Where did you ride your FTR today?

[americanthunder]

Went to a meet at the Classic MotorHub in Bibury, Gloucestershire today.
A great ride on the Carbon with my wife on her Ducati Scrambler and another friend on her Ducati Monster. Met Henry Cole from the Motorbike Show with his old Harley Davidson and Alan Milyard who was there with his Flying Milyard - the home grown motorcycle with 2 cylinders from an aeroplane engine!
A great morning out.

 

[K1000]

By the time I got home it was all shit up again....

In the manual it says "Do not use pressurized water to wash the motorcycle", but I suppose that's a bit of an exaggeration? Certainly yours was fine afterwards.

I too have washed bikes with jetwash since time immemorial.

 

[FTR London]

In the manual it says "Do not use pressurized water to wash the motorcycle", but I suppose that's a bit of an exaggeration? Certainly yours was fine afterwards.

I too have washed bikes with jetwash since time immemorial.

You have to be very careful where you point it and avoid being direct with the high pressure water jet. The other parts of the wash programme are fine.

 

[FTR London]

Went to a meet at the Classic MotorHub in Bibury, Gloucestershire today.
A great ride on the Carbon with my wife on her Ducati Scrambler and another friend on her Ducati Monster. Met Henry Cole from the Motorbike Show with his old Harley Davidson and Alan Milyard who was there with his Flying Milyard - the home grown motorcycle with 2 cylinders from an aeroplane engine!
A great morning out.

I wonder if the Viper V10 is still running?

Cole lives in the Cotswolds, so not too far away.

 

[americanthunder]

I wonder if the Viper V10 is still running?

Cole lives in the Cotswolds, so not too far away.

Yes, the Viper runs good. Alan said it was 190mph at 1/4 throttle!! 😧

 

[Face It]

I little road trip to the Slimey Crud Run in Pine Bluff, WI and then off to Leland, WI
Perfect day, started about 49F/9.5C ended about 70F/21C

The Red Mouse


Leland, Wi
I parked next to this trailer setup for two lab doggo's.


As I was taking this pic a f250 pickup with big tires came around the corner, on my side of the road. (inside of the corner) Glad I was off the bike and taking a picture.

 

[K1000]

This is right now, May 7, 2024 at 7:10 PM 😅
Incles, Andorra. Altitude 1750 m / 5750 ft.
This is Europe, i.e. Northern hemisphere, i.e. Spring should be well underway.

What did I buy a motorcycle for? When am I going to ride it, June to September? I didn't sign up for this! 😅

Well, at least I am not that sorry that the bike is delayed (due to logistics problems - overloaded sea ports, apparently).
Wouldn't be able to use it anyway.

 

[FTR London]

06.00am - this morning's commute. I have to push it out of the close and about 100 yards down the road before I start the engine to avoid being lynched.

 

[irsh]

06.00am - this morning's commute. I have to push it out of the close and about 100 yards down the road before I start the engine to avoid being lynched.

View attachment 8498

I looked at a used Toce last week but the guy told me how loud it was and I decided to pass, even though I hate the stocker. I leave for work early and I don't want to be that guy.

 

[K1000]

In Europe it’s becoming more and more problematic to use loud exhausts, to remove the catalyst, or to mod the bike in certain ways. Especially in the more “advanced” countries, such as the Nordic countries, or German-speaking countries.

The police in these places sometimes set up mobile checkpoints next to roads. They stop motorcyclists and check their machines. Noise and contamination levels can be measured, a check for non-homologated parts can be performed, etc.

Here are a couple of videos from such checkpoints in Germany:

No need to understand German to get a sense of what’s going on. They even measure the license plate incline and the surface of the rear-view mirrors. They try to be fair: When measuring noise, they allow 5 dB for ambient noise (which, apparently, is quite generous). When measuring the license plate angle, the rider is allowed to sit on the bike (which improves the angle).
On the other hand, they don't trust the rev-counter on the bike, so they bring their own external one 😄

Having said that, these videos were published by the police. A possibility remains that it is scare tactics. Certainly, in this Forum I have seen people from Germany with loud exhausts on their FTRs. Perhaps they can shed some light on how things really are.

Personally, I have only ever seen one such checkpoint, in Switzerland. They didn’t stop me. But I only ride in German-speaking Europe on average one or two weeks per year on holidays, and I have only been to Norway and Sweden on a motorcycle once in my life. In other parts of Europe (Italy, Spain, Eastern Europe) no-one gives a damn about some loud exhausts. The police have bigger fish to fry. France I’m not sure.

Anyways, I won’t be taking the risk. The police can immobilize your bike. When you are a few kilometers / miles from home, you can always call a friend, who will bring the stock mirrors or even the slip-on, you change it on the spot, and can continue. But when you are on holidays a few thousand kilometers from home, that’s a completely different story.

I’m curious, what’s it like in other parts of the world? The UK, North America, Australia?
I suppose in the US it’ll vary from state to state – there will be some with stricter laws and some laxer ones. Wouldn't be surprised if California was one of the tough ones - it has a reputation for strict environmental laws.

 

[FTR London]

I looked at a used Toce last week but the guy told me how loud it was and I decided to pass, even though I hate the stocker. I leave for work early and I don't want to be that guy.

My bike has a cat delete and the exhaust is minus the baffle. If you opt for the latter it is a lot quieter.

I’m curious, what’s it like in other parts of the world? The UK, North America, Australia?

In the UK this is quite lax now. Because the constabularies are so skint and resources so scant, it isn't really policed like it used to be. I know that acoustic cameras have been trialed in tandem with APNR systems during 2022/23 - I guess nationwide roll out will be governed by their efficacy and the results of cost/benefit analysis.

 

[K1000]

...I know that acoustic cameras have been trialed in tandem with APNR systems during 2022/23 - I guess nationwide roll out will be governed by their efficacy and the results of cost/benefit analysis.

Acoustic cameras, what fresh hell is this?!
What's next, a robot that'll automatically shoot you when you exceed allowed values?! 😅

 

[FTR London]

Acoustic cameras, what fresh hell is this?!
What's next, a robot that'll automatically shoot you when you exceed allowed values?! 😅

They work by employing beamforming to process signals from multiple microphones to determine the location and direction of a sound source. In so doing you can "see" where the noise is coming from. Clearly this has multiple applications and uses, one of which is to derive an income from penalising noisy exhausts hence the trail of the technology in tandem with existing APNRs.

 

[K1000]

They work by employing beamforming to process signals from multiple microphones to determine the location and direction of a sound source. In so doing you can "see" where the noise is coming from. Clearly this has multiple applications and uses, one of which is to derive an income from penalising noisy exhausts hence the trail of the technology in tandem with existing APNRs.

Had to google what ANPR was:

https://www.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rs/road-safety/automatic-number-plate-recognition-anpr/

In Northern Italy they have something similar, called Safety Tutor. It's "advertised" on warning signs everywhere:

Autostrade Alto Adriatico

www.infoviaggiando.it

I'm sure other countries will have similar systems, too.

Number plate detection technology has been used in undeground parkings too, for a few years now. The system detects that the vehicle has paid the parking fee and opens the exit barrier automatically. But those are controlled conditions, so it's much easier - when approaching the barrier you are moving at a snail's pace, and you are positioned exactly where the camera expects you to be.

I am somewhat sceptical whether these acoustic cameras can be used to impose traffic fines. If you look at all the hoops the German police must jump through to make the fine stick:

- They have to use a certified dB meter.
- The dB meter must be positioned at a 45-degree angle with respect to the exhaust end (to avoid the direct flow of exhaust gasses, which would cause distorsion), at a distance of no less than 50 cm / 20 in.
- The noise level in the Technical Specification Sheet of the vehicle is stated at a given number of RPM. Therefore the police must run the engine at exactly these RPM to carry out the measurement. They use an external RPM gauge for that, as the bike's rev-counter could have been tampered with.
- 3 measurements must be carried out. A measurement must not deviate from any of the others by more than 3 dB. If it does, it is discarded and a new measurement is performed in its stead. The most favourable (for the rider) measurement of the 3 is used for the final evaluation.
- 5 dB is subtracted to account for ambient noise.
- Within a 3 m / 10 ft radius from the motorcycle there must be no object or person except the personell necessary to carry out the measurement, as an object might reflect and thus amplify the sound.

Only if all of these conditions are met is the traffic fine legal, as one of the police explains.

I cannot imagine how a beam-forming microfone (or even a series of such microphones) which catches you from a distance travelling at who-knows-what speed with random RPMs, with ambient noise caused perhaps by falling rain (or someone blasting their horn and whatnot) would be able to carry out such a precise measurement.
But, the technology advances, so who knows...
Still, I'm quite sceptical.

 

[Face It]

This is right now, May 7, 2024 at 7:10 PM 😅
Incles, Andorra. Altitude 1750 m / 5750 ft.
This is Europe, i.e. Northern hemisphere, i.e. Spring should be well underway.

What did I buy a motorcycle for? When am I going to ride it, June to September? I didn't sign up for this! 😅

Well, at least I am not that sorry that the bike is delayed (due to logistics problems - overloaded sea ports, apparently).
Wouldn't be able to use it anyway.

What do you mean?
This was in Minnesnowta, er, Minnesota back in 1991

 

[K1000]

What do you mean?
This was in Minnesnowta, er, Minnesota back in 1991

Hahaha, wow, that's extreme! 😆😅
Is that you on the bike? I can't quite make out which bike it is.

Here in Europe some people ride in Winter too, but very few. Mostly just to go to a rally. The most famous one is the Elefantentreffen - Elephant Rally in Germany:

Elefantentreffen 2024: The winter rally par excellence for motorcyclists

Find the right equipment, from heated gloves to waterproof bags, discover our advice

motorcycle-soul.com

Where I live, riding is illegal in Winter.