit on my test was for failure to use signals when appropriate. I didn't sound my horn when someone cut out in front of me about 500 yards from the test centre on the return leg. The examiner behind me honked, and I thought "What the fuck is he doing?"

No my G/F has no idea that I posted that.
I just wanted to share with the group that's all.
So Dessa is coming on strong Wonder is a helping hand and Jim is being as supportive as ever but Border has lost his Mojo.
Well if it no longer re-lights your fire there's no point in keeping it.
What would float your boat then ?
I took the GT out of the garage yesterday afternoon, polished it, stood back and admired it and put it straight back in the garage. Oh the shame of it.
I'm looking forward to Saturday by the way.
Border did you decide to go for the hotel idea ?
Talk soon
Billy-no-scoot

Lets face it if you drive or ride something Italian you have to accept the fact that it will be beautiful but won't be built as well as something souless and Japanese.
Simples.
Bill X

The only part of my GT that has rotted is the exhaust up by the mounting bracket and 2 bubbles on the heat guard.
It has done over a 1000 miles now !

my one demerit was for making a sloppy right turn. in fact, it was the sloppiest turn i've ever made in my life - the front wheel wobbled all over the place, it was pretty slapstick.

bill, if my boyfriend posted anything about me dancing naked anywhere, he would be in the c**t book for a very, very, very long time .... either that or he would be doing the washing-up in perpetuity.

doug, where did the picture of the honda go? it's blisteringly ugly, but it couldn't have burned a hole in my monitor that quickly, could it?

oh, i bought a clay bar today. the stunning beauty of the interloper is opening up a whole new world of cleaning tasks

Well just be lucky that I'm not your boyfriend Genie.
As I say it was an erotic vista and a pleasure to behold.
Thats why I love her so much.
Having said that I do seem to flirt with either sex when the need arises.
Regards
Bill X

Bill, I am afraid the Honda isn't Japanese, it's Italian. Simple. The SH is built by, designed by Italians.

Genie. The pic is back. I'm afraid that the look is growing on me, looks better in the flesh.

we'd noticed

We know

i don't think i'll ever get past that horrible plastic floor tray. it looks like it was the very last part of the scooter they designed, and everybody was really tired, and somebody said 'oh, fuck it, i've got half an old K-Mart speaker cabinet in the back of my car, let's just chuck that on there.'

Wonder Machine and I have decided that we are going to start up a Dirty Honda Scooter Club.

Or was that a Honda Dirty Scooter Club?

Know what you mean about the floor board. Still feels damned well built in a way that the plastic MP3 absolutely did not. The SH is heavier by a couple of kilos than the GTS and feels just as solid. No rattles or creaks over bumps. The MP3 was like plastic bath in comparison, the way it flexed over bumps.

Wonder took my GTS plus new-to-me LV exhaust out on a spin today and loved it; I love it too and will keep. Roll on the good weather!

i was meant to come by and swap seats wasn't i? agh. sorry. i've been a slug this weekend. i'm still in my jammies

Nowts floating my boat Bill other than emigrating from this shit hole of an island.Somewhere in the middle of bloody knowhere would do me just fine at the moment to be honest. Material things especially scoots aren't doing a whole lot for me at the moment.
Still I expect it will be a shortlived depression.

not doing the Hotel thing going to leave here bright and early Saturday morning for the 8.00 am meet at Maidstone services. What time are we booked on the Chunnel ?

Yep, but don't worry. Sometimes weekends are for lazing about! Come whenever! Wonder Machine thinks my dining room looks like a satellite branch of Scootech.

Most are booked 09:50 - I mistakenly booked an earlier one, but I'll ignore that.

Maidstone services 08:00 until leaving sharp at 08:30, fully fuelled. I'm assuming everyone has a range of at least 100 miles which gets us to Le Touquet from Maidstone.

And is good old fashioned Euros ok for fuel , have heard talk of these french credit card things ?

Awww Jim I was going to say that.
Must remember a Honda is Italian a Honda is Italian a Honda is Italian.
Border cheer up mate or I'll come over and attempt to put a smile on your face you special man. Liz thanks you in advance.
Regards
Bill XX

Bill - you never chatted me up that I noticed. I take no offense by that mind.

What time are you at this side of the channel ?
So we are on time at the meetingpoint. And if somebody need something realy Begian, let us know, then we can bring it with us.

Be carefull when buying Euro's... you need the French ones 8)

If I'm not mistaken, their train arrives at 11.20. Belgian Time.

I'm reckoning on them being at Sangatte at 11.30. so I shall be there before then - I'm usually much too early.

Ok, we leave Gent around 9.15.

Sounds like very busy and satisfying weekends all round - apart from you, Genie, you lazy slob

My boyfriend was visiting on his RT1150 (the former property of my late father) and on Saturday I took him down to Rye, as the weather was lovely and he had never been. It's a pretty coastal town which on sunny weekends is disturbed by hundreds of bikes roaring up and down the main drag and sneaking round the barrier into the reserved car park (a gap only just wide enough for an RT's panniers, as we discovered), reached by a military road whose corners might have been designed for motorcycles.

We weren't the only ones to have seized the day and there were a fair few bikes in the car park, but the queue in the teashop wasn't too long. I had finished my cake and was just about to enjoy a last mouthful of coffee when a filthy great pigeon landed on the rim of my mug with its foul, germy feet, and when I shooed it away it knocked over the milk jug

The afternoon was still sunny, so I decided to continue the ride through Camber and Lydd round past Dungeness, a scenic and enjoyable route. Ten minutes after setting off, however, it dawned on me that:

a) I didn't remember that scary uphill hairpin from previous trips, and
b) we probably shouldn't be heading West.

Yes, I had gone the wrong way on the A259. Not fancying a return through Rye, we carried on to Hastings and then home up the A21 (which isn't such a bad road, really, at least as far as Tunbridge Wells), saving the rest of the Dungeness route for another time.

my route to work officially stanks. there's about 5km of actual rideable road surface between hackney and harrow - the rest is either in a state of total disrepair, or 'under repair' i.e. dug up so as to require stupidly long diversions leading to long, long traffic queues and much frustration. add to that the fact that it's riddled with about 500 speed humps and my average speed is 15mph... and you've got me browsing the AtoZ for the fastest way to the A40.

alice, the pigeon ..... ewwwwwwww that's like having a cockroach turn up on the table and gob in your drink.

I know! I was utterly squicked out!

The road surface everywhere is appalling at the moment - at least partly due to all the recent freezing. The traffic was still pretty light on my route this morning, though, touch wood.

Forgot to say congrats to Mr Wonder for CBT gets! and congrats to Bill's friends on the new arrival too.

the moderator known as 'genie' would like to inform all readers of this thread that she took the A40 home today, bailing out at Regent's park so as to avoid monstrous traffic queues from there to KingsX, and re-joining her regular route at Camden. the interloper was delighted to be ridden WOT if only for a short burst and looks forward to a similar run tomorrow.

thank you MV-Bot. here's some more news: i just ordered my LV pipe

Will the LV make it go faster, or sound nicer, or both?

(I'm aware that even asking this probably makes me sounds like an ignoramus, but I've never really spent time looking at "tuning" parts, so if this hasn't been done to death elsewhere, etc.... Thanks.)

I know what you mean Mike I often arrive too early.

Our friends are so attentive to thier new addition they have an infared tv as a baby monitor. Awwwww.

Huskyteer you should have said, that's just down the road from me.
I know all those roads from my youth.

Traffic winge - The Ind Est that the Audi dealership is on is having another lane built at it's exit to the motorway.
It took me an hour to get off it this evening and yes I was in a cage.
I guess I deserved it.

Regards
Bill X

Having put one on mine yesterday, after an initial few pops and splutters it behaves impeccably. Doesn't go any faster, just sounds a lot nicer!