When people let their emotions drive

 When real self-driving cars finally arrive they presumably will not offer driving modes for "Bully," "Road-Hog," "Tail Gate," "Revenge Honk," or "Grand Prix."

Human drivers, however, do operate in those modes, frequently. We know these anti-social outbursts when we see them.

And I see them a lot.

We live in Florida, but my wife and I have a tiny studio apartment above an alley in downtown Washington, D.C., so we can visit our kids, who live in D.C.

Being on an alley, the garbage trucks and delivery trucks arrive early and often. Luckily we are not light sleepers.

The alley is laid out in a "T" shape, with only the base of the "T" connecting to the street. The arms of the "T" are both dead-ends. The leg of the "T" is narrow, so narrow that only one vehicle at a time can use it. The arms of the alley are just barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass.

It's actually fun to watch the professional truck drivers wheel their massive vehicles through the tight spaces and around other vehicles. But, human nature being what it is, it is EVEN MORE fun to watch the occasionally inept driver try it.

I just thank goodness it isn't me at the wheel, as they struggle, edging backwards and forwards in the turn, denting fencing, and tearing off the occasional rain gutter in the process.

But the real fun comes when difficulty leads to frustration and confrontation.

One recent morning an incredibly long truck arrived, delivering an oversized but empty dumpster to a construction site on the alley. It squeezed in, but the ballet was only beginning.

The driver would have to drop the new, empty, dumpster in a corner of the alley, then maneuver and pick up the old, full-to-the-brim dumpster, move that to a different corner, return and pick up the empty dumpster, move it into position for use, then maneuver again to pick up the full dumpster and carry it away.

This was in progress when a lady in a new Mercedes pulled out of the condo garage in the alley and encountered the truck, nose-to-nose. She couldn't get past him. He couldn't get past her.

Things could have gone in a couple different ways. They went straight down hill.

The truck driver laid on his air horns and kept them blowing for a good long time. The sound might have been sufficient to blow away any ordinary driver, but not this lady. She backed up. Just a couple of feet; just a bit short of how far he would need to get by her.

The truck driver now dismounted and approached the Mercedes. The woman did not roll down her window to negotiate. No one would suggest she do so, but the effect of this was that the truck driver had to shout and gesture wildly in an attempt to communicate. He appeared to be insane. I assume, at this point, that the lady was dialing the police.

The truck driver now resorted to cyber threat. He got out his iPad and began photographing the Mercedes, an obvious threat to bring charges. The lady wasn't intimidated. The truck would just have to back up and let her by.

So the truck driver got into his cab and backed up. Just a couple of feet, but enough for her to squirt past him. Instead of turning down the leg of the "T" and being on her way, however, she remained in that arm of the "T," still effectively blocking the whole dumpster-shifting operetta.

I assume she was on the phone with police, seeking satisfaction. I guess the dispatcher finally explained that police getting around to solving a problem like hers would probably not be the day's top priority.

No sense waiting. She finally did get the Mercedes in gear and turn into the leg of the "T" to exit.

She didn't get far, however, because there was an SUV, inbound, waiting for the dumpsters to move so it could turn into the alley. SUV and Mercedes came nose to nose. Neither budged.

Eventually, the SUV driver relented and began slowly... slowly... slowly... backing up the leg of the "T" toward the street. And then, when he did reach the sidewalk, he carefully, ever so carefully and slowly, edged out into the street and then pulled alongside the curb cut -- blocking the alley exit so the Mercedes couldn't leave.

By now obviously enjoying himself, the SUV driver crawled forward on the street, eventually creating enough of an opening for the Mercedes to cross the sidewalk.

But now, with its front wheels on the street, the Mercedes came to stop. Sweet revenge! Now the SUV would not be able to reenter the alley.

Satisfied with her triumph, the lady did eventually drive away and the morning's drama was at an end.

Would any of these people care to see their behavior through my eyes? Do you see yourself any of this? I hate to admit it, but I know I am guilty on occasion.

Royal Enfield recalls some reflectors

Royal Enfield INT 650 tail light with reflector at center.

 UPDATE: This article in Adventure Rider lists which Royal Enfields are involved in the recall and why some Royal Enfield reflectors failed to meet U.S. standards.

Reflectors, those little lenses that glow when the headlights of other vehicles strike them, intrigue me. 

So it was interesting to read that Royal Enfield is recalling motorcycles it made from November 2022 to March 2023 to bring their legally required reflectors up to worldwide standards. 

The recall will be rolled out in India, Brazil, Latin America, Europe, the UK, South Korea, Canada and the U.S. 

Fortunately, for owners of affected motorcycles, they're looking at an easy, free fix that might take only 15 minutes at a dealership. 

What really interests me is not what the reflectors do, but how they look. These little ruby lenses have always struck me as part of the "jewelry" on motorcycles, and I like to see how manufacturers through the ages have found places to position them. 

I've blogged about the different solutions I noticed at a motorcycle show.

Accessory reflector on a vintage Royal Enfield. Nice touch.

It's not necessarily easy to find a spot on a motorcycle to put a reflector.

I know: because my then-new 1999 Royal Enfield Bullet came with its five stick-on reflectors unapplied. I had to experiment for some time to find where they were meant to go. It just didn't seem to have enough flat surfaces!

A small matter, you might say. But ways of providing reflection for safety were the subject of experimentation in the early days of motorcycling.

In Britain the lower part of the rear fender was painted white on the motorcycles of "learners" as the mandatory red "L" must be displayed on a white background.

In 1935, it was Royal Enfield's policy to paint a small white triangle on the rear fender of its bicycles to add reflectance.

Tiny white triangle was a safety measure in 1935.

I'm unsure what U.S. regulations Royal Enfield's modern reflectors may have violated. The Code of Federal Regulations Standard 108 is lengthy and complex on the subject of lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.

Motorcycles in the U.S. are required to have three red and two amber "reflex reflectors." One red is to be used facing to the rear, one red on each side at the rear of the motorcycle, and one amber on each side at the front of the motorcycle.

Reflective, adhesive-backed tape may be used, if it meets standards. Here's a sample of those standards:

"Each red reflex reflector shall also provide, at an observation angle of 0.2 degree, not less than 300 millicandelas/lux at any light entrance angle between 30 degrees left and 30 degrees right, including an entrance angle of 0 degree, and not less than 75 millicandelas/lux at any light entrance angle between 45 degrees left and 45 degrees right.

"Each reflex reflector must be designed to conform to the performance requirements of the vibration test, moisture test, dust test, and corrosion test, and the color test and plastic optical material test.

"The exposed surface of each reflex reflector shall be marked with the letters DOT-C which constitutes a certification that the reflector conforms to all applicable requirements... The certification shall be not less than 3mm high, and permanently stamped, etched, molded or printed in indelible ink."

All well and good, but how much good do reflectors really do? Compared to the elaborate lighting systems on motor vehicles today, perhaps not much, practically speaking.

But I think they can be attractive cosmetically. When I speak of reflectors as motorcycle "jewelry," I am thinking of the Lucas style round reflectors, like those available from Hitchcocks Motorcycles.

Hitchcocks listing for vintage rear reflector.

Dating a very old Royal Enfield bicycle

This was one smart looking bicycle.

 An attractive and interesting looking Royal Enfield bicycle, obviously old, was recently identified by an archivist at the Royal Enfield Owners Club (UK). 

The bicycle's buyer, João, found it in Portugal, but he didn't seem to know a lot about it. 

He knew it was English, and thought it might be from the 1940s. But the maker's badge on the headstock had worn off. 

He certainly realized the bicycle was a Royal Enfield product because of the chainwheel's artillery-piece motif. It's the unmistakable visual expression of Royal Enfield's longtime motto, "Made Like a Gun." 

Royal Enfield produced bicycles in Redditch, England, long before it made motorcycles. The first "Enfield" bicycles appeared in 1892 and "proved an instant success," according to Peter Miller's book "Royal Enfield, The Early History." 

The "Enfield" name was inspired by the fact that the factory had completed a contract supplying firearm components to the Royal Small Arms factory in Enfield, England.

The company quickly plucked the "Royal" name as well, and its bicycles became "Royal Enfields."

João emailed me asking for information about his bicycle.

His Royal Enfield looked to me to resemble a Royal Enfield bicycle of the 1930s. The intriguing "can" on the front hub was a drum brake, I thought, although this seemed odd as there was a front caliper brake as well.

Only the outlines of the head badge remained.

I ran through the Internet looking for vintage bicycle head badges that might resemble, in outline, the worn remains of the logo on the bicycle.

I could see the faint remains of a crown and shield, typical of Royal Enfield bicycles of the period, but found nothing that exactly matched images on the Internet.

Worse, I found that many English bicycle makers of the day used a crown motif as part of their badges.

This was even the case for Canterbury Cross bicycles, for a time a lower-priced sub brand of Royal Enfield. Some Canterbury Cross bicycles made by Royal Enfield had even used the distinctive cannon chainwheel design! Confusion.

Fortunately, some real experts were about to weigh in.

João sent photos of his bicycle to the historian at the National Cycle Museum in the UK. The response was helpful, but there was a problem:

"Royal Enfield  bicycles were made in Redditch in England for almost one hundred years and had a reputation for quality and solid reliability... Unfortunately, they also had a reputation for poor record keeping so it is always very difficult to find accurate information on dates, models of machines and so on. I have been unable to find a record of your frame number."

I decided to try sending the photos to the Royal Enfield Owner's Club. Its members mostly own Royal Enfield motorcycles today, but the club has taken Royal Enfield bicycles under its wing, too.

Club member, and bicycle and motorcycle enthusiast Richard Miller recently undertook collecting information about pedal powered Royal Enfields on the website Royal Enfield Bicycles.

Richard is the son of Peter Miller, the late author of "The Early History."

Thankfully Richard found a period catalog illustration that seems to show this  bicycle.

"I am the bicycle archivist for the Royal Enfield Owners Club in the UK," he wrote.

"Your cycle looks to be a nice find and is in good original condition. It is a Model E Deluxe; below is a picture from the 1938 catalogue. As far as I know this model was not produced after the War so it should date from the mid to late thirties."

I think we have a winner.

I was floored to see that the illustration even included the front drum brake, and the advertising copy boasted of "internal expanding brakes" as a selling point.

Richard's website is still a work in progress, and it asks for your help:

"If you have a picture of your Royal Enfield bicycle that you would be willing to submit and published in a gallery please do so via the contacts page.

"Your help with building up the serial number database would be very much appreciated – to assist please send in the serial number of your Royal Enfield bicycle along with (if known) the year of manufacture or model name or photo (or all three if you are feeling particularly helpful!). The contact details link is on the top navigation bar.

"Early Royal Enfield had their frame number on the lower front part of the steerer tube or in some cases on the right side rear drop out; after that it moved to the left hand top of the seat tube. Some sporting models have their frame number on the left hand rear drop out."

And, finally, it has one piece of advice many will appreciate:

"If you have a Royal Enfield fitted with its original three speed Sturmey Archer hub you are in luck – Sturmey hubs are normally stamped with a month and year code."