Poppy Dave

A few years ago I was preparing to cross an unlit road 'somewhere ' in Bangkok and saw a single red light approaching me at a considerable speed. I waited only to see a motor bike fly past and it had a white tail light. What sort of mental giant thought that was a good idea?

I have 2 daughters, both in their early 30's. One of them has given me the greatest gift of being the grandfather of 26 months old girl and a 9 months old boy. We all live in the same house, dad works fly in fly out and is only home one week in three.

If I'd have known grandkids were SO much FUN, I'd have had them first. I'm 69 and I help with feeding, changing and all the other 'chores' that involve bringing up young kids and I  LOVE every minute of it. 

Enjoy it whilst you can mate! They help keep you young(ish)!

Yeah, when my wife and I did a 4 day visa run to Cambodia, we did a tour with a local taxi driver who spoke English and wants to become a tour guide. After seeing how impressed I was with Angkor Wat, he took us around a few other local Wat's, including the one where they filmed 'Tomb Raider'.

I must say that I found these more impressive and relaxing. They were less crowded and commercialized. Plus it was free entry. 

Highly recommend doing a tour. 

I was a Bomb Technician in Australia for 25 years. To the best of my knowledge Australia has never 'lost' a Bomb Technician in the line of duty. During one of my visits to Thailand I was requested by the RTP Explosive Ordnance Disposal Squad in Surin to speak with their members regarding techniques we used ( My talk to translated to them by my wife, who is Thai).

 After viewing several videos they showed me, that depicted RTP EOD members being injured and/or killed, I went to great lengths to emphasize that you don't need numerous other people, be they civilian/Police or other members of the team, standing around within the danger zone, however they advised me that if Senior Officers, and their attendant hangers on,  attended the scene, they had no authority to request that they clear the area. In fact it was nothing unusual for the 'bigwigs' to insist that they stand beside you whilst you attempt to render the device safe! 

      Also, not to stop searching the vicinity once a suspect item is located as this may be a 'come on' device to activate their attendance.  Once they have attended, they then become the 'target' of devices. 

       I'm sorry to say that, it appears, that much of the knowledge I imparted to them, fell on deaf ears. There is no denying the fact that the members of these EOD teams are brave men, unfortunately they are poorly trained and resoursed.

I truly hope and pray that all the injured parties recover. 

I was so impressed with the bum guns when I first visited Thailand that I bought one and fitted in my toilet in Australia. A visitors started to make a joke out of my fixture until I told him to do his business in a bucket then call me, when I'd tip the sh/t over his head. Then I'd hand him a toilet roll and a hose and he could choose only one to clean himself up. Which one would he choose? He said "The hose of course!" I said that he had answered his own, as that's why I have the bum gun. Only logical to me.

Looks like you can get an Evoline 3, which is the one, make that two, my wife has one too, for just under 11,000Bht. Money well spent.

If you've never been to Australia before, be aware that the sunlight here is VERY strong and without getting good quality, backed curtains, they won't last very long. I live in Western Australia and most of my windows face east and get the morning sun, only good quality, backed, curtains have stood the test of time.

I'm on my second Shark Evoline helmet. I've been riding motorcycles for the past 50 years and the Shark's are without doubt the best I've ever had. The beauty of the Evoline is that they have are 'flip front' and the 'chin bar' can be raised if/when you want it be open faced. They are safety approved for both open and closed. They are not a cheap helmet, not very expensive either (not here in Australia anyway, I don't know about Thailand though) but what price do you place on a potential brain injury? I highly recommend Shark helmets and will be taking mine to Thailand when I move there later this year. Good luck with your choice.

The Shark's have removable-washable liners also.

Just to digress slightly, I wear an 'LDComfort' helmet liner too. I also have the T-shirt ( I should have bought the LONG sleeved version though) and Riding shorts. I can't recall what the material is they're all made of (threw the labels away many moons ago).

Before riding, you wet the material with cold water, put your helmet and jacket on and then ride, allowing some air-flow through the jacket's sleeves and helmet vents. This then acts like evaporative air-conditioners do and keeps you cool until the material dries out. You then simply pour water down the neck of your jacket and start riding again.

Not too sure how this would work in Thailand with the high humidity but it works brilliantly in Australia. Highly recommended

Have a look at their site for a range of stuff: ldcomfort.com

I, and quite a few friends, wear a Shark Evoline 3. They are a 'Flip-up' helmet, rated for both fullface and open. There is a 'Sun visor' inside the clear visor that can be lowered without the outer, clear one, thereby allowing extra air-flow. Not cheap but well worth the money.

Happy riding

It was a timed event and doing it on one the the largest motorcycles (Harley) wasn't afraid to scrape the floorboards, I think he done it in 1 gear, don't remeber hearing a tranny shift. i was most impressed with the seceedion(?) of figure 8"s.

Best gear to do that sort of thing in is 2nd. 1st is a bit too switchy. I did mine on a Honda ST1300.

Michelin ;-)

Been riding for 50 years and in that time I've just about tried them all. In the last few years I've discovered the Michelin PR (Pilot Road) range.

I live in Western Australia and the roads can get very hot and also very wet, not unlike Thailand. I'm currently running PR3's on a Honda ST1300 and they are, without doubt the best tyre I've EVER used for grip in wet and dry conditions and for longevity. I've heard from other riders that the PR4's are even better.

Highly recommended.

I ran out of 'LIKES' about 100 post ago.

I'd just like all involved to know that, having followed this topic from the start but being unable to assist, I am absolutely gobsmacked at what you have achieved.

I'm sorry but I can't think of any praise high enough to 'bestow' on you all................... fantastic effort......... fantastic result.

Feel very proud of yourselves.

Sorry for the loss of life but Branson sank his yacht, crashed his balloon and now blew up his shuttle....

What next ?

Don't worry on that one. He'll be back soon with something novel to keep his name and face in the news. IMHO he's a compulsive attention seeker.

The only other cock-up he could get involved in and still keep his face in the news is to join the RTP.

Fun-ny

The problem I see is that some poor bugger will be singled out and falsely accused of offering a bribe, it's then your word against his.

The only way around this is to NOT carry any money with you and then CAN'T offer a bribe if you can't complete the transaction................................................... Does that make sense ?

Has anyone considered it may be the 'honest' cops who are self-harming due to reputations they're getting from the dishonest cops?

I realise that the RTP have got an atrocious reputation but they're not all the same.

During my time in the police (30+ years), there were one or two incidents were the actions of some officers was questioned (this was in a force that had a good reputation). This resulted in every 'cockroach', and in some instances normally law abiding citizens, you had dealings with throwing it in your face, accusing you of being inept, bent, a liar, corrupt etc. All this whilst you're out there, at all hours and in all weathers trying to protect these same people, who most of the time have NO IDEA what you are called on to do and what you have seen (sometime literally minute beforehand).

If the RTP is anything like most other Police Services, they're only just catching up with the idea of Post Traumatic Stress etc. In the not too distant past you were expected to 'Be a Man', 'Suck it up and get on with it'. Due to this 'macho-bullsh1t' outlook, many coppers didn't even tell their wives and families about some of the sights they'd seen and just 'Sucked it up and got on with the job'.

I've been to the funerals of too many GOOD coppers who had no-one to turn to.

Please, don't criticize these officers. You've never been in their boots, otherwise you wouldn't post some of the things you have. WE, and that includes me, have got no clue as to what caused them to do what they did. Whatever it was, they couldn't see any other way. Remember, the vast majority of them would have left behind wives and children................ what did they go through afterwards.

I'm not trying to make excuses, and I'm not trying to be a 'killjoy', as I know that the general pastime of TVF members is to take the p1ss out of everything that happens in Thailand, apart from (quite rightly) any tragedies. There surely can't be a bigger tragedy than someone, anyone feeling the need to take their own life.

Have a nice day.

Come on guys, leave the poor sod alone. We've all been in his place.

You know what a good woman makes you feel like.

The handsomest man in the room,

The smartest man in the room,

The best lover,

The most thoughtful man in the room,

All the most gorgeous women there would gladly trade places with the woman you're with,

The...................

The...................

No, that's whiskey isn't it ? That's not a woman, it's whiskey, now I remember.

WHAT A COCK-UP

The RTP are as much use as a toothache at a train crash.

I used to be proud to admit I was a retired copper.....................

I think I'll tell people I'm a retired boil-sucker or some other respectable profession next time I'm in the LOS.

Must have had a hard paper round, looks much older than 56. Where are the fashion Police these days, those shorts.

It's because he's 56 and got a face like that that he had to go to Thailand to get a bit of 'Rumpy-Pumpy'.

I just cannot believe you Shin apologists.

Have you been in a time warp or black hole for the past several years? It is people like you that enables people like them to exist.

If they had their way ( it appears that Thailand is half way there anyway, the way the HiSo's appear to be exempt from normal laws ), Thailand would be the same as medieval Europe. The 'blue-bloods' would ride roughshod over the poor peasants, doing and taking whatever they wanted with no consequence.

Wake-up......... You're in the 21st century, we ALL have just as much right to be here, live and breath as anyone else.

NO family has the right to treat other families as though they are some type of sub-species to themselves and are there for their benifit.

As my late father used to say; "If you think you're man enough to do something, be man enough to face up to the consequences if it." That is a saying that quite a few people and families need to adhere too.

"We do not have a warrant to arrest anyone yet, but the evidence we have points to someone who was in the area between 2am and 5am that morning."

NO SH1T SHERLOCK ................ Talk about stating the bleedin obvious

This is not justice. The sentences are far too extreme. In addition, that doesn't mean that others in the same jurisdiction won't do the same thing, but have merely gotten competition out of the way. Young 25 year-old Thai boys being sentenced to death is far too extreme, I think it should be considered cruel and unusual punishment and a violation of human rights.

Come-on, how can you say that?

Do these scum worry about wrecking the lives of the addicts (and I'm not defending the addicts either), who are given a life sentence of misery, just so the dealers can drive the latest model car or wear a Rolex watch? I DON'T THINK SO.

As for the involved Police.................. Just imagine you're driving down the road and you get a pain in the chest. In your car is your wife and child/children. You also have a briefcase containing thousands of dollars. You SHOULD be able to stop the car and call for assistance from the Police and the medics without having to worry. You SHOULD feel safe in the knowledge that the medics will look after you, and your family and money are safely being looked after by the Police. To betray the trust placed on you as a sworn Police Officer is just about as low as you can get. This is not 'selfrightous' clap-trap or a 'day-dream'............... I was a Police Officer for over 35 years and NEVER betrayed the trust placed in me once and I NEVER witnessed such betrayal.

They all deserve everything they get, however I think that the civilians getting the death penalty and the Police not, is grossly unfair.

PLEASE DON'T START SPLITTING HAIR OVER THE RIGHTS AND WRONGS OF DRUG TAKING. I'M ANTI DRUGS BUT I'M PRO JUSTICE.