I launched and edited Bike magazine in Britain in 1971, and suitably if naively emboldened, I launched and edited Which Bike? five years later, and then MotorCycle International in 1984. Throughout those years and then on until well, now, in various other initially unsuspecting journals, I scribbled a monthly column under the titles of Running Out Of Road and later, Lore. These were generally intended as humorous, often it transpired, controversial and occasionally deeply critical of the industry and political status quo as it affected 'biking. 

In the 1980s two compilations of my columns were published in book form and since things went full circle and I began writing again for Bike in 2013, I've received a small and unsteady trickle of emails from riders of a certain age who grew up with and fondly (?) recalled Running Out Of Road, so I recently re-launched, or am rather re-published many of those columns, together with contemporary comments, plus the odd brand new one. Some of them related to my 30-odd years of K75S ownership – I'm currently on my second – so if you've a few minutes to spare once or twice a week and fancy a bit of nostalgia, a wry laugh or the risk of irritation, do please log onto and follow my blog at: www.runningoutofroad.uk

And thanks for your indulgence thus far  

Oh shit... I'm one of those old fogies that remembers both.

Half the time those columns were great, the other half they wound me up something rotten.

At least that's how I remember it!

Cheers Mark

When were you slinging words at (Classic) & Motorcycle Mechanics, Mark? That was one of the mags that I contributed to, along with Classic Racer, AWOL, Back Street Heroes (fckrs still owe me a shedload of dosh for work delivered and never paid for) and a few of the smaller ones that were beginning to appear (UBG? Can't remember now). I do remember that AWOL paid far, far more than anyone else.

I seem to remember all those moto mags from my time in the UK around the late eighties and early nineties.  Maybe, just maybe, I may have one or two issues in the bottom of a box somewhere. 

Perhaps you were the one who pushed me into a similar thirty odd years of 75S ownership ....... 

Oh dear... that would be a big responsibility!

I got my first road bike in ‘69 and Bike magazine permanently (and expensively) influenced my subsequent motorcycle buying life, so thanks for that Mark. It was the test of two Moto Morinis entitled ‘La Dolce Vita’, that piqued my interest in Italian bikes leading to a handful of Dukes and a Guzzi. I never really played in the Japanese or Brit market from that point on. 
Stu

Thanks for sharing the link Mark - greatly enjoyed a couple of articles while(st) drinking my coffee at 5:30 am.  I can't say that I typically laugh much at this time of the day but your writing worked well!

markysimon wrote:I launched and edited Bike magazine in Britain in 1971, and suitably if naively emboldened, I launched and edited Which Bike? five years later, and then MotorCycle International in 1984. Throughout those years and then on until well, now, in various other initially unsuspecting journals, I scribbled a monthly column under the titles of Running Out Of Road and later, Lore. These were generally intended as humorous, often it transpired, controversial and occasionally deeply critical of the industry and political status quo as it affected 'biking. 

In the 1980s two compilations of my columns were published in book form and since things went full circle and I began writing again for Bike in 2013, I've received a small and unsteady trickle of emails from riders of a certain age who grew up with and fondly (?) recalled Running Out Of Road, so I recently re-launched, or am rather re-published many of those columns, together with contemporary comments, plus the odd brand new one. Some of them related to my 30-odd years of K75S ownership – I'm currently on my second – so if you've a few minutes to spare once or twice a week and fancy a bit of nostalgia, a wry laugh or the risk of irritation, do please log onto and follow my blog at: www.runningoutofroad.uk

And thanks for your indulgence thus far  

This really good. I remember these so much, Running out of Road, Ogri, but also Motorcycle Mechanics and a certain L J K Setright in the 70s. Then after 2000 I found myself reading Mercedes Enthusiast only to find one of the more prominent testers as none other than the same LJK Setright. The nostalgia kicked in big time. Sadly he passed not so long back. Be good to find the books too.

The books – Running Out Of Road and More RooR are sometimes found on Amazon... if you're really desperate! But thanks for the memories Olaf... and to the others who had kind words to say. 

And there'll be a new post up this afternoon.