Sofia

Thats how he rolls!!

portugal has terrible roads and good roads. Unfortunately I live in a terrible roads part... Pedro has a lot of good roads around him and he enjoys them. But its all relative. If you have a ADV type of bike Portugal is amazing, if you have a sportier ride, then choose well where you go. Oh, lets be careful and stick to talking about the Ring, otherwise we will be moved to a new thread "portugal roads"!! Hey-ho, makes the forum busier!!

its not meant just for ladies, I am not anti men in anyway, I quite like them actually!

They are not bumpy. Unless you are driving a sports car with really hard suspension. French motorways are good, but limit 130 and extremely expensive. The service stations are very, very nice, that's true. @Pedro hasn't had the pleasure of experiencing the quality on UK patched up tarmac! You will not need to eat your hat!!

I have many, what do you want to see?

Germany roads are amazing. The tarmac, but also all the signaling and the marking of the road. Above all Germans are very good drivers, fast, no messing, incredibly respectful of the speed limit in villages and road works, NEVER speed in those, but outside they just go!! And they really drive well. Now, the Eifel is a farming region, hence populated by really old folk that drive slower vehicles, so, and only when you encounter them, occasionally there is the odd surprise, which keeps you on your toes!! The Eifel is the poor man black forest ( one of the poorest parts of Germany). Stunningly beautiful and very quiet. The Ring is like a different Universe in the middle of it!! There is a lot to see apart from the track, lovely villages, castles and the 2 big rivers, Rhine and Mosel. Its a good choice to holiday on the bike. You can easily visit France, Belgium and Luxemburg from there, Or go more into Germany. And if you like top speed, Germany is your place! The Autobahn A4 is mostly unrestricted and as luck would have it, if you follow Calais-Aachen, its as soon as you enter Germany!! Marvelous!! The speed limits are ( in kms ) 30 or 50 inside towns, 80 to 100 A roads and 120 or unrestricted on Motorways. Those unrestricted motorways have controls that impose speed limits if there is bad weather or heavy traffic. Germans have impeccable lane discipline. Its a must, I have had the cruise control at 185 kph and was passed by 3 cars in succession well over my speed! No one changes lane without making sure there isn't a Porsche coming at 320 kph!! I find this attitude of teaching people well and trusting them to preform well, a marvelous thing! Coupled with serious enforcement and fines when rules like 80 kph on road works are not respected. Oh, and there you will not find 15 kms of cones without any work being done!!

I don't know numbers specifically, but the 10 years I lived there, 2 or 3 people died per year, max. Its a very small place, when something tragic happens, everyone knows immediately. Also because it affected the work, everything had to stop when there was a fatality. Serious injury happens every weekend. Minor injury is every day!! Above all the ego!! @Pedro is great at bruising egos, because he passes 500 BHP cars with his Compact and that, I guarantee, is a very bad injury! I could seat here recounting endless stories of the Ring, its a special place indeed! 100mph is very doable at the Ring, in places, and for sure you will manage it, but the thrill is more in mastering the slow corners and getting the lines right, connecting the corners in a magical flow. It is very technical and demanding, but super rewarding. I miss it, inevitably, being a petrol head, and I am enormously grateful for the experiences I had there. Do not be put off by what is said about it and the videos of accidents. Of course we go for a lap NEVER knowing how we will come out, that is one of the attractions, and again "Whats the point in living if we don't feel alive!"

do it

Actually not many people die there, its Youtube crash videos to get audience that make it seem like a carnage. To be honest, it is surprising how little happens if you consider the factors involved! It is mega good on a bike, I prefer it to a car. When I went the first time I was handy with speed and loved it! Then living there, and with someone that was fast and experienced, but was always putting fear in me, I didnt ride it anymore... Only did the Motorrad course that I really enjoyed, 3 days of riding with instructors and doing all sort of things to learn the track and to ride better on and of track. Really, go do it, its a great experience!!

Click bait!!!

Oh, nice to know! I followed it and met many people at the Nürburgring that were on there. Went to a few gatherings of that one and yes, there are many people on there with immense knowledge. But forums were full of egos and it was tiering... This one is cool, even when I dont understand it!!!

????

I feel a bit offended you dint ask me what I think of the forum.... But I shall love it any way! Last time I was in a Forum was in 2007 at the triumphrat thingy. There was a lot of arguments. I also follow from a close distant PistonHeads, met a lot of people from that one. Was a very big and busy place, dont know if it still exists? This one feels cozy, reminds me very much of a lot of things I love about the UK, things I miss a lot, so thank you!

Thank you, I feel very touched!!

Its a very nice place @XTreme, well done for starting it and extra well done for keeping it going! Thank you!!

They were a little, they had vaccines.

No!! They love him!

Luke Skywalker, the Jedi Dog and Godson of @Pedro! Which makes Pedro Obi-Wan in some far, far galaxy!

Recycling and repurposing is good, and important, so here is another use for a Metzler Racetec!! @docstrange.ericeira, a vet with a difference!

That lasanga looks amazing!! And Costa, Costa looks and is amazing!!

Sorry, question from the foreigner, what on Earth is a Batty Boy??!! I mean, even after 20 years of immersing in British Culture and all the endless innuendos, you still get me!

@Pedro let me have a go on a little Honda 230 ( a very special bike for many reasons, so it was special also to ride it) and I quite liked it. Extremely different from what I know, way out of my comfort zone, but its where I need to go to start a new me!! Philosophically speaking, Life really is like a river, just follow it and dont resist!!

Dont use all your diplomacy in one post, you need more!! I dont follow trends, I start them!! ,?? But I have to surrender to the fact roads around me dont really suit the SP and Pedro keeps finding gorgeousness only accessible on ADVs, which proves a bike on those lines is best here. Also I would like to be a "vet on 2 wheels" in the country side, see if its good business, and again a little 250 off-roady thingy is ideal. All ideas in my head!! But for sure what I dont want: Basically heavy and difficult to pick up.

Thanks!! Will do!!

A GSXr is ideal to deal with those, like a Speed Triple! But Iam a hooligan...