Twisty Ride is a phone case holder for your motorcycle and other open vehicles, allowing you to mount your phone on your handlebars in order to use it as a satnav and have it in easy reach when you are riding. I have recently inherited one after my other half changed his bike to a model with a built in satnav; he’s had it for years, having changed the case once when he changed his phone. And so, having thought every time we’ve been on a motorcycle road trip that I should dedicate a post here on Splodz Blogz to it, now it is mine, I have no excuse.
When we go motorbike touring we generally take it in turns to plan our route and lead the way. On my days, I plan using paper and online maps, studying my chosen route, writing notes as an aid memoir, and committing what I can to memory. This is normally completely fine; I can remember road numbers and place names, have a decent sense of direction, and am in contact with the other riders in the group via our Scala Rider G9 intercoms which means I can double check something if I’m not sure. I don’t mind not having a satnav, it isn’t integral to my enjoyment on a road trip, and I’ve done plenty of journeys in groups and on my own without one.
But when you’ve got a specific destination to get to, there is something very comforting about having tech on hand to tell you when to turn off the main road, how to get through a city without getting lost, or where your digs for the night are hiding. Especially when it’s dark! My other half also used his satnav to help him find hospital and other locations when he was doing Blood Bikes in Lincolnshire. And so, combined with the TomTom app (which I should review again sometime as the most recent iteration is a backwards step in my opinion), the Twisty Ride phone case is an incredibly useful bit of kit that means I can be a little more confident when riding through new places.
The Twisty Ride attaches to the handlebars of your motorbike (or quad bike, mountain bike or whatever else you have) securely using either the u-bolt or the brake/clutch assembly provided. We replaced the thumb screw style locking bolt provided with a standard bolt to make it a slightly more permanent fitting (thus making it harder to steal), something we felt was important if we were going to leave the bikes outside hotels or motels in places we didn’t know well. We also added a bit of Loctite to help keep the bolts in place. In several years of use the bolts have never come loose, although naturally we check them regularly just to make sure.
Between the handlebar assembly and the case is a RAM Quick Release mount, which means you can put your phone on and take it off your motorbike very easily without having to find your toolkit every time you stop somewhere. Because I’m an anxious kind of person I do have a string lanyard attached as a fail-safe should the RAM mount fail (which I know isn’t likely, but it makes me feel better!).
The case part of the kit is dependent on your phone, but they all have some features in common. It is fully waterproof to IP55, including when you’ve got a charger cable plugged in, which is hugely important when riding. Also important is the fact you can use the phone fully when it is inside the case, including taking photos, unlocking the home screen (the thumbprint still works), and using the volume controls. This means when I stop somewhere I can grab a photograph or reply to a text message quickly and easily without removing my phone from the case.
After many years of use, and having upgraded the case once when we changed phones (one of the benefits of the Twisty Ride is you can do this without repurchasing the whole system), it is clearly “used”, but it is still in perfect working order, and will be for a long time to come yet.
I don’t plan on using my satnav very often, but my inherited case means I can when I need to. It has gotten us through Europe, helped us enjoy our Zartusacan road trip, and has been very handy when road tripping our way around the UK. You never know, it might even open the door to more solo rides in the future as it takes the worry about getting lost out of the equation.
It’s a great accessory, and one I’d highly recommend if you are in the market for a phone case for your motorcycle.
Find out more and buy yours over on the Twisty Ride website.
Shybiker
Good review. Doesn’t apply to me ’cause I don’t own a smartphone; just an ancient flip-phone for making emergency calls. Yes, I’m old school. On the other hand, my K1600GTL has a built-in GPS which helps me on every trip I take. Happy holidays — and thanks for the colorful postcard!
Splodz
My pleasure Built in gps is very handy. My old bike doesn’t have it, maybe my next one will 🙂