RiDE May 2018

MOST OF US would like to ride more — yes, we all need more time, but sometimes we also need a reason to go further afield than our regular routes. This is where the Great British Ride Out comes in (p60). With almost 200 landmarks across the length of Britain — from castles to cafés, dealerships to lighthouses — there are loads of destinations. We’re going to spend the summer searching for the best routes between whichever of the numerous points of interest take our fancy. I’ve already used it to plan RiDE’s South Coast 500 (p65). We’d like you to get involved too: use a few of our checkpoints to plan your own Great British Ride Out, go for a great ride, then share your route with us. Enjoy the mag…

Martin Fitz-Gibbons Deputy editor I’m a retro-sceptic, immune to the contagious outbreak of nostalgia infecting motorcycling today. At least, until I rode the Z900RS. I loved it but will my colleagues agree? How will it fare when subjected to the revealing, real-world RiDE Road Test? PAGE 66 Kev Raymond Features writer Sat nav is a lovely idea but, to my mind, too complicated to be entirely satisfactory. My colleagues disagree — perhaps the answers to the ten most common problems will help me get more from the clever, irritating box of tricks. PAGE 100 Caroline Barrett Editorial assistant I’ve been lucky enough to visit Canada and New Zealand in the past few years, but they don’t look anywhere as wild and exotic as the deserts of North Africa. Can touring in Morocco and the Sahara really be that…

EXCEL-LENT WEEKEND Show topper Busy weekend for RiDE at the London Motorcycle Show THE ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE to the ExCeL centre in Docklands for the Carole Nash London Motorcycle Show was particularly rewarding this year for Team RiDE. As well as giving talks on the adventure stage, we spent the weekend meeting and chatting with readers attending the event. This year’s show was bustling, with more than 40,000 visitors attending over the three days. All the major manufacturers were present, with crowded stands as people got close to the year’s new models. The big event at the show was the Thunderdrome — a board-track-style race with banking in the middle of the hall. It saw racers including Chris Walker, former World Superbike champions Neil Hodgson and Carl Fogarty, and WSB and GP racer Ruben Xaus, as…

USED BIKE PRICES Think new bikes are pricey? A 1951 Vincent Black Lightning has just become the world’s most expensive motorcycle. The 998cc V-twin sold at a Bonhams auction in Las Vegas for $929,000 (almost £670,000). The Black Lightning was the lighter, faster version of the famed Black Shadow, and only 33 were ever made. Not a bad investment, given it only cost £508 when it was launched. TFT FOR FREE BMW is upgrading any new R1200GS bought before the end of March with a free TFT display. The new-for-2018 instrument panel is normally an optional extra costing £595. The TFT dash can be connected between a phone and headset via Bluetooth to let you control music or calls via the bike’s switchgear, and can also work with a navigation app to display basic…

RACING IN WALES (AGAIN) The highly anticipated Welsh Road Race, originally scheduled for this August, has been postponed until 2019. The TT-style race, planned to take place on military roads in the Epynt hills north of the Brecon Beacons, has been called off after organisers claimed that there wasn’t enough time to get the event sanctioned by the ACU, British motorcycle racing’s governing body. LONDON MAYOR (AGAIN) Fresh from his debut in this column last month, London mayor Sadiq Khan is in our bad books again. February 28th marked the end of a public consultation on his proposals to expand London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone. If they go through, every rider on a pre-Euro3 machine will have to pay £12.50 a day to ride in central London. A Honda CG125 too dirty? Get…

Carpathian mountains, Romania On a round trip to Istanbul I returned over the Transfagarasan Pass, where I got a selfie with a wild bear. The pass had only been open five days and the wildlife hadn’t yet adjusted to the start of summer traffic. David Dooling Julian Alps, Slovenia My MV Agusta Turismo Veloce at the top of the Mangart Pass in Slovenia, a highlight of a nine-day camping trip with four friends riding through Europe. Neville Guibarra Applecross, Scotland My Z1000SX at the top of the Pass of the Cattle before the descent. Excellent riding, great roads. Steve France Strobl, Austria This was taken on our seven-day, 2000-mile trip from Hull to Germany and Austria. Andy Lee Bedfordshire, England My last ride to work on the Honda CB500X. In the background you’ll see the Airlander 10 and the…