Editorial
The SAM Club is busy having a lot of fun. Saturday mornings are very well attended. Bookings for SAM Club Autumn Curry Night, on the 30th November, are steadily growing. Pillion continues with her quest to get the best bargains for the SAM Club Christmas Party, on the 4th December, slowly piling up raffle prizes in the spare bedroom.
From the beginning of December, Mark Pashley will be managing the SAM Club emails. Mark will manage all new sign-ups to the SAM Club email list and send out Club emails. All emails will be sent from the social-media@iam-sheffield.bike account, so make sure that you add this address to your ‘safe sender’ list. Your Editor and Webmaster will continue ‘editing’ and ‘webmastering’. Send anything that you want to appear in the weekly SAM Club Newsletter, or put onto the website, to sam-editor@iam-sheffield.bike.
In your newsletter this week there is a round up of new bikes on show at EICMA. To help in caring for your bike there are articles on glue and sticker removal, understanding how oil affects the engine, how to choose a bike stand and protecting your bike for the coming winter. For riding, there is news of a new helmet with an embedded NFC medical chip. Honda has patented a ‘smart’ windshield that automatically adjusts as you are riding. Keis have a new body warmer to keep you nice and toasty. Read about a new lightweight armoured shirt. If you break down, or need to stop and help, there is a new flashing warning light that fits very neatly behind the rear number plate. For when you are out with friends there is an article on group riding. Lastly, have you signed the petition to remove VAT from inflatable safety vests?
Our very good friends the Whiteknights have been fund raising. However, they are still looking for a car to help when they can’t ride two wheels. If you can help, or have any ideas on how they might get one, let Roy Clark know. Otherwise, how about raising a few quid to help them keep going.
It’s the IAM’s annual general meeting this week. They have put the agenda, accounts, voting forms, future strategy and notice of membership price increases, onto the IAM website. There is also a very good article on a biker overcoming the devastating results of a crash.
Kevin Williams writes about the limitations of Gortex. Responding to biker comments about mounting a phone he questions the wisdom of mounting a phone at all. Following a near-miss, he discusses the problem with letter-box headlights. He answers the question about bike manufacturers’ use of bike performance data. It can be used in legal proceedings. Kevin also writes on how to engage trainees with a table-top street layout. Always worth a read.
For adventure riding read about Ellie Cooper’s ride through India. It was an exciting and butt-clenching trip. A more sedate ride is the Isle of Skye Loop. Although when pillion and I did it there was rain, thick fog and it was freezing cold. Nice ride though! Just to show how motorcycles can change lives, read about the 5-minute ride that put excitement into a young lad’s life that lasted for years.
Finally, for the history slot, read about resurrecting a Ducati 900 SS. It was buried by an earthquake! There is also a great story about a 1960s BSA B50 to round off the entertainment. Happy reading.
Ways to stay in touch with your Club!
It’s really easy to stay in touch with your Club! We provide emails, a website and use social media accounts for you to contact us. All of which is free of any cost to the Club. If you are not getting the Club information circulated, or simply want to tell us something, just let us know at sam-editor@iam-sheffield.bike. We’ll be happy to ensure that we stay in touch with you. You can also now sign up for Club emails on the SAM website.
IAM RoadSmart Annual General Meeting
It was the IAM’s AGM yesterday. They reported a £1.7m loss for the year 2022/2023. This was accounted for by losses in volatile investment markets and restructuring costs. They have a 3-year development plan with members at the heart of delivering services. Engaging with the membership has been less than satisfactory in the past and they are determined to correct the situation. This work has already begun with visits to Groups and Regional Forums. The current membership is 74,795, falling steadily from 85,752 five years ago. The meeting voted for the 8.3% increase in Membership fees. It’s an increase of £4/year for members paying by direct debit. Issues from Groups such as payments to motorcycle observers and recruiting younger members will be followed up by the CEO.
