idman

Out of the mouth of another Thai Government Idiot comes this gem.  Transit Minister Inspector Sarawut Songsivilai says his Department is going to reduce road deaths during this years Songkran carnage by 7%.  First off, did he just pick that number by going to a Temple and giving some Monk a wad of Baht and asking him to provide a number???  Secondly, why only 7% this year and why only during Songkran, why not try for a higher reduction 365 days a year????  Thailand has the distinction of being the most dangerous country in the entire world for road deaths and yet every holiday these Government clowns make dumb promises to fix the problem but does it ever change the reality???  I don't think so.  Get ready for more carnage next month and more lame excuses.

I should have been more specific.  Yamaha itself does not offer insurance but the Yamaha Dealer will have this option albeit overpriced.  A kickback involved perhaps???

Yes, Yamaha do offer First Class Insurance but avoid at all costs.  Way overpriced, 13K plus and a 5K deductable plus and very low hospital payouts for you and a passanger.  There are much better and cheaper ones out there, use Google and you will find many options.

Sorry, I forgot to mention this.  She likes to be called Dr.Amy by Farangs as that is the name the staff at Boston University gave her as her Thai name is a bit of a struggle.

I see the lovely Dr.Vachiraporn Sujaritwanichpong, now that's a mouthful, at Chiang Mai Ram Skin Center.  She is well trained as she did her internship and residency in Dermatology at Boston University and she speaks perfect English.  I have nothing but great things to say about her and recommend her.  She is there with the exception of Wednesday and Saturday.  Just walk in and make an appointment, you never have to wait more than a few days if your schedule is flexible.  She also told me to use Aldara and where to buy it OTC here in Chiang Mai, head to your nearest Pharma Choice Pharmacy and ask for it, if they are out they will contact another shop and get it for you or tell you which branch has it and where it is located.

Had the 1000K service done yesterday, I even opted for synthetic oil as I believe it offers better lubrication.  The price at the Yamaha shop was 878 baht.  After 1000K I have come to appreciate the Xmax more and more.  The handling, the acceleration, the breaking are so superior to any Forza 300 I have ever riden.  Add in the looks of the scooter and I am a very happy and proud owner.  Yes, you can get one without waiting here in Chiang Mai for that 169,000 baht but then you have to get insurance and anyone who does not opt for full coverage/first class after spending that kind of money is mental.  The real out the door price thus becomes actad over 180,000 baht

Being a stupid ejit in my younger days and thinking that a fair skinned Irish lad would look better with a tan I spent way too time in the sun.  I did however manage to get that tanned and right from the beach look, now I am paing the price for my stupidity.  Three melanomas removed, four Mose surgerys, multiple pre skin cancers treated and the list goes on.  I now see a Dermatologist here in Chiang Mai three times a year for a full skin inspection and twice a year when I am back in San Francisco.  I never leave my Condo without sunscreen, I wear long sleeved shirts in the daytime, I wear riding gloves and I wear long pants as part of my efforts to keep dying from skin cancer.  I have dodged three bullets already.  To you <deleted>..ing ejits here in Chiang Mai who are not dark skinned and hail from Europe or Noth America get a clue and cover up.  Everyday I see these morons riding their motorbikes and bicycles wearing nothing more than t-shirt/singlet and shorts and of course most of them with no protection on their bald heads.  YOu ARE going to get skin cancer, it's not a matter of if but when and for some by the time they actally try to do something it's too late.  Of course, as the Thai people say, up to you.

At the beach, sitting around the pool, no shirt no problem.  Come away from those locations and for fo..ok sake have the common sense and decency to put a shirt/singlet on.  It's mostly twatpackers, the Western Civilization types, that seem to be clueless.  Nothing is more delightful and adds to your dining experience that having some shirtless di..ck head sitting next to you.  Of course in more and more cases it's simply another means of showing off their ridiculous body art.  There in Thailand the staff are relucant to confront these earslings and deny them service.

As has been guessed, as has been GUESSED!!!!  That's the only basis for that post, no evidence presented to support the statement???  Until something from Uber headquarters and from a legitmate source is presented then I for one think this is a load of manure.

My sincere wish is for the House of Cards AKA the Thai Economy come crashing back to earth sooner rather than later.  This outright manlipulation of the Baht by the Bank of Thailand has got to stop once and for all.  Alĺ these platitutes that come from their mouths about the robust economy are nothing but pablum for the ignorant Thais who continute to believe their every word.  Crash, Crash, Crash is my wish, thank you very much.

My windscreen is stock, comes to about three inches below my eyes and their is absolutely no wind issue.  As for the difference in ride between the Xmax and the Forza, it's like night and day.  Think of the Forza as a hippo on two wheels and the Xmax as a Cheetah on wheels.  More nimble in traffic, better acceleration, better stopping power and a lot more stable at highway speeds.  In short, unless you are a dyed in the wool Honda Forza fanatic there is absolutely no reason to consider anything but the Xmax.

Having previously rented an Xmax at Pop rental here in Chiang Mai for three days and riding the piss out of it there were no surprises.  Since this new baby is mine I intend to treat it with kid gloves until after the 1000K. checkup.  I orderd an extra smart key, 950baht and worth every baht, I opted for the 39L top box and bracket, 13000+baht but it will be a two month wait.  I got comrehensive insurance that covers everything, 10500baht.  I am not going to change anything as it fits me to a tee.  No loud sounding exhaust for ego sake, the stock shocks do the job for me, the seat height is perfect as is the tall stock windscreen.  I am 189cm and this is by far and away the most comfortable scooter I have ever owned/ridden.  The Honda Forza 300 is not even in the same ballpark on any thing you might want to compare to the Xmax 300.  Thank you very much Yamaha.

Lucky old me, I went into the big Yamaha shop around the corner from Chiang Mai Ram Hospital to put a deposit on a Xmax as I had given up waiting for Honda to release a new and improved Forza 300.  Lo and behold what did I see on the showroom floor but three, yes three brand spanking new Xmaxs for sale.  To say I was shocked is an understatement as all I have heard, have been told was at least a three month wait.  Now there are only two available, a white/black combo and a dark grey one as I jumped on the brown color.  I will be taking possession of my new toy on Friday. As I said at the top, lucky me.

Today in the Bangkok Post Sport section the head noddy of the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) openly admitted that there are serious irregularities in the refereeing of football matches and that the image of Thai football has been tarnished.  Either this guy is the bravest man still alive in Thailand or he has already left the country.  He goes on to say that certain refs have been compromised, that certain influencial individuals have offered bribes to fix matches in their teams favor.  Of course none is this is shocking as money buys you whatever result you want in every aspect of Thai life.  The fact that this brave man has come forward is noteworthy and hopefully some of the more blatant abusers are removed from officiating football matches in the future.  The real problems lies with the Hi-So owners who have their way and can dictate to those beneath them.  Newin Chidchob of Buriram immediately comes to mind as he has used his massive fortune to buy the best team in the Thai Premier League and God help those who cross him or his team.  Anyway, reading this article was certainly an eye opener and quite refreshing.

In my own personal experiances with both Uber and Grab here in Chaing Mai the service has been very good for the most part.  However lately my trips have been more misses than hits.  I attribute that to the increased number of new Uber and Grab drivers who simply are incapable of reading or following directions on their GPS.  Most have no clue that you can have the directions spoken to you in Thai to help with the pickup point and destination.  On my last two attempts with Uber to go Honda Bigwing near Tae Pae Gate the Uber drivers called me, asked where I was and where I was going.  Excuse me you eff....ing moron your in car GPS tells you where the pickup is and where I am going then it's up to you to accept the fare or not.  I just cancelled with those two and lucked out with Grab drivers instead.  God forbid I should ask some of new drivers if they can even read or even have a proper drivers license, regardless of all this I will continue to use both as they sure as hell beat the rotten service by the taxi and red bus mafia.

Very simple,  TRUST IS EARNED, NEVER GIVEN.  Ignore that precept especially with the Thai Twinkies and you are a fool.

I wasted my time yesterday by actually thinking that the Northern Motorbike Expo in Chiang Mai just might have a new Honda Forza 300 on display.  Not only did this fake expo not have a Forza, it had NO Honda models, NO Suzuki models and in total there were only 26 models in total.  Yamaha were the leaders but only if you were looking for a scooter, no big bikes and only one Xmax 300.  Kawasaki had four bikes and the rest were from two obscure brands, Stallion and Gtx/Grt????  And they had the nerve to advertise this all over Chiang Mai for the past ten days, a foo...k n joke but so typical of how things work in Thailand.  Since there was a lovely dark grey Xmax I decided,, knowing of course the outcome, to ask about price, wait time and deposit/down payment.  Getting the price was no problem, the lad even volentered that it was going to be 3 months before I could get one here in Chiang Mai, after that it was a waste of time getting any further information, even using Google translator.  I will not be fooled again when I see another Motorbike Expo advertised here.  Now I can only hope that the Bangkok Auto Show will actually have a decent motorbike section as in previous years.  One final personal note, ain't no way I am waiting three months for any maxi scooter, I will entice the salesperson with a brown envelope and should that fail I will simply ungrade to a Yamaha Tmax 530, the Suzuki Burgman 650 or the BMW 650GT.  At least those are available within three days here in Chiang Mai.

And now Pop rentals have another Xmax 300, this one is the brown/bronze color.  The ride up around and back down was another eye opener.  Simply put the Xmax was an amazing scooter.  Power on demand when asked for, superior braking on some of twisties, comfortable seat for my bum. This scooter fits me like a glove.  The windscreen was perfect so no adjustment was necessary, I did not mess about with the shock adjustments it was a rental and I was concerned with keeping the Xmax pristine and problem free.  I will however make that one of the first adjustments when I get one.  Under seat space is fantastic, a ton of room.  I stopped at Rimping for groceries and put three full bags under the seat without a problem.  I am by no means an expert when it comes to motorbikes/maxi scooters but I have ridden the Honda Forza 300 for a week earlier this year, I rented a blue one from Pop rental and I can say without any hesitation that the Forza was a heavy and not very agile scooter.  Yes, comfortable and adaquate get up and go but after only two days with the Xmax there simply is no comparison.  Unless the new rumered 2018 Honda Forza 300 can match the Xmax then once again Honda will be playing second fiddle to Yamaha.

Yeah Baby, finally got my hands on an Xmax 300 this morning.  I had to drop off my PCX 150 at Honda Bigwing and decided to have breakfast at Maddogs. As I was walking along Moon Meung Road I looked over at Pop Rentals just up from Spotlight Go Go Bar and saw a shiney canary yellow scooter looking very much like a new Xmax.  Hurried over, yep spot on brand spanking new with only 454K on the odometer.  How much, 1200 Baht per day, sign me up for two days.  Ten minutes later out the door I went with the Xmax 300 underneath me.  The smile still has not come off my face, this scooter actually outperforms all the hype in the build up to its release.  I am 6"2' so the height was not an issue, the seat was very comfortable, the windscreen was in a perfect position for me, the weight was not a problem snaking through traffic and the acceleration from a stand still was very impressive.  The ABS system made hard stops no problem.  Once on a long stretch of open highway I opened the trottle and man was the response impressive, easily went to 115 KMP with some more trottle available.  Rock steady at that speed.  My one and only so far critique would be going over ruts and bumps, the rear shocks don't do much to dampen the effect.  An upgrade would be the only improvement I would make should I decide I want an Xmax 300 over the new 2018 Honza Forza 300.  So far today I have put 100 K on the scooter and tomorrow my intention is to go up 107 to Mae Rim, turn left at the junction for Tiger Kingdom and out on that country road, up and over the mountains until I come back unto 121 near Hang Dong.  That will be a worthy test I believe for the Xmax 300.  Like I said, the smile is still on my face and only gets bigger once I sit on the scooter and fire up the engine.  More riding later this afternoon and tonight.  IMO, Yamaha have a winner on their hands.

I am hoping that for one day these Twatpackers, Low-So Expats have enough sense left in their addled brains to show respect and dress properly or at the very least stay in your flop house.  The day when the Thai people say a final farewell to their beloved King is not the day for you parade about in your daily attair of singlet, shorts and flip flops.  Of course I expect to see these ar...se holes showing no respect and going about like noting is special.  

The Tmax 530 comes in two trim levels, 530K for the lesser model and 530K for the top model.  Those prices put it right up there with BMW GT650.  As one poster noted the acceleration of the Xmax 300 was on a par with the bigger scooter. and I would imagine that unless you are going to be doing a lot of long distance touring on major highways the Xmax 300 is the way to go, particularly in busy cities.

I posted that price, closer to 12000 baht though.  That came from the saleman at the Yamaha bigbike showroom near Kad Suan Khow.  He actually looked it up on his computer and showed me the prices for the bracket and top box. Sod those prices, there has got to be numerous shops in the bigger cities that offer better prices.