2001, I begin to write down my thoughts about a big trip:
8th May
Been sometime now, maybe 3 years, maybe 5 years and even at University I wanted to ride across the USA (ask Rob Bard a fellow Electronic Engineering student) but there has always been this desire to get on my bike and ride off. Sure the sun would be setting as the small dust cloud from my rear wheel rose up to twinkle in the evening orange glow and I’d just have a couple of bags tied to a trusty iron-horse as I set of to ride the big trip.
Work has been good and I’ve finally got a decent wage and house I like with a lodger to help with the bills but ain’t there more out there to explore? I am 34 and in good health with two bikes (1981 GPz550 reliable but 20 years old and my hardtail chop fun but consumed vast amounts of dosh and currently waiting a strip down to free a sticking ring) but a strong desire to buy another or two! VFR70 would be good for Euope (and the Ukraine but that is another story). The XT600 gets good press by Chris Scott and his Adventure Motorcyclist website. Finally saw one last night at the Bank Holiday meet at Sturdies Castle just outside Kidlington, the last one at that location, and boy do they look tall. Even the owner was on tip toes and he must have been 3 or 4 inches taller than me easily. An option from Chris’s website is to change the rear shock to reduce the bike’s height using a shorter shock from Italy. Maybe should get David Lambeth Engineering to make me a big bike trip bike instead. Still thinking ought to sell kart too.
Motorcycle News are looking to help someone this year round around the globe and don’t seemed to have found anyone so that would be useful help. All the documentation looks scary. Researching more the Ukraine and things look complicated. Have told MCN unlikely this year for me.
9th May
Today was endless meeting day at work. Have not done anything creative for so long now. I’m suppose to be in charge of this super project but find it very hard to be motivated and I don’t think I will be there at the end.
This weekend I did nearly 500 miles on my GPZ. It goes quite well (maybe too well as I got flashed by a speed camera – luckly head on which is pointless for a motorbike). It was good to be out on my bike. Could I pack my tent and stay out? What do people do regarding cooking, washing, cleaning, sleeping and eating? One year in a tent sounds not so appealing but B&B for a year would be expensive. Must investigate the Horizon’s Unlimited adventure website more. There was a discussion about using petrol to cook so I guess everything is there I need to know.
10th May
Boy is work boring now. Struggle to get motivated on super project. Try learning COM as an alternative but so boring too. Trevor Kennerson lets me try his Suzuki WR400 trial bike. Good torque but semi-road tyres effect handling. Needs lowering a bit and a better seat for long rides. My brother, Steve, says yes to a Yamaha off-road school but they are cancelled because of the foot and mouth outbreak. Steve has to ask his girlfriend Helen first. Can’t believe Helen is soon 40 she seems about my age – soon I’ll be 40 then! Visa for Ukraine arrives will be a good test to see what is involved in visiting a foreign country – talks of who wants you to visit – how does this work if you are just travelling through? Kit, my potential big trip companion has been very quite on the email this week. I guess she is enjoying having Jason her boyfriend around.
Although I was out last night with friends at the ballet, tonight I’m alone (by choice really) was going to work on chop but went for a run instead. Sat listening to a radio 4 play about life outside the UK afterwards.
22nd May
My parents visited at the weekend. Hint to Mum about possibility of a big trip. Paul Winner pops around on his new VFR800 – rather tasty. Tonight rush over to Wroxton for the new Monday night bike meeting. The XT600 still looks tall! ZXR400 looks good though. Share prices did a bit. Cycled to wrk saw a lot of things I did not from the GPz would I have seen more from an XT?
25th May
Buy a VFR750. Why? Because good price and a known history and will allow me to do some touring in UK/Europe. Advertise kart yesterday – space needed for all my bikes. GPz currently zipping along but rattly. Chop needs new head ideally, went into Oxford Engineering and it seems any Z550/GPz/GT head should fit. Do I bother as need to payout insurance and make garage secure for VFR?
My uncle and aunt, Dick and Anne, are just down the road in a caravan. Popped over. Not sure I could live like that. Forget to mention how I’ve voiced my concern about the super project at work – might be out on my ear now!
10th June
Called on my dear University friend, Liz, on way back from post TT meeting at Mallory Park. Asks how or if I am still going on trip. Explain wrong bike but Ukraine visa application a test to see what’s involved – it was easy just time and money.
18th June
Have some jabs for Ukraine trip and tell nurse of maybe travelling next year. Work ok today as did some coding – day goes fast then. Am I running away from work or just wanting to ride? Took VFR to another University friend who lives locally, Gordon, last night. 120mph on dual carriage way but no more real fun than 90mph on GPz! Did not go on bike to see other uni friends, Heather and Ian, recently as it was raining very hard thunder storms. What would I do if on bike and no place to go to dry afterwards? B&B I guess. Kirsty, a close family friend, is coming home from Thailand – damn was hoping to call on her as well as Meelis in Estonia, Wendy and Felican in Malaysia, Mike Hewadine in New Zealand, Sam Evision in states, Natasha in Ukraine and her sister-in-law in states.
24th June
Go to Norfolk to see my brother and family. My the VFR is fast but I see little of the world as I speed through it. Wonder how long it would taken on an XT?
25th June
Go to the annual Cassington bike night, 1000’s of bikes not so may VFR’s (just Paul and Richard’s 800s) no XT’s at all!
26th June
Go for Russian lessons following an advert I place in the Chipping Norton Post Office. A girl from vptv, the local TV production company, rang to offer her services. Elena is very beautiful and claims to be 1% princess and 99% peasant. She is small with long black hair. We go for a meal while teaches Russian to me. I have to Angolise and then Lincolnshireise it to make any real progress. In the end I give her a lift back to Oxford.
27th June
Elena e-mails to say she enjoyed it, I ask her if she wants to go to the theatre or learn C++ as another excuse to meet up. Probably not a good idea after spending all night discussing Natasha!
6th July
Try to go to the Ukraine to meet Natasha for the weekend but only manages 50 metres of Heathrow runway as computer on place to Vienna died – tried to get message to Natasha, who knows if she got it? Go down by car very hot and very busy on way back hate travelling like that. Bike would be better but can I cope with the heat? Psion shares now 50% of value and EBQ lose some gains. Wanted girl company this weekend – how do loners on the big bike trip do?
20th July
Well the Ukraine trip went well, on second attempt, very well, Natasha very pretty with a a great body of which she is proud – fanstastic. Don’t think I will forget her jumping up and down naked to one of the current Russian pop tunes.
Customs was ok just involved lots of forms and checking of passport often. Kharkov not particularly beautiful but it was very interesting to see how they live. Many old Lada’s but also quite a few top of the range BMW and Mercs with blacked out windows the mafia I assume. Natasha is an ex-girlfriend of one of the mafia guys – shite! She lives in a small 3 rooom flat in a huge block which is quite run down and depressing. Yet she is very happy and we had a lot of fun! Even my first threesome, but the third person was her dog – sniffing my balls whilst I am going for it.
Life is quite basic but very cheap. I even think I could sell all my UK posessions and retire if I moved there, at 7 pence to use the metro, £15 for meal for two at the top restaurant, $3000 to buy a flat.
Very few motorbikes, roads ok but no street lights and not everything at night had lights eg. Horses, bicycles etc.
Drink a lot of bottled water, not expensive but a lot of it. Would need to carry much on a bike. It would be worth visiting by motorbike but not too sure how to secure bike if I had to leave it, although no different to UK.
30th July
F**k, drop VFR in Oxford at pretty much zero mph. Wonder what a fully laden XT would be like to lift. Little news from the Holland guy interested in my kart. Work going bad, very boring. Time to ride?
4th August
Learn that MCN web have two guys going around the world on Kawaski retro looking W650s. Wonder what they’ll be like on the rough terrain. Still wonder if girl I met on the plane back from the Ukraine would be interested in tripping around.
22nd August
Read Adventure Motorcycle web some more, consider writing a ‘bot’ so I can hoover all the information and read it at my leisure. Order another motorcycle travelling book.
Work very boring. Am I travelling to see the world or escape monotony? No news from girl on plane. Pity Natasha has no money or we could do it together I reckon on £30/day minimum for one person which is £10k/year maybe nearer £15k/year with visas, flights and ferry crossings. But if two one a bike then little chance of camping etc so much more. No luck on lottery or with shares still.
24th August
Stay late at work doing bit of work and reading the website of a guy going big bike trip on a sportsbike – sure had some fun! Get home to Ted Simon’s book on the mat.
9th September
Reading Ted Simon –being put off a bit, sure sounds like he had some adventures! Went to another Benetton colleague leaving do, John Fabrice going to America. A fellow biker. Would be a useful stop of point in California. Sounds like some ace roads over there.
19th September
XT600 ex-overlander for sale on web at £2500 but kart not gone and USA getting ready to bomb Afganistan so what sort of war are we going to have. Shares drop big style. Many walking wounded at work from motorbike accidents. Ed went down over the weekend. I was on mine today cool weather but still great. Ace weekend at National Assocaition of Bikers with Disabilites and BMF tail end. But not get much useful for trip.
21st September
Decide to go and look at the XT at Manchester!
26th September
Decide to buy it. Very easy to ride and suits my frame.
27th September
Still going process of buying the XT. Psions shares down big time and bastards at Ely Motorcycle salvage deny receiving my chop head for refund so over the day £1000 down.
5th October
XT arrives! Bit high price considering the mileage but useful to see how I get on with it. Slower than I thought it would be too.
15th October
XT sure eats knobblies on dry tarmac. Lorriane, the temp, on reception at work is into travelling and her brother has a bike which she has ridden pillion on, we arrange to meet for dinner.
23rd October
My 35th birthday! Lorraine comes round for the dinner then we go onto Chippy cinema which is packed out to see Moulin Rouge. Lorraine is big on travelling.
31st October
Stop and talk to a guy smoking a fag whilst resting from his journey as he passes through Chippy on an XT. Ask him about crusing speeds and yep mine is dog slow. VFR wheels off for powder coating at the moment so XT will have to make do for a while.
11th November
Go to bike show at the NEC and look at Dan Walsh’s ride the world XT. Looked pretty normal to me. Tried to get some boots that are big bike trip friendly and good for off-roading but none my size. Things improving with Lorraine although she has just got a good job so unlikely to want to travel now – only just back from Australia anyway. Get lots of leaflets about adventure holidays.
Spend ages trying to change tyres on XT. After 1.5 hours give up – how can I do that in the desert?!
8th December
Finally got VFR wheels back on. Decide to get GPz MOT’d for riding in the winter to protect VFR.
30th December
Finally got to do some off-roading and in the snow. Quite pleased with me and XT! Pop it in first and just zoom along. Although on last part of the last track of the day crash into a tree whilst trying to take a rocky descent. Wipe out two indicators and then it fails to start as muck in carbs. Not too physical and new off-road boots great.
2007
Blimey it has been six years since I last wrote my big bike trip thoughts down. It is July and I am in a tent at the Horizon’s Unlimited UK meeting. Over the 6 years had two serious relationships and spent the last year thinking about the big trip again, with Abigail being very supportative of doing a trip together but without a serious commitment from me for our long term togetherness it was not viable for her to resign from her job and give up her current life to join me. It was so near to being a long term togetherness but the night I said yes I ended up dreaming of my first true love, other than my cat Felix, a girl from University called Alison and so it made me and us question- was I ready to be with Abi? In the end I ended up going to a kinsology session to wash my brain of Alison. All I had to do, according to the kinologist was to write ‘Alison’, on a piece of paper and burn it in the following 7 days. I was shocked when it took me the full seven days to find the energy to pick up the piece of paper take it outside and set it alight.
Even before all that I’d prepared a map on the wall of my house showing where various friends live since I had not any idea where to go so thought I would go and see them all and with Abi we’d discuss where’d we go together and what we’d do with our properties.
So here I am in my tent with the rain falling down in a field surrounded by many many BMW GS adventure machines, most fitted with Metal Mule panniers, the latest Sat Navs and endless trick bits from the Touratech catalogues. My VFR 750 is here with her (can’t remember saying ‘she’ for the VFR before) plastic Givi top and side boxes, a very old Garmin GPS, heated grips, a Scot Oiler and adjustable screen. I thought she was nearing readiness to go but trying to get across some mud here on the camp indicates I will need to consider changing the tyres at least. The road tyres I have fitted to my Triumph Thruxton were also the problem when I took that bike for a spin off road around the farm when visiting my parents in Lincolnshire prior to a fun track day at the fantastic Cadwell Park race circuit. A while back, with Abi, we did go and try a GS1200 from the local BMW dealer in Oxford which was going to over £15000 with all the extras needed! The GS felt very sure footed and gave good views over the hedges. Tried a little off-roading too on it, was fun to just ride through the pot holes without any worry. Not sure what the dealer thought when we returned it muddy! In the end the weight, height and cost was too much. When Abi and I had handed the BMW back and got back on the VFR we both agreed it was better so much so that together we did an impression of the leading lady from the Titantic film leaning into the wind both arms out stretched as we flew down the road into the wind.
With the VFR I’d done a long trip back through France with my French girl-friend, Irene, at the time. I say back as I’d managed to get the bike on one of the Benetton F1 trucks going to the Lurcy Levi air strip somewhere in the middle of nowhere in France. After flying out to perform my duties and doing a few runs up and down the main strip at 155mph while the car was being prepared I set of going initially South to pick up Irene from Leon. The trip back was memorable for three things. One it was very hot (to the extent it was better to be on the bike rather than stop and try and walk about in our leathers); two, it was our first major fall out as I told Irene I was unsure about buying a house with her (I guess the people in the restaurant guessed as I was left alone for sometime before giving up and asking for a box for our pizzas so I could go and find her. Irene made love to me that night and I ended up staying another traumatic year or so, even proposing to her and announcing it at a big family reunion only to feel awful so called it off. The third memorable part of the trip home though France was meeting a coach load of ‘Mr Reads’ as we had a big family visit to Verdun where one of our family many generations back had been held captive by the French who’d boarded his ship, accusing him of smuggling goods between France and England. Held captive was a loose term as it seemed he was free to move around the town and even seared a boy with one of the locals. We still have in the family his pistols and the ships log which he carried across France when made to move on. The records indicate during this long forced march south his wife died. Somehow he made it back to Lincolnshire and here I am now!
During the previous 6 years since my last notes, I have read numerous books by people who have traveled – I wonder if the books are a way of earning a living for most of the travelers on their return to the UK as they struggle to get back into work again, hardly an option for me with my English skills. I have also brought and watched the Charlie and Eywan McGregor DVD ‘The Long way round’ but dismissed it as they had a crew and a bunch of office girls back home to organize everything.
As the rain continues to fall I am reading ‘Into Africa’ by Sam Manicon, who is also here at the HU meeting on his old BMW GS with his long pony tail, sure he had some adventures. Wandering around the site after a session on photography I talk to a lady who recommends the shorter BMW 650GS. So go taking pictures of them, there are plenty about but then there is also a Harley, a 1980’s Suzuki in-line 4 and of course Nick Saunders’s with his R1 sports bike, athough he has it in the back of his beaten up van. I go speak to him to tell him I enjoyed his ‘Loneliness of a long distance biker’ book and end up coming away with two more of his motorcycle travelling books.
The meeting I am at, the Horizons Unlimited UK 2007 meeting at Ripley in July, was really inspiring for me seeing, listening and meeting some real hero’s of mine. Nick Saunders, Susan and Grant, Kevin and Julia Sanders, Sam Manicon, Chris Scott, Paul Pratt (the first real long distance motorcyclist), Lois, Jacqui Furneaux and of course Ted Simons.
Jacqui’s was the most inspiring presentation. She explained she’d brought a Royal Enfield for her 50th birthday and having already sold her house because of a divorce had set off with no plan. The first few years had been spent travelling with with a friend she’d met earlier back packing before they went their own ways and she continued on, travelling for a total of 7 years. She covered many countries including Columbia which she recommended highly. This was all “without a plan”. Hearing those words was a revelation to me. Later, during a presentation by Ted Simon’s I was lucky enough to sit next to Jacqui and the more I spoke to her the more I realised there was nothing really to hold me back. Though Ted Simon’s talk did raise some concerns about the population of the planet being out of control citing Brazil going from 100 to 170 million in only 28 years which is just beyond belief and no-one seems to be trying to curb it. Ted also wondered how environmentally friendly was it for so many people to be riding long trips all over the planet.
24th June
I ring my Mum to catch up and tell her I have brought another book about going around the world on a motorbike. My mother in her endearing way says this is a daft idea and tries to explain the benefits of getting a car, as I have none just many motorcycles.
After the HU meeting ended I spent quite some time talking with Derek Fairless, known as StagBeetle on the HU forum. He was in his late 50s and was in the process of selling his house to go touring for 4 years. It would be fun to join him and maybe this would allay my mother’s fears of me breaking my arm (although evidence from the meeting suggests legs are far more likely) in the middle of nowhere and no one being around to rescue me.
Starting reading ‘Lois on the Loose’, that evening one of the four books I came away with - I did not tell my Mum I’d bought more than one book or that the bike rally was really a Horizons Unlimited globe trotters motorcycle meeting.
25th June (the day after the HU meeting ended)
I get called to see the Technical Director, Bob Bell, at RF1, to be told they are going to restructure the IT department and due to perceived friction between myself and my line manager I am told I won’t be selected to run the new enlarged group. I am in my 40th year and a month or so back had completed 10 years at Enstone, getting pretty bored in the managerial position I’d ended up in. With this turning up the day after the HU meeting, where Jacqui’s speech had inspired me so much, Bob and I go on to discuss the situation and so by the end of the day I decided it was time for me to resign and follow the big trip dream. Just the thought of waking up when I am 50 thinking I have spent 20 prime years of my life going to the same place of work, having to put up with the same in-fighting was another huge factor in the decision.
Go to Cassington, the annual meeting of maybe 5000+ bikes in a small Oxfordshire village but as the weather has been so bad there are maybe only a thousand or so. Spend the time looking for BMW 650’s don’t see any though. Still thinking I prefer to take the VFR or even the Thruxton rather than buying yet another bike, Meet Richard there and arrange to go on a BMW two day off-road course in Wales so I can try the BMW 650 in action and he can try a GS1200 as he has a brand new one, though interestingly he has kept his VFR800.
Spend most of the night reading Lois’s book and like she says you really should not read Motorcycle Travel books before going to bed as they are too exciting to put down.
Friday 29th June
Go public with my resignation and decision to follow my dreams after 10 years in the office, exactly as Tony Blair did two days earlier. Lot of colleagues and friends want to know what my dreams are.
My parents come down to visit tonight, I show them my resignation letter and get the support I need to go off and do what I want as they explain they never had the opportunity when they were my age – probably as they were looking after their children! Cool parents, though my father prefers I take the camper van my cousin has just spent a year tripping around Europe in. ‘Campervan’ – are they mad?!
5th July 2007
Finally I have a plan, just wander the globe as things take me – exactly as Jacqui said in her presentation and now it is my plan too.
Go round to see Richard. Together we lay the VFR down on purpose onto some carpet in his garage, to see if I can pick it up but there is no way I can. I had managed it once before but that involved anger and adrenaline when it fell over as I had got in the habit of lifting my feet onto the pedals at the same instance as selecting first and letting the clutch out but the bike stalled and with my feet on the pedals I could not get them to the floor before gravity took over and down we went. Later on I began to realise that on first action of using the clutch with a cold motor was likely to cause a stall as the clutch plates would not free themselves. This became so bad that over the years I’d replaced just about every component in the clutch system even the tiny spring in the slave cylinder, in the end I just got in the knack of activating the clutch and revving the engine in neutral before trying to engage first on a cold motor.
6th July 2007
Get cards from my parents and brother saying congratulations on my retirement! It does feel like I am taking my retirement early but then might as well do it while I have my health, anyway I can always spend my senior years working in a DIY shop.
Today for last time I iron a RF1 grey work shirt, the last time fantastic.
21st July
Sell my Honda VTR the 3rd bike to go this year putting the dosh into ‘the big plan is to have no plan’ pot.
22nd July
Loads of flooding in the UK so much that Jacqui on her way to see her daughter on her 7 year old big bike trip Royal Enfield breaks down at South Newington having ridden through my home town of Chipping Norton. Amazing she should be passing so close and yet her go anywhere bike breaks down because of the English weather.
When I found out she is so close I invite her over for dinner to her about her experiences. We talk and talk but one of lodgers is hanging around so we never progress beyond talking, still it was a real honour to have her in my house. I really must find a way of telling my lodgers to make themselves scare when I have a female visiting. A similar experience occurred a few years back and my life would have been very different now I suspect – but that is another story.
Trevor Kennerson an ex-colleague from RF1 and now living in New Zealand rings to give some advice on life out there. This was really great of him and after 90 minutes I put the phone down. It sure sounds good out there and it becomes a personal goal to get there somehow.
23 July
Go to Rockingham for a trackday on my Thruxton. Get lots of attention as always and consider whether I should be using it for the big trip. Starting reading Ted Simon’s second book but decided to re-read his first book for greater inspiration and to remind of it before going for the second book.
25th July
Move out of my own bedroom into the living room to make room for my tennant to take over the house and giving me some income while I travel.
Postman drops of my final salary cheque.
Go and run by last RF1 Sports and Social event, a pub quiz. Being so rubbish at triva I prefer asking the questions. I am really bad at geography and history trivia so visiting the world should help fill in a few gaps. Lots of people there are interested in my trip and I am beginning to feel excited by it too instead of over burdened with all the paperwork still to do.
29 & 30th July
Two days in Wales over roading with Richard on the BMWs. The course is run by Simon Pavey a 7 times Dakar enterant. Great days, very tiring but a really good learning process. Even if challenging for me on the F650GS. It seemed a very capable bike but not enough to persuade me to buy one so that is it I will be doing my trip on my trusty 12 year old VFR; Jacqui had already hedged her bets that I would be using it a few days back as we talked in my garage around the VFR.
1st August
Ex-girlfriend, Abigail, invites me over to dinner and shows me a book listing the countries of the world, too my surprise there are 192.
2nd August
Come across a couple on the web who are travelling the globe on a Harley and have been doing so for 5 years, then a VFR should be just fine I think.
13 August
Getting serious now, as start drilling holes in the VFR bodywork to accommodate the extra fuel and water tanks I want to carry.
25th August
Kit invites me over, I arrive to find the meal is in my honour to my surprise. Really amazed what people are doing for me. Although ex-colleague from Benetton reckons I’ll be back in 14 days maximum. At the rate I am spending money that will be true.
26th August
Big mechanical preparation day. Abi joins me and brings not only lunch but dinner and proceeds to do various jobs on the bikes and in the garden – top girl. Although she needs more spanner training from me, amazed to find she does not know how to use a rachet spanner. We get rear pads changed, build location to carry spare bulbs, sort out fuel and water tank carriers, get clock light repair and the screen properly washed. By 9.30pm Abi has left and I am shattered.
13th September
Today should have been Day 1 but next day guaranteed delivery does not apply to Lincolnshire it seems and hence my Pakistan Visa did not arrive today. Good job in one sense as although not superstitious setting of on the 13th would not be the best day.
Since the last update I’d flitted from Oxfordshire to my parents farm in East Lincolnshire doing some jobs about the house, on the farm or in the 1850’s farm cottage they are converting to a holiday self-catering cottage; whilst I waited for various visas to come through and even more bike preparation.
Did a first pack yesterday too and like Ted Simon said I ended up with the kitchen mixed with the bedroom, the office in with the winter wardrobe, the bathroom hidden by behind the spares department. At least the tools are stored neatly under the seat. Managed to pack my laptop too as I like the idea of being able to do some contracting as I go to help fund the trip. Easy to imagine myself sitting on the beach under the a sun umbrella on a sun longer, the warm sun breeze floating over me as I code and trying not to be distracted by the bikini clad girls walking by. Reality might be a dingy hotel with various creepy crawlies running over the keyboard.
Took the VFR for a trial run last night and am really happy how it rode fully loaded. Called on an old karting mate who runs a garage just three miles from my parents. We discussed my plans of taking between 6 weeks and 6 years to travel around, which had become my standard answer to the question ‘How long for’. He was very supportative and agreed there had to more to life than work. As I was about to leave I said well hope to see you again in 6 years which seemed a long time until till we both realised it had been more than 6 years since we had last met up.
The bike is really fully equipped now with recent additions including larger Scot Oiler tank, not one but two 12v power points, wiring for a heated jacket which can be used by Abi whenever she joins me, a voltmeter to monitor the regulator state, spare brake pads secured to the lower fairing, one of my Grandad’s old tobacco tins secured to the lower fairing as extra storage, places to hide money and spare keys, metal straps added to the Givi panniers so the tent and sleeping gear can be moved from the pillion seat to make space for Abi, easy access for a side stand plate and lots of tools wrapped in there only specially made tools rolls using the ever-super duct tape.
14th Sepember 2007 (Day 1)
Finally the postman drops off the last visa. I enjoy a regular Rigsby farm lunch with local hot and herby sausages and Myers famous Lincolnshire Plum bread with my second cousin’s Lincolnshire Poacher cheese, all of which was a last meal request to my Mum though I prayed I would not be going to the gallows shortly after like the prisoners on death row when they make their last meal request.
Shortly after, and because I hate long good byes, a quick hug to my parents, the dogs and cat and I wave good-bye and am finally on the road after endless years of dreaming and two solid months of planning. My parents write the first good luck message onto the fairing. The weather is ideal, the road is dry, the bike is fine and I can see the distance looming as I ride of into it but less than one mile later and I turn around to go and get my passport I had left on the scanner in the office!
Rode over to my brother, Stephen, younger but taller and with ginger hair (the true meaning of Read is red as in ginger). Great ride to his house in Norfolk with lovely roads though a strong wind rushes across the flat fens of southern Lincolnshire but I felt happy even with the side wind making me work hard taking my time, enjoying the freedom and letting my brain run freely like the wheels of the bike.
The main issue was the extra special seat I had got made up with a gel padding as somehow I seemed to be sitting on the front edge of the gel block as I sit as far forward as I can to reach the bars. Even worse was the fact that I could not revert to the old seat as I had just posted that to the ebay winner that morning.
Arrive at my brothers to many friendly faces and numerous questions, many of which I had not thought of at all.
17th September
Luckily the big plan is to have no plan and instead of heading to Oxfordshire as I had first intended I ride north to Huddersfield to have the seat reworked at Tony Archer’s. Who does a ‘rite grand job’ of moving the gel forward as it seems I caress the tank more than other riders.
The ride from Norwich to Huddersfield was my first real test of my heated jacket lining. What a wonderful invention that is. Allowing a much higher average speed to be achieved as I am not constantly stopping to put gear on or take it off, was real quite toasty especially with my heated grips.
After Huddersfield I call on my dear, dear friend Liz Lowe who I’d met at University. Although 20 + years have passed since then and I rarely see her more than twice a year there is still something special between us. It was great to see Liz and she like Tony Archer were surprised how little I was carrying. I, however, still felt it was too much as the bike still flighty on the front and I was beginning to question if I really needed a laptop.
Finally after 300+ miles I arrive at Abigail’s and though we are no longer together she makes me feel very welcome. We’d been together for 14 months and things got very serious in the last month with me finally saying yes I do want to stay with her for the next 50 years or so but the night I said yes I had dreams of the girl I truly loved during my University days called Alison and woke up in a terrible sweat. Feeling this was not at all right for my first night of the rest of my life I told Abi and we discussed it hard over the next two days before deciding to split. Thanks to Abi’s level headedness we’d remained friends and I still think of her lots. Even as we sat on the sofa together tonight it was hard not to lay my weary head on her shoulders and fall into a deep sleep, instead we went our own ways to bed. Maybe if I am lucky she will visit me later but some how I doubt it.
21 September
After 4 days with Abi doing some more final, final touches to fitting the side tanks, I ride to Bristol where only I met up with Jacqui again. In some place foreign on her globe biking trip she had been rammed into a hillside by a van breaking her leg. Today Jacqui was walking with crutches as on her return to the UK she had made the decision to have the leg rebroken so it pointed in the right direction after the previous doctors had failed to do that. Jacqui remained my heroine and it was wonderful to see her and get some final advice. We decided to take a trip down to the harbour area to see a boat she would be living on for a short time while she recovered some funds from traveling. Even with a broken leg and a pair of crutches she was able to get onboard the VFR and I took her down to the boat but horror of horrors on day 8 of my big trip while carrying my heroine with her broken leg I drop the bike on a slippery wet disused railway line! Luckily no real harm and Jacqui was fine about it even posing for a picture later on with her much loved Royal Enfield.
By chance, riding through Shipston before heading to Bristol, Tom Marshall (also known as Speed_Demon666 on the VFR forum) spots me. I had sourt Tom’s advice as he had taken his VFR to Morocco where he had proposed to his girlfriend, a long trip that his VFR did without issue except for wearing out a set of rear brake pads with the sand. Since I am carrying spare pads hidden in the lower fairing I felt confident in my machine. Tom works with his father, Simon another VFR rider, in the Stones Gallery jewellery shop in Burford. Tom wishes me well and disappears before reappearing outside the shop with Simon and Veral, Tom’s Mum, all waving and photographing me as I pass through - a great well wishing. I wondered if Veral recognised me as I got her out of the shower one Sunday morning to buy an engagement ring for Irene from her. Although the ring came with a money back guarantee Irene liked it and kept it even though the engagement did not last.
After seeing Jacqui in Bristol I found a campsite to pitch my tent for the first time and with the bike fully loaded also for the first time the trip had really begun.