RiDE January 2022

‘I’m already looking forward to next year’ Welcome to the January issue of RiDE. It’s been a brilliant end to the biking year; the weather’s been mild, the roads have been dry and as I write this in late November, only now does it feel like winter is closing in. Although I’m still riding when I can, like many of us, my thoughts can’t help but turn to next year, especially when it comes to buying a new bike. No magazine loves a deal as much as RiDE does and it is with this in mind that I got so inspired by Jim Moore’s Depreciation Busters 2022 feature. Buying a bike brand new and riding away from the showroom is a wonderous thing if you’re lucky enough to be able to experience…

Riaño, Spain Here is a view of the spectacular Riaño Viaduct hidden in the clouds, taken on the amazing N621 from Potes in Spain in northern Spain. I took this picture before heading down the even better N625 to Cangas de Onis during a 12-day cerveza and tapas tour of the north of the country on my BMW GS. Alan Lindsay 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, too. How to send us your photos Email your most inspirational biking photos to us at ride@ride.co.uk with ‘Your Rides’ in the subject line. Please send us the original…

Exmoor Here I am during a quick stop on a six-day tour of Exmoor, Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor, with my wife Tina on our R1200RT. Stunning scenery, quiet roads and we saw more animals than humans! Phil Church Glen Quaich, Scotland A view of the Glen Quaich hills above Kenmore looking north towards the Munro mountain called Schiehallion. It was a wee bit chilly but my Triumph loves being out and about and always attracts comments from non-bikers. Ian Pilmer Llyn Crafnant, Snowdonia A quick snap taken during a cheeky 120-mile post-work ride in Denbighshire on the YZF-R3. We are stopped at Llyn Crafnant, which is a wonderful part of the world. Richard Evans Thetford Forest, Suffolk With the good weather starting to fade and the roads becoming greasy, I’ve been more inclined to hit the dirt than the tarmac…

WE’RE DUE TO meet up in the pretty village of Bellingham where I just about manage to get a coffee order in at the café before a whole peloton of club cyclists descends on the counter. Freddie joins me in the village square a few minutes later, the rumble of his V-Strom 1000 announcing his arrival well in advance. He turns down a coffee, as he’s planning to stop at Carter Bar shortly anyway, but while I’m finishing mine he fills in some background on his riding history. “I’ve been riding bikes since I was a child, but I passed my full licence in 2010. Then I bought a Kawasaki ER-6N which I loved dearly – I kept it for 10 years. But last year I bought this 2015 V-Strom,…

Best day to ride “Any time of the day is good, but it’s better in the week rather than weekends, as there’s hardly any traffic – you will probably see a fair few other bikers, though.” Best bit “All of it! It has everything from tight twisty and technical B-roads to long, wide, sweeping bends. You can have fun whilst taking in the beatiful scenery with the roads more or less to yourself.” Be careful at... “The Military Road from Saughtree towards Kielder – it’s a narrow road with no markings and LOTS of sheep...” Best place to eat “Carter Bar is always good for a quick coffee, otherwise Hawick has a good choice including the Pickled Orange, Damascus Drum and Horse and Hound. There are a couple of good options in Bellingham, too.” And also remember... “There are…

‘People are used to having a hard shoulder’NEIL GREIG, IAM SO-CALLED ‘SMART’ MOTORWAYS have been a controversial addition to our roads since they were introduced 15 years ago. Conceived as a more cost-effective method of carriageway expansion by varying speed limits and doing away with the hard shoulder to create another lane, they rely on computer controls, speed cameras, electronic signage and human intervention to keep things safe. However, a spate of deaths has many experts questioning their value. Smart motorways are designed to respond to traffic and alter the speed limit accordingly, to keep traffic flowing more smoothly. The lanes are managed via sensors embedded in the road that detect when traffic is slowing down and automatically lower the speed limit. However, they cannot detect stationary vehicles, so CCTV and human…