SV-Wolf's Bike Blog

[sv-wolf]

That's great, DW. I forgot that you had taken that photo of the DR in the shop. Thanks for posting. It reminds me that you took my profile pic as well, the day I bought the Daytona. That seems an age ago. As much as I'm enjoying the new bikes, I still miss the Triumph - in the same way that I might miss a comfortable old overcoat.

Are you planning to go to the NEC next week? I shall probably take a ride up there and see if I can get some ideas for mods. I might even look out for a heated jacket. If getting into Iran proves difficult, I'm thinking of changing my route to include that trip round the Baltic I always fancied and then haring off through Russia and the Stans. The Baltic might be a bit colder than India.

"Just put a couple of earthquake bombs at either end of Hadrian's Wall and watch it [Scotland] break away and float north out of sight." Maybe north America would like Scotland back. It is after all a broken-off bit of Canada. They could tow it back across the Atlantic. I think Scots and Canuckers would get on well. I'm not sure how Scots would take to that 'nice' Mr Harper, though. I don't think he'd last very long if he had a bunch of left-wing Scottish folk to deal with. Perhaps not a good idea on second thoughts. Canada might end up with two provinces clamouring for independence, not just one.

Cheers

[blues2cruise]

It could called New Nova Scotia.

I'd like it....my father was Scottish.

[ceemes]

that "nice" Mr. Harper???????? We are talking about Steven Harper, aka the smirking chimpanzee, aka rent-a-panda man, aka closet queen. That nice "nice" Mr. Harper? I do hope your were being a wee bit sarcie there. In my humble opinion, that waste of a human being ana void should be hung by the neck from a noose as befitting the weaselly cowardly little traitor he is.

[blues2cruise]

hijack.gif (1.12 KiB) Viewed 4429 times

that "nice" Mr. Harper???????? We are talking about Steven Harper, aka the smirking chimpanzee, aka rent-a-panda man, aka closet queen. That nice "nice" Mr. Harper? I do hope your were being a wee bit sarcie there. In my humble opinion, that waste of a human being ana void should be hung by the neck from a noose as befitting the weaselly cowardly little traitor he is.

My sentiments, too.

[sv-wolf]

LOL. Judging by your comments, people, I think it is pretty clear we are talking about the same guy.

Who's for setting Steven Harper, David Cameron and Tony Abbot adrift on a raft in the middle of the Mediterranean and letting the European right deal with them when they attempt to land as immigrants.

[dr_bar]

Can't we just nick them with a knife and toss them into a shark pool???

[ceemes]

Can't we just nick them with a knife and toss them into a shark pool???

The sharks won't touch them, even sharks have some standards to maintain.

[sv-wolf]

I took a trip up to Birmingham yesterday to the NEC motorcycle show. I went by train just in case I was tempted to buy anything big and needed to carry it home. I didn't, and I should have gone by bike. The weather was manky but not too horrible, and with a couple of extra layers of clothing I would have been fine. The train journey, on the other hand, turned out to be tedious and frustrating. There were long delays and confusion on the journey up from Euston to Birmingham after someone was hit by a train just north of Watford Junction. There are lots of suicides there. It's a lousy world for some people. There were even longer delays on the way home but for undisclosed reasons.

Lots of small manufacturers had stands at the show this year, and there was more than the usual amount of retro stuff: the Coventry motorcycle museum had a large exhibition area which included an extensive display of Ariels - no doubt stimulated by the recent resurgence of the marque as a specialist builder. I paid a nostalgic visit to the Royal Enfield stand to take a look at the Bullets. I still love those bikes, but I can't quite get my mind round the idea of a Bullet that has an electric starter and a gear changer on the left-hand side. The bikes on show also lacked a neutral-finder on the top of their engine cases. Does that mean there are no false neutrals to be found on 'modern' Bullets. That truly would be a sign of a changing world. (I'm not entirely convinced, though.) It seemed strange seeing names like Triumph, Norton, Ariel and Enfield all exhibiting together in the slick surroundings of a 21st century exhibition hall.

I sat on the new Fireblade and was strangely cheered by the discovery that it was almost as uncomfortable as my ten year old model. I tried sitting on the new R1 as well, just to get the contrast, and that was a lot more comfortable. Both Kawasaki and Harley Davidson had huge stands this year that seemed to sprawl everywhere across the centre of two of the halls. Harley was massively plugging its 'outlaw' image. Rock music blasted from its speakers and everything was in jet black: the bikes, the stand itself, the gear worn by their exhibitors, even the coffee machine in their cafe area. They are clearly gunning for the British market and seem to be doing very well at the moment.

I bought some custom earplugs and ordered a Ventura luggage system for the Blade. Both came at a discount price. The luggage system will mean I can now take the Blade on camping trips but, because the rack is minimal and discrete, it will not ruin the bike's lines. When not in use, it can be quickly replaced with a simple pillion grab handle.

I did lust for several minutes after a new matt black Caberg flip-front lid - very nice - but exercised uncharacteristic restraint and walked away. I also gave some serious consideration to buying an inflatable motorcycle jacket, one which functions like an air bag for cars. I'm bound to come off the bike a couple of times when I'm off-roading abroad, and I bounce less well these days. Come to think about it, I never did bounce that well, and hitting the gravel seems to hurt more as I get older. I've twice cracked a rib in recent years. I took down all the details and may well still go for it. I wouldn't want the holiday spoiled by an injury I could have avoided.

I saw some round-the-world riders I knew there, and had a long natter. One of them was a mate of Charlie Boorman who seems to be doing more writing and filming of bikes than acting these days, so I got to talk to him, too, for ten minutes. I also got to hear from the 'Overland' magazine that they are about to launch a new UK radio station for motorcyclists. Sounds good.

I spent this morning drilling a hole in the wall by my back door, so that I could run an electric cable out into the garden. The idea is to have an outdoor socket box near the bikes so I have a more convenient way of keeping their batteries on charge. At the moment I have a complicated Heath Robinson arrangement that is damaging my back door and involves lots of wires and dodgy connectors that trip me up every time I go out that way. It was a simple enough job to do, but one I've been putting off for weeks. All done now! God! I'm getting practical!

[sv-wolf]

A friend recently posted this on facebook. It's a 1950s promotional video for Stevenage, where I used to work. It was the first of a number of new towns built around the capital in the 1950s and 60s to house thousands of displaced families who lost their homes in the German bombing of London's east end during the second world war. The town centre has hardly changed at all, apart from the fact that everything looks more run down and weathered these days. The whole area was due for redevelopment before the credit crunch hit in 2008.

Stevenage is only a few miles from my own home town, but what a difference! Whereas Stevenage is all mid-20th century glass and steel, Hitchin is a medieval market town with windy streets and old houses.



https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10205039119047617

[sv-wolf]

After months of feeling like rubbish and dithering around, I've begun seriously planning my long-distance ride. (I'm going to post stuff here from time to time to make sure that I keep up the momentum and will be too embarrassed to back out.) I am finally arranging to get the DR650 kitted out to do the job (rack and panniers, bash plate, engine guards, decent screen, 25 litre tank, sub-frame reinforcements, that kind of thing). I've also started to get my head round visas and a huge pile of travel issues, like how to avoid American drones, local gunfire, bandits, lurgi, border 'guards', swamps, etc. (Just being dramatic here to see how it sounds.)

My initial destination is EasternTurkey/Armenia/Azerbaijan, by way of a nice and easy trek through the remoter parts of Europe. If I can manage that, then I will be happy. If by the time I get there, I'm not heaving up my guts by the side of the road, and I am still enjoying myself, then I'll carry on. The Iranian government and the RAC (responsible for issuing carnets in the UK) have both just introduced rules that will make Iran difficult and expensive to travel through (thanks RAC), so plan B is to get the ferry across the Caspian into Turkmenistan and head off along the 'silk road' for the Pamir Highway. The highway begins at the town of Osh (founded by Alexander the Great 3,000 years ago and inhabited continuously since) and then winds through Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and on into Afghanistan. (I might just miss out the Afghanistan bit, but word is that there has been no fighting to speak of in this north-eastern part.) I've dreamed about visiting Kyrgyzstan ever since I had to draw a picture of Alexander riding up the main street of Osh for history homework when I was 10.

I'm investigating the highway a little at a time so as not to scare myself silly. (See link below.)

The highway is also known as the M41.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... khorog.jpg