Editorial
A very big thank you to all those SAM members who helped to make the SAM Club Christmas Party a very enjoyable event. A very special thanks to Janis Conway for all her hard work in choosing and shopping for the great raffle prizes. Everyone who won was very pleased with their good fortune.
Congratulations to Andy Hall on becoming our latest advanced rider. Also, many thanks to Phil Edwards (Observer) for all his hard work in helping another rider to complete our advanced motorcycle training.
As noted in the last SAM Club newsletter, Mark Pashley has taken over email distribution. Your newsletters will be sent from the social-media@iam-sheffield.bike email address. Make sure that it is on your safe sender list. You can always see your SAM Club newsletter on the SAM website. In fact, we keep all SAM Club information on the website. Having one place to look makes it easy to share the latest information with everyone. It also updates our public audience about activity and events in the SAM Club. Of course, being a public billboard, any personal information is only shared with the information provider’s consent.
The newsfeed page on the SAM website now has six feeds. All the latest news from the world of motorcycling is constantly updated. Whilst there is no SAM Club night until the 5th February 2024 (the day after my 76th birthday!) members meet at Meadowhall Retail Park 9am every Saturday morning. The event is dedicated to members, Associates and Visitors riding out, but there is nothing to prevent members joining us to chat and catch up. Just a thought.
In news from the world of road safety this week, it was reported that 50% of e-scooter KSIs occurred outside the test areas. It prompted IAM RoadSmart to describe it as ‘shocking’ and the ‘Wild West’ for road users. In May 2022, similar terms were used by Police organisations with a call for urgent legislation. 18 months later we are still waiting. A safer and more constructive use of electric vehicles when Zero motorcycles was awarded the Maude Trophy. It’s an award for innovation in long-distance travel. Despite temperatures of -6C, a team of riders, led by NMC member Craig Carey-Clinch, travelled 1,300 miles, going via four UK cities and using only the UK charging network. You can also read about how electric mopeds can be great fun for adventure riding.
Bennetts Insurance have an article on ‘cars that 16-year-olds can drive’ and how to buy and insure a quad bike. However, most newsfeeds are begging consumers NOT to buy an e-scooter, scrambler or quad bike for children this Christmas. It might be a good idea to NOT buy them at all!
The Welsh government has published a strategic transport plan. Motorcycles don’t exist in Wales. The plan favours walking, public transport and electric vehicles. Also, the widespread imposition of 20mph zones is beginning to show that, where traffic-calming speed humps are used, there is structural damage to nearby property. Motorcycles are unlikely to make any contribution to this problem.
An RAC survey on fuel prices shows that they remain too high. There is a debate as to whether this is due to profiteering by the oil companies, or a need to maintain tax revenue by the government. A more warming thought, particularly at this time of year, is that Indian motorcycles have developed a wireless system for activating heated clothing. Via inductive-power-transfer, rider clothing can be heated or cooled. It will be interesting to see how this innovation develops, what it will add to the cost of new bikes and whether the technology will transfer to other manufacturers.
If an Indian motorcycle is out of your price range this Christmas, there are two lists of suggestions for presents. Nothing will cost as much as a new bike, but doubtless there will be a biker who is very generous.
If you want to know how the new Honda electric clutch works, there is a very good article inside. You can also read about what to consider when buying a new helmet. To help prevent motorcycle theft, Kymco will be providing free security marking and a Datatool tracker on new bikes. It’s been a long time coming but at least it won’t be an ‘extra’ to pay for.
There are lots more interesting articles including dealing with a high speed wobble. Someone asks the question ‘Is motorcycling REALLY that dangerous?’ Adventure touring articles tell of how to prepare for a long ride and a great ride across Colorado. Our friends the Whiteknights have a new promotion item. It’s a minimoto that proved a great hit when fundraising at the Conisbrough Christmas Market. A lot of kids had a fine time scooting up and down. We don’t mind those antics. SYSRP are sending out weather warnings, speeding in poor conditions and staying off alcohol if you’re driving. Kevin Williams is having problems with Facebook, but you can see his publications on Ko-fi.com and YouTube. This week he details a the fascinating history of British Road signs, how to use anecdotes in motorcycle training and has begun a new series about riding all year round.
The IAM is celebrating the contributions of its unpaid volunteers. The SAM Club volunteers, in addition to their annual IAM and Club membership fees, spend considerable sums of money in continuing to provide training, marketing and promotion. In these increasingly hard economic times the SAM Committee is looking to see what we can do to help. With increased demands for more complex Observer training the financial strains are not going to get easier, so to continue our mission to help local bikers become safer riders, it’s important that we provide any support possible. 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.