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We "discovered" Colorado back around 2012. We being a friend from TN, Frijole (trying to get him on here), and some good ol boys from Louisiana. Names you might know. Camped at Ridgeway and decided to check out Engineer pass, having heard of it from other sites and reports. Should have listened to the people warning us we would "die" riding up to the Pass, from Ouray side. We didn't die, but it felt like it. Trips back almost every year since. We've slowly roped in more and more people to these trips (check out the excellent Steven Gregory video). The place has become so special, that Frijole spread the ashes of a great friend at the top of Engineer, and BJD had a sign prepared. That's a separate story I am still trying to put together, to capture the spirit of riding with friends. Video: While out in Ridgeway, we also took a side jaunt to Moab (that's the weird red rocks you see in pics)

They're all waiting for you to die

That's the thing. That sort of shit is tolerated these days, when years ago you'd get asked politely at first to do a search and not to duplicate. Repeat offenders got flamed. These days people sign up, don't even introduce themselves and then start asking stupid questions, rather than lurk and learn. The whole damn world has got lazier and dumbed down drastically in the space of a decade. All bikes have their issues and a decent forum will have exposed and solved most of them. Which means there'll likely be a thread explaining a problem and fix in great detail. That was the case on CarpeTDM.

Having left Skye we headed south down towards Fort William, then Loch Lommond. I seem to have lost a few photos! This was the Drover's Inn just north of Loch Lommond. Have stayed here a couple of times. They had an extensive range of whiskey. I don't really like the stuff but tried hard to find one that was ok. We stopped overnight at Dumphries. Dreadful ride there as the roads were shut and the diversions were a nightmare. I blame the GPS. Of course we went to the pub. I'm mystified why I didn't have any photos. @Sir Fallsalot The following morning we rode south down the M6 for convenience, and then headed to Patterdale where we found a decent campsite that had a pub restaurant. I was concerned that this thing was a tick, but it seems that it's a shield bug nymph. A couple of yurts that were in use. Pub. We sort of took over this table. The following day I was feeling a bit rough so we had a quick ride to Windermere, busy, and then returned to the pub for lunch. Just too late so we had a couple of beers anyway to help with a siesta. What siesta? Several hours later having had a meal when they started serving food again, we ended up being the last two to stagger out. Excellent day. We were determined to make the most of the following day so Fred led on a route that took in most of the high passes. Really excellent, and I would happily ride there again. Not Scotland. Back to the pub, as you do. Packing ready for the off home. Roadworks, accidents, diversions and a long day riding we were home. Great week or so and great company. Thanks @Sir Fallsalot. My liver however said otherwise.

Just after I bought my bike last February I had made my mind up to ride it back to the UK, another Adventure for the old man! I was going to use the trip to coincide with a race meeting at Santa Pod one of the biggest of the year "Dragstalgia" where I was going to race my slingshot dragster. by March I had booked the crossing tot he UK via the Chunnel on one of those open ended expensive bookings just in case, and I was coming back on the ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe I left home nice and early all packed up, well over packed actually as usual, I had remembered to re-set the suspension settings and checked my tyre pressures again something I am very slack about as a rule. I set off along the coast up to Valencia then across to Zaragoza and up to Huesca which ended the really boring part of the trip, the next part was the bit I was really looking forward to, over the Pyrenees via the N330 the only problem was that particular area had just got over the wettest period on record and I caught the tail end of it where I found out that my "shower proof" riding gear wasn't!! but the roads were great and in between showers the views were still incredible. My destination for the night was a budget Ibis Hotel in Pau just over into the French side of the Pyrenees a distance of around 400 miles. the budget hotels are great for stop overs cheap with car parking as a rule, I wouldn't want to spend any time in one though,they had a small bar which I made use of later in the evening but they don't do food only breakfast so after unpacking and a quick shower I hung my stuff up to dry and went for a walk into town for something to eat, I didn't have to go far as the first roundabout from my hotel had the usual food outlets burger joints, pizza etc. After the usual continental breakfast it was pack the bike up time and leave via the nearest petrol station, I am now heading for a small Hamlet north of Limoges near the town of Bethines called Les Brouillons to a bikers B&B called Belonga Mick it's on Google just type it in. I was riding up to Bordeaux via the national park The Landes De Gascogne which is very pretty where you will see familiar names of villages on sign posts such as Cadillac and Bergerac. Then round Bordeaux up to Limoges and then Belonga Mick along the lovely D179 The small hamlet of Les Brouillons was just about deserted when mick an old friend bought his first house there he has renovated the inside and made it a very comfortable B&B he now has a Gites and is working on another house he has bought, a very relaxing place with great food, the are is often over looked by tourists but its a motorcycling dream. This part of the trip was the shortest only 300 miles After a lovely evening of drinking too much beer and catching up as we hadn't seen each other for three years I went to bed, Up early for a full English breakfast pack the bike up and....wouldn't start, battery was flat. I had fitted a set of auxiliary lights which didn't run through the ignition so I think I must have accidentally switched them on while walking the bike into the barn when I arrived, A two hour wait for the battery to charge up enough to start . I was now leaving a lot later than I had wanted to, good job I had an open ended crossing, So now it was a dash up to Tours and then Le Mans and Rouen along the coast to Calais well the Tunnel. The only problem I had was if I would make it in time to be let into he race facility. The race meeting was from the Friday to the Sunday but the gates were open from 2pm to 8 pm on Thursday to let racers in to set up. I was pusing it a bit but got on the train around 8pm European time 7pm UK time had a great chat with a fellow traveller on a BMW adventure bike. Got off the train then another dash up the motorways to Wellingborough I got to the gates at gone 9pm but luckily the security guards knew me and let me in, it had been a long day and boy did I sleep well that night 420 miles to Calais and and a further 160 once I got of the train. Friday downed and it was time to sort the car out after it had been fitted with a new cam shaft, My race team "Slimline Racing" consists of myself owner and driver and my eldest son who is my crew chief and my Brother Dave and my BUG (Back Up Girl) Dianna who works a photographer and reporter for eurodragster.com. How it works is my son keeps my Dodge ram at his home and on race day he drives it from Swindon to Luton to pick my brother up then to the storage depot where the trailer is kept with the race car inside the hook up the trailer and drag the whole thing to the track. The car is called "Tight Fit" and is rather rapid with its race desiigned V8 injected running on Methanol. We had a great weekend racing and drinking far too much alcohol while listening to live music on the premises. I had an 11pm ferry booked for Sunday evening so had to leave the Pod at around 7pm after I had helped the team pack everything away, I managed to get a couple hours sleep on the ferry then it was time to unload at Dieppe in the dark and make my way back to Belonga Mick where i was going to spend a couple of days so Mick could show me around this beautiful part of France. A short vid of the ride around Belong Mick Two days went far too fast and it was time to leave again my route back home was the same as my route to the UK stopping at Pau on the way back I was glad to get home. In total I was away for 10 days I had ridden around 2600 miles and the bike had returned just short of 55 mpg I love this bike.

Same here, especially when it's wet. We normally aim for prem inns and the like.

I'm getting used to picking it up ?

All this lock down stuff has caused some financial pressure, so I've decided to set up a dating website for chickens. It might not make a lot of money but it should make hens meet

The CCM groups on FB are good. Have loads of useful tips and they’ve kept a file system of relevant information. I think a lot of them are on other forums like most of us.

Or join the group and slag the bike off without even swinging a leg over it, get all their info from other non owners slagging it off because their bike is better lol

Manual of course anything else is a moped ?

And? ?

You want to see the "whats best manual or DCT" posts on the CRF1000L group, there's usually three running side by side and every bloody time its the same questions and answers i made my mind up by getting off my arse and test riding it and i bought it because i liked it couldn't give a toss what some poll says or anybodies opinion lol

I think that's how people get elected nowadays, too I closed my facebook account when we started getting comments on the migrant issue when it first started. I just closed it and never even thought of re-starting it.

All you need is a dancing banana smilie, a johny cash giving you the bird banana smilie, and Pookie ( @modrover) will keep this alive in an inane thread @modrover, Pookie, where are you? over!

When I was researching new bikes I lurked on the few Tracer sites around, both MT09 & 07, and they were all very poor, mainly because the FB groups took the energy. The Honda CB500X forum was very good though, lots of energy. Carpe lost quite a few people to FB and was almost dead, then it picked up again in recent years. I've warned people that if they lose forums to FB groups, they'll regret it badly in years to come. Forums are like pubs and have their own unique identity after a while.

No dogs left with us now (All passed away) We have 4 cats The 3 in the 3rd photo are all rescue cats :- White is Snowy, white and ginger is Smithie, all black is Seb 1st photo is Gem 2nd photo is the missus and her family ?

We have our 2003 Girlie, and to be honest it's been the perfect bike over the years we've owned it. We also have a Kwacker Ninja 500 we bought for Jan's son Alex, he sometimes spends summers with us here in the US and we sometimes work him like a rented mule. To thank him and to ensure he has a way to get around to see his brother and some girls he met we keep itnaround....and Jan will be using it this summer as it doesn't look like Alex will be getting here this summer.

Well, the obvious advantage for some vehicles, is that an airbox increases you fording ability, some KLRs probably put that to use. However, I think the clearest advantage of an airbox is that it makes it easier to have a better throttle response on lower rpms.

Well, so far, the main and the pilo t jets are clogged, this is pre carb cleaner condition...

I’m starting to get that way. On the Norway trip it was about 50:50, maybe slightly less camping. Cheap as chips in the Baltic states and Poland.

That 'Comarca De Huescar' sign with the scull and shadow people very cool. Can't work out if it's a 'welcome to' or 'stay the fuck out of' though.

I take it you mean the race car, the motor is a race version of a small block Chevy with 4 bolt mains tunnel ram injection ally heads with massive valves revs to 9000 rpm runs on methanol two speed power glide race gear box. So far we have run 8.3 seconds for the quarter mile at a shade under 160 mph 159.7 mph if I remember correct the 8.3 was run by my son after we sorted out the fuelling with the new camshaft the speed is mine LOL yes we do have a competitive spirit, Our hope for this year with different gearing in the rear axle and some better valve springs was to get her in the 7 second bracket once done I was going to retire completely but due to this lock-down looks like I might have to put off my retirement plans for a bit ? Nearly forgot it churns out around 1000bhp

Neither did I and I've owned one. Won't another one now.

"you wanted gun control, this is gun control" that was priceless

The place is amazing!

I know, that's why I don't really care for it ?

Ah ! I see who Jess is now. I was chatting to her partner at the ABR Rally last year.

Hey Tym, remember these ?

Been back in Scotland for about six years now.

We had a break in the weather for a couple of hours so while Alan was catching up on some sleep (i think) i had a little walk along the coastal path i didn't go far as i could feel the pub calling ? looking back to the campsite I did see a couple of seals popping their heads up at a distance why i was excited i don't know ?

It'll take me a week or so to plan the route. It's all of a mile away, and shopping is ok.

Devil’s creatures.

When i clicked on your video it just downloaded to my PC that's how i had it to upload to youtube