Advice about riding in Europe

It’s the times you don’t have riding on the right in the back of your mind that can catch you out.

After refueling and leaving the fuel station heading towards the left, was when I looked naturally to the right, with nothing coming I powered on, only to almost do an impersonation of a Joey into the Flying Kangaroo that was in front of me waiting for the traffic on the left 😬

The only other time that caught me out was in county France. I was coming to a T junction where I needed to turn right. There was roadworks going on, and the workers directed me to turn right from the left side of the road. The turn was natural for me and about two minutes later I had a few cars coming at me head on with headlights lights flashing ….. oh great, a game of French chicken.,,,, WTF? ….. then I realised it was me that was still riding on the wrong side of the road 🤭

Stopped twice by cops in France and Spain, neither time did they ask for any documentation.
 
Ha ha! Yes Chris, I found myself on the wrong side of the road a couple of times when taking off on a bike without thinking about where I was going. I rarely make that mistake in a car because you're sitting on the "wrong" side of the car, which tends to jog the memory. But on a bike you have no such clues. It's easy to fall back into the habit of driving on the left side of the road.

As for the language barrier, if you don't speak the language of the country you're going to, make an effort to learn a few basics like: hello, good evening, thank you, can I have the bill please, I've fallen off my chair ... stuff like that. You'll find many people in the hospitality industry speak English, but I think it's courteous to at least make an effort in their language. It's not a big deal if you stuff it up or sound like an idiot. At least you've provided them with a bit of entertainment. :)

I recall once while driving around France, phoning ahead to book a room in some little village pub. With it being a such small village off the usual tourist route, I wasn't necessarily expecting them to speak English, so the telephone conversation was all in French (I studied French at high school and university, so I could mostly blunder my way through, although certainly not fluently). When we got there, we did the whole check-in process in my clumsy French. The place was a very small hotel run by a young couple. The two of them did everything themselves, including cooking and serving meals in their dining room. It was a very homely type of pub with chickens in the back yard and a dog and cat wandering around in the dining room. During a pleasant conversation over our evening meal, I had to translate for my partner who didn't speak any French. As we were about to go up to our room, the woman who I'd been speaking French to all day said in perfect English, and with a mischievous smile "I don't suppose you get to speak French very often in Australia". Her bloody English was a million times better than my French, but she let me stumble on in French because although I was doing well enough, she figured I needed more practice.
 
Dellortoman said:
<snip>As for the language barrier, if you don't speak the language of the country you're going to, make an effort to learn a few basics like: hello, good evening, thank you, can I have the bill please, I've fallen off my chair ... stuff like that. <snip>
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Good point Cam! I'm currently learning a bit of Italian and that definitely needs to be added to the list!
:ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO:
 
Gerald said:
If you travel through Austria make sure to have a motorcycle first aid kit with you.

Gerald
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if you plan to travel through Austria or Switzerland, by any means stick to the speed limits, please! Austria is just robbing you, Switzerland might even take your bike and don't give it back to you (depending on how fast you go and if it's just a speed trap or police stoping you).

Further to that, there are some "no-go" areas in Austria (as is in France I think) where you are not allowed to ride a bike beyond a certain noise level (non of the Laverda comply I think to these rules). It's not a huge area where that is the case, but if you run into these areas where there is that noise limit, you get pulled over and pay.
 
Laverdalothar said:
if you plan to travel through Austria or Switzerland, by any means stick to the speed limits, please! Austria is just robbing you, Switzerland might even take your bike and don't give it back to you (depending on how fast you go and if it's just a speed trap or police stoping you).

Further to that, there are some "no-go" areas in Austria (as is in France I think) where you are not allowed to ride a bike beyond a certain noise level (non of the Laverda comply I think to these rules). It's not a huge area where that is the case, but if you run into these areas where there is that noise limit, you get pulled over and pay.
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No such thing for the moment in France.
However, some parts of France have become a playground for motorcyclists from neighbouring countries.
And car drivers for that matter.
Paul
 
general_piffle said:
Is it just the V5 you carry pics of on your phone or all documents, insurance etc. apart from your driving license obviously?
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Only for the duration of the trip.... I keep copies of everything on my phone, including passport, driving licence and all. I use the 'safe folder' in Google files (which has a pass key code) so if the phone is lost the sensitive docs can't easily seen.
 
Laverdalothar said:
if you plan to travel through Austria or Switzerland, by any means stick to the speed limits, please! Austria is just robbing you, Switzerland might even take your bike and don't give it back to you (depending on how fast you go and if it's just a speed trap or police stoping you).

Further to that, there are some "no-go" areas in Austria (as is in France I think) where you are not allowed to ride a bike beyond a certain noise level (non of the Laverda comply I think to these rules). It's not a huge area where that is the case, but if you run into these areas where there is that noise limit, you get pulled over and pay.
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Sort of falls into the category "dickhead behaviour".

You won't be thrown into a damp dungeon if going 10-over, try 50-over and get caught, you're up shit creek...

piet
 
If your journey goes to Denmark, please pay attention to the rules about crazy driving:



“According to the Traffic and Penal Code, the following is defined as reckless driving: Driving at a speed of at least 200 km/h. Driving at a speed of at least 100 km/h and more than twice the permitted speed limit in the area. Driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of over 2.00.

30. mar. 2023”

justitsministeriet.dk



Safe journey

Jesper😀
 
Banker-Laverda said:
If your journey goes to Denmark, please pay attention to the rules about crazy driving:



“According to the Traffic and Penal Code, the following is defined as reckless driving: Driving under the influence with a blood alcohol level of over 2.00.
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That’s so cool, that must be the most generous half pissed DUI level in the world!
 
You might find the following link and the other links attached useful.

Driving abroad - general advice | The AA

Before you venture across the Channel in your car, or hire one abroad, get to know the rules of the road in the countries you're visiting.
www.theaa.com www.theaa.com

Be aware that in some countries things you may not think about are considered compulsory.
Glasses wearer? You may need to carry a second pair and prescription dark glasses don't count. Who knew?
I do and have never needed to show my second pair.

Also be aware that a number of cities in Europe especially France have, in recent years, introduced ULEZ areas which you will need to apply for access to.
I'm looking into getting one for myself for France but have yet to sort it. I don't normally go through cities but a trip I wish to take in the near future demands it.

Silly things like the legal requirement to have a specific minimum reflecting surface on you crash helmet have been part of French law for some time but I've never heard of anyone being stopped or asked about it or 'done' for failure to comply and that includes my French friends.

Over the past three, four decades of riding in and around Europe, I've only ever been stopped twice, most recent being in Germany last December. Late at night, just before Christmas, they were hoping for a drink driving conviction, I think.

Even during the COVID lockdown era I was never stopped, I refused to catch planes so my boss allowed me time & paid for me to ride. 1000s of kilometres covered in 8 countries and never an issue with police.

Easy to remember advice given by a fellow rider many years ago. To remember which side to ride on.

"In Europe keep your throttle in the gutter"

Stay safe enjoy the ride..
 
Frighteningly easy to find yourself on the wrong side of the road, usually when someone is talking or you're concentrating on something else (like indicating with your wipers) while pulling out of a driveway. Road works and u-turns are also a problem. Considering that head-on accidents are often fatal or very close to it, it's a shame that driving directions are so intrenched.
 
Head-ons were becoming so common on the very popular (with many foreign travellers) Great Ocean Road in Victoria's southern coastline that there are regular signs warning to drive on the left. In Europe I made my share of blunders, maybe three incidents in 4 or 5 visits - fortunately each one avoided an accident! Only one was 'why is that car blaring its horn and coming straight at me'!! Test riding a 50cc Vespina, had done a U-turn and immediately went to my natural left side of the road - BMW driver not happy!!
 
piranha-bro2 said:
Head-ons were becoming so common on the very popular (with many foreign travellers) Great Ocean Road in Victoria's southern coastline that there are regular signs warning to drive on the left.
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In the motorhome I rented last week it had “Drive on the left” decals plastered all over the windscreen etc.

On returning the vehicle to the depot, it was peak hour for motorhome collection.

It was like being in the International departure lounge in Singapore. The girl behind the counter said “It’s so nice to deal with someone that speaks fluent English”

So I get your point Q. I’ve only done one trip to North Queensland in the truck since, but every time I see a rental motorhome on the road now I’m super cautious.
 
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