St Landrew

I tried it. It didn't happen. Urban myth number 6,285,041 exploded. Next.

Couldn't resist.

The BBC news reports today that there was a minor earthquake centred around the city of Southampton. Initial enquiries seem to indicate that the cause was due to 30,000 odd Southampton Football Club fans jaws hitting the ground at the same time, as they found out that the new owner of their club was a certain Mr Rupert Lowe.

No, but I know what you mean. The CX500 was the original Honda courier bike, but now sadly, they are a bit long in the tooth for anyone but an enthusiast to contemplate, although there are plenty of examples. The NTV650 was the courier bike of the 90s, and there are loads of them still going around. As a confirmation of reliability and... well livebility, what better praise than the almost universal opinion of the bike courier.

While reading those comments on the SV650, I've actually just thought of the perfect starter bike without breaking the bank. The Honda NTV650. Totally bullet proof, inline V-twin with bags of grunt for the beginner, and because they were so popular, of the type I'm talking about, and are now Hondas middleweight full tourer with panniers, the spares are plentiful. There's plenty of secondhand examples around now, and they are cheapish, although selling owners know full well how good they are. Because they are so well made they hang together nicely too. Here's a pic of a typical one from the era. If you do decide that they might be worth looking at, I wouldn't go for the Deauville/full pannier type, as these are largely made out of Japan, and the build quality suffers. Fear not though, as there are plenty of the older ones around [1994-2000], looking bright and cared for, and they'll be cheaper anyway. They handle well, are economical, have good peformance and will cruise at 70-80 all day. Basically they are entirely fuss free motoring, and the engine is extremely long lived. What more would a beginner want..? If I didn't own my VFR, I would have been happy to have toured one of these for the summer and beyond. They look nicer in red IMO. Don't confuse it with the earlier, almost identical 600 Revere, as they are not quite so good.

Agreed. However, it seems that there is little charity in the heart of the modern football supporter. It costs people nothing to just say thanks for the effort, whether or not that effort is fully appreciated or understood. Perhaps we shoulfd just leave the subject like that.

Well I've spent practically all day with the bike, although I've only ridden 65 miles, and nearly all of it in the late afternoon. First was a bit of town work, in amongst heavy traffic. Then I did a short stint on the M27, before turning off into the New Forest, to head for the Red Shoot pub. Then back home for an evening meal. At first I was finding the bike's weight quite unwieldy, as it is 468lbs dry, so I checked the front tyre pressure. Ah... 29lbs. Should be 36lbs [42lbs rear]. That made all the difference, and my confidence in the front end rose dramatically. Now I could crawl it in traffic, feet up, and blip the throttle to get away from any situation. I got some idea of the get-up-and-go when I hit the motorway. The engine has V-twin like torque, and pulls nicely from very low, making absolutely nothing of its weight. It was only a couple of miles, but the acceleration, even on a tiny bit of wound on throttle was blistering. I checked the speedo, after just a few seconds, and had to slow right back down to legal speed. I can easily believe this bike will do 0-60 in 2.4secs. Once rolling, the acceleration is irresistable. I chickened out all the time. The handling is great, but it won't be chucked around just yet, as the tyres still have pimples on them. I'll need a few more days of finding what one can and can't do safely, and wear them in. It is almost unconditionally stable. I folded my arms at 60mph, and it tracked absolutely straight and true. It's said that VFR brakes aren't all that great as standard, but I could have sent myself over the handlebars, I believe. There was plenty of feel in the linked system too. Perhaps people mean they are inadequate for the track..? Well they're fine for the road. Do I feel in anyway tired after all that new concentration..? No, and it's down to how easy the bike was to ride. I have to say, I was a bit tense at the beginning, after the tyre pressure increase. But after a while, I started to relax properly, and it all started to feel right. Well those are my first impressions. It's a great bike. I'll do a proper review once I've had a real chance to get to know all its foibles.

FWIW, I think Stanley may have a point. I believe the stay aways were considerable. Perhaps it was just a case of staying at home. But there is usually a catalyst for such changes in behaviour. At least we'll get to see, in any case. Which certainly wasn't going to be the case only a short time ago.

Coincidence mate. I can't bring myself to get all worked up over it. When the deal is done, the owner will reveal his or her's identity. Can't we just wait..?

Today's the day. Can't actually believe I'm allowed to ride my own bloody bike at last. Might do a review.

Just a bit of everyday action in the world of 250cc category MotoGP: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/8076267.stm

There's always one.

Cracking big race, where the riders had to change bikes mid-race wearing wet boots to dry. JT came in seemingly several laps too early, but it sort of paid off, because he finished 7th, after qualifying 14th. The lead changed countless times, in fact, when replays of passes were being shown, other passing maneuvers were going on. Just as they started, the Beeb team had a quick bet on who would win, with Suzi going for Rossi, Charlie going for Stoner, and Nostradamus going for Lorenzo. I had a feeling about Stoner, and agreed with Charlie. Cue pole sitter Lorenzo smoking his tyre off the line and getting completely swallowed up. It's amazing he got it all back together to nearly win. Little Pedrosa came off bouncing into the gravel on an already badly injured thigh. That's ouch..! Italian MotoGP race result: 1 C Stoner (Aus) Ducati 2 J Lorenzo (Spn) Fiat Yamaha 3 V Rossi (Ita) Fiat Yamaha 4 A Dovizioso (It) Repsol Honda 5 L Capirossi (Ita) Rizla Suzuki 6 C Edwards (US) Tech 3 Yamaha 7 J Toseland (GB) Tech 3 Yamaha 8 R de Puniet (Fr) LCR Honda 9 N Canepa (Ita) Ducati 10 C Vermeulen (Aus) Rizla Suzuki 11 M Melandri (Ita) Kawasaki 12 N Hayden (US) Ducati 13 M Kallio (Fin) Pramac Ducati 14 T Elias (Spn) Gresini Honda 15 A de Angelis (RSM) Gresini Honda Ta Beeb. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/8075977.stm

What a couple of great races in the 125cc and 250cc categories. I'm going to turn on the box a bit earlier in future. Bradley Smith won his second race of the season, and now leads the 125cc World Championship, which is excellent news for British motorcycle racing. He went off like a rabbit after a few laps, but they reeled him in, and the lead swapped several times. But with a few laps remaining he put in a couple of stonking times to pull away, and just had the distance to not be caught on the home straight. As mentioned earlier, the Mugello home straight is so long that riders can slipstream, and pull out to pip the leader over the line. For example, very early in the race, Bradley went from 7th to 1st by slipstreaming. It makes for brilliant racing. In the 250cc race there is no British involvement, but the rain came down, and the riders changed to wets at the last second. Cue Marco Simoncelli disappearing into the distance. But they reeled him in too, and he and Bautista came together at one point and went off the track, only to rejoin it behind the eventual winner Pasini. Being as it was wet, there were more heart in mouth moments than I care to remember. Don't like riding in the rain, but it does give an edge to racing, despite the riders obviously posting much slower times. Now for the big one.

I used to be of that opinion Arizona, but the sheer number of cameras springing up is astonishing.

Britons Bradley and Scott get Pole and 2nd spot on the front row of the 125cc lineup. Might have to hit the red button tomorrow morning for the tiddler race. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/motorsport/motorbikes/8070383.stm Lorenzo got pole, and he's right on it. The Yamaha carries such speed into the corners, that although it's slower than the Ducati and Honda, its handling and drive out of corners just keeps it ahead. It must be one heck of a bike. I agree, it's a shame that Hayden can't tame the Duke beast yet, just like Melandri couldn't. I fear it will be a season of not getting to grips with it too. It is said that Stoner is a bit of an enigma in that he forces the Ducati to go faster. It's certainly got the engine and drive, but it does shake and shimmy whenever he's really gunning the thing. But then Nicky got the Honda bouncing around too, when he won the 2006 World Championship. What is it with the Duke..? Although You, Me and any normal human being would, I find it incredible that JT is breaking early into corners. He didn't suffer the same in the early part of 2008, so what went wrong..? Is he trying too hard; scared or just running out of skill..? Tbf, Colin Edwards is a much faster one lap man [in MotoGP] than a racer, but I take the point. MotoGP is quite obviously a big step up from Superbikes, and only the cream can really make the most of these lightweight projectiles. Shame though that Troy Bayliss retired when he did, because I still remember him winning the last race at Valencia in 2006, after becoming Superbike World Champion, and being invited by Ducati to have a tour round. He took off and blew the opposition away. Amazing..! Anyway, here's the lineup for the big race: Italian MotoGP qualifying result: 1 J Lorenzo (Spn) Fiat Yamaha 1:48.987 2 C Stoner (Aus) Ducati 1:49.008 3 L Capirossi (Ita) Rizla Suzuki 1:49.121 4 V Rossi (Ita) Fiat Yamaha 1:49.148 5 R de Puniet (Fr) LCR Honda 1:49.499 6 C Edwards (US) Tech 3 Yamaha 1:49.547 7 A Dovizioso (It) Repsol Honda 1:49.648 8 D Pedrosa (Spn) Repsol Honda 1:50.073 9 T Elias (Spn) Gresini Honda 1:50.078 10 Y Takahashi (Jpn) Scot Racing Honda 1:50.305 11 C Vermeulen (Aus) Rizla Suzuki 1:50.405 12 A de Angelis (RSM) Gresini Honda1:50.448 13 N Canepa (Ita) Ducati 1:50.528 14 J Toseland (GB) Tech 3 Yamaha 1:50.537 15 M Melandri (Ita) Kawasaki 1:50.710 16 N Hayden (US) Ducati 1:50.924 17 M Kallio (Fin) Pramac Ducati 1:51.008 Ta Auntie.

They'd have given it to Geoff Hurst.

Britain has gone from being one of the most unwatched, to the most watched country in Europe, possibly the World. It's absolutely bloody ridiculous. This comes of the attitude... if you've got nothing to hide, there's no need to worry... and the Govt take that as a sign that everything is fair game. Well I've got nothing to hide, but I'd like to decide when I show myself to the authorities. I'm sure it won't be too long before a British Govt requires that every citizen wear a head camera, so that everything they do is recorded.

Yes, sorry to hear of this news, Jill. Also condolences to you too, btf. R.I.P.

Wahoo..! At bloody last. Got in about half an hour ago. Paperwork was waiting for me. Glad that it has finally arrived, but I bet I missed the postie by about fifteen minutes today. Numberplate tomorrow/this morning.

Dani Pedrosa was clocking 217mph on the Mugello straight before he hit the brakes. Just shows how my 206mph info was very much yesteryear's news. After today's [Friday] practice: Italian MotoGP free practice times: 1 J Lorenzo (Spa) Yamaha 1 minute 49.87 seconds 2 V Rossi Italy, Yamaha, 1:50.065 3 C Stoner (Aus) Ducati, 1:50.144 4 D Pedrosa (Spa) Honda, 1:50.808 5 C Edwards (US) Yamaha 1:50.891 6 A De Angelis (RSM) Honda 1:50.898 7 L Capirossi (Ita) Suzuki 1:51.007 8 R de Puniet (Fra) Honda, 1:51.03 9 A Dovizioso (Ita) Honda 1:51.206 10 M Melandri (Ita) Kawasaki 1:51.359 11 J Toseland (GB) Yamaha 1:51.401 12 T Elias (Spa) Honda 1:51.823 13 C Vermeulen (Aus) Suzuki 1:51.994 14 N Canepa (Ita) Ducati 1:52.319 15 N Hayden (US) Ducati 1:52.403 16 Y Takahashi (Jpn) Honda 1:52.607 17 M Kallio (Fin) Ducati 1:52.619 Ta Beeb.

Just to get one thing out of the way. This is motorsport, therefore it goes into the Motoring forum, and NOT General Sports, even though there are still some old motorsport threads in there. So it's welcome back the motoring forum, and the first major event for it is this weekend's MotoGP race at Mugello - home to Ferrari, as it happens. They own the circuit, and it's their testing home. A brilliant track it is too, really twisty and technical, with a 0.7 mile main straight where the bikes get near their top speeds, doing around 206mph before they hit the brakes. It's a real shame that it's not on the F1 list of races. Have a look in Wikipedia and see what you think: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mugello This is pretty much Valentino Rossi's home grand prix. I say that realising that there are four other italian riders, but look for a sea of yellow 46 cards and flags on Sunday. They'll wave every time Vale goes past, and it really seems to inspire him. But with Lorenzo now on top form, Melandri finding real pace, Pedrosa back to fitness, Stoner flying on the Ducati, and the ever lurking Dovizioso, Rossi won't have it all his own way. It should be the usual excellent Mugello entertainment. We'll see. Practice today, qualification tomorrow, race Sunday, BBC2 12.30 - 14.00. EDIT: Live coverage of the 125 and 250cc races, 9:50am-12:05om via the red button.

Excellent..! All that cajolling of Steve, and all that was needed was to wait for him to leave the country.

Have yoiu goit a sticky paior oif oi's Hamster..?

Confirmed by the BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/portsmouth/8070535.stm Well I think we'd [that's us lot, SFC, etc...] better put up, or shut up, from now on.