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Vega has landed…

2012-12-12T08:00:41+00:00

My Scarlett is no more.. that was the news in October, but in December there is a much sunnier forecast!! Scarlett has now been replaced by Vega (means Swooping Eagle - chosen by Saskia).

Vega is a 110th Anniversary Dyna Super Glide Custom, which was all arranged for me by the team at Stratstone Harley-Davidson at Stoke on Trent, a nicer, more welcoming, helpful bunch of guys (and gals) that you could hope to meet.

Vega was all organised for me by Tim Scott (Business Manager) and Paul Alcock (Sales Executive), these two worked tirelessly with my Insurance company to ensure that I got what I really wanted! Thanks guys.

Anyway, a little more about Vega.. she’s an Air-Cooled, Evolution® 96 cubic inch beauty, with some unique artwork on her, including the 110th Anniversary Fuel Tank Medallion. Vega is number 398 of 1450 produced.

Vega rides slightly lower than Scarlett did, as Harley-Davidson reduced the ground clearance to 110mm from Scarlett’s ground clearance of 120mm. It’s been baffling me why Vega feels different to Scarlett did, the ground clearance is lower, the seat is a different design, Vega is also a shorter bike than Scarlett was and the wheels are different sizes too, as well as the fuel tank being almost 2 litres smaller than Scarlett was, it all makes for a different ride, a better ride..

The whole feeling of the ride is different on Vega, it’s hard to determine why, the ride position seems more comfortable and laid back, the engine is more responsive on the power, even the handlebars feel different, with the mini pull-back look giving a relaxed riding position.

The electronic controls have all been upgraded too, the Trip computer is now on the left hand side of the handlebars, there is a “flash” option too.

All in all, I think that the new slightly modified 110th Anniversary Vega is an even better bike than Scarlett was, and she was a superb ride, despite me only having her for 5 months.. the Anniversary model has some beautiful artwork on her, as can be seen from these photographs.

Scarlett is dead…

2012-10-22T09:00:21+01:00

My Scarlett is no more.. smashed by a careless car driver!!

Saturday morning, riding along the Narborough Road in the direction of the Foxhunter Roundabout, I was smashed into by a woman driver attempting to perform a U-Turn on the dual carriageway.. duh!!

View Larger Map

So who in their right mind attempts to perform a U-Turn on construction instead of just going around the roundabout? Yes, your guess is as good as mine!!

So after swerving from the slow lane, with no indicators, the lady in question attempts to perform a U-Turn on the construction area, but STOPS across the fast lane.. GOODNIGHT VIENNA!!

Tomorrow I will be visiting the Recovery Yard to see what happens next.. I’ve been informed by the Police that the front forks are shattered, the left side of Scarlett is a MESS.. wonder just how bad a mess?

One thing that I am positive that I got right, is my riding gear, which was cut off me in Hospital as I was in the Head & Spinal injuries section, but there wasn’t a single scratch or abrasion on me - GOOD riding gear!!

I’m walking and talking, although I am in pain with the fractured ribs, but I will ride again - “Live To Ride, Ride To Live” and I’m healthy, but I fear that Scarlett is beyond repair at this moment in time, which is heartbreaking after the customisation that I did and it took me a while to find the perfect bike to ride.

RTTW 5 - The day after

2012-10-07T09:06:17+01:00

RTTW 5 - the day after..

My first ride out on RTTW - Ride To The Wall - and what a FANTASTIC day!! You couldn’t really ask for a better day.. it rained on the friday, thick fog on the sunday, but on the saturday it was dry and sunny, proof that God loves bikers!!

Met up with 400+ same attitude people at Leicester Forest East Services and rode northbound on the M1 heading to Alrewas, destination the National Memorial Arboretum. We all rode as a group northbound, then turned onto the A50 heading westwards towards the Midlands, destination the NMA. I think that the car drivers were extremely surprised to see so many bikers together, most of them couldn’t fathom out how to deal with so many bikes on one stretch of road of course.

I think that there were approximately 10,000 bikes attending RTTW 5, Scooter Clubs, MCC’s, Harley Chapters and everyone rode with one thought “To honour those who could no longer ride alongside us”. Bikers get a bad reputation generally, but as the the Colonel stated “Bikers have BIG hearts..” and who wants to argue with that sentiment? Who would have believed a sermon from “The God Squad” about male genitalia and squirrels in front of 15,000 people.. it happened, but you had to be there to appreciate it!

A video link was sent from the troops in Afghanistan, the Founder Martin Dickinson made a short but apt speech and this was followed by more speeches and many grown men trying (and failing!) to hide the tears..

Overall, it was a brilliantly organised day, the team of Road Marshall’s got everyone there safely, parked up and processed to the NMA, where we were able to wander around the NMA, inspecting the memorials and talking with like minded bikers, some ex-military, some with family in the military and some who had lost family and friends, talking in my case with a chap who had cut his teeth maintaining the same Oerlikon Gun as I had in the Royal Navy.

We were also treated to a superb fly-by from a Dakota DC3, flown VERY low for the benefit of the crowd, with the crew frantically waving out of the rear door as the sun shone brightly.. God DOES love Bikers!!

All I can say is roll on RTTW 6 in 2013, count me in!!

RTTW 5 - Ride To The Wall 2012

2012-06-30T09:24:29+01:00

Just sent my registration off for RTTW 5 - Ride To The Wall 2012 This will be my first ride out on this type of event.

I suppose that I am nervous, a voluntary organisation which has raised over £150,000.00 in five years for a great cause. The annual ride brings together bikers from near and far together to attend a memorial service at the National Memorial Arboretum on 6th October.

I don’t belong to any club - with the exception of being a H.O.G. of course, riding Scarlett, my Dyna Super Glide Custom, so it will be an honour and privelige to ride with hundreds of fellow bikers to to ride to the NMA to pay my respects to those who are unable to ride alongside us after making the ultimate sacrifice.

I will be taking my daughter Saskia (age 12) with me, so that she can learn what it’s all about and perhaps she will understand what it was like to serve as I did in the Royal Navy. I honestly feel that this is something which we in the UK are lacking, an understanding and respect for those who served and fell.

RTTW CORE VALUES

RTTW is founded on the principles of Remembrance and Respect.
To remember those that can no longer ride by our side.
To give all motorcyclists an opportunity to pay their respects to the memory of the fallen and express our gratitude for their sacrifice.
To show support for the Armed Forces currently serving both at home and abroad.
To raise money for the upkeep of the venue that serves to perpetuate the memory of those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

More updates will follow ..

Dyna Time

2012-05-20T13:14:59+01:00

My Dyna Super-Glide Custom was delivered yesterday by Stratstone Harley-Davidson at Stoke - the bike was in pristine condition, polished to perfection with a Pure Guard coating, the first coating of pre-glaze seals the paintwork on the Super Glide, the second coating fuses together the first coating to protect the bike and it’s guaranteed for six years, so my bike should maintain it’s showroom appearance until I do decide to sell her (her because she has been named “Scarlett”).

The bike rides like a dream, almost 1600cc (96 cubic inches) of sheer Harley-Davidson Twin Cam 96 power matched with the ESPFI system. It handles so smoothly and the power is available as soon as you need it, don’t get me wrong, this is NOT a racer of any description, but it does have the power available to accelerate as soon as you need it. The Twin Cam 96 is developed from the 1909 V-Twin of Harley-Davidson’s heritage and that heritage shows and works!

The Super Glide is maxed out with the chrome and high end finishes, chrome rocker covers, tank mounted gauges with wrap around chrome, the solid stainless steel pullback handlebars are a perfect fit for my riding style, enabling me to just cruise in comfort. Probably one of the best design parts of the Super Glide is the self cancelling turn indicators, you don’t have to think about them, they judge their own distance and self cancel, all done using accelerometers.

The bike also comes equipped with ABS as factory installed, so stopping power is there in heaps and really gives you a feeling of security and safety. The bike also has an inbuilt security system, no key to fire up the ignition as most bikes do, the Super Glide uses a security key fob which activates the ignition system when you are standing near the bike, no key to think about!! Perfect as you just keep the fob in your jacket pocket and start her up when you are ready to ride.. and what a ride!!

Customer Service

2012-05-12T19:34:22+01:00

I was reading a survey recently which asked the question “If Harley-Davidson make Motorcycles which have so many problems, why do they have one of the largest brand loyalty followings” ?

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is premised on the belief that developing a relationship with customers is the best way to get them to become loyal and that loyal customers are more profitable than non-loyal customers. There are situations where anecdotal evidence indicates that forming a relationship with a brand and/or the retailer selling it will be relevant. In markets where psychological and social value dominate function (such as luxury goods, cosmetics, and lifestyle brands), there may be a significant “brand component” that drives consumer choice and commitment. Some consumers may attribute a personality to the brand and want a relationship with it. For example, if you are Harley-Davidson selling big motor cruisers and the feeling of being free and somewhat rebellious, then forming a relationship with your customers makes sense. Here, much of what is being bought is social and psychological in nature. The motorbike is really a “ticket to entry” to one of the various Harley- Davidson subcultures. The company creates much of the “product” by fostering the core values of personal freedom, machismo, patriotism, and American heritage. They manage the customer relationship with a CRM program that involves bike rallies, services, clothing, collectibles, and their HOG club which has an incredible root culture within the UK, which is probably one of the last places that you would expect.. after all, we Brits are VERY conservative in our views.. unlike our American cousins. So why does Harley-Davidson have such a loyal customer base? Is the rebellious nature of the HD Rider? Is it that people who work at HD have that “Family Together” attitude?

With its feet firmly planted in both the present and the past, Harley-Davidson offers traditional - many say retro - styles and the best, most-refined 1940's technology around. That approach - marked by ample bulk (some models weigh almost 800 pounds, about twice that of otherwise comparable BMW machines), twin cylinders and a throaty growl -- has been derided by high-tech motorcycling enthusiasts as an inefficient relic of a bygone era. But to Harley's customers, the motorcycles are lovingly crafted works of art. And many genuine artists agree. In a recent exhibit of global design held at London's Victoria and Albert Museum, the object chosen to represent America's design sense was a Harley-Davidson.

I think that you only need to watch the video of the genuine Harley Rider video below (Living By It) and that sums it up.. pistons as big as dustbins (garbage cans - US version!!), petrol tanks designed in 1936, freight train sized headlights.. we don’t care what everyone else believes.. Amen..

But speaking from personal experience, I want to say that I think that one of the newest HD Dealerships in the UK have it right.. Stoke Harley Davidson - that’s why I purchased a new HD Super Glide Custom from them last week. From the moment that I stepped through the doorway, to the moment that I walked out with a BIG smile on my face, I knew that I had made the right choice of dealer for my bike. No pressure from the Sales Team (Paul Alcock), a desire to help you (Russel - BDM, Tim Williams, Bryan Adams - no, not THAT Bryan Adams, THE Bryan Adams for HD Parts and Service). I’ve yet to discover a nicer team of people, who’s one aim is to have a happy customer welcomed into “The Family”.. don’t believe that statement.. check out their Facebook Page, EVERY photograph of the happy customer - “Welcome To The Family” on the comments section.. start as you mean to go on.

As an example of the brand selling itself, how many companies with Billion Pound / Dollar turnovers only spends US$1 Million in it’s annual advertising campaign? Selling in excess of 110,000 Harleys in a year.. we’re in a double dip recession of course!! So why does the Harley continue to sell so well? Is it the brand or the fact that the brand represents a lifestyle? It’s that rebellious nature, the bad boy, the Wild West and the individualism. In fact, after speaking with the other Bryan Adams, I’m adamant that I’m going to customise MY Super Glide Custom over the next six months in the run up to Christmas - tip from Bryan - keep your Harley-Davidson Catalogue in the bathroom, with some post-it-notes and a highlighter.. great way to drop the hint for Christmas presents!!

You only have to look at Willie G. the Grandson of one of the founders of Harley-Davidson, his attitude of meeting the customers and sticking to the ethos of the 40’s and 50’s design and staying well clear of the slickness of the Japanese bikes, this helped to foster the brand loyalty even more, just look at the bikes now, they still maintain that retro look back to the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s when Harley’s were at their most popular and there is no sign of them changing the design that much into the future, the biggest change to the range was probably the V-Rod which was the most radical styling change for Harley-Davidson. Whilst at the same time they are maintaining the retro look with the 72 range.

As long as the company keeps listening to their customers, promotes the family loyalty of HD and have staff who REALLY care about the customer and their bike, then Harley-Davidson will continue to grow..

Time To Shop

2012-05-06T12:12:06+01:00

Well yesterday was a good day.. OK, it was GREAT day!! I decided that I would go and have a look at the Fat Bob that was advertised in Stoke Harley-Davidson’s webpage - oh boy was I disappointed when Paul (Sales Team) smiled and said “Sorry Steve, I sold that one in the week..” was I gutted!!

Then I started looking around the showroom at some of the other great Harley’s which they had on offer.. one caught my eye.. well actually three of them.. bikes, not my eyes! They had three brand new HD Super Glide Custom FXDCLV2’s in stock in the showroom, in Ember Red Sunglow and they were a steal at ￡9,999 each on the road. That’s about ￡1,700 below the list price for the bike. I was getting tempted, sat on one to get the feel for it.. comfortable tourer seat, perfect reach distance for me (I must have weird arms!!), nice riding position.. then Paul struck again and put a sold notice on the bike.. was I jinxed? Or was Paul winding me up? No.. he’d sold his second Super Glide.

So on the initial delivery of four bikes, Paul had sold two of them, well he soon had his hat trick in the bag.. I was number three.. couldn’t really let the Super Glide go to someone else could I? I made my decision there and then.. well Paul did gang up on me with the rest of the family, Wife liked the colour, Daughter liked the seat and Son was thinking about the Father & Son bonding time .. I was outnumbered from the start!! But at the price of ￡9,999 on the road, it was a bargain as a first time HD for me.

I have to say what a great day I had meeting everyone at the Dealership, Paul (Sales), Russel (Business Development), Bryan Adams (Spares and Service) and Chris (Spares and Service). I even got to chat to Ian and Paul from the Stoke HOG Chapter. Nice bunch of guys who really took time to chat to my family about the HOG Chapter. So all the initial paperwork has been done, just need to send them a cheque for the balance now.. and the Super Glide will be delivered to me on my return from France in a couple of weeks time.

Roll on the 30th May, when I am onto the final Module Part 2 of my test and I can hit the open road and go riding.. HEAVEN!!

Time To Ride - Part II

2012-04-07T16:10:00+01:00

The training is going well, am booked in for a whole day at the end of the month, getting me fully trained for my Bike Test, been checking out the slalom, figure of 8 and emergency stops - EVERYTHING that Tim my Instructor has been coaching me on, “just remember to let the bike run ..” Tim’s wise words of wisdom, “Allow the bike to tick over and you just use the clutch and remember to look ahead in your turning..”

Once I’ve taken (and hopefully) passed my test at the end of this month I will be booking a few test rides at Sycamore Harley in Uppingham, I’m seriously taken with the Fat Bob that Harley Davidson have built from Street Bob and the Fat Boy. A real Street Brawler that has a great power train with an Air Cooled Twin Cam 96 engine on the chassis, 1584CC of raw HD power!!

Dripping with attitude and menacing looks, the Fat Bob® motorcycle is a back alley brawler that everyone sees (and hears coming - it’s well known that “Loud Pipes Save Lives”).

The aggressive looking beefy handlebar is truly reminiscent of an aggressive quarter mile monster. The wide stance with 16” front wheel takes the fat custom look to a whole new dimension. The Fat Bob® model features a distinctive cast chrome double headlamp bucket that blasts open the night so you can see everything in your path.

I think that the only modification which I will be making will be running boards and a two up seat.. all that’s needed really as well as adding some leather bags for my work stuff, well I am an Engineer!!

Time To Ride

2012-03-05T19:04:22+00:00

Decided that as I’ve now hit the BIG 5-0.. it’s time to make one of my dreams come true..

Time for me to become legal and ride a Harley Davidson Fatboy as I’ve been thinking about since 1984, yes I know.. it’s taken me a while to get to this point of achieving something that I’ve been thinking about for almost 30 years.. I suppose that’s what riding a Harley is all about, it’s not about getting there, but how you get there.. I think this HD video just about sums up what I’m thinking!!

So immediately after turning 50 I decided to enrol with Two Wheels in Nuneaton for my CBT lessons, now bear in mind that I haven’t been on a motorbike for more than 18 years - yes I was rusty, but I have to admit that the training which I received from Tim and Ray was second to none.. two patient (well they had to be with me!!) and confident Instructors, who between them had me blowing away the cobwebs in a matter of minutes.

They had me pulling emergency stops, U-Turns and figure of eights on a Yamaha 125 within 2 hours. Then it was time to let me loose on Nuneaton, was Nuneaton aware of what was going to be unleashed on it??? Well after 6 hours in the saddle and walking like John Wayne on a severe overdose of natural adrenalin I was back riding and feeling like I’d never been away! Man did it feel good.

Then it was onto my Theory Test and Hazard Perception last week. I have to confess that the Theory Test was quite easy to me, it’s all about common sense, but the Hazard Perception was a TOTALLY new concept, sit in front of a PC and spot dangers.. not as easy as it sounds actually!! I have to admit that my heart was racing after those 14 video’s.

I’ve still got the bug, so it’s onto my Direct Access Training Course with Tim next, riding something bigger than the Yamaha 125 cc motorbike.. and I really can’t wait!! Watch this space for more updates as they happen.

My final goal is my own Harley Davidson Fatboy - bike of my dreams and no doubt I will be setting up a few test rides at Sycamore Harley Davidson in the next few weeks once I’ve completed my training to choose a bike…

Custom Chrome 2012

2012-03-04T14:21:35+00:00

Had a great day at the Sycamore Harley Davidson Custom Chrome Show yesterday. There were some awesome HD’s which had been customised, special mention must go to RTTW - Ride To The Wall - a lovingly customised HD dedicated to the men and women of the armed forces.

There were some fine examples of unique artwork too, Hardcore, Spiderman, etc.. Serious artwork taken to a new level. Examples of these are viewable in the gallery HERE

Dark Custom

2012-01-07T12:16:25+00:00

Had the pleasure of looking at a unique (??) paint job on one of the bikes at Sycamore Harley Davidson, they’ve taken what looks like a Sportster and customised it with some great Evil Knievel paintwork - very reminiscent of the Evil Knievel period!!

Evil Knievel Paintwork

The work put in by the team at Sycamore is quite awesome in what they have created here.

iCloud

2011-10-16T11:57:25+01:00

After implementing iCloud on my network devices, I have to say what a “Brilliant” job Apple did in creating and implementing the new software, total integration across all of my devices, Mac Mini, iMac, iPad, iPhone and iPod.

I now have full visibility of all my contacts, calendars and emails synchronised across the iCloud network and I’ve not exceeded my 5Gb storage limit yet, so no extra charges to pay, although I do think that the cost of the extra storage capability is worth it for the convenience aspect.

Now wouldn’t it be nice if I could get my Blackberry to synchronise into my iCloud network, but I suppose that RIM have enough problems of their own at the moment just trying to get the Blackberry network stable after the fiasco of last week!!

Muse

2011-09-27T05:23:14+01:00

Playing with the new software from Adobe entitled MUSE, this really is a great piece of software, very much in the mould of Rapidweaver, which enables you to drag ’n’ drop sections into your webpage.

The design interface is incredibly simple to use, allowing something with very little computer coding skills to create great looking webpages. Simple control panel usage allows me to define the page dimensions and then define how many columns I would like on each page, as well as anchoring images, curving the corners and simple foot notes.

It all works through a very well defined user interface, allowing me to tweak virtually every aspect of the webpage being created. Now I just need to be able to design a few more templates for personal use.

More investigation will be required, but on the first pass, this looks like an incredibly powerful piece of web design software for the complete novice.

Does My Church Need A Website

2011-09-26T15:57:50+01:00

Having managed the webpage for St. Leonard’s Church in Swithland for about two years now, I’ve been thinking... “Does A Church Really Need A Webpage?”

I considered all of the options of why I created a webpage for my Church - Swithland Church - http://www.swithlandchurch.org

1. To assist people who have a computer and internet access to view information readily about our Church.

2. To be able to post photographs of the recent events, well it saves us chopping down trees and printing the photographs off. Or as we had done previously, all of the photographs of Church events were loaded onto my iPad and passed around the congregation on a Sunday morning after the Service was completed and we were all enjoying coffee.

3. People don't listen to the notices announced at Church, the Swithland Church webpage allows us a relatively cheap method of publishing notices and events, available to people within the Parish and for their friends and families around the world. Some of our event notices have gone as far as Hong Kong!

4. People who don't come to our Church need information about our Church - see above!! The Swithland Church website provides fast and easy access to information including Service times, events, meetings etc. There are a number of people in our Church now who came because they looked at our Church website, so it works from the point of view of getting the information out into the ether and encouraging new people to attend.

5. Most of us secretly feel that any company or organisation without a good web presence MUST be considered as rank-amateurish or 'small-fry’, whereas God really isn’t ‘small-fry’!! So let’s get our Swithland Church on the web!! That’s probably a more effective war cry than “Geronimo”.

6. If someone is looking for a Church in Swithland or the outlying regions, they will turn to Google first to find the Church, so we can utilise the power of Google to help our Church in growing.

7. Because I’m still humbled by the amount of people in my Church who inform me that they ‘regularly’ reference the Church webpage for information and to view the photographs of events. After the Harvest Festival, I had 9 emails commenting about the photographs uploaded within 3 hours of the event concluding.

8. As a Christian, it provides me with a personal resource, where I can utilise the tapestry of Swithland Church's webpage, to assist other Christian entities to publicise their issues, such as the Christian Bookshops. As an additional example, Canon Anne and Bob Osborne wrote a wonderful book on the history of Swithland over the last 1,000 years, we were able to publicise the book, the book signing evening and small excerpts from the book, enabling more than 250 books to be pre-ordered BEFORE being printed.

However I would say a Church needs a good website rather than a website created by someone without the necessary skills, which sadly is often the case for a number of Churches, someone in the congregation with some computing knowledge is "volunteered" to create a web presence for their Church (been there, done that!). Some of the websites which I have browsed for Churches would have been more effective not being online, they looked like they had been developed by someone with only a very rudimentary understanding of web design techniques!

Websites can make a Church look as unattractive as much as attractive and as a Webmaster I consider it’s my job to keep the Swithland Church webpage fresh, vibrant, interesting and up to date, this I can do with the support of EVERYONE in our Church, whether it be providing regular news articles or commenting on how good the Church webpage is...

And at the moment, I am LOVING my webpage!!