On Sunday 19th May I had a new motorcycling experience, or at least a new aspect of one. Regular readers will know that I have been to the Rugby Bikefest on a number of previous occasions (reviews available, see below). Well this year saw me ride my motorbike in the mass ride-in and therefore enjoy the event as a participant instead of an observer.
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I arrived at the Night Owl Truckstop on the A5 at around 9:00am and joined hundreds of other riders waiting to set off. I had read in the pre-event registration paperwork that the ride in was limited to a thousand bikes. Well I reckon that number was exceeded … massively.

In the run up to departure time, I met a few people that I know and had a chance to browse the machinery lined up in the car parks. In earlier events I have found myself attracted to the custom cruiser types of bike and the 1970s machines that were desirable as I was growing up, but this time I found myself drawn to the kinds of bikes that I would most like to ride - the tourers that combined some power with some practicality. I drive a Volkswagen Passat Estate, and it is now apparent to me that I like the two wheeled equivalent of my family orientated load-lugger. A full fairing and a decent sized top box are essential and hard panniers are more desirable than they probably should be. I look back at this year’s photos compared to last, and the difference is very apparent.

When it was time to set off, at circa 10:00am, there was a burst water main like exodus from the truck stop. The deluge of bikes took off down the A5 in the direction of Daventry before peeling right towards Hillmorton. In the first stretch of the ride, there were bikes ahead of me for as far as I could actually see. Riding in the close proximity, two a breast (and sometimes more) cavalcade required me to keep my wits about me and my eyes in my mirrors. The sheer volume of vehicles meant that progress was slow and halting and the demands on clutches and brakes were high.

The experience reminded me of running in the London Marathon. Back in 2006, it was the first time I had taken part in a running event and the sea of bodies was amazing to watch. As a runner, it was hard to find my own rhythm and pace, and my usual reference points (the road surface for example) were hidden. In the ride-in I couldn’t get going before I had to slow again and I couldn’t even hear my bike’s engine because of the Harleys roaring around me.

The marathon similarities continued on the run in to Rugby as people had come out of their houses to watch and wave at the riders. There was a real sense of occasion and excitement, it was carnival like.

The concentration required to ride in tight formation was such that by the time I parked up my bike, I was as hot as it was. Getting off and then stowing my helmet, jacket and gloves was a relief.

The in-Rugby event was as brilliantly organised as ever and the town centre was packed with people and traders. As in previous years, I wandered around with my camera and wiled away a couple of happy hours. Some evidence shared with you below.

It was Rugby Bikefest with a twist, and it was, to borrow from Keith Code, all in the twist of the wrist.
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Daventry Motorcycle Festival is next on the horizon. Maybe I’ll see you on Saturday 8th June.

Click on any picture below to enlarge

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Rugby Bikefest 2014
Rugby Bikefest 2015
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After successfully completing the required qualification stages, I have recently become a category A motorcycle licence holder. Friends and family have asked me all sorts of questions about my experiences, and the scope for some blogging prompted me to take to my keyboard.  This is the first in what I am envisaging will be a new mini-series, primarily aimed at other folk thinking of taking the plunge into two wheeled motoring. I have written about the topic before, see links below to the relevant posts.

When I decided that I wanted to learn to ride a motorbike, I’ll be honest, I only had the vaguest idea about what I would have to do, how long it would take, or what it would cost to get to the stage of having a full licence.  I was rather naïve about the process because I believed I could just take a direct access course and be on the road in three days (I feel like such a muppet even writing this now).

As soon as I started making enquiries, my naivety became obvious. Getting a full motorcycle licence is not a particularly straightforward, fast or cheap process at all. This post will manage your expectations if you are thinking about qualifying.

My dad talks to me about his test simply involving an assessor watching him ride up and down the street, these days the hurdles are much greater.

Before you can even take the motorcycle test, you have to have passed your:
1) Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) and
2) Your motorcycle Theory Test

The CBT involves a day’s worth of training with an instructor and will cost you approximately £145. The Theory Test needs to be booked through the Gov.uk portal and will cost you £23. Both things need to be booked in advance and so the elapsed time from booking to actually “doing” might be weeks. Hurdles one and two, when achieved, only have two-year shelf lives before you have to do them again.

Because of my age (over 26 … obviously a lot over in my case), I was entitled to take a direct access course instead of a staged access route that takes you much more time to qualify up the licence categories. A direct access (DA) course will cost you about £700 (that includes DVSA test fees of £90).  You can’t take a DA course if you don’t have a valid CBT and Theory Test. When you decide you are ready to take and pay for the DA, it is inevitable that you will have to wait for a slot with your instructor. For me, post enquiry, the wait was a month. 

The DA is expensive, because you have to hire your instructor, their bike and the bike they let you ride. £200 per day is what you should expect. The £700 is based upon three days of training, you might get away with less if you are an experienced and decent rider already.

The DA culminates in more government mandated tests – there are two modules you have to pass:
3) Mod.1, the slow speed manoeuvring course, and then
4) Mod.2, the on the road test

You can opt to take both test modules on one day but if you fail Mod.1, you can’t take Mod.2 at all and you will have forfeited your Mod.2 test fee (£75). For many, the risk of making a mistake means they err on the side of caution and book the Mod.2 test after Mod.1 has been passed. The downside of this approach is that there is inevitably a time gap between the two tests. For me, it meant another five lost weeks. Though my direct access course was three days, the elapsed time for it was more than six weeks in total. 

The costs of course assume that you pass first time. I did thank goodness, but if you don’t, it just gets more expensive.

If you haven’t ridden a motorbike before, don’t assume that doing the CBT makes you ready for progressing to a DA course straightaway.

When I passed my CBT, the only way I was going to be able to move on from feeling like a total numpty was to buy a 125 (which you can legally ride with a valid CBT) and get some proper experience. Taking the DA straight after completing the CBT would have been ludicrous for me because I simply wasn’t good enough. In my case, I spent eight months and rode three thousand miles to prepare myself for the DA course. To be fair, I probably could have opted to take it earlier, but by the time I had funded the CBT, theory test, the 125, my riding gear, my insurance etc. I was struggling to justify the extra costs to get to a full ‘A’.
   
The point of the paragraph above it this - I was so unbelievably naive to think that I could be qualified in three days. To get over the four hurdles imposed on me by the DVSA actually took me nine months and the best part of £900 in fees alone.

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