THE OLD BLOKE'S BLOG
Welcome to The Old Bloke’s Blog!

Well, it's more than just a blog actually; it's a blog combined with general news, things of interest, and smaller items etc.
It is, basically, a traditional type blog of things that I've been doing that will, hopefully, be of some interest to the reader. But, as I said, it's more than that; it's also where I put items of interest that I've come across that aren't big enough for a separate article. So don't think that it's all about me! Some of it is, but it's also a newsy kind of thing, relating stories of interest, products I've discovered and so on.
It's set out month by month, going down the page - so for the latest entries, scroll down to the bottom.
For previous installments in this Blog, just scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the button there.

I hope you find it interesting!
JULY 22, 2018. A nice day for a ride today, so I went to the famous bikers haunt of Stanwell Tops. It's been ages since I've been to there on the bike. They did up the area a couple of years ago. There is a "motorcycles only" parking area, but they cleverly (not!) put that on a slight down-to-the-left slope. And not many places either. Bikes still park in the normal area too, of course. And there are still a lot of bikes around! And the view (apart from looking at the bikes!) is fabulous!
JULY 23, 2018. Here's an interesting piece of trivia - Michelin don't deal in Michelin tyres! For bikes that is. I'm getting to need a new rear tyre (well, I suppose you do both, don't you; when replacing one with a different type), and looked on the Michelin web-site. I like Michelin, and after wearing out the original tyres, I went to Michelin Pilot Road 2, followed by 3, followed by 4. Now there is the PR5 out. Of the ones I've had, I liked the PR3 best. They just felt good! There was something about the feel of the tyre that really inspired confidence in them quickly - even when they were still "green". The PR4 I think is a harder tyre, and the ride suffered a little, and while still being an excellent tyre, I preferred the feel of the 3. I'd heard that they were still making the 2, but not the 3. So I went to the Michelin web-site to check.
Their web-site lists the 2,3,4 and 5. So I called them up. "We don't do motorcycle tyres" the lady said. What?? But of course you do! "No, we don't do motorcycle tyres". But they are on the web-site? I was told that another company import and distribute them. She gave me their number.
I called them, and yes, they do the import and distribution of Michelin tyres. Strange!
In answer to my question, the 3 is not available any more - only in weird sizes. The 2 is, and is still being made (they aren't just left-over stock). But they've reduced the price of the 5, so they are cheaper than the 4 they replaced. In answer to my question about feel, hardness of the carcass etc, I was told that they are a totally different tyre, and latest design, different compounds etc etc. He quoted "about $60" difference in the retail of a set of 2s, to the latest 5s.

JULY 29, 2018. I went for a short ride today - up the mountain to the famous Robertson Pie Shop, to mingle with the usual accumulated motorcycles. It was windy - again! - with gusts up to 44kph, but that doesn't upset the XJR too much. It was surprisingly warm though! First time in a long while I just had a shirt under my winter jacket. And no woolly neck-sock either. No inner-gloves - it almost felt like Spring!

JULY 29, 2018. My current bike long ago clocked up more kilometres than I'd done on any previous bike. But it took longer to exceed the length of time I'd owned a bike. And I realised today that my current bike actually took over that record about a year ago!
The record for the bike I'd done the most kilometres on was held by my previous bike, a 1996 Yamaha XJ600. (shown on the left below). My present bike took that record away after about 4 years of ownership.
The bike I'd had the longest was a 1979 Yamaha DT175. I bought that new in July 1979, and sold it in early 1988; so I had it for just under 9 years. (That's it in the picture on the right). I knew it was going to take a while to beat that record, but time flies, as they say, and I just realised today that it had taken that record around this time last year. So I have now owned my Yamaha XJR1300 for longer than any bike I've previously owned! As well as having long ago surpassed the longest distance travelled.
JULY 30, 2018. Cars are being fitted with all manner of safety-aids these days, including adaptive cruise-control and autonomous emergency braking and so on. But I read where the-above-mentioned forward-looking devices don't always pick up motorbikes. The problem is that bikes are very small in area from behind, so the radar (or whatever it is) beam that is sent out from the car can miss it: and the car thinks the road is clear. There have been cases of cars rear-ending bikes because these systems didn't pick up the bike in front. So there is another danger to be aware of, as we move further along the path of the autonomous car.

JULY 31, 2018. A film is about to be released documenting the story of Aussie racing legend Wayne Gardner. From buying a $5 dirt-bike to becoming the first Australian to win the World Motorcycle Grand Prix, and become world champion in 1987, Wayne’s story is one heck of a ride. The film, called simply, “Wayne”, is based on the book “The Wayne Gardner Story”, by Wollongong journalist Nick Hartgerink, and will be released in cinemas on 6th September. Click here to watch a trailer.

JULY 31, 2018. Does this look like a Harley? Well, no, it doesn’t; but that’s what it is.
Harley is massively expanding its range, introducing new models designed to attract different – younger – riders. So there will be smaller-capacity bikes, adventure bikes, and sports-bikes like this one.
But this particular one is even more different than just being a true sportsbike (the normal Harley “Sportsters” are a long way from being a proper sports-bike), this trades piston power for electric power. Umm, yes, I’m with you, the terms “sportsbike” and “electric bike” don’t belong in the same sentence (despite very prominent examples of electric bikes that have managed to be very fast). Anyway, maybe this one will turn the tide for Harley – bringing in a wider clientele, and succeeding in making the electric bike more practical and a viable alternative to piston-engines. 
I can’t see the “potato-potato” faithful ever going for something like this though. But of course they don’t want them to – they want different new customers; hopefully without alienating the existing devotees. Check out all the news about new models here.

AUGUST 15, 2018. Today was a sunny day, not too cold, and no wind. (Well not much wind anyway). A good day for a ride! The weather report showed it to be cool and windy over the mountains, so that was out. And by the time I decided to go and got ready it was too late to go anywhere further than my usual close spots anyway. I’d recently discovered a club at Helensburgh, called the Tradies Club, and had been there in the car with my wife to check it out. Good food, and quite cheap – if you get their lunch specials.
I was still pushing for time a bit, so I sat on about 120kph along the expressway. I know the speedo reads a bit over anyway, so I figured I was safely close to the 110kph limit; although I did get to around 130kph a couple of times, before backing off. At that speed I wasn't activating the “speed limit 110kph” signs anyway. 
After that I rode across to Stanwell Tops. And that is where this photo was taken – overlooking the beautiful scenery along the Illawarra coast.
Coming back I followed the coast to Bulli, then got out of the traffic and went up Bulli Pass and along the top. I love the torque of the XJR! Up Bulli Pass in top gear at about 2500rpm, on about a quarter throttle - almost like flat road! Just changed down - due to reduced speed (down to about 50) - at the top section.
It wasn’t a long distance, but it was an enjoyable ride / day out.
AUGUST 25, 2018. Episode 4 of Aussie Bikers (the show that replaced Temporary Australians, following Greg Hirst’s untimely passing) has just hit the air-waves of cyberspace. Catch it on YouTube at this link. 

SEPTEMBER 1, 2018. I went for a ride today with a riding friend - the first time in a long time we've been for a ride together! Ever since my back trouble flared up last year my riding has been restricted, and I haven't been able to do the longer distances my friends would normally ride - I've only been doing occasional short rides. But, with the back trouble much improved, I've been riding a bit more often, and for longer distances - although I'm not back to the distances I used to do. But it hasn't only been that, I've had other commitments, and weather has been a problem, so with all that it has been many months since we went for a ride together.
Today wasn't a long ride, as such, but still an enjoyable outing. Up to Stanwell Tops, (yes, again!), into the National Park and back to Helensburgh for lunch. Then back home along the coast road.

SEPTEMBER 26, 2018.
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Today marks 10 years of ownership of my Yamaha XJR1300. Well, technically, a couple of days more, but that’s when I got it.
It was purchased from Victoria with just 1,220km on it (not even run-in!), and it was delivered to my home on 26th September 2008.
And here it is, 10 years and about 60,000km later.


OCTOBER 4, 2018. In my test of the Yamaha Tracer I complained about the fact that Yamaha’s “comfort seat” (which is available for the whole MT range) remained an optional extra – a $400 optional extra. Well, it snuck past me, but there is now an up-graded Tracer called the Tracer 900GT which does come standard with the comfort seat. (It’s heated too, as well as being more comfortable). The new model also has other goodies, including a full colour TFT instrument panel, quick shifter gear-change for up changes, and a slipper-clutch to assist with down changes. It also has cruise control, genuine hard panniers as standard, fully adjustable suspension and heated grips. That’s a lot of extra kit! And it will make the Tracer fit its stated role a lot better. Priced at just $1500 more than the standard Tracer 900, it is good value indeed!
Overseas there is also a GT version of the Tracer 700, but that doesn’t appear to be coming to Australia.
You can read a launch report of the new machine here.

OCTOBER 10, 2018. I just read a piece in the current Road Rider magazine – in their “Looking Back” section – about the Honda CX500. They described it by posing the question, “Has there ever been a more universally panned offering in the history of modern motorcycling?” They go on to say that the engine “looked like an air-compressor”. Now, they do say that all this was a bit unfair, because it wasn’t that bad a bike. I actually have good memories of the old CX. Two of them stick in my memory.
The first was one for sale that I looked at, at a time when I was considering up-sizing from my Yamaha SR250 road bike to something bigger. I looked at this 2nd-hand CX500 more as an example of a bigger bike, rather than something I was there-and-then considering buying. What would I think of a bigger bike? Well, the result of looking at that Honda was that I thought I would very much like a bigger bike! It was very comfortable to sit on, and not too big to be unwieldy. (Remember I had a 250 at the time – and that based on a trail-bike!).
The next one came a bit later, and was owned by my next-door neighbor. I had a ride on that and it impressed me, particularly with its smoothness. Smooth and comfortable to ride and with an exceptionally smooth gear-box. Here’s what I wrote about it in the “More” section of the "Bikes" section. (Scroll down till you get to CX500 – they’re in alphabetical order).
 
OCTOBER 22, 2018. This week is “Ride Your Bike To Work Week.” According to KTM ambassador, Toby Price, the week is all about getting bikes out and onto the road. “We just want people to ride more! Riding cuts congestion and commute times and makes parking easy, but it also makes you happy.” Sounds good, doesn’t it! Although, there would be reasons why you drive to work and not ride, and that will probably mean it isn’t practical to do. For me, as I work from home, the biggest problem would be getting the bike in through the front door, and then riding it down the hallway! :-)

OCTOBER 26, 2018. This is an interesting piece from an insurance company. Anyone riding in shorts, thongs and T-shirt is an idiot anyway, but the legal situation as explained here could make him / her a less compensated financially idiot as well.

OCTOBER 30, 2018.
I called in to On Two Wheels Campbelltown today for a browse. They deal in Yamaha and Kawasaki. They had the new Z900RS Cafe in stock. Looks good I reckon - with lots of 70's style and appeal.
The standard Z900RS is like a time-warp from the iconic Z900 of the day. And - in 70s tradition - it has a comfy seat too! This has the same seat, but scalloped out a bit. Also the bars are lower, to suit the Cafe crouch.
I like the look of this, but I think I'd prefer the normal RS to ride. I'm keen to do a road-test on one!
NOVEMBER 8, 2018.
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Well that was unexpected! This award arrived today. It is to mark my 10 years of membership of the Yamaha XJR Owners Club.
The club is based in England, but of course has an online presence, and accepts members from all over the world. "theoldbloke" is, of course, my user-name on the forum. I didn't know they gave out these awards, but it is a very impressive thing! Most such awards - if there are any - are something like a certificate on a piece of paper, or perhaps a cloth badge etc. This is glass!
NOVEMBER 14, 2018. Here is some amazing riding! (It was on Facebook, but I think you should be able to see it even if you aren’t on Facebook yourself). As my wife said, she couldn't decide if he had nerves of steel, or no brains. A bit of both I reckon! Click here.

NOVEMBER 24. 2018. I just found out today that Two Wheels magazine has ceased production - just before its 50th birthday apparently. And Cycle Torque has stopped too - at least the print version has.
Two Wheels was the first bike magazine I bought, and I bought it regularly for a long time. Eventually I stopped buying it, because the tests all seemed to be about the latest and fastest sports-bikes, and not so much about the more practical bikes that most of us buy. I gravitated towards Road Rider (back when it was produced by The Bear) as it appealed a little more closely to my demographic (even though the tests weren't as detailed, thorough and objective as Two Wheels). Anyway, it's sad to see the great and iconic Two Wheels is no more.
Cycle Torque I enjoyed. I used to like riding to a popular cafe (Robertson Pie Shop), buying the mag, then sitting down with a cuppa and having a read. (I'd finish reading when I got home). I've been wondering why I haven't seen it there for quite a long time.

NOVEMBER 26, 2018. Speaking of magazines – which I was in the post above – I’m starting to 'go off' Australian Road Rider a bit. The touring articles to Where-the-hell-is-it-stan or whatever, are interesting for a while, then.... I don't know, maybe it's knowing I'll never go there; or maybe it's a bit repetitive. (Although I must say I enjoyed a recent one about riding the south island of New Zealand). Anyway I just bought the latest edition of Motorcycle Trader. I used to buy that regularly, but stopped after I subscribed to ARR: a bit of a waste buying two magazines, as you get a duplication of content to some degree. But I always enjoyed Motorcycle Trader. I enjoyed the personalities, the columns. So I bought the latest edition. Guido is still there, as is the ever-popular Spannerman. Blackbourne, who I used to like reading, has gone, and John Rooth (is there a bike publication he hasn't written for?) has appeared. Also there is a column headed "Classic Groff", written, supposedly, by a Joe Groff. Of course Groff used to write a column for Two Wheels. Groff and Spannerman are both Grant Roff, of course. And now he apparently has another alias.
Anyway, I am enjoying reading it - it's a bit more relateable to us normal riders I think.

NOVEMBER 28, 2018. “Oh how distant seems the day when I first became absorbed by the mystique of our mutually beloved form of transport, the sublime motorbicycle. How many are the years which have passed since I made that fateful decision – conscious or unconscious – to allow myself to include those wonderful devices in my life and, despite a few years in various institutions for the partially buggered, what a fortuitous and fruitful decision that was.” Readers around my age could probably have a good guess at who wrote that. In fact it could really only be one person – the redoubtable “Mr. Smith.” Smith wrote a column for Two Wheels magazine from 1985 almost until his death in 2009. This was a quote from one of those columns. More than that, it was a quote from a book, titled “A Sharp Mind In A Blunt Body” which is a collection of his early columns, up to 1988. And other articles as well. It is an entirely appropriate title for the writer with a high intellect, clever turn of phrase, and cheeky sense of humour, (his sign off was always, “Cop You Later” – say it aloud!), who seemed always to be suffering from illness or physical disability. The book was put together by former Two Wheels editor, Bill McKinnon. There have only been 1,000 copies printed, and I reckon they’ll go pretty quickly, so get in quick. I’ve just ordered my copy.
Order from www. VividPublishing.com.au. (Go to the site and type the name in the Search box). It costs $24.95 (+postage), and all profits go to The Black Dog Foundation.

NOVEMBER 30, 2018. This is a good article, and very thought-provoking. Well worth having a read. It’s written by a friend of mine, Phil Hall (I’ve used his articles on this site before).
I will say though, that I tend to swing the equation more towards the side of “skill” and a word he didn't mention, “caution”. I don't consider myself to be top-of-the-tree in skill, but I do have certain skills that have been picked up over my 40+ years of riding and 50+ years of driving. But mostly - especially on the bike - I am cautious. I'm often a slow rider - especially on winding roads where I can't see far ahead, or where the road is a bit iffy etc - because I'm cautious.And expecting the unexpected, having an escape route; all those sort of things. A car that might possibly pull out, expecting and preparing for the fact it might - as happened to me a couple of weeks ago actually (in the car, not on the bike, but same principle). You hear people say things like, as he exampled, “The car just pulled out in front of me!” Okay, but were you watching the car as you approached to see if it might? Were you watching the wheels (which is the best way to tell if it is moving), and watching if the driver is looking your way or not. All those sort of things.
Still, there is always the bullet you dodge through pure luck. I remember one night (I don't often ride at night), I was riding through town, almost home, just exiting a roundabout, my attention on traffic etc. Suddenly I saw a witch’s-hat (road cone) beside my front wheel. I never saw it until my front wheel was just missing it. I pondered, with some trepidation, what would have happened had I hit it! And there are always the cases where, to use Phil's examples again, we do take that extra few seconds to pull on the gloves at home and never know how close we came - in time - to being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
A few years ago I wrote an article that looked at the same sort of topic – this one being more about the luck of not being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It’s a reminder that it is a scary place out there! Or can be.

DECEMBER 1, 2018.
A nice day for a play in the park. Well, a leisurely ride through the bush anyway. And then a cuppa with a view. Royal National Park south of Sydney, and Stanwell Tops.
The road through National Park is better now than it used to be: it used to be rough in places and often with mossy-looking green stains on the road. The surface is much improved now; although the 60kph speed-limit is a bit ridiculous. (Does anyone actually stick to that all the way through?).

DECEMBER 5, 2018.
Guess who this is. Nope. No, not him either. (Well it could be, I'm just guessing you don't know!).

It is Lewis Hamilton. Yes, taht Lewis Hamilton - of Formula 1 fame. Apparently he is a fan of bikes in general and always watches the MotoGP. Here he is riding on I think the Jerez track.
DECEMBER 5, 2018.
I’d never heard of these until just today. Apparently they have been around – in pre-production guise – for a while now. Officially still a “bike”, not a “trike” (for reasons explained in the video), it is a complex and very clever piece of engineering from Yamaha, that gives the bike about an 80% increase in front-end grip.
The basic bike is yet another development on the MT-09: so it’s essentially an MT-09 with a whole new world of technology bolted on the front. Take a look at the video and learn all about it.
DECEMBER 8, 2018. I went to a Christmas lunch today for the local members of a group I’m a member of. The lunch, which was BBQ style, was held at the home of one of the members. His house is about 5km from where I live, so it hardly seemed worth getting all the gear on just to ride that short distance. But for a motorcycling group you should really go on your bike, shouldn’t you? Another factor was that it was quite a warm day, and it was going to be hot sitting around the barbie in riding jeans. Eventually I decided to go in the car.
I arrived at his house to find no bikes in sight! Was it over already? (I was a bit late). No, of the relatively small number there, only two had come on bikes, and they were parked in the host's garage. Others had come in cars – partly because of the heat of the day, but mostly because they had brought wives and in some cases, kids as well. So I didn’t feel out of place being in the car. Although I was a bit “out-of-place” in another respect – I was the only bloke there without a beard of some sort!    

DECEMBER 11, 2018. I saw a news item, posted to a Facebook page, on the Adelaide Toy Run, which celebrated its 40th year this year. That’s a lot of bikes delivering a lot of toys to a lot of under-privileged kids over a lot of years!

DECEMBER 18, 2018. I had a wander through the local BMW dealer today. (They also sell Triumph and some Yamaha; so plenty to look at!). I was interested in the BMW F850GS, of which I have heard some good reports. Man, that thing is tall! I had been thinking of arranging a test-ride, but maybe not. I’m a lanky old bloke, but even my long old legs would have trouble reaching the ground. Of course, once you get going you’re fine, but these days I prefer testing bikes that are easy for an old bloke with a crook back to ride. Now, about that Kawasaki Z900 RS, I’d like to take one of those for a spin.

DECEMBER 19, 2018. I’ve just been reading about the new Royal Enfields that will be introduced here next year – the Interceptor and the Continetal GT. Now, you may well have read about these anyway, but they are so different to the existing models that they are worth a mention here. The first big difference is that the engines are not big old Brit-design singles; they are twins. I could say they are “big old Brit-design twins”, but that might not be entirely accurate – although a lot of the design work was actually done in Britain. And they still look like a Brit engine from the 1950s. And probably have about the same state of tune. (That’s a bit cruel I suppose). A twin cylinder, 648cc, with a compression ratio of 9.5:1, resulting in a maximum power of just 35kW. And with a dry weight of around 200kg, the performance is hardly going to be Earth-shattering. But then that’s not what they’re about, is it. What has improved a lot, so I read, is the handling. New frame and improved suspension all add up to better ride and better handling. A lot of retro cool that is very rideable. Watch out for them in the start of next year.   

DECEMBER 26, 2018.
I happened to read a test of the same bike (actually two bikes) in two different magazines today: Australian Road Rider and Motorcycle Trader. The bike was the Aprilia Tuono; along with its stable-mate, the RSV4. In Road Rider it was Nigel Crowley who did the test. Motorcycle Trader had editor Chris Harris, and well-known racer Cam Donald. The tests, and the comments from the three riders, were quite different. That shouldn’t surprise, but it was interesting to compare their opinions.
Both reports had a lot say about the electronics, with Road Rider going into great detail on this. The real point of difference however, was in how they saw the Tuono as a road bike; you know, for the sort of riding you and I would do.
Nigel Crowley summed it up (in part) with these words. “As track-ready as the Aprilia is, it still makes for an incredible user-friendly and comfortable road bike that, surprisingly, is as happy on the daily commute as it is destroying tyres on your favourite test route.”
Cam Donald, a bike racer who’s daily ride is a BMW S 1000 R, you might have expected to judge it according to what it does on a racetrack; but no, he was much more real-world. (I’ve read some of his reports before and been surprised at how down-to-earth and practical his comments were). He wrote, “What I didn’t like was the Tuono’s harsh ride on-road. Yes, the riding position is comfortable, but I found the Ohlins suspension surprisingly firm for an upright bike”. He then made the point that people who bought upright bikes did so in the interests of comfort; and this didn’t give that comfort. Conversely, that same upright riding position makes the rider a wind-sock on a track. “So it doesn’t tick enough boxes for me on the street or the circuit, so I’m left wondering, what is it?”
Chris Harris added, “And it’s not like the Tuono offers much more steering lock to help it win the traffic slalom.” He did, however, praise the engine for its tractable nature, saying it was, “so flexible, in that you’re never caught in the wrong gear”.
So Nigel Crowley says it is incredible on the road and on the track, while Cam Donald says it is too uncomfortable on the road, and not really suited to the track. Chris Harris falls somewhere in between; but concludes that the more racetrack-focused RSV4 is perhaps the better bike, as, “You probably gain more than you lose” over the Tuono.
What would I think? Well I’d have to ride one, of course, but from what I read I think I’d be in awe at its power, and the incredible technology, then complain about the seat being too hard and suspension too stiff. And, considering I’ve had a problem with Aprilia’s lack of steering lock before (the Shriver), I’d probably criticise that too.