Review Held RainStar gloves

Back online after having to replace my laptop. Only so much I can do on an iPad so glad to have a proper computer again. At the risk of sounding like a Held Gloves fanboy – the Held RainStar gloves are truly the best gloves I have ever used and exceeded my expectations by a large margin. I have gone through a number of gloves, more than most people because I have that dermatitis issue. I need

Motorcycle touring New Zealand

New Zealand is a wonderful place to ride a motorcycle. I just had a week and a half riding the south island and apart from some mixed weather at first I have to say it was some of the best riding I have ever experienced.
I flew into Christchurch to meet a mate who was joining me on this ride and wow that city is really in bad shape from the earthquake. The TV cameras have long gone but the damage

New Zealand motorcycle tour preview

I am packing my motorcycle riding gear in preparation for riding New Zealand. I start holidays this weekend and am r-e-a-l-l-y looking forward to my break from work I have not posting anything the last few weeks, the ‘ol hands have been playing up and I am back on medication. I am forced to really rethink my USA ride and plan an alternative shorter route for North America next year, maybe a

The Now

I slept in a bit and after hesitating decided to quickly get ready and try for a ride.
I had no real plan and just rode south. Almost immediately I had a woman in a Golf GTI merge into my lane despite sounding my horns (CB has two) from the second I noticed her moving over. So much for my thoughts that a sports exhaust might make people more aware of you.
I guess I was not in a happy place

First Gear Scout Jacket review (and some long term updates)

I was going to get out for a ride today but just did not feel up to it. First of all I want to post an update on two items. Dainese Guanto X-ILE gloves. Following on from my previous review all I can say is - very disappointed in these. The way the fingers are stitched means they end up being uncomfortable after 1/2 a day as the seam rubs against the area between your fingers. Look great but

In the groove

Seems every week recently is mostly fine except Sunday which is forecast chance of rain or occasional showers. So I shifted gear and went for a Saturday ride.

Wasn’t the best of weeks for me so a good ride was needed. I decided to do the tried and proven loop to Kyogle riding down via Mt Lindsey and the Summerland Way and returning via UKi and Currumbin valley. There are two perfect radius

Scattered showers

That was the forecast and when I woke to blue sky I thought they had predicted the worst case as usual.

This time however it was true and by 8.30 refueling at Mudgerraba you could see the rain blowing in from the sea to the south. When my friend from Ballina way arrived he had ridden through some of those scattered showers and so I decided to ride up Springbrook and try Numinbah Valley.

They

Spring may have sprung

Looked like it would be a fine day when I woke early this morning, the clouds were already breaking up so I decided I should go for a ride and perhaps think some things over.

Traveling south I ‘flat slabbed it’ as the Americans put it to Currumbin where I refueled and along the way came up with a new variation on some of my favourite roads.

First I rode over the Currumbin border range. The air

Gympie ride

Today I was determined to make up for last Sunday when I had planned to ride before drinking too much the night before. And so I headed north to Gympie.
The forecast was for occasional showers in the Sunshine Coast district however one look this morning and I made up my mind it was going to be a perfect day so I loaded up the camera rather than my rain gear.

It was not real cold but not exactly

Local Ride

Weather improved today so I decided to do a small ride after lunch.


Local ride

Share your motorbike routes @ MotoWhere.com

After a slow traffic light crawl out of the city I rode via Bunya Road and Clear Mountain Road which were mostly free of cars. The clouds looked rather dark and heavy and I was wondering if I had made a bad call. After Win road I rode back to Samford and up the road

Common Sense

I went for a ride Sunday, not far from home guy pulls up beside me and asks where is my number plate? Sure enough the plate was gone so I just turned about and went back home.

Mystery as to how it came off as both bolts still in place and bike has been in secure lockup since last ride My only rational thought is the bolt heads are small and the tin plate very thin so maybe by a fluke one head

Winter riding

I hit the road early today and despite being one of the coldest weekends this year I was not cold at all having learned a few tricks to ensure I keep warm. Starting at the base layer I wear a thermal shirt rather than a regular t-shirt. I use merino ones which are pricey here but not too bad if you buy from New Zealand and much better than the regular polyester ones. Besides holding the body

Just saying

I have started to wonder if there is some real safety value in a sports exhaust system on a motorcycle in an urban environment. Before the CB1100 I had a Buell with standard muffler, which I liked very much, but I had a number of occasions where cars beside me on the M1 motorway moved over into my lane until I sounded my horn and they noticed I was there. I cannot recall that happening on my

Go your own way

Yesterday was a beautiful winters day with no clouds and a mild temperature. And so I rose early today hopeful of the same however the day was gray and gloomy. Never mind I am awake now so off for a small ride. Riding south I turned off and went to Mt Tamborine via Logan village. Very cold riding next to the Logan river just after 7.00am, I should have gone in my full winter gear however

Lockyer Valley ride

Despite the forecast of showers I rose early and they were all sitting off shore so I decided to try a ride to the west. One thing about Brisbane is you have good riding to the South, North and West. Too bad about that Pacific ocean to the East or we might have even more I elected to take my winter outfit which is also waterproof and of course this ensured that I had dry riding all day. Good

Shark RSR2 Carbon helmet review

Updated 25.06.2011 - Further update Feb 2012.

Yes I ended up buying one of these from BikeBiz, half price seemed too good a deal.



So now I seemingly have 3 helmets however none are without problems. I retired my old Shark RSR1 to back up duty after the fall in Japan. The Nolan N43 is a great summer helmet, it flows so much air, but it is not so good in winter. Additionally the Nolan has

Crampbuster Vs Throttle Rocker

Updated 23.05.2011 I own both of these and now having tried both to ease cramp on long rides I want to share my findings. Both are small devices that affix to the throttle grip to allow you to hold the throttle open by your palm so you can release your grip around the throttle and stretch your fingers for a bit. Both when installed need to be angled slightly higher than horizontal due to the

Gold Coast ride

Near perfect riding weather yesterday and today, last day off so I went for a small ride.I didn’t feel like doing many miles, just wanted to get out so headed off to a couple of my old favorites. Starting from Mudgeeraba I rode up Springbrook mountain and took in some views. I have not been there for some time as I always ride south over Currumbin which is mostly car free early on and was not

Easter 2011 Ride

Easter 2011 was already a 5 day weekend due to ANZAC day falling at the same time. Now the following weekend is also a public holiday so it was no surprise that many people, myself included opted to take the days in between off to form a week + off work. I had been toying with going to ride the Oxley highway again this year and then in the days leading up to the break saw the weather down

Motorcycle Roller Stand

A down side to my new exhaust system was they were unable to find a way to keep the centre stand. I probably would never have looked at one of these roller stands if I had not enjoyed the centre stand on the CB so much when cleaning the rear wheel and lubing the chain. I do still own a race stand which has been on loan to my mate for the last couple of years. Not so easy to operate those things

Small Tweed Valley ride

Beautiful day today. Sunny and mild weather with clear air, no wonder there we 100’s of motorcycles out and about. I picked the CB up from Pipemasters exhaust shop Saturday and was unsure if the revised baffles were still too loud or not. Well I can confirm after todays ride yes they are still much too loud so back it will go. Todays ride was not too long in distance and besides the mufflers

Mini Update

Update on a few items. I took the CB1100 back to the exhaust shop yesterday to have the quieter baffles installed and some minor adjustments. The chrome plated headers are showing some heat discolouring already so I hope this will be limited to the area around the mounting to the engine block. The mufflers are also to get their final polish which was not previously done. Still very happy with

Grevillia Loop

After a short break previously talked about I am back on the road. While off the bike I took it to a exhaust and polish shop and got some work done. I ordered a custom made exhaust system in the CBX style. 4 into 4 chrome plated header pipes and four stainless steel mufflers. At the same time since a metal polish shop is attached I decided to get some items polished. Here is the result. The

Checking in

I am still on my self enforced break from riding to try and get my hands mended. I think I am winning.

In the mean time I have put the bike in to get some work down on it. I am getting some polishing done, the rim edges and engine covers like the Japanese model has done and also I am getting a custom exhaust installed. These things are coming along and I hope I will be back riding in April.

I

Mighty Plugs review

Revised 16.04.2011 and 25.06.2011. Also see updates below. You know I love ear plugs for riding. Besides saving you from  hearing loss they greatly reduce rider fatigue. Like most people I never used to wear ear plugs however I noticed sometimes ringing in my ears after a long days ride and discovered that the wind noise when riding is loud enough to cause hearing damage and so started my quest

Facebook pages

Just a reminder there is a HUGE amount of photos and videos now on my Motorcycle Paradise Facebook page and CB1100 page So put aside your notion of not wanting to follow the crowd and join the online social revolution before you get left behind.

Dainese Guanto X-ILE gloves

See my updates below - these are not recommended. 

One of the things I decided to do after my spill in the Japanese alps was to change out my summer gloves from O’Neil Moto-X items to items with greater protection.

I wanted a glove that offered genuine high protection in a summer glove. After reading some reviews I went with the Dainese Guanto gloves hoping to get a higher quality product with

Chain gang

I am back to a motorcycle with a chain. I will miss the clean and quiet belt drive of my Buell however the CB1100 does have a centre stand and that makes a world of difference to chain maintenance. It must be a very long time since I owned a motorcycle with a centre stand. Cleaning the rear wheel is a cinch and same for cleaning and lubing the chain. I sourced one of these chain brushes in

Australia Day ride

Edited 27.01.2011 Since the weekend looks like rain I went for a small ride today, Australia day public holiday. Clear Mountain road. I rode out via Bunya Road and Clear Mountain Road, both of which are terrific. Then I skirted North Pine dam and wanted to go north but not via Mt Mee. Without any map or GPS I simply ended up back on the road to Dayboro so figured ok I will try another day.

Surf and Turf

Took the CB for it’s second proper outing last weekend. I wanted to ride North or West however the roads were cut in some places due to floods and the south again looked the more dry option. Riding over Curumbin range in the morning there were so many motorbikes there that I wondered if this route was in danger of becoming over popular. Turned out there were simply many riders everywhere that

Rain and Forum thought police reloaded

Much of the state I live in has become a disaster zone with floods equaling the worst on record and rain forecast to continue into the next month. Things are looking grim for many people. If you would like to help please donate to the official relief fund. As for riding there is not a lot anyone can do. I am considering pulling some parts of the CB and getting them polished or perhaps sending

CB1100 Wiki

It’s pouring rain here again so I am spending a lot of time on the computer surfing motorcycles rather than riding them. I have put my collection of CB1100 links and information onto a new Facebook page that I will support. Click to view. It’s small so far but a start given there seems to be no forum outside Japan for the model. If there is one then feel free to announce it on the Facebook page