Motorcyle Live 2010

Today TP and I took ourselves up the road to the NEC for the Bike Show.

It is a good few years since I have been but it's a pretty formulaic Trade Show so no real surprises; hordes of tattooed Back Street Heroes readers interspersed with nylon clad acne ridden Scooter Boys.

You need to remember that I am not really a "people person" so walking round an exhibition hall filled with dawdling fools was somewhat frustrating as I really wanted to see the show just not the General Public that tend to clutter these occasions.

The day was good and I got to try a few machines for size. I know I have a couple of bikes already but there is always space in the garage for another should a bargain arise. I have to admit that I am not wholly convinced by the styling of many modern machines.

MV Agusta F4 - Styling I could definitely live with

MV Agusta detail

 There seem to be two approaches at the moment; something from the set of Judge Dredd or new models that have taken their design cues from 30 years ago.

One of these is the Suzuki Vanvan 125 which was a real blast from the past since it looked like the TS models from the late 1970s on steroids. I know it is a "learner" bike and not really indicative but it caught my eye due to it's similarity to the bikes me and my mates rode back in the early 80's when we first took to the road on a Provisional Licence that allowed you to ride anything up to 250cc without passing a test first. Back then I had a blue Suzuki TS185 that I worked, scrimped and saved to buy brand new just after my 17th Birthday. I still remember the registration some 30 years later; BUY 100W.

Dragging myself back from memory lane, there were obviously the models from the "Traditional" Manufacturers like Harley Davidson and Royal Enfield that market their bikes with a strong sense of nostalgia or Heritage as I think they prefer to call it. Don't get me wrong they are quite eye catching and I'm not so Sports Bike biased to dismiss them out of hand. I love Sports Bikes but anything is better than nothing and I am perfectly willing to accept that pootling along on an Enfield or throbbing nosily along on a Harley is far far better than standing on the side of the road dismissing them as outdated or poor performers.

Royal Enfield detail

For the days when you think you're Steve McQueen perhaps?

 TP and I obviously took a few minutes to visit the Chapel and genuflected at the Altar before immersing ourselves with the icons on display.

Let Us Prey - no its not a typo

There were obviously Trade Stands aplenty and I did treat myself to a new pair of Sidi's as My Alpinestars are  showing their age. I'm not sure they were such a great bargain when I take in to account the ticket price, car parking and the crappy expensive fare that is part of the NEC Experience but all in all I had a pretty good day and it was nice just to wander taking it all in.