http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/mar/24/europe.top10motorbikerides?page=all

Mike Carter has put tyre to tarmac on some of Europe's most exhilarating motorbike rides in search of the perfect mix of hair-raising bends and staggering scenery.

What makes a good biking road? Well, there's a saying among motorcyclists that driving a car is like watching a movie, whereas riding a motorbike is like being in one. And I guess it can all distil down to that: open to the elements and without a metal box around you, the feeling of vulnerability and danger merely serving to heighten the senses, you really do feel part of the world around you. A great biking road should have twists and turns so you can get your knee down and your heart rate up, certainly. If it's got a smooth surface and has good visibility, all the better. Add in an epic landscape and a real sense of adventure and you've got biking nirvana.

One of his Top 10 roads is the A2, the Antrim coast road, Northern Ireland

At 60 miles long, this is a frontrunner for the best biking road in the world. It's certainly the most biker-friendly place in the world: the legend that was Joey Dunlop cut his teeth on this road, the NW200 race is staged in the area, and the locals revere all things biking. Head north out of Larne on to the A2. The road twists in and out of pretty fishing villages, often skimming so close to the sea's edge you feel like you're floating on it. Across the North Channel, just 24 miles away, is the Mull of Kintyre. But the views can act as Sirens, as the turns get tighter and the drops tumble into the breakers pounding the cliffs below. At the end? The Giant's Causeway and, after that, the Bushmills distillery. Biking Mecca, Irish whiskey. What's not to love?