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Message started by JLC on 07/03/17 at 09:39:28

Title: ATGATT and two wheel riding in France
Post by JLC on 07/03/17 at 09:39:28

I spent the better part of the last month in France (From Paris to Nice), checking out how much the country has changed since my last visit 17 years ago!

There are more motorcyclists in France than any other country in Europe, despite the fact the motorcycle test is, possibly with the UK, the toughest in Europe... or so a couple of French riders told me.

Outside towns, most motorcyclists are fully geared up, and usually respect the speed limits. Not surprising considering there are radars (both fixed and mobile) everywhere.

In towns, it's different. There are more scooters than motorcycles. Most scooters are 50cc up to 400cc. Scooter riders wear a helmet, motorcycle gloves, and then some don suit and tie going to the office, but most wear tennis shoes (or even flip flops), t-shirts and street jeans or shorts. Understandable considering the heat in Paris and Nice, but not very safe. They also ride fast in and out of traffic, and regularly cut in front of traffic, often at traffic lights to turn just in front of the vehicle they just passed! I am amazed I did not see a single crash when I was in France. By the way, lane splitting is not legal in France, but practiced everywhere.

Motorcycle riders ride faster and do not seem to take as many risks as scooters, but in town they do not wear all the motorcycle gear- just the helmet and gloves. I wondered about the gloves till someone told me the French government passed a law mandating the wear of suitable gloves from November 2016, and there is a stiff fine for not doing so. The wear of a helmet has been a requirement in France for at least forty years.

There are very few "loud pipes" in France. Not surprising as I am sure the police enforces the noise rules strictly. The only time I was ever stopped riding my motorcycle in France was for a loud exhaust.

They are few Harleys (nearly all with stock exhausts) or other cruisers. The high end bikes are usually BMWs. Lots of touring bikes, and dual purpose/enduros in towns.

You will not see a rider or a driver drink any alcoholic beverage in France. The limit is so low that even one beer will put you over that limit.

Title: Re: ATGATT and two wheel riding in France
Post by mpescatori on 07/07/17 at 00:32:22

"You will not see a rider or a driver drink any alcoholic beverage in France. The limit is so low that even one beer will put you over that limit."

That is because France, alongo with most of Europe, has BEER, not "yellowy fizzy drink"

http://https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Trappist_Beers_2015.jpg/1200px-Trappist_Beers_2015.jpg

A few years ago my family and I were in Bruges (Brugge, actually, as it's in Flanders and they speak Flemish... OK double Dutch ;D)

We went to visit a brewery and in his opening welcome the "Master Brewer" explained "if it has less than 5.5% alcohol it's not beer, it's soda pop"

http://www.penbaypilot.com/sites/default/files/2013/09/field/image/072.JPGhttp://https://i1.wp.com/thetravelbunny.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/half-moon-brewery-bruges.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&ssl=1

At the end of the tour, we were all entitled to a pint.
So I asked the Beermeister...
..."my boy is 14 BUT he is being educated to the culture of beer, and can already tell a Lager from a Pilsner from a Bock; do you suppose that, for educaitonal reasons, we could..." ;)

"Ah ! - he exclaimed - you do well to educate your son ! Please may I participate in this education!"
And pulled another pint from the draught.
(note: legal drinking age is 16)

8-)

PS My son is now 19 and even though he does go out with friends in the evening and returns late (1 - 2 a.m. is not unusual in Rome in the summer)
I have NEVER seen him tipsy - not once ! 8-)

Title: Re: ATGATT and two wheel riding in France
Post by IslandRoad on 07/07/17 at 04:20:34

France is a really interesting country. I spent 6 weeks there a couple of years ago - small town in the South and a few days in Paris. Saw loads of bikes and scooters at peak hour, often with canvas 'shields' that cover the front of the bike , the hands, and legs - like half a tent. The rider often in a suit. As for cars, there seems to be a convention that it's ok to nudge another car in order to fit into a tight parking spot in the city.

An expat Englishman I was visiting pointed out that France is basically a police state. He told me you can be fined for not carrying ID papers - even just walking down the street.

When a politician is travelling in a car, a convoy of police bikes travel front and back. The riders at the front point at cars at intersections to tell them to yield while the government car comes through. It's impressive, and eerie, to watch.

Title: Re: ATGATT and two wheel riding in France
Post by mpescatori on 07/12/17 at 01:00:05

"An expat Englishman I was visiting pointed out that France is basically a police state. He told me you can be fined for not carrying ID papers - even just walking down the street."

Name any one nation, other than the UK, where a LEO walks over and you simply say "Hello, my name is Johnny Winkle and I am a gentleman and I expect you to take my word for it"

The point is the UK is that ONE nation where they still do not have anything resembling an ID card.

A form of ID ? Driving License, Passport, your utilities bill, a paid traffic ticket or two postcards delivered at your address.

Hmmm... OK so I will send two post cards to a "Mr. Michael Rattus, Esq." at a condescending address and then I can claim I am Mickey Mouse ?

;D ;D ;D

Title: Re: ATGATT and two wheel riding in France
Post by JLC on 07/12/17 at 06:50:31

About the strength of beer... even a weak beer might put you over the limit in France and Italy. In both countries the law allows no more than 0.5 mg/ml, vs 0.8 mg/ml in England and many other places.

Quite right about the absence of ID card in the UK, and you do not have to carry any identification. The one time I was stopped by the police in my car (for having only one headlight working), I had left my wallet at home. No problem, I was given 24 hrs (or was it 48?) to produce my papers and show the car had been fixed. No fine either. That was in the 80s, and I am surprised the UK authorities have not tightened up the rules.

In reference to "police states"... In the last four years I traveled from the US to England, Ireland, Norway, Spain, and France. If my memory serves me right, the only two countries where I had to fill in a police form at a hotel were France and Spain. That's also where the police/army presence on the streets was strongest.