RiDE August 2021

‘A second bike is a commitment but thousands take the plunge’ Welcome to the August issue of RiDE. Bike dealers have been overwhelmed by the demand for bikes, both new and used, over the past few months. There has been real variety in what people want them for but a big chunk has been punters who just wanted to take on another bike. There is no getting away from the fact that owning a second (or third, or fourth) bike is a big commitment but that doesn’t stop thousands of us doing it – and our own reader research shows that the average RiDE reader owns 1.89 bikes. So, we got together with a bunch of multi-bike-owning RiDE readers to discover the trials, tribulations and joys of owning a second bike. It makes…

Bonar Bridge, Highlands I took this picture of my Yamaha Tracer 900GT at Bonar Bridge last weekend during a 200-mile loop from Forres to Ullapool and back. I’m finally getting bike-fit again after certainly not enough riding over the last year and I’m now ready for a weekend run down to Campbeltown. Happy riding! Ian Jones Snowdonia, Wales After two cancelled trips in 2020, we have finally managed a tour around North Wales. This is my BMW F700GS in Snowdonia on one of the less wet days... Chris Read Bala, Wales This picture was taken on a two-day trip around North Wales on the second-highest pass in Wales, between Bala and Dinas Mawddwy. The other grinning fool is my mate Andy. Russ Purdy Lake District This is my 1994 Yamaha XTZ660 and my friend Paul’s Honda NC750X…

Sheeffry Pass, County Mayo Now that the travel restrictions are lifting, I’ve finally had the chance to travel the west coast of Ireland on my Honda Africa Twin. This photo was taken at the Sheeffry Pass in County Mayo. The pass is just off the N59 (Sligo to Galway), which will take you right through the heart of Connemara and is absolutely stunning to ride and definitely should be on all bikers’ to-do lists. I can’t recommend touring the west coast of Ireland highly enough; it’s amazing. Get your bike in RIDE & win a BikeTrac system Each month the Star Picture will win a BikeTrac security tracker with a year’s BikeTrac subscription. As well as helping recover your bike if it is nicked, it logs journeys and gives live battery voltage information,…

THE FACTS Roads B9125, B977, A980, A93, A939, A944, A97, A944 again Distance 87 miles Best suited to Anything from sportsbikes to adventure bikes Nearest big town Aberdeen Famous for Some of the best scenery and roads in the UK ANDY FREEMAN’S DAY job is digitally modelling North-Sea oil-rig corrosion, perhaps explaining why the 2011 Kawasaki Z1000SX on which he’s turned up to show us his favourite local loop in the Cairngorms, is so astonishingly clean? “No, I’ve only just bought it and this is literally my first ride,” he says. “I’m looking forward to seeing what it’s like!” Andy’s bike history has included a Honda CX500 (“…rode it over the Alps to Monaco with no money”), Suzuki’s GSX600F (“…my mates still laugh about it”), a CBR600F (“…best bike I’ve owned”), a Ducati 888 (“…always wanted one, spent…

Best day to ride “Middle of the week. Take a day off work; Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are the best days to come. Weekends get very busy with motorhomes in the summer – people come through here on the way up north. In terms of seasons, winter hangs on a long time up here, so it’s really May to October.” Best bit “The A939 section out in the hills takes some beating – some great corners there and the views are just amazing. The corners all have a really good surface and you can see all the way round them, so visibility’s not a problem.” Be careful “Gravel in the hills, where the roads break up a bit. And when the roads are gritted in winter, the salt gets washed away leaving the grit, which…

‘It’s going to be very tricky to plan ahead’ NEW CORONAVIRUS VARIANTS have led to extra travel restrictions recently and it’s now becoming harder to pack up and head abroad, as the current Traffic-Light system threatens to cut us off from our favourite destinations. The Traffic Light system – sounds simple enough Well, it’s simple in theory – red means travel to that country is either forbidden or strongly discouraged, amber means it might be OK and green means it is OK. In theory all EU countries – and the UK – have adopted the same system, which should make it even simpler. In practice though, it’s still a mess. Even within the EU, different countries have the power to set different rules for each level and with the UK’s new non-EU status, they’re…