riding scooter in sunny Queensland

hi, just want to introduce myself. Have just bought a 2007 Silverwing in wonderful condition and I am looking forward to some day trips around Brisbane. We surely have the weather for all year riding and some lovely mountain ranges nearby. I come from Germany and freeze at the thought of riding a scooter in the European or American winter. My previous ride was a 2007 Burgman 400; quite a good reliable machine, but a bit too sluggish on the take off and lacking a bit of acceleration above the 100km/h.
Unfortunately our highways are restricted to mostly 100km/h with some short sections of 110km/h.
I am still trying to find some appropriate safe clothes to wear, which will suit our climate. Most of the jackets and pants are more suited for the cold climate; very hot to wear in our summer months. Any tips?

I have enjoyed browsing your technical sections; there's a treasure chest full of good advice!

cheers gremlin

Welcome gremlin. Maybe you can check with Kurt. He's a short ride over in Perth.

yes, it's only 4380km; it will have to wait for the next long weekend :-)

gremlin welcome to the forum. Your story sounds familiar to me. I've had a Burgman 400 although mine was an 05 and it just didn't have the power I wanted so I sold it. I have an 07 Silverwing I bought around July of last year with 7,500 miles on it.
And I live in Florida so I ride year round and I do wear gloves, boots, helmet and long pants but that's about the safest clothes I can wear. I see people ride with short pants, no shirt, no helmet and sandals. I look forward to hear what people suggest and what you end up deciding to wear.
We don't really have a winter here in Florida. Our winter is a combination of fall and spring that only lasts about five to eight weeks.
I come from Ohio which is near the top of the US and I know what cold weather is. I now in Florida which is about as far south as you can get in the US.
I nominally put a few links to maintenance, tips and hints for new members but you sound like you've already read through them. If you can't find what you need the search on this forum works good, and if you still need help just ask and someone will do what they can to answer your questions.

G'day, Banana Bender, Nice to hear from a Qld rider.
Clobber.................... In Qld don't wear anything resembling a patch!
If you are over 40, check out the local branch of the Ulysses Club.. lots of shared knowledge.
For the warmer times, I still wear the kevlar jeans and leather gear, BUT I also wear shorts under the jeans, so at stops I drop the jeans and walk,sit, eat in comfort Get some funny looks sometimes but it's worth it.LOL  Anyhows I am off very very early tomorrow zum wieder mal nach 62 jahren wieder die familie und haimat zur besuchen.
I hope you ride the Swing as much as I liked to ride it. When you blast past Ducati riders, they usually do a double take.

Drop over for a stubby some time. We can offer you some real Sand wiches too.

Still waiting for Trishc (Mexican) of Gippsland (VIC) to visit too.

I stop riding at 38C+ just not very enjoyable.

gremlin wrote:

yes, it's only 4380km; it will have to wait for the next long weekend :-)

Maybe you can meet in the middle for lunch.......and a new set of tires.

  Maybe you can meet in the middle for lunch.......and a new set of tires.             [/quote]

It is a long stretch, equivalent to riding from Miami to the Canadian border in Washington state. And I lived in the middle of Oz ( Alice Springs) for over 20 years. I think one would have to find a way to carry a fair amount of fuel for some of the long desert stretches. You would have to carry the tires too, since you would not find a set of scooter tires in the Outback unless it was arranged prior to departure. I know that a guy on a silverwing has done a trip on a silverwing around Australia, but I think I stick to shorter tours along the East Coast.

Thanks for the friendly responses

Ok guys, the Mexican is still around. Why don't we meet up in Broken wouldn't that be mid way for all 3 of us? Anyway gremlin, down here in Vic, I wear full armour dri-rider gear and even in summer. But in 40 degree heat I'm a bit like Kurt and just wear shorts under my bike pants or my togs, depends if I'm going for coffee or a dip.

Yes, Broken Hill would be an interesting place to meet, I have lived there for nearly a year in 1978, just after my arrival in Oz. The mines were still going then and we did love our trips into the Outback from there.
I am still struggling with the concept of wearing the " heavy duty " clothing in summer, but it is cooling down now and wearing leather or good synthetic is more practical now. I know it is stupid to ride without adequate protection, even though I used to do it in my youth and so did everyone else then.
I still cannot understand why no manufacturer makes some really light ,airy stuff that is tough enough; with todays technology that should be not too hard.
I have ordered a huge 55 liter Givi case and the Givi mount for it from Germany; inclusive freight it is still only a bit more than half the price from the local bike shops. After researching the Givi lights I have decided to just put some LED stop lights in it, their kits get some mixed reviews. The original tail lights on the Silverwing are located too low in my opinion.

Nice to hear from someone else with a SW, they are pretty thin on the ground here in Oz