Safety

Biker Safety

5 reasons to wear protective motorcycle riding gear

By Mark

Motorcycle riding gear is much more than style, though I’d say some of the gear you can buy these days looks pretty cool, especially the jackets. In fact, riding gear plays an essential role in your safety on the road from head to toe. Whether you’re riding down the street or across the country, never underestimate the importance of protective gear. Here are the top five benefits of riding gear.

Protection From the Elements

Winter riding is a no brainer for wearing gear to protect you from the elements but even sunny days can feel intense when you’re tearing down the road at highway speeds. The proper motorcycle gear for riding protection should always include a helmet, wind-resistant jacket, gloves, goggles and boots.

It goes without saying that a helmet is top of the list as the most important as good riding gear always starts with your helmet and a quality lid is the most important piece of gear you wear on any ride. Choosing a helmet is all about finding one that best fits you and your needs.

Impact Absorption

Though you hope never to be in one, accidents do happen. Your best defence against injury is the appropriate gear. As we mentioned, your helmet is your greatest asset during a spill and can save your life. Almost equally important though is your motorcycle jacket which needs to fit snuggly and protect vulnerable areas from road rash and debris. It’s worth knowing that quality riding gear armour will carry a CE (Certified European) rating that the US has unofficially adopted. Higher quality armour is more pliable and comfortable over long periods of time. Abrasion resistance is a big safety factor, with modern materials like Cordura^® and Superfabric^® being some of the best available.

What not to wear…

Comfort

On long rides, your comfort is important. Motorcycle gear caters to a rides comfort, providing support and protection where you need it most. In particular, your boots and gloves play a huge role in your comfort level. Sturdy boots support your ankles, keeping them firmly on the shifter. Gloves keep your hands warm and loose, helping your grip. There’s plenty of choice online from sites such as bikebandit.com

Improved Aerodynamics

Riding gear is designed to dampen the effects of wind. Not only does this keep the rider warm, it improves your performance and fuel efficiency. Granted, unless you’re a professional sport rider, you won’t notice many aerodynamic benefits; however, at high-speeds, there’s a definite difference in wind resistance between tight-fitting and loose-fitting clothing.

Better Control

Finally, good motorcycle gear increases your riding stamina and gives you more control over your machine. Without the elements beating in your face, you can focus on your surroundings, keeping you alert and responsive.

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1 in 4 Likely To Drink & Drive This Christmas

By Mark

OSV reveals that 27% of motorists are likely to drink and drive over the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Although drink-drive-related road fatalities and drink-driving convictions are on the decline, more has to be done in order to stop drink drivers over the festive period. This is the message from vehicle leasing company OSV whose latest survey found that a quarter of motorists are likely to drink and drive over the Christmas and New Year break.

27% of UK drivers made the admission when asked if they were likely to drink and drive over the Christmas period. Debbie Kirkley, Co-Founder of OSV explained:

“We carried out this survey last year and were shocked by the results. We wanted to conduct the survey again to find out if recent anti drink-drive campaigns were having an impact. Although drink driving convictions and fatalities have reduced, we have found that a larger percentage of people have admitted that they are likely to drink and drive over the Christmas holidays, showing that more needs to be done to combat drinking and driving over the festive period.”

In OSV’s 2015 survey, twenty two per cent admitted that they were likely to drink and drive. This means that the company have seen a 5% increase. As many people are aware, even the smallest amount of alcohol can affect your driving ability. Those motorists that are considering drink driving should remember that if caught, you can expect to receive a large fine, a criminal record, a driving ban and a possible prison sentence.

The study, which surveyed over 1,000 drivers, revealed that men were more likely than women to drink and drive this holiday (no change from last year) and young drivers are set to be the biggest culprits of drink driving this Christmas (also no change from last year). The survey also showed that motorists based in Wales are more likely to drink and drive than motorists based anywhere else in the UK this Christmas. Last year those in Scotland were more likely to drink and drive than anywhere else in the UK.

Reasons why people drink and drive vary. But, popular excuses still include peer pressure, feeling ok to drive and price of taxis. Debbie concludes: “Drink driving can ruin the lives of so many people, so think about the consequences before you get behind the wheel after having a drink this Christmas”.

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4 Things You Car Tyres Are Trying To Tell You

By Jodie

When was the last time you took a long, hard look at your tyres? They can tell you more about your car’s condition than you think. Your tyres are one of the most important aspects of your vehicle. The wear down quickly and many drivers don’t take the time to care for them. New drivers are particularly oblivious to their tyre condition. Did you know, for example, that there’s an optimum tyre pressure that you must stick to? Did you know there’s a legal limit when it comes to tyre wear and tread depth?

These are the things you should be looking out for on your vehicle. The tyres themselves also reveal some deeper secrets. They can help you diagnose problems in the steering alignment, and even the suspension. The state of your tyres indicates the first signs of trouble within the car. In this post, we’ll show you how to pay more attention. We’ll teach you to understand exactly what your tyres are trying to tell you.

1. Heavy central wear

When the tyres are heavily worn down in the centre of the tyre, it means just one thing. Your tyres are overinflated. It means that only the central part of the tyre is coming into contact with the road. Overinflation is bad for a number of reasons. First of all, it gives you a distinct lack of control over the car. The less contact there is with the road, the less grip you have on the tarmac. Secondly, it can seriously impact the efficiency and performance of the vehicle. Always stick to the recommended inflation pressure.

2. Heavy outer wear

As you would expect, lots of wear on the outer parts of the tyre suggest the opposite problem. Your tyres are significantly under inflated. You’re running close to flat. All the strain of the car is being forced to the outer part of the tyres, causing excess wear. Running on flat tyres puts a lot of pressure on the engine. Just think about how hard you have to pedal when biking on a flat tyre. Your engine is under the same strain. This is a clear example of how the tyres can indicate a much bigger problem developing under the bonnet.

3. Cracks and bulges

Cracks along the outer wall of the tyre usually occur as a result of under inflation. When the tyres aren’t pumped up, the structure of the tyre collapses, causes cracks to appear at the edges. If there is also heavy outer wear, you’ve got a serious case of under inflation. This makes it much more likely that damage from road bumps, kerbs, and debris will occur. If there is serious impact damage, you’ll see a bump or bulge under the rubber. Unfortunately, there’s only one solution, and that’s a replacement! You can buy tyres from your local garage or online via a type shop such as tyre-shopper.co.uk

or visit a reputable dealer to carry out the change. Type specialists such as National Tyres are the UK’s No.1 fast fit retailer for car tyres so if you have any problems or questions then head to our nearest garage.

4. Feathering and cupping

Lastly, look out for uneven wear, as it spells trouble inside the system. Cupping is when there is ‘mountainous’, up-and-down wear. It means the suspension is in trouble. Feathering is when the edges of the tread are smooth, but the inside is raised. It means your alignment is drifting.

As you can see, your tyres tell you a lot about the condition of your car. Learn to read them, and take action.

Severe wear on just one side? You’ve got trouble! Image Source

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Local Garages Ignoring Unsafe Motors

By Mark

Cars across the UK are not being checked for vehicle recalls during their service at local garages. After the recent global recall crisis, OSV Ltd were shocked to find that 92% of garages do not check for potentially life threatening recall notices on your vehicle.

After the news that Toyota and Nissan were adding 6.5 million vehicles to the recall list over airbags, OSV Ltd wanted to find out if local garages were checking for potentially dangerous recall notifications whilst your car was in for a service. After questioning 100 local garages, OSV Ltd found that only 8% would check for any recalls on your vehicle as standard.

43% of the garages explained that they would check for recalls if asked to by the cars owner but a whopping 49% of local garages do not and would not check for vital vehicle recalls.

OSV Ltd then decided to take the report one step further and find out how many people use local garages to service their vehicle over approved dealerships.

Overall, 45% of the UK would take their vehicle to be serviced in a local garage, only 22% would take it to an approved dealership and then 33% did not have vehicles so could not take part.

Interestingly, women were more likely to take their car to an approved dealership. When comparing the results OSV Ltd found the figure rises to 29% for women but shrinks to just 15% for men.
The survey also suggested that Northern Ireland potentially have the safest amount of cars on the road, with 33% of participants from Northern Ireland stating that they take their car to an approved dealership. Only 25% from Wales, 23% from England and 22% from Scotland admitted that they take their car to an approved dealership for servicing.

Maybe not so surprising is the fact that OSV Ltd found that 18-24’s were less likely to book at an approved dealership. Only 11% of the participants in that age range take their car to an approved dealership. This could be down to a number of factors such as monetary constraints.

OSV Ltd surveyed 200 local garages and 500 UK residents.

Protection From the Elements

Impact Absorption

Comfort

Improved Aerodynamics

Better Control