UK Bike Forum / UK Bike Forum / Bike Books/Games/Films

The Picture Game

Mazz — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 13:45:23 GMT

Very simple game this....

I'll request am image of something... it could be anything*

You then have to wonder off into the world of the interweb and find that image.

The first person to post that image then requests another picture, again, of anything they want. In the case of a tie, the post on top wins.

The game continues in this fashon until we get bored!

*Within reason. No pornography or anything offensive please!

So... I'd like a pic of the first Dog into space

Favourite motorcycling quotes

Black Dog — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 19:52:12 GMT

Not sure where to put this, but it's a sort of game, so it goes in the 'Games' category.

Trawling through another biking forum recently, I came across a thread of biking quotations. Some were good enough to share with you guys. I've cut out the really cheesy ones (mainly down-home US how-fecking-obvious-is-that wisdom), the religious ones (except two that appealed to me) and the one-make ones (except for one about Harleys that made me laugh). I haven't attributed any of them, as most are by that prolific writer Anon, but discerning readers will recognise one by HST in there. Not all are great, but most have something to recommend them.

The first is my all-time favourite. Please feel free to add any that seem relevant.

------------------

Four wheels move the body. Two wheels move the soul.

Bikes don't leak oil, they mark their territory.

A good rider has balance, judgment, and good timing. So does a good lover.

Young riders pick a destination and go... Old riders pick a direction and go.

Always back your bike into the kerb, and sit where you can see it.

Ride to work and work to ride.

The best alarm clock is sunshine on chrome.

If you really want to know what's going on, watch what's happening at least five cars ahead.

A friend is someone who'll get out of bed at 2 am to drive his pickup to the middle of nowhere to get you when you're broken down.

Everyone crashes. Some get back on. Some don't. Some can't.

The best modifications cannot be seen from the outside.

Only a biker knows why a dog sticks his head out of a car window.

Old bikes don't leak oil - they ooze character.

I'd rather be riding my motorcycle thinking about God than sitting in church thinking about my motorcycle.

98% of all Harleys ever sold are still on the road. The other 2% made it home.

If you don't have bugs in your teeth, you haven't been grinning enough.

You only need two tools: WD40 and duct tape. If it doesn't move and it should, use WD40. If it moves and it shouldn't, use duct tape.

There's the V4 thing: there's just something about it that inline fours don't have, and V-twins have too much of.

You start the game with a full pot of luck and an empty pot of experience. The object is to fill the pot of experience before you empty the pot of luck.

Never trade the thrills of living for the security of existence.

Panniers can never hold everything you want, but they CAN hold everything you need.

Home is where your bike sits still long enough to leave a few drops of oil on the ground.

Don't ride so late into the night that you sleep through the sunrise.

Sometimes it takes a whole tankful of fuel before you can think straight.

Never hesitate to ride past the last street light at the edge of town.

If you don't ride in the rain you don't ride.

Well trained reflexes are quicker than luck.

If the person in the next lane at the stoplight rolls up the window and locks the door, support their view of life by snarling at them.

If you ride like there's no tomorrow there won't be.

Grey-haired riders don't get that way from pure luck.

Always replace the cheapest parts first.

People are more violently opposed to fur than leather because it's safer to harass rich women than motorcycle gangs.

Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly.

Remember folks, street lights timed for 35 mph are also timed for 70 mph.

Never ask a biker for directions if you're in a hurry to get there.

Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming, 'Wow! What a Ride!'

You don't stop riding because you're getting old, you get old when you stop riding.

I can remember the time when sex was safe and motorcycles were dangerous.

God didn't create metal so that man could make paper clips.

I am riding a bike because travelling in a car is like having sex with your trousers on.

In a world with 20,000 television channels ...... get as far away from it as you can.

Careless torque costs lives.

Ride, eat, sleep...repeat.

Caution: Objects in the mirrors no longer matter.

Have You Hugged Your Bike Today?

-----------------------------

UKBike.com are looking for blog writers!

tom@ukbike.com — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:16:28 GMT

Hi everyone, I'm Tom from the UKBike.com team.

We are looking to launch our new blog soon, which will highlight the latest bike reviews, news and video items, information on UK bike events, and updates from UKBike.com.

Our blog is also a platform for quality writing. We're looking for bike riders who can regularly turn their stories, thoughts, bike reviews, and most of all their passion for motorbikes into words.

UKBike.com is the UK's leading motorbike reviews site - in August alone we had 90,000 individual visitors. Today there are 4,401 bike reviews in our archive, and we'd really like to bring the qualities of these reviews to our new blog.

If you're interested in writing for UKBike.com, then please drop me an e-mail at tom@ukbike.com or leave a private message through this site. Look forward to hearing from you!

Cheers

Tom @ UKBike.com

Innuendo Bingo!

Mazz — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 11:52:52 GMT

As this seems to be a massive part of this site, I though we might give this a go!

I'll name a topic and you guys post up the funniest innuendo you can think of, you have unlimited turns. The one I deem the funniest will then name the next topic. The topic chooser can join in too, but they can't deem themselves the funniest.

Ok, first topic.

Working on your bike in the garage.......... and go!

very funny

bikemadbaz — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:28:41 GMT

http://www.brainsweb.co.uk/uploads/the-wrong-bike.wmv

paste link.

one of the best laughs I've had in ages.

very funny

bikemadbaz — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:28:17 GMT

http://www.brainsweb.co.uk/uploads/the-wrong-bike.wmv

paste link.

one of the best laughs I've had in ages.

Film - Wild Hogs

Mazz — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 09:40:58 GMT

Get off your hog and watch the likes of John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy as they travel across America in a comedy with plenty of Biker references your bound to enjoy.

http://wildhogs.movies.go.com/

Check out the link, read the story, play some games, build your hog, buy a ticket, go see it!

Bike cutting out!

Tonty — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 21:43:14 GMT

Hi all,

Apologies, haven't been on for a few months......

Having passed DAS in July I was enjoying getting miles in on my 96 RF600, getting confidence etc and then rode it in the rain.... After a few miles in heavy rain it cut out, no ignition lights but headlights working etc Spent ages trying to start it and ran battery flat like an idiot. RAC man's jump leads started it 1st time after an hour's wait then no probs home again. Just put it down to rain. Then it happened again on a dry evening, keft it for 15 mins and started 1st time, no probs 35 miles home. A biking mate suggested new plugs, check coils, leads etc I did all this and cleaned all the electrics than sprayed liberally with damp seal. I then rode from South Glos to Cumbria on a drizzly Saturday where it ran perfectly only to cut out after about 200 miles, same again, no ignition lights no firing on starter, however after about 10 mins tried it on full choke and it would run poorly but if throttle touched or choke off it cut out again. Then further 10 mins started 1st time no probs last 50 miles. Rode home 250 miles day after not a hiccup (except for my aches and pains that is 500 miles in 2 days in November was not comfortable).

Anyone got any suggestions? Has been suggested it could be a fuel vacuum in the tank but why no ignition lights for a few minutes??

I'm stuck and help would be appreciated.

Thanx

custom cycle magazine for sale.

bikemadbaz — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 15:32:25 GMT

been having a dig out, as you do! found the very first copy of custom cycle magazine. this is #1. the very first copy!!!!!!!!! if any one wants to buy it. the price is £4.00. plus postage. ( about two quid) its in very good nick. picture in my pics. dont know where it should be advertized so put it here. sorry if its the wrong place. got some other bike books and manuals and owners manuals also. e-mail me or leave message if you want a list. thanks Barry.

This month's RiDE magazine

Black Dog — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 20:49:08 GMT

Anyone else had problems with this month's RiDE magazine? I was told that I appeared in this issue of the mag but when I bought one the pages were all messed up - some sections printed twice, and about 50 pages mssing altogether. I went back to the shop and checked all the copies, and then all the copies in WHSmith's, but they were all the same. My mate bought his copy in a town 10 miles away and it was fine.

It's a shame, because the issue contained my handsome mug and my educated and perceptive comments on Bandit ownership!

I can't wait to see how ugly they have made me, and what nonsense they have edited my comments into

Biking books

Black Dog — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 17:02:31 GMT

I'm a bit of a literary type on the quiet, and always on the lookout for books that will interest and stimulate me, especially where bikes are concerned. In fact, there aren't all that many good books about biking. If you strip away the lifestyle journalism (Hunter S Thompson on the Hell's Angels, for example), the TV tie-ins (like the Long Way Round/Down/Up/Whatever books) and the sport-related stuff, the nmber of books about the actual experience of riding and living with a motorcycle are few and far between. Unfortunately for me, this is the kind of thing I find the most interesting.

I won't go into Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, as this is the kind of book that you either "get" or you don't, and those who "get" it have probably read it already. But a really good one (that I got for my birthday earlier this month) is:

The Perfect Vehicle, by Melissa Holbrook Pearson.

A gurl writing a book about bikes? Well, yes, and she writes very well. The book starts with a wonderful piece about wheeling the bike out of the garage, firing it up and getting ready for a day's riding. Anyone who has had a bike will appreciate the feelings, and she captures the feeling perfectly. She then goes on the describe how she got into biking, and all the biking friends and lovers, and the race days and rallies she has attended. All American, but pretty universal experiences. It's a good read right the way through, although sometimes you have to make allowances for the anti-men comments (which mostly are pretty fair, to be honest). But she loves her V-twins (Italian, naturally) and she rides them a lot, and covers a lot of mles. She starts as a pillion for a number of dodgy boyfriends, then realises she could learn to ride her own bike if she wanted to, so she buys a bike, learns to ride, and then makes the most of the freedom that she now has.

I lack the patience to read rubbish these days, and if a book hasn't grabbed me within ten pages, I bin it. I finished this one in a day. Well worth a read.

Anyone any other recommendations?

New Forum

wlio01 — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 21:50:23 GMT

Spotted this useful site which may be of interest to other forum members;

http://www.motorbike-search-engine.co.uk/index.asp

They have a new fourm which requires a few more members and posts to get it going;

http://www.motorbike-search-engine.co.uk/forum/

Ian

A street, a track, an open road

Black Dog — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 16:05:29 GMT

Anyone else seen this? I got it given as part of the end-of-course goody bag I got from the Bikesafe course I did, and last night I got around to watching it.

For those what don't know, the basic idea is:

Take an experienced touring road rider, a city courier, and a track racer. Each has two days to teach the other two the tricks of the trade, enough for them to be able to pass a simple "challenge" on the teaching rider's home turf. So they spend two days ripping up some rural roads in winter, two days learning track skills at Thruxton, and two days hooning around London, courier-stylee.

The road rider is Bob MacMillan (ex-Head of Motorcycles for Honda), the racer is Chris Walker (The Stalker) of WSB fame and the courier was a guy called Steve Manning. Each is quite a character in his own way, and the sessions are very entertaining (warnings throughout for strong language, i.e. lots of sweary bits). The three are judged, both as riders and as mentors of the others, by three judges: James Toseland, journalist Mark Forsyth, and biker and traffic cop Mark Owen.

I found the whole thing pretty interesting and informative. The road riding stuff was (to me) pretty obvious, although worth saying loud and clear. The courier stuff was just plain scary (I have never ridden in London). But the track sessions were the bit that I enjoyed the most. Imagine going round Thruxton, being followed by a WSB racer telling you through your headset how fast to go, where to brake, when to gas it, what line to take. Brilliant! It's made me really want to do a track day.

I guess the whole point is that every rider will find something on the DVD that is obvious and worthy. But they should also find a few insights and tips from other environments which they can usefully apply in their own riding. Runners and cyclists routinely train in other disciplines (sprint, long-distance, off-road etc) to build endurance and also broaden their general ability at the sport. I reckon bikers should do the same.

The makers of the DVD are http://www.stordvd.com/ and you can get it for £3 including P&P. For the cost of postage, you can borrow mine. Well worth a look.

Reading matter

Black Dog — Tue, 15 May 2007 15:26:08 GMT

OK, so what do you guys think of the magazines? Since I've been back on two, I think I have given most of them a go. I only used to read Bike in my previous biking life - from about 1975 to 1995, approx. Then, it was a bit alternative and edgy (LJK Setright, Mark Williams, Royce Creasey) but it's changed a bit in the years in between. Got middle-aged and a bit boring (but then, so have a lot of us).

I'm probably sticking with Bike every month, with Superbikes for the fun stuff (though why do they have to pull funny faces in every picture?) and RiDE for the general all-inclusive vibe. I've not had a good look at the specialist stuff (BSH and the like) as I'm not into the stuff they are. I've tried Fast Bikes and Performance Bike but was not tempted to make it a regular thing.

What do the rest of you think?

Game on

roadhoover — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 11:42:28 GMT

MOTOGP 2: Racing Technology

Brief Overview

What Moto GP 2 Is About:
The fastest, most advanced form of motorcycle racing is back and better than ever in MOTOGP 2. Race against the top twenty riders in the world at speeds of 180mph around turns and corners with your knee inches from the ground...

Platform: PC Games

Moto GP 2 Is Also Available On:
PlayStation 2 Xbox

Genre: Racing

ESRB Rating:
"Moto GP 2" is rated Everyone, for Suitable for Persons Ages Six and Older

Moto GP 2 Special Features:

• Fully licensed professional riders, tracks, and bikes
• 6 different single player game modes: Stunt, GP, time trial, training challenges, tag and single race
• 20 riders compete in each of the 16 tracks
• Impressive visual and particle effects system at 60 frames per second
• Ultra realistic replay mode, from a variety of dynamic camera viewpoints
• Unlock tracks, riders, bikes, and cheats as you develop your own rider’s attributes in GP and training modes.

Credits:
• Developer: Climax Group
• Publisher: THQ, Inc.

The game was created in 2003, so you have the old bikes and riders to race against. Rossi, Capirossi, Barros, Nakano, Gibernau and Biaggi are names you’re probably all aware of, but you also have Kato, Ukawa, Kenny Roberts Senior, Aoki and Vandergoorbergh. For all of you who remember the 2002 season it’ll be a blast from the past.

How else are you going to be able to skim by the rear wheel of Rossi? Beat Sete Gibernau off the mark? Or be less than 0.02sec in front going into the last lap? Well, this game has tried and, in fairness, succeeded quite well. Given the fact it was made in 2003, and without much in the way of Motorbike games to fall back on, THQ and Climax have done a decent job.

So, to the game. It’s easier to just to talk you through my experiences with it, rather than generalising on key points. (I have the PC version so all info and opinions are taken from the PC version only)

Firstly, input is through the keyboard only. I don’t have a gaming controller so everything is done through my keyboard. If you have a PC I’d suggest getting a game controller, NOT a joystick as this can get cumbersome.

Setting up your character is fun, too much fun in fact. I spent so much time creating and designing the bike and leathers that I forgot to play the game! Firstly, name your player and team you race for. These are two input fields so type in what ever, then choose your bike. There is a bit of choice, no Ducati’s in there though. The Honda NSR 500 is currently my favourite, but you have Kawasaki, Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki, Aprilia and even Proton. All of whom have a choice between 500cc and 990cc machines.

Once your bike is chosen you can set up the colour scheme. Lots of different variations in colour are possible. You are asked to choose 3 different colours; Body, Graphics and Details. Once done you can match our leathers to the bike or try to recreate your Alpinestars. One very annoying factor is that the bikes all have predetermined graphics that can’t be changed. The NSR for example has ‘flames’ coming round the fairing. It’s something you have to live with, but don’t be pulled into going for a bike just because it looks good. Then choose a number.

To start with I’d recommend a 500 simply because your rider can handle it. The 990’s are too powerful and you’ll find yourself sliding the rear wheel out and falling off quite a lot. Once your attributes are up you can then look at getting a higher spec bike. During the season you can change at anytime to which ever bike you want. You will notice small differences with the bikes, but nothing that really sticks out.

Ok, the bike is ready, now you have to set your attributes. 4 categories for you to choose from; Cornering, Braking, Top Speed and Acceleration. All of these have an effect on the riders performance on track. Needless to say, the more cornering ability you have, the quicker you can flick it through a chicane (you can guess the other ones for yourself I think).

You’re ready to race.

Four modes of play are available. Career, Single Race, Time Trial and Stunt. The first 3 are fairly self explanatory but stunt…? Huh? I thought this was a MotoGP game, not a Motocross one! Alas, you have the correct game don’t worry. This game mode is rather peculiar, the idea being you pull off stunts to accumulate points and unlock new riders. Wheelies, Endos, Powerslides and actually knocking others off will gain you more points.

Career mode is the one I’ll concentrate on, the other two are easy to understand. Training first and this is a good idea. It is skipable if you want to get into

the gritty stuff though I’d recommend it. Once a task is complete you gain an attribute point to put towards your rider abilities.

To progress in the championship you must complete the race. Simple as that, it doesn’t matter what position you finish. The first track is Suzuka, Japan and racing is fun, very fun! This is the first Bike racing game I’ve owned so I was excited, but with nothing to compare it to this could sound a little ‘off’. Sitting on the start line, waiting for the red light to go off for the first time… try wiping the smile off your face! Engines revving, horns going off in the crowd, and then… you’re off. Screaming off the startline on a little 500, flying past some of the slower riders and setting yourself up for turn one. By the time turn two has come up, one of two things will have happened. Either you’ve crashed due to inexperience (like me) and left the braking way to late OR You’ve got them all before the second corner… I mean everyone.

The difficulty settings leave a lot to be desired. Great if you just starting but if you’re like me and competitive then you’ll want a close race. Forget it, especially if you’ve selected Rookie. The other bikes might not even be on the track, they’re so far behind. I grinned and bared it. If you win a race, you win more attribute points for your rider, very valuable for later stages.

As I said before, I have a keyboard so my input into control is limited. Unlike an analogue control, I’m digital. Either my throttle is fully on, or off. Analogue gives an advantage for holding speed in the corners and using varying amounts of lean angle to get the corner perfect. My keyboard goes to the extremes every time I hit the button. Don’t get me wrong, you can still compete very well with the Keyboard, but an analogue controller will allow to hone your skills quicker, and get better lap times (which incidentally will unlock the track you’re racing on in mirrored or reversed or both!) The weather is variable, only you don’t know what the weather will be (Luckily your tyres change with the weather though.) again, the analogue controller comes into it’s own in the wet. You can apply progressive amounts of throttle to get a good start, on a keyboard the wheel spins and your far behind the rest before the you get any grip at all.

It’s not just the bike you need to control either, you need to put the rider in the correct position. You’ve seen them on TV, head down kissing the tank in a straight line and fully upright when approaching a corner. The game does this well and it does make a difference too. Braking is good, you can use either front or rear braking. Be warned though, slamming the front brake on mid turn will cause you to lowside, likewise with the rear brake, but this’ll send you sky rocketing.

In single race mode you can race as any rider from the season. Baring in mind though you need to unlock them in the stunt mode first. Rossi, Checa, Biaggi, Ukawa and others are locked to begin with.

Once you’ve gotten the gist of the game you can start to play with a few bike settings, suspension, wheelbase, tyre compound and gear ratios are the only things that are changeable but do have an impact on handling and speed. Manual gears can be selected here too (automatic is the default setting), amount of laps from 1 up to the realistic amount for that track.

In conclusion then it is a good game. It’s one that you will keep coming back too once you’ve watched a race and it’s a great way of passing the time. Just trying to beat your lap time on Estoril or Sepang keeps me amused. Up to 16 players online can race at any one time but I’m yet to find a forum with like minded games who want a race. If you want a race, give me a shout!

Mazz005