Merry Christmas!

To anyone reading this blog, many thanks and have a Merry Christmas and happy biking New Year.

Arai Helmet pod removal

With the inclement weather I took the opportunity to give my Arai helmet a good cleaning. As I wanted to give the helmet a mini service I needed to get the side pods off of the helmet. For those who don't have Arai helmets the side pods cover the workings of the visor. It isn't immediately obvious how to get them off. So a quick search on the Internet came up with a corker of a YouTube clip:

This makes it really clear on how to remove them and re-install them. Why take them off? On one side when I had mine off there was a small collections of bugs (eww).

Another clip (from the same guys) shows what to do if when you put the pods back on and they don't go exactly right.

Overall a great guide if you want to get the pods off for a complete clean. It also helped me understand how the visor actually works, now I am much better at putting the visor back on because of it. That said when I come to replace the helmet I will be going for another brand. The visor system is a complete pain in the backside, not to mention I feel that the pods actually increase the amount of wind noise, although that is only my opinion.

Free tickets for 2011 NEC?

According to MCN the organisers of the 2010 NEC Motorbike show have offered all those who were not able to attend the show this year free tickets for next years show. When I say free tickets, it means that this years tickets will be valid for next year.

There is no official line on this as far as I can see and I have contacted the organisers to find out if this is true. Once I know I will get up on here. If it is, then great as I wouldn't have wasted my tickets from this year. It is also a nice gesture as they really don't have to do it, they aren't responsible for the weather after all; though I would say it would be better to move it to a warmer time of year then and of Autumn!

Top speed run - ZX10R

Well, although not available in Europe yet, one lucky American has taken his new ZX10R and gone to see how fast he can go. Firstly not the most legal thing to do and secondly may not be the best way to run your brand new engine in! That said there are rumours that the recall of the bike by Kawasaki is due to "accelerated engine wear", so doing this probably is best left until you know the engine won't die quickly on you. Still, amazing to watch!

Source: MCN

Mobile Template

New feature to Blogger is a template for mobile devices. Having had a look on my Android phone the format is much easier to read. The videos and maps I have don't reformat so there is a small amount of side scrolling for some posts. However it should make reading any Blogger based blog (assuming the owner has opted to activate the template) much easier.

Kawaksaki Z1000SX Review

Just how good or bad is the Z1000SX? Apparently quite good according to MCN. They also have a full review in this weeks paper too. So if, like me, you like the idea of a supersports but want a more upright riding position then this could be the bike for you.

British Superbikes - Map and Dates

The new calendar for 2011's BSB racing is now online. As I wasn't able to get out to the NEC as the weather conspired against me, I am looking to going to some of the more local BSB races. I have made a Google Maps layer for the locations and the dates. If you spot an error let me know in the comments.

View British Superbike Race Tracks 2011 in a larger map

Snow

Well the snow here has stopped play on the bike for a while. I know I am an all year rider buy even I have limits! The only concern I have at the moment is if the weather improves for going to Motorcycle Live this weekend. Really hoping so, come hell or high water I am going, just how hard will it be to get there!

Kawasaki Riders Club

So it seems that Kawasaki have launched a new club for Kwaker riders and fans. The cost is £20 a year and with that you get a number of offers for going to BSB and WSB. Also you can undisclosed discounts on official Kawasaki merchandise. Oh, and if you join before the end of the Motorcycle Live! you will be entered to win a track day in Spain. Lastly you get a magazine (called GO) twice a year.

Is it worth the £20 a year. Given the list of benefits maybe, especially if you like to go to the BSB rounds and want to go to the WSB at Silverstone. Still undecided if I want to join up though, have to ask some questions when I go to Motorcycle Live later this week.

Autocom Power

Not much happening on the bike front for me at the moment (other then riding it!). Today, however, I have been able to install the battery lead for my Autocom unit. This means I don't have to worry about recharging the batteries within the unit as the bike now powers it.

However this does lead to a few issues. Firstly to get any music out of the unit I have to lift up my seat and turn on the player. Not a problem, that is if Kawasaki had actually designed a latching system for the seat that just slips on and off. No, they have gone for one that you have to wiggle and push the seat around to get it to locate and secure. The same is true of the radios. I have the Midland G7 and the cable from Autocom is a mere 6 inches long (150mm for the metricated), which means there may not be enough room under the seat for both (haven't tried yet it was getting quite dark by the time I finished). I can make some small extension leads for it and that is the route I will take if I have too.

As someone who is interested in electronics I am hoping to find/create a MP3 system that will operate something like a car stereo and have a continue feature as power is applied. This would be great as it would mean, at least for music, I wouldn't have to pull up the seat to start it.

Well, thats it for the moment. Next major thing for me will be the NEC motorbike show later in the month. Looking forward to it and getting to see the new GSXR600, CBR600 and ZX10R. Till then!