North Coast 500 : Scotlands Route 66

America has Route 66. Australia has the Great Ocean Road.

Scotland is launching its own bid to create an iconic road trail for visitors.  

North Coast 500 - to be known as NC500 - aims to open up a fresh tourist market in Caithness, promoting the best of the far north in a journey along the region’s coastlines.

The venture is the brainchild of the North Highland Initiative (NHI), set up by Prince Charles to showcase the area, and is ­targeting car and motorbike ­enthusiasts, as well as cyclists and walkers wanting to take in some of the most scenic parts of the country.

The route will link natural heritage and scenery, celebrate local food and drink, accommodation, retail, arts, crafts and ­attractions of the region.

It will run from Inverness, to the Kyle of Lochalsh on the West Coast, via the rugged north coast to John O’ Groats, before heading down the east coast, completing the loop in Inverness.

NHI chairman David Whiteford said NC500 was the most exciting and innovative development in the north Highlands for years. He added: “Across the globe, touring routes have become famous and are often the very reason for visitors making the journey to that country. “We have, in the north Highlands, an opportunity to create a globally significant route that captures the essence of the wonderful landscapes and seascapes, people, stories, culture, history, adventures, food and drink and much more. “This is about bringing together for the first time the west, north and east coasts of the Highlands into an experience of 500 miles, with more than 500 things to do and secret places you could find on foot, on wheel or on the water.” He said: “While it may be a coastal route, it is also about the wonderful diversions from it where you will experience the places, the personalities and the craic that make up this extraordinary journey.”

There has already been huge interest shown in the route from American travel journalists and publications.

Route 66 is one of the most popular journeys in America, the inspiration for numerous songs, while the Great Ocean Road in Australia takes in some of the country's most scenic landscapes. Visit Scotland chairman Mike Cantlay said famous routes around the world attract tourists and generate millions for the economy. He believes NC500 could have a similar impact in the Highlands, adding: “From our enchanting wildlife and countless historic attractions to magnificent mountains, dramatic lochs and sandy beaches, the Highlands is a true touring paradise. There really is nothing quite like the open road.

People travel from all over the world for Route 66, and with our scenery, there’s no reason NC500 can’t prove to be just as popular.”

http://www.northcoast500.com/

To view the route on Google Maps please click this link : https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=zxrTVKCPRS98.kibsMGaYOJZk

High Vis Jacket required in France next year

Motorcyclists and scooter riders in France will be required by law to carry a high visibility jacket or face a fine of up to a 135 €.

This new law comes into effect on January 1^st 2016 and French police can demand riders to show a yellow bib, with failure punishable by an 11 € fine, escalating to nearly €135 during a breakdown.

There is no obligation to wear the vest at all times, only to carry it on the bike or person.

High visibility jackets, shirts, vests and bibs carrying a CE mark for luminosity will all be accepted but simple reflective armbands or stripes will not.

British bikers planning a continental tour will not be exempt from the requirement.

Motorcycle lobby group Federation Francaise des Motards en Colere (FFMC) has argued bikers are more likely to get injured at the roadside as they waste time retrieving the jacket from under a seat or top box.

Meanwhile, motorcycle lobby group, the Federation Francaise des Motards en Colere (FFMC), has hit back at the new measures set to be implemented from 1 January 2016, arguing that wearing hi-vis vests will not solve the problem, but add to it, with the obligation to retrieve the vests from a bike's storage whilst being within close proximity of oncoming traffic presenting a danger in its own right.

Teesside Autodrome : Mini Bikes Tuesday 26th May

Teesside Autodrome are running fortnightly sessions from 5pm – 9pm once a fortnight through till the end of October.
Next date is Tuesday 26th^th May, then fortnightly through to the end of October.
There are usually two track configurations for you to try and the circuit is floodlit if the light starts to fade, so you can then get the real MotoGP experience of Qatar (perhaps a bit warmer there)
Cost is £20 per rider.
Teeside Autodrome is easy to find, has excellent facilities
For further details contact the circuit on 01642 231117
All sessions will be posted on the BikeWise events calendar and also on the BikeWise Mini Bike Club website.
The circuit is located at :
Teesside Autodrome
South Tees Motor Sports Park
South Bank Road
Middlesbrough
TS6 6XH

Photos online from latest meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club

Photos are now on the website from the latest meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club (BWMBC), which was held on Sunday 17^th May at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Many Thanks to all who helped to set up the track, sign on the riders and help with marshalling throughout the day.

A great fun day, cloudy and cool (well it is May !)

Please CLICK HERE   to go to the the gallery on the website and then click on the thumbnail pictures for the 17^th May.

Norwegian Seaways names a date for the resumption of ferry services between the UK and Scandinavia

In what is presumably a reference to falling fuel prices, the company says the market conditions have changed. It expects to finalise funding in the spring ahead of a brand launch in September and the start of services – likely between Newcastle, Bergen and Stavanger – the following March.

In a statement via the International Campaign for the Ferry to Norway (ICFN), Norwegian Seaways operations director Paul Woodbury says, ‘In 2014 we had a viable plan. We now have an even more viable plan given the change in market conditions. We have overhauled our business plan and are finalising our strategy with the intent of securing final funding in the spring of this year for launch of a new brand in September 2015 and a new service in March 2016.’

ICFN adds, ‘This latest statement from Norwegian Seaways follows a string of recent positive developments which tend to show that Norwegian Seaways’ cautious and meticulous approach in its efforts to restore the UK – Norway ferry service over the years is about to pay dividends… although the statement is brief, the message it conveys will be welcome news for thousands of travellers across the UK and throughout Scandinavia.’

The final UK-Scandinavia ferry service, operated by DFDS between Harwich and Esbjerg, Denmark, was withdrawn last September. Norwegian Seaways first emerged as a potential operator in November 2013. In the meantime Regina Lines’ proposed replacement Harwich-Esbjerg service has, apparently, failed to get off the ground.

Next Meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club

Next meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club will be on :

Sunday 17^th May at Carrville Park & Ride, Durham.

Usual start time of 1030hrs with signing on from 1000hrs.

If you can help to set up the track or take it down at the end it would be appreciated.
If anybody can marshal , see the girls at the signing on desk, sign the form and then well tell you what to do :-)
Weather forecast at the moment looks good for Sunday.
Check website / Facebook / Twitter if you have any doubt about the weather.
Any cancellation will be posted by 0915hrs.

Warning over unsafe motorcycle helmets

Trading Standards Officers are urging anyone who has bought a Jiekai model JK 100 or JK 1000 helmet to stop using it immediately and return it to their supplier.

The warning comes after a  man was sentenced for selling 'potentially lethal' Chinese motorcycle helmets online.

Shocking photos released by Trading Standards show the damage incurred by the counterfeit lids after they failed safety tests. Any biker in an accident wearing these helmets would have received an impact 'six times more forceful' than permitted by law, Trading Standards officers reported.

The helmets were supposed to undergo five impact test but were already destroyed after the second, by which time they would be passing G-forces of 1,000 to the wearer (the legal limit is 275 G).

The red and black lids were branded Jiekai JK1000 and were found to buckle when squeezed by hand. The chin straps could also be ripped off.

A Trading Standards officer described them as 'next to useless' and 'potentially lethal'.

The helmets all bore an authentic-looking hologram safety sticker that could easily fool an untrained eye.

The dangerous helmets were discovered during a raid of a warehouse belonging to Moortaza Walji from Peterborough. Walji was selling the lids through his own trading name Bargain World UK Ltd as well as a number of other retailers.

At Peterborough Crown Court he pleaded guilty to 15 charges including the sale of unsafe motorcycle helmets. He received a six-month suspended sentence and 180 hours' community service. He must also pay costs of £13,000.

Trading Standards has contacted around 30 customers to make them aware.

For further details visit : http://www.tradingstandards.gov.uk/extra/news-item.cfm/newsid/1498

Teesside Autodrome : Mini Bikes Tuesday 12th May

Teesside Autodrome are running fortnightly sessions from 5pm – 9pm once a fortnight through till the end of October.
Next date is Tuesday 12^th May, then fortnightly through to the end of October.
There are usually two track configurations for you to try and the circuit is floodlit if the light starts to fade, so you can then get the real MotoGP experience of Qatar (perhaps a bit warmer there)
Cost is £20 per rider.
Teeside Autodrome is easy to find, has excellent facilities
For further details contact the circuit on 01642 231117
All sessions will be posted on the BikeWise events calendar and also on the BikeWise Mini Bike Club website.
The circuit is located at :
Teesside Autodrome
South Tees Motor Sports Park
South Bank Road
Middlesbrough
TS6 6XH

Meeting cancelled - Sunday 3rd May (BWMBC)

We have taken an early decision to cancel tomorrows meeting of the BikeWise Mini Bike Club.

The rain has hit the North East and the forecast  is for it to continue throughout the night and all day tomorrow.

With it being a Bank Holiday weekend we felt it would be better to cancel now so that you can make alternative arrangements for the rest of the weekend