The Chateau, pre-French Run

Who's stopping over? Usual suspects? Monz? Anyone else?

 

I'll be making my own way down to Dover. At a sensible pace.

 

Using the patented Mavis Beacon "Hunt&Peck" Technique, ogden

His fate was sealed as soon as he typed the words.

 

You say that *now*...

 

I avoided adding "...assuming I haven't written the bike off at
Silverstone four days earlier".

There's only so many times in one day I'm prepared to poke fate with a
sharp stick.

 

Neither Hog or I are going, so he should be OK

 

The latter half of the run through France to our final destination was
rather good too you may recall

 

Really? What's it like? That could be a vaguely affordable second bike.
I'm looking for something utterly different to the thunderkitten.

 

Everything's relative. Compared to the RGV it replaced it really is
practical. But then so's a unicycle with no seat.

It's a pure hooligan toy, quite good for commuting through town as the
riding position's high, it'll turn on a sixpence, it's light and grunty
and pretty frugal. If it wasn't for the fact that the subframe seems to
snap every few weeks I'd say it was spot on.

 

It's as practical as any other bike that eats its way through 26
sub-frames a year.

In bits, mostly.

 

Is that something likely to be 'fixed' by being stupidly light, or are
they simply chocolate?

I've been scratching round the idea of loads of dirtbike/supermoto
shaped things but most would be nicked in 4 seconds and the rest aren't
feeling right in my mind.

 

It's a known weakness, to a point, and looking at the subframe and where
it breaks I'd be inclined to call it a fundamental design fault.

But on the other hand it did 6000-odd miles without snapping, and I rode
it for five months before the first one broke. And five weeks before the
next one did the same.

I wouldn't buy another one, put it that way.

This is why I have a garage.

 

Worth knowing, ta.

Hmm.

 

I'm guessing it's only his model. I had a 250 trailie job, and many
"friends" have Dukes and Supermotos. I've not heard of any of them
snapping the sub-frame.

 

It's the Duke (or maybe just the Duke 2).

The problem is the subframe has two holes to allow bolts through to hold
the seat plastics on. This weakens the subframe in a crucial place and
hence it breaks.

Both subframes I've had broke in exactly the same place in exactly the
same way. This bloke had exactly the same thing (and then some)...

http://www.ktmforum.co.uk/supermoto/17254-duke-2-subframe-snap.html

All I've done is commute on the poxy thing.

 

Like a loon though, surely. Otherwise, what's the point?

 

With enthusiasm, certainly.

But we're not talking about the Road of Bones here, we're talking the A3
through Clapham ffs.

 

Not I this year but thanks for the offer. I'm going Poole/Cherbourg on
the HSF, he said hopefully. I want to swan through some of the major
battle bits en-route to the pu.. er hotel, as I've not previously had
the opportunity..
I'm halfway through Beevors Normandy tome ATM and I find it quite
insightful.

 

Well, Oggers isn't really that much of a pie eater.

I liked my CCM R30, but it's not a good motorway slogger [1]. It's
also not suitable for the vertically [2] challenged ..

Paul.

[1] Which is what I needed at the time ..
[2] Which just spellchecked as 'aesthetically challenged'. <G>