Fun Badger Rides Again

It had to happen sometime.  But I'll get to that later.... Scott & I have planned a Bike Camping trip to Ireland, so we need to shake down the gear, and get some practice in.  So the week before we leave for Ireland, we ride into deepest North Devon, heading for a piece of woodland that Scott & Hannah have recently purchased. It has the advantage of dirt tracked access, so we will be able to try the bikes off-road as well, a first for both of us with the GS's. But first, we had to get there.  This was my first time riding with panniers & a dry-bag, so I was quite trepidacious to start with.  I could really feel the extra weight at slow speeds, and cornering was much slower on turn-in.  But after 5 minutes crawling across town, I was starting to get the hang of it. We met up at the local Pizza Hut, and immediately headed out onto the M5.  Once at motorway speeds, it was the wind resistance that took precedence.  Gretchen didn't seem remo...

With the Easter weekend just gone by, I have managed to squeeze in a handful of good ride-outs, of moderate distance.  I'm really getting much more comfortable with Gretchen, and I'd like to think she's getting used to me! The weekend just gone allowed me the luxury of two rides.  At this point, I'm avoiding group rides; I've heard too many stories about testosterone taking over, and the very worst of male competitiveness leading to unfortunate incidents.  In fact, the last time I had a proper "off" was back in the early 80's, on a group ride, with about 10 members of my peer group.  Lesson learned.... So this Saturday just gone, I met up with  my mate Scott and his 2018 R1200GS TE.  No envy at all...  We crossed the levels, ran up through Glastonbury, Wells and then headed to Brean via Cheddar.  I don't think either of us were quite prepared for how rammed Brean was.  Bank Holiday weekend, and the Midlands' seem to empty onto the c...

So I have now completed my first week of commuting to work on Gretchen, my 2006 BMW R1200GS. Now, I'll be the first to admit, that a big beemer is not the obvious choice for the daily commute.  However, I can only really afford the one bike at this juncture, so I had to choose the bike that would be able to do everything I needed it do do.  Which is commute, occasional shopping, day trips and touring.  Proper, long-distance touring.  I want a bike that can eat 500 miles in a day if I need it to, and carry enough luggage to provision me for a fortnight of touring. However, what about commuting?  Well let's start with the fact that I had never ridden a GS until the morning after I passed my test!  So my first commute, was also my first experience of riding a GS!  And boy, did I find that hard work! After the buttery smoothness of the Honda NC750S that I passed my test on, the gearbox is frankly agricultural.  The clutch lever has a very nar...

Just to let you all know that I passed my Bike Test today! Tomorrow, I start the "Rides Again" element of this blog; - Commuting is the start of it, and then as many meaningful trips as I can squeeze in during the coming years....

There's nothing quite so deleterious to your plans as the unplanned......  I was booked to take my test on the morning of Fri 19 January at Exeter Driving Centre.  It was a cold, but dry morning, and I felt very positive - the previous day's practice had gone brilliantly, and I felt like I was really getting there with balance and control at slow speeds - hold that thought! Advance warning:  This post includes a gratuitous, and damned ugly photograph of a swollen foot.  I don't approve of it myself, but it is included in the interests of journalistic accuracy. You have been warned! I arrived at  Bridge Honda School of Motorcycling nice and early, to get in some manoeuvring practice done in the yard.  Ben, the young lad who I had been training with throughout the week, had had the same idea.  My steed for the day was the really rather excellent Honda NC750S which I had been riding for the previous 3 days.  As the ambient temperature was only ...

Gretchen Much as I liked the idea of buying a brand new, all singing, all dancing ADV / Touring bike, I couldn't find one I really thought I could live with, at a price I could afford, so secondhand it would have to be then.  Fortunately, after about a month of serious hunting, I came across a fully equipped 2006 BMW R 1200 GS for sale only a mile from work.   It is in beautiful condition, well equipped, and only has 26,000 miles on it - just about run-in thank you!  This is her:   I  fell in love with her, and threw down a deposit on the spot!  I'll be collecting Gretchen from the dealership next week, as soon as I have sorted out secure storage, and the small technicality of actually passing my test! So this is where my our Motorcycle Adventuring starts!  Please - stay tuned :-)

I started riding motorbikes as a teenager, when my dad bought a brace of dirtbikes - a Suzuki RM125 followed by an RM250.  These were amazing bikes for bouncing around on sand dunes.  The suspension travel was huge, and their ability to soak up heavy landings was nothing short of miraculous.  Also, being strokers, they revved like crazy, which somehow resonates with teenage boys.... me and my brother (and later, my sister) spent many a happy vacation day riding around the dunes of Abqaiq. The 3 pictures that follow are not the actual bikes - just as close to identical as I could find.  I need to dig through mine and my parents photo stash and scan some pics, which I will do when I can. Suzuki RM125  (1977) (This is not the actual RM 125 - just one that's just like it.) Suzuki RM250 (1977) (Also not the actual RM 250 - but a very clean specimen nonetheless!) A couple of years later I bought a Honda CD200 Benly off a mate to use whilst I ...