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I took part in my first ever mass demonstration yesterday, and me in my late 40’s. Just goes to show what a lazy easy-going person I am I guess.
I joined 500 of my fellow London bikers in a slow ride to Westminster City Council to protest at their “experimental” parking charges for motorcyclists.
To explain (also see Central Park):
London is made up of 32 boroughs, with Westminster being the best-known. If you’re at Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Soho and some of TheatreLand you’re in Westminster. All of the boroughs are friendly to motorcycles more or less: as you saw in Central Park they have varying policies regarding motorcycles’ use of regular car parking facilities, but they all provide special solo motorcycle bays and these are always free. The idea is to encourage people to either use public transport or two wheels to come into London and leave their cars at home, to reduce congestion and pollution. Cars have to pay a daily Congestion Charge to come into Central London and parking is expensive, making motorcycles a more attractive prospect for the commuter.
BUT, Westminster City Council decided to start experimentally charging motorcyclists for parking in solo motorcycle bays last autumn — a fact that I was unaware of when I received a ticket last month. The experiment phase is nearly up and they are about to decide whether to scrap it or make it permanent. Well, we bikers are up in arms about this because if Westminster succeeds then the other boroughs will doubtless follow, and their Green image will be stained by the lust to generate more revenue.
No To Bike Parking Fees!
All of which waffle leads me to my point: I got wind of a protest being organised earlier this week so decided to show up and add my support. We gathered in the underground car park on Park Lane and rode up the ramp to begin our slow ride to Victoria St. It was a great feeling, being one of 500 bikers in a great mass, all revving our engines and honking our horns. All along the 20 minute ride people were staring and waving, taking photos with their phones, and many car drivers honked in solidarity (at least I think it was solidarity).
Click here for photos of the event (not mine).
More horn-bibbing ensued: h o n k , h o n k , honkhonkhonk , honkhonkhonkhonk, HONKHONK!
Towards the end of the ride my horn started to sound a bit sick, its usual assertive blast replaced by a more weedy, bronchular rasp. I thought no more of it at the time, caught up in the excitement. We all pulled up outside the council offices and completely blocked Victoria St for about 30 minutes while the Ringleaders went in to make our case in the lobby and to be interviewed by local TV news crews.
By the time the police arrived and politely asked us to disperse my horn had gone to meet its honky maker, and I had to make the solitary ride home in relative quiet.
Next morning and time to research a replacement. I was quoted £45 + 15%VAT for a genuine Honda horn, which I thought was a bit much. I made some more enquiries and discovered that my bike takes any regular 12-Volt two terminal horn, so I went along to my nearest Halfords and purchased a low-tone horn for £9.99, and fitted it in the car park.
Bike back to normal and with an even deeper, more self-assured voice: PARP!
Bikes, Hornet, Riding, Bikes, Hornet, Riding, Bikes, Hornet, Riding, Bikes, Hornet, Riding…………
Right, this is the beginning of the end. On Friday I’m going on a “Creaky Rider” training course, specially created for Born Again Bikers. So I’ll do the training, blog about it here, and from then on I’ll stop going on and on about motorcycling and my Hornet and think of something else to write about.
At least that’s the plan…
No time to blog at the moment, because I’m spending every spare moment riding the Hornet. I love it more each day. This morning (Sunday) I went out early and rode over 70 miles around Hertfordshire’s motorways, A roads and B roads. I came back with a big smile on my face. Every day I learn more about the bike and I get better at riding it. I know all this must be very boring for anyone not interested in motorcycles but I can’t help it at the moment.
I will try to have more than one topic of conversation again soon.
Say Hello to the Honda CB600F Hornet, which I bought at the end of last week (although I don’t take delivery until the 15th).
Honda CB600F Hornet
makes a great wallpaper for your PC!
I chose this gorgeous bike from a shortlist that started with around eight bikes and gradually shrank to just two: the similarly-named CB600F and CBF600S, both from Honda. I took the bikes for a test ride last Friday and was impressed with the CBF, but it was the Hornet that really lit my fire. For a mid-size bike engine-wise it’s quite a compact package, and feels really tightly put together, agile and very stable when ridden.
SOLD! to Mr. Neal. My actual bike in the showroom.
The bike I’m buying is one year old and has done just 2,000 miles from new. It has ABS braking system and is fitted with a flyscreen and rubber thingies called “drop mushrooms”, which basically protect the engine from damage if you drop the bike on its side. And they look a bit like mushrooms. Hence the name.
It was not without a pang of sadness that I decided to trade in my scooter for this fine machine. The XMAX is an excellent scooter and I’ve had a lot of fun on it (while being practical and eco-friendly at the same time), but you’re either a scooterist or a biker — you can’t be both.
So I’m very much looking forward to getting my hands on it on the 15th, but before then Karen, Abigail and I are off on a short break to Cornwall (Elliot’s in India remember). We’re going to see how many Cornish Pasties and ice cream (not on the same plate) we can eat, and if my fingers don’t get too fat to operate the shutter you can expect some corny Cornish photos here in the next few days.
There’s a problem with my scooter. Sure, it’s economical to run, easy to ride, park, and I can filter my way to the front of most traffic jams. But at heart I’m a Biker, not a Scooterist. I used to ride big bikes in my late teens, and that urge has never left me despite a non-biking gap of twenty-cough-cough years.
So the problem with my scooter, actually any scooter, is that it’s not a proper bike. A Real Bike. It’s totally practical and is one of the best scooters available, but I want to ride down twisty country roads on a bike designed for that purpose, not thrash a commuter scooter in a vain attempt at proper biking. I want to glide onto the forecourt of The Ace Cafe with my head held high, not park around the back so I don’t get pointed at by The Big Boys.
Yes, the time has come to Upgrade. I didn’t see this day coming, and when we moved to London I felt sure that the scooter would allow me to scratch my biking itch while also ticking all the economic and environmental boxes. But six months on I’ve outgrown it. Every day I see big motorcycles on the road and it makes me feel like a kid on a toy tricycle.
My main concern was how Karen would feel about it, and we’ve talked at length. She is naturally scared of my having an accident, and that fear grows the longer I’m out riding. I too am acutely aware of what can go wrong, and how fast it can go wrong, and as a result I ride very defensively — especially in town. A motorcycle is actually safer than the kind of scooter I’m riding now, for a couple of reasons: One, they have more power, so give you the option of accelerating away from a hazard: on the scooter all I can do is brake/swerve to get out of an obstacle’s way. Secondly, big bikes get more respect from car drivers in London. It is apparent to me as a ride around that car drivers will move over to give a big bike space to pass, but will seldom do the same for a scooter looming in their rear-view mirror. Car drivers view scooter riders as one level of pond-life higher than cyclists, while motorcyclists are acknowledged as real people.
Time-scales: I haven’t signed anything yet but I have been to a couple of showrooms and have a shortlist of three bikes. Test rides should take place over the course of the next week or so, then I’ll make my choice and should take delivery a few days later. I reckon I’ll have made the switch by mid-July, and first order of business will be a day of refresher training.
I’m excited at the prospect of riding a proper bike again, but also a little nervous about taking my first steps on a bigger, faster machine. Still, I’m sure it’ll all come flooding back, and I’m (much) older now and (a little) wiser, so I’m not about to take any silly chances.
More news soon.
