Biker News - Regularly updated

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Category: Organisations

  1. DVSA sets out proposals to improve motorcycle training

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    The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has launched a consultation asking for views on proposals to improve motorcycle training.

    Motorcyclists are among the most vulnerable road users. They account for around 1% of traffic on Great Britain’s roads, but 21% of deaths or serious injuries.

    The proposed changes aim to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured by making sure new riders are better prepared for the realities of riding on modern roads.

    The main points are

    Improving training
    Improved instructors and training schools
    Skills and knowledge to ride safely

     

    Karen Cole, Director of Safety and Training for the Motorcycle Industry Association, said:

     

    We’re delighted to see DVSA has launched this consultation. We’d urge anyone interested in motorcycle training to respond.

    Have your say on the proposals by 17 February 2017.

    Read more here

    Improving training to help you through a lifetime of safe riding

  2. Message from John Surtees CBE

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    First of all let me wish everyone a safe and peaceful Christmas and New Year: 2016 has seen its ups and downs however everyone at the Henry Surtees Foundation deserves a pat on the back for the sterling work achieved during this very busy year raising not just funds, but awareness too.
     
    My sincere thanks also to the faithful sponsors and supporters as without them we would not be able to continue to run our two biggest events, and more importantly fund the numerous life-saving work throughout the country.
     
    2017 will see another great step forward for the foundation with many plans afoot (watch this space for more details!)
     
    Kind regards,
     
    John Surtees CBE
    Edenbridge, Kent

    John Surtees CBE

  3. The You've Been Nabbed rally is moving to a new venue for 2017!

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    It 26th Youve Been Nabbed rally, The Royal Cheshire Showgroundwill be held at The Royal Cheshire Showground, Flittogate Lane, Tabley, Knutsford, WA16 0HJ on 5th - 7th May 2017 

    The You’ve Been Nabbed rally is the main annual showcase/fundraising event of the National Association for Bikers with a Disability (NABD).

    The new rally site has hard-standing on two sides so it should not be as vulnerable to being churned-up in wet weather as the old Astle Park site was on two recent occasions. The new site is also much easier to secure, though our traditional professional security company will still be providing cover on the site.

    There are three separate marquees, each boasting live on-stage entertainment, disco and licenced bar. Unlike many other events the marquees are liberally furnished with tables and chairs (because creature-comforts are important!) though wide clearways are maintained to allow easy access for wheelchair users.

    The event also has excellent toilet facilities throughout the site that are constantly maintained and hot showers are also available on site.

    The huge ‘Adult’s Only Marquee’ plays host to eight live bands over the weekend, with a full-blown world-class stand-up comedy road show on Saturday afternoon, filling the marquee with laughter for four solid hours and there are ‘exotic dancers’ on Saturday night, and a well-stocked bar offering a comprehensive range of canned beers, wines and spirits much cheaper than pub prices (and cheaper than most other rallies too).

    The ‘Family Marquee’ plays host to six live bands, over the weekend, and an excellent disco plus a smaller bar offering a comprehensive range of soft drinks, canned beers, wines and spirits (also at low prices).

    The ‘Real Ale Marquee’ plays host to nine very diverse music acts ranging from solo singer/songwriters to duos and outright legends, with a bar offering a vast range of traditional real ales and ciders that would put many a real-ale festival to shame.

    When you consider that canned beers and spirits are very reasonably priced at £1.50 and the real ales and ciders are just £2.50 per pint, you can see why the NABD has an excellent reputation for not treating bikers as ‘cash cows’. When you add to this the surprisingly eclectic range of live music and other entertainment on offer you can see why this event has become universally recognised as the best-value-for-money rally in the UK.

    In addition to the huge amount of marquee-based entertainment the YBN rally features an iconic Bike & Trike Show (this year sponsored by Back Street Heroes magazine) running throughout the afternoon from 12 noon until 6:00pm showcasing an enormously diverse range of machines from the sublime to the idiosyncratic with 12 highly coveted trophies up for grabs. Please note, all Bike & Trike show entries must be ridden in.

    The Custom Bike & Trike Show takes place within a huge circuit-style arena formed by the marquees and more than 50 assorted trade stands with 10 catering units offering a wide range of cuisines, a shooting range, and a 24 hour ‘Holy Joe’s Café operated by the Cheshire branch of the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA).

    The hardest things to describe about this event are the marvellous party atmosphere and the wonderful level of camaraderie amongst the 3,000+ people in attendance. To understand these things you just have to attend.

    It is a common misconception that you have to be an NABD member or a disabled biker to attend this superb event but in truth everybody is welcome. This is a fully inclusive event and we don’t care how you get there, whether by bike, trike, car, van, campervan, train or Shanks’s Pony; just so long as you get there.

    The proceeds from this event are essential to the continuing existence of the NABD so come along, bring your friends; help us to celebrate 26 years of the NABD in style and party with a purpose!

    The You’ve been Nabbed rally has earned itself a fine reputation as the undisputed best-value-for-money weekend event on the UK motorcycling calendar, with tickets costing just £30 in advance, or £35 at the entrance to venue, for a weekend that is absolutely bursting with entertainment and activity.

    Of course, weekend camping is included in the price of the ticket as is motorcycle and trike parking. Car parking does cost extra, though it is free for people who have a blue disabled parking badge.

    The cost of car parking for people without a blue badge has been halved to ten pounds for 2017 in response to many requests from event regulars; however, cars without blue badges will have to remain in a designated car-parking area and will not be permitted onto the camping areas at any time.

    A full list of prices is available at www.nabd.org.uk

    The entrance to the showground is on Pickmere Lane adjacent to the junction with Flittogate Lane. Less than 1.5 miles from Junction 19 of the M6 motorway (turn right at the Windmill Pub 100 yards from the M6 roundabout and follow Pickmere Lane (B5391) to the showground entrance on the left just after Flittogate Lane).

    www.nabd.org.uk

    Regular updates will be posted on the website and at www.facebook.com/YouveBeenNabbed26

    The NABD is a registered charity, established in 1991, that helps and supports disabled motorcyclists.

    You have been Nabbed - NABDness 26, new venue 2017

  4. Hapless Biker’ Donates Royalties to Blood Bike Charity

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    Hapless Biker Donates Royalties to Blood Bike CharityKevin Turner, author of the Hapless Biker series of travel books, will be donating his royalties to Shropshire and Staffordshire Blood Bikes (SSBB), his local group of life-saving riders, for all book sales from 1st November 2016 to 30th April 2017. Kevin’s publisher, Veloce Publishing, will match the author’s sales royalties, essentially doubling Kevin’s donation.  

    Kevin’s books, Bonjour! Is This Italy? and From Crystal Palace to Red Square tell of his adventures throughout Europe, Scandinavia and into Russia, first riding a Suzuki SV650S and then on his ’02 Kawasaki Ninja.

    Explaining why he’d chosen to donate to this worthwhile cause, Kevin said: “I really wanted to do a charity ride or a sponsored adventure, but I have twin boys that have just turned two and finding time for a big ride was out of the question. But I realised I could essentially recycle my past journeys in the sense of donating the sales from my books; it’s not quite as exciting as getting out on the road but at the end of the day, it’s about supporting my local Blood Bikers, not going on holiday.”

    SSBB is a volunteer service, providing emergency transportation of blood products, for free, to NHS hospitals across Shropshire, Staffordshire and South Cheshire. Shropshire and Staffordshire Blood Bikes (SSBB), life-saving riders

    Nigel Howells, Fleet Manager at SSBB said: “Shropshire and Staffordshire Blood Bikes rely on donations to maintain our machines and support our riders. Our riders embark on mini-adventures every time they head off on a potentially life-saving journey; although we like to think we’re a little better prepared than Kevin seems to be! We’re delighted to accept this donation; we’re sure readers will enjoy Kevin’s entertaining books while at the same time supporting our life-saving work.”

    If you’d like to support Shropshire and Staffordshire Blood Bikes and enjoy a good read in the process, Kevin’s books and e-books, Bonjour! Is This Italy? and From Crystal Palace to Red Square are available to buy from Amazon.

    You can find more information about them on Kevin’s website.

    www.haplessbiker.com

    Bonjour! Is This Italy - A Hapless Bikers Guide to Europe  From Crystal Palace to Red Square

  5. Africa's 1st Ladies Motorcycle Maintenance Workshop needs your help!

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    3 years ago, Claire Elsdon arrived into Capetown, having left London a year earlier alone on her Suzuki DRZ 400s to ride the length of Africa. Along the way, her understanding of how high quality motorcycle maintenance can play a major part in reducing the soaring road traffic death toll in Africa was born, along with her appreciation for the importance of giving opportunities to women to learn practical skills, which they can earn a sustainable living from for their families. As a result, earlier this year she moved to Tanzania to set up Africa's first motorcycle maintenance workshop staffed by female apprentices, called Pikilily.

    The good news is that Pikilily now has a workshop space near Lake Victoria in Mwanza, Tanzania, just a stone's throw from town. This workshop will provide a place for women apprentices to learn their very first motorcycle maintenance skills and before too long, open the gates to paying customers, enabling them to earn an income. Pikilily - Africas 1st Ladies Motorcycle Maintenance Workshop needs your he

    Many of Pikilily's customers will come from the 4,000 motorcycle taxi drivers in Mwanza, who are in great need of a reliable, safe & good value motorcycle maintenance service - impossible to find at present. Consequently right now, poor maintenance is costing riders precious time and take-home pay, but also sadly too often, their own lives and that of their paying passengers.

    Claire and the team can't wait to help and get started in our workshop but first, they need to raise some money to make it possible!

    They need to raise £500 to complete the refurb of the workshop. This would pay for watertight roof on entire premises, secure door and metal grill window to store room plus gates to main entrance, levelling and concrete the floor smooth in apprentice working area, fitting seating and working space in training room/office area and painting the Pikilily mural.

    In addition, they need to raise the funds to pay the next 12 months worth of rent - its £50 a month.

    They need tools, materials and equipment to equip each of the 5 workbenches in the apprentice area. The list is long but to give you an idea, a spanner would cost roughly £5, pliers £10, brake bleeding kit £30, set of torque wrenches £50.

    Ideally they would also like 2 small motorcycles on which to train the ladies in motorcycle maintenance. Such motorcycles retail at around $1000 each.

    To say thank you, a "Wall of Thanks" will form the backdrop to their work area. Names, countries and messages of support of those donating to this campaign will be written on there, nestled around the Pikilily logo mural, reminding apprentices each day of their friends across the globe who helped make this community project possible. The wall will appear in the regular workshop vlogs that Claire has been putting out since the start of the campaign.

    If you would like to donate, here is the link - www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/pikilily

    www.pikilily.com Pikilily - Preserving the lifespan of motorcycles, riders and passengers al