The Lazy Motorbike, for Motorcycle Riders
Welcome on the Lazy Motorbike site.
Below, you find the newest additions. If you first want to know
what you can expect on the site, you can read
the page about the what and why of this site.
Welcome!
Germany, the country of BMW and of the Autobahn. Germany, one of the Alp countries. Germany, with regions that are visited so often by motorcycle riders that many roads are closed during weekends.
And indeed, Germany is a very pleasant country for motorcycle travelers. Here some tips.
Added: new page
Added: november 2009
Read more about: 
Motorcycle touring in Germany
In some countries, there are exams to pass before you are allowed to ride a motorcycle; in other countries, there are even compulsary lessons to take.
In many countries, you are just supposed to learn riding a motorbike yourself. The very first lesson, is getting acquainted with a motorcycle: where is the clutch, where are the brakes?
For many people, this is all new. For them, we show what is what on a motorbike, on this page.
Added: new page
Added: august 2008
Read more about: What is what on a motorcycle?
In the United Kingdom they are called born-again bikers: people with a motorcycle past, who want to take up riding again.
If you rode a motorcycle, long ago, and now, after years without a bike, you want to take up riding again, there are some risks to keep in mind.
The same applies, to a lesser degree, to motorcycle riders who stop riding in the winter and start riding again in the spring.
On this page, we have gathered some tips and advice to start riding again safely.
Added: new page
Added: august 2008
Read more about: A second motorcycle career
A ride report of the Yamaha Tenere, with special attention to properties which are important for beginners, or for motorcycle riders who take up motorcycle riding after a pause of years.
This report is a first impression; we will take a longer test ride for a more detailed report later.
Because we took the test ride together, we were able to describe the Tenere from the point of view of the pillion rider as well.
Added: new page
Added: august 2008
Read more about: Ride report of Yamaha Tenere
A riding report of the BMW F650GS, in which we look for properties which are valuable for people who just got their riding license, or for motorcycle riders who didn't ride for several years.
What you find here is a first impression; we will give a followup later, after a longer test ride.
Added: new page
Added: june 2008
Read more about: Ride report of the BMW F650GS
The weather is not always perfect for motorcycle riding. If you commute by bike, you will have to keep riding through rain, through storm, in the mist, and maybe even while it snows.
On your holiday, in the Alps for instance, you can suddenly be caught by bad weather.
Are there any tricks to keep upright in heavy storm? And what are the do's and don'ts when the road is slippery?
On this page, we have gathered tips for motorcycle riding in extreme weather conditions.
Added: new page
Added: february 2008
Read more about: Motorcycle riding in bad weather
Whether you go touring for a day or a weekend, or want to have a vacation riding on your motorcycle, sometimes it is convenient to be able to cover long distances on your motorcycle.
Is that possible with every motorcycle or not? What do you have to do to stay for hours in the saddle without getting tired or getting a sore butt? How many miles can you cover in an day?
Added: a bit about riding style for long distances.
Added: new info
Added: february 2008
Read more about: Tips for riding long distances on motorcycle
Is it still necessary to break in a new engine, or is there no need?
If it is a good idea to break an engine in, why?
And if you would like to break in your new engine, how should you do that?
What will lengthen the lifetime of your engine and what will decrease it?
How do you prevent your engine from consuming oil?
This page tries to answer these questions.
Added: new page
Added: january 2008
Read more about: How to break in a new engine
Spain is motorcycle rider's heaven. There are almost as many mountain ranges as towns, and they are all different.
Spain is different from the rest of Europe: while Europe is green, Spain is red.
Literally red: there is no other place within Europe where you see so many bare rock,
and bare rocks are often red and orange and yellow.
Spain is also: delicious food and whine, cities with old castles, monasteries ans churches, reminiscences of Celts, Romans, Moorish kings and architects, and catholic rulers, proud people who are very Spanish in the eyes of outsiders, and who are completely different from the Spaniards in the next village, according to themselves.
Added: new page
Added: november 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle touring in Spain
In the Netherlands, beginning motorcycle riders are taught how to brake. In many countries, starting motorcycle riders have to find out how to brake well themselves.
But even when you did receive lessons in braking, it is advisable to keep practising, especially when you change bikes.
This page summarizes how to brake in different circumstances and on different motorcycle.
Added: new page
Added: august 2007
Read more about: How to brake well on a motorcycle
The Ardennes, the Vosges, the Black Forest, the Alps, the Pyerenees, the Carpathians, Snowdonia, the Picos Europa,
the Sierra Nevada, the Appennines, the list is almost endless: mountain regions.
Ideal for motorcycle riders, but if you are used to ride in a flat country, there are some new aspects.
How do you brake when riding downward, and how do you brake when riding up? What is the ideal line
in a switchback or hairpin? How do you cope with fear of heights?
Here are some tips about what's different for motorcycle riders in a three-dimensional landscpae as opposed to a flat country.
Added: new page
Added: august 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle riding in the mountains
You have passed your exam (in the Netherlands, that is a rather difficult exam: Dutch motorcycle riders are rather well prepared to ride in traffic), and you are ready to buy your first motorcycle.
Which bikes are suitable and which are not? And why? How do you choose your first motorcycle? What are the criteria?
Added: The BMW F650G as a first bike.
Added: BMW F650GS
Changed: august 2007
Read more about: Choosing your First Motorcycle
The Netherlands are a small country, densely populated, and very regulated traffic.
Nonetheless, there still are beauriful roads for motorcycle riders, both with respect to cornering and to getting a glimpse of what makes the Netherlands so special.
On this page, you find information about traffic rules and habits, about good roads for motorcycle riders, about finding places to stay, and other tips for your visit.
Added: new page
Added: july 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle Touring in the Netherlands
The keyword for Europe is diversity. It consists of sometimes miniature
countries, that each consist themselves of different regions, cultures and people.
In Europe, the landscape in places just a couple of kilometers apart can
be completely different, and cultural history manifests itself everywhere.
So what to expect for a non-Euopean, on motorcycle, in Europe?
Added: new page
Added: july 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle Touring in Europe
The essence of motorcycle riding is cornering: many motorcycle riders agree with that.
You can enhance your cornering skills for the rest of your life, and you will probably never reach full perfection.
What kind of mistakes are possible in corners, and what is the reason for those mistakes?
What can you do about it? What is the perfect line, and how do you find it? When do you brake, and what is
the right speed for a corner?
Reading about cornering is, of course, not enough: you will have to practise, practise, practise. Here tips on how to do that.
Rearanged, and added information
Changed: may 2007
Read more about: Tips for cornering with a motorcycle
The character of a motorcycle, the way ot feels, the way it rides, is determined by a combination of many factors.
Two of those characteristics are torque and power, and these are probably the most important.
Here we try to explain what torque and power mean, and how they infuence the way a motorcycle feels.
Added: new page
Added: may 2007
Read more about: Torque and Power in Motorcycles
The most important aspect of riding a motorcycle is looking ahead. Being able to look ahead, being able to notice what's important, is a vital element of motorcycle riding.
It would seem that that's something everybody is capable of, but you
will notice that there is much to learn about looking ahead.
You ride towards where you look, so to learn cornering well, you will
have to look in the right direction. On traffic, you will have to learn
to notice far more than you usually see.
Whether safety or speed appeals most to you, you will have to work on your looking skills. What's there to see? How can you practise your capabilities? This page tries to formulate an answer.
Added: new page
Added: april 2007
Read more about: Looking and motorcycle riding
When you ride individually, you can control your own speed, and are able to use your attention to look ahead and anticipate. In a group, that's different.
Is it possible to ride in a group in such a way that not only everybody is safe, but also that everybody is able to enjoy the ride? What are the pitfalls when riding in a group?
The rules described here have been tested many times...
Added: new page
Added: april 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle riding in a group
Every motorcyclist knows them, the lesser moments:
You have crashed, and you are struggling to get you confidence back.
You can't get yourself to enter corners as fast as you wish, or you
are afraid of locking your front wheel every time you brake.
How do you cope? You have to "get over it", some people will tell you. But how do you do that? Is there such a thing as getting over your fear? If not, how to get rid of your fear?
This page tries to formulate an answer.
Added: new page
Added: april 2007
Read more about: Fear on a motorcycle
Many motorcycles allow you to take a pillion along. On this page, we wrote tips about riding with a pillion.
The pillion himself (or herself) too, can find tips about how to behave on the backseat of a motorcycle, in a way that riding is as pleasant as possible for both motorcycle rider and pillion.
Added: new page
Added: april 2007
Read more about: Motorcycle rider with a pillion
Your motorcycle riding gear probably has been made to enhance your safety, you always ride with a helmet, and maybe your motorcycle has ABS. You would almost forget that those measures can only make a small difference in how safe you are, compared with the influence of your own riding behaviour.
Motorcycle riding means that you take full responsibility for your own safety, for instance by learning to anticipate on mistakes of other people on the road. Anticipating mistakes of other people and reacting with the right behaviour is totally different from only thinking that you were right and the other was wrong...
On ths page about safety with respect to motorcycle riding, we try to give some advice on how to enhance your own safety.
Added: new page
Added: april 2007
Read more about: Tips for safety for motorcycle riders
When you want to buy a new helmet, motorcycle jacket, trousers, gloves or boots, what are the requirements?
What are the different materials and what are the differences?
How do you protect yourself against cold, heat and rain?
Added: new page
Added: march 2007
Read more about: Tips for motorcycle clothing
When you go on a camping trip on motorcycle, there are a lot of questions to answer: what kind of tent do you need?
Which sleeping bag? What do you take with you, and what kind of luggage do you need to get all your stuff along?
How do you cook? This page tries to help you answering these questions.
Added: new page
Added: march 2007
Read more about: Tips for camping with a motorcycle
What is the meaning of the name Lazy Motorbike? What is the idea behind the site? And who are the people who wrote the texts and took the photographs?
You will find the answers to those kind of questions here.
New: about the site
Added: march 2007
Read more about: About the site: contact
If you want to use photographs from this site, please read here about the conditions under which you may do that.
New: information about copyright
Added: march 2007
Read more about: Copyright page
