Author Topic: New member from the North East (UK)  (Read 2490 times)

Offline Johnwebley

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Re: New member from the North East (UK)
« Reply #15 on: August 21, 2026, 08:30:08 AM »
Welcome to the forum Pete.
Some lovely, lovely machinery there and I bow to your engineering skills. I do love a scratch built bike that has been retro modded as you have done.
As for the spannering in winter, riding in summer idea, great in theory but as I've found out, it seldom works in practice! Trouble is with me I start a restoration and don't want to stop it otherwise the big fear of leaving it over the summer is come next winter and the interest has gone!
As for Phase One endurance, I used to follow the team (and Team Bike before Phase One). I used to ride to Spa and Le Mans with a group of mates to watch world endurance but like you, my back can no longer take camping (and my ears can no longer suffer the noise of V8 engines stuck into shopping trolleys with HUGE megaphone exhausts that plagued the campsites!). You may have read the article published in Bike Magazine last year where Karl Ride (and his team manager) were persuaded to ride an old RC30 in an endurance round at (I think) Spa. He'd never been there, never rode in an endurance race and yet he rode around the outside of experienced endurance racers on far more modern machinery.
Great to hear you have seen the sohc light
The old Phase one is still being run with RC30 's

Ian Martin still does regular updates on X

@IanTeamBike



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lifelong motorcycle rider,and fan

Offline Rozabikes Tim

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Re: New member from the North East (UK)
« Reply #16 on: August 21, 2026, 10:13:53 AM »
Kyle Ryde lives spitting distance from us in a village called Jacksdale. Never met him. Seems "a reet good yooth!" Also calm and very measured in his approach.

Read recently he did similar wizardry on an old TZ250.

He is not only quick but so rarely falls off.

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One day I'll have the time to restore it, not just talk and dream....

Offline badger_eng

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Re: New member from the North East (UK)
« Reply #17 on: August 21, 2026, 12:03:35 PM »
Dave - Looks like we have quite a few shared experiences. There’s nothing like the general campsite at either Le Mans or the Bol to bring home the madness of the event.
The first time I took my wife to Le Mans and we rode into the campsite, we parked up, she took her helmet off and said “Where the F have you brought me”, bear in mind we were at Terte Rouge that was like business class in comparison to general camping. Great times tho.
One of life’s best experiences was waking up at dawn, sitting on the bench seats at the stand near the Dunlop bridge with a coffee and a croissant watching the bikes come up the start and finish straight and thru chicane before disappearing under the bridge. A truly magical moment in my life.

Johnny - I’ll no doubt be leaning on your 550 experienced shoulders having 2 1/2 already in the memory locker 👍
Current:-

Suzuki GSX-S1000GX+ - 2026

Suzuki GT500A Cafe style - 1976
https://www.kettleclinic.co.uk/kcforum/viewtopic.php?t=14273

Honda CB550K - 1977 (Winter 2026/27 project)