BikerThomas.com

Youtube is great! Here are some short video clips on safety awareness for cagers and bikers alike. Share them with everyone you know!

Me and a friend from work, Atle,  took our motorcycles out for a 200KM ride last Sunday, the weather was great and it was nice to drive together with someone. Atle drives a Honda V45 Magna 750C.

The ride from Kristiansand to the smaller places inland like Vegusdal sets for a ride full of neck-braking turns while the return from Arendal to Kristiansand we drove on E18 which is the main highway in this area.

We had a stop in Arendal for pizza and by coincidence the yearly boat exhibition was on that day so we got to see some nice boats as well :)

Left: Arendal boat exhibition. Right: Atle with his Honda V45 Magna 750C (right)

Left: Magna and my Vulcan 900. Right: Some guy had parked his nice VN800 Classic close to our bikes, nice to see some other Vulcans around! :)

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Read about Honda V45 Magna here:
http://www.honda-v4.com/sabmag/july/mdouglas/1982_magna.html

The sun was up and there was summer all over – time to hit the road! I went up to a place called Herefoss, about 60KM north east of Kristiansand, Norway.

 
Herefoss in Aust Agder, Norway

 
There was something on my camera lens…

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Have you noticed that some riders have a small bell hanging off their motorcycle frame? Do you know why?

That little bell is not just for decoration, it also wards off evil road spirits (gremlins). The gremlins cause all sorts of problems. Have you ever had a flat battery? It’s the gremlins! Did your head lamp stop working for no reason or are you having trouble with shifting gears smoothly? It’s those darn gremlins and according to legend you’ll have to have a gremlin bell to protect you against these evil little bastard…

Apparently gremlins hate the ringing sound of the bell and will go crazy and let their grip off your motorcycle and fall to the roadway.

Most riders believe that the bell only works if it is given to you as a gift, therefore riders buy bells for each other. The saying is that if given to a biker from another biker the bells protective powers are amplified.  Actually, there are forums online where people exchange bells! I don’t have one myself, but I know what I want for my birthday :)

Read more about gremlin bells here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biker’s_bell

 
Bells come in many variants, some are even made in silver and some are for lady riders.

Cool bulldog bell and a skull and bones bell.

My family gave me an excellent little multitool that’ll be great to bring on longer rides where I’ll have to camp. It has all the standard features like a knife, corkscrew, can opener and bottle opener, but it also has a spoon and a fork which is great cause I’ll never have to bring cutlery ever again. It’s also stainless which is good. I’m not sure where they bought it but I’m sure you can find something similar online if you’re interested – soooo hit Google! :)

You don’t actually get a pen with the multitool… it’s just to show you the size of the tool.

I just found an excellent video on how to assemble an inexpensive $5 do-it-yourself motorcycle handlebar mount for video and still cameras!

So now you can go out and record your best rides in high def.
Let me know if you make one for yourself, send me pictures! :)

Tools:
flat head screwdriver, drill and 1/4" drill bit, dremel or other cutting tool

Parts:
1" diameter PVC T connector threaded and threaded cap, 1/4" bolt with washer and wingnut, 2 hose clamps, pieces of rubber hose

I found some great tips that all motorcycle riders and passengers should read before riding 2-up. I’ve found two great articles on this:

eHow: How to Be a Good Motorcycle Passenger
Chuck Hawks 11 tips for the motorcycle passenger