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Heron catching it's own eye

Up and down my driveway!......which is much further than up a 6ft ramp into the back of a van.

Me and a mate got pissed up in Derby Leisure Centre in 1992 and piled into Edwina Currie's gateau before it was served up to her and the boss of Toyota. They pulled off the lid when they served it to them and there were loads of bits missing cos we'd eaten it by hand! But in my defence......

If you ever go on google pictures and search for motorcycle touring I think you'll loose your shit

Busy couple of days, dotting the i's and crossing the t's for next years trip down to the Dolomites. and a big change for next year, I want to avoid the Austrian school holidays and to that end have moved our usual dates from September to June. Crossing on the 25th and returning on the 10th. June might seem a long way off now, with winter around the corner but it never ceases to amaze me how quickly the time goes by. So June, just a few days after the solstice so that means long hours of daylight, a big plus for this trip. Ive nailed down a base camp to explore from and have decided that its best to stay in Austria, mostly for the cheap petrol (Italy is hideously expensive) but also. there is a Lidl/Aldi very close by.. the Aldi is 1km from the campsite which will help with the budget. cheaper food and beer. Its a campsite I have stayed at before and its rather good. arrowed below. It's just 6 miles to the border. 32 miles to Cortina d’Ampezzo. Only downside to my plan is the ride down, to maximise our time in the Alps. we'll do the ride to Austria over 2 days, A bit of a slog, but that will give us up to 9 days to play with before we start for home and Ive promised a revisit to the Black Forest and the B500 from south to north. We will also have two chances to ride the Grossglockner, hoping for a blue sky day. I would also love to get to the Mangart in Slovenia which is about a 200 mile round trip. But, we'll have to wait and see how things pan out. So, that's been my day today/yesterday...

I set off for England on the 14th Sept heading for Santander and the Ferry I was looking forward to racing my car again and visiting kids and grandchildren, I managed a total of just short of 2500 miles but as what has became normal for me bad luck followed, in fact it was so bad I doubt anyone in their right mind would believe a word of it. I have posted some pictures of my trip....what follows is an account of what happened to myself and my wife over the three week period I was away as written by my wife................ "Russ goes to the UK: His trip to see family & race at Santa Pod Raceway has been the most unluckiest trip of our lives together!!! He went by motorbike as he loves a long trip - he was so looking forward to the adventure, seeing family after nearly 3 years & he had planned to race his Dragster Slingshot for the last time before handing over the car to his son Steve who has been racing it since we moved to Spain. 13th Sep : we took our dogs for their holiday at The Dog Grove in Oliva. Our dogs love it there! 14th: Russ sets off on his trip. & I move into a lovely airbnb for a week to allow the builders to fit the floor tiles & continue to work in practically every room in our house, including major plumbing, LOL. 15th: Susan at the kennels calls me to say Harry has had an accident! Our lovely greyhound/ border collie cross age 10 with arthritic hips is having so much fun playing with our Spanish Greyhound - a Galgo, Willow age 3 that he decides to do a bit of acrobatics…. He lept up into the air & spun around, jumping higher than the average greyhound would do at his age only to catch the skin on his back on a high branch! Clint & Susan are wonderful people who have run the kennels for 30+ years so for Harry to have reached the branch was almost a miracle & they keep the trees & bushes trimmed back to prevent any injuries! Susan said - It is a bit more than they could deal with so off they go with Harry to their vet. They kept him in & cleaned & stitched him up under anaesthetic, gave him antibiotics & Clint picked him up later in the evening. Poor Willow was all upset & they had to be in separate kennels overnight so he could rest & recover. Harry bounces back to is usual self by the morning & is continuing to recover as I write this. As this was happening Russ was on route to the Ferry. I decided to not tell him as knowing Russ he would have just turned round & come back home! I did not want to spoil his adventure. 16th: Russ arrived in the Uk. 17th: he reaches Santa Pod & had 2 practice runs in the car before the proper racing is to start the next morning. 18th: Racing starts, car sounds strange & major problems with the axil & gears - Racing is over for the team! Russ & family are so disappointed as no parts available to repair the car that weekend. They return to the pits & find out that the truck has been burgled - Russ’ bike keys, passport, wallet, credit cards, debit cards, money, driving licence etc….all stolen!!!! His was one of many racers & crews who had had huge thefts! Luckily Russ had a spare set of bike keys, so after reporting everything to the police he went to stay with his brother for a few days. 20th: Russ having cancelled all the cards & passport contacts the Passport emergency helpline to order a fast track new Passport, they send him the link to apply for the passport & he fills it in & pays for the new passport. 22nd: I return home from the airbnb & the house is coming on well. I have been feeling very tired all week. 23rd go to get my hair done, feeling more tired & tried not to fall asleep at the hairdressers!…. 7pm I start my own dire adventure as a very ill person as I have a GI bleed, this continues all night with at least 6 trips to the bathroom until 5am when I collapse into bed & sleep until 9:30 am when Russ phones me. After I phone the kennels to extend the dogs stay…… 24th:Not wanting to worry Russ I tell him I was tired & having a lie in. I then go the the bathrom & haemorrhage even more - now feeling very dizzy & trying to keep concious I phone our builder who runs to our house in monsoon like rain & he imediately phones an ambulance. I am blue lighted into A&E & admitted to hospital. Panic ensues & being a nurse I can see the concern in the staff about my condition. Once stabilised with fluids & drugs I am told that I am now very anaemic. Russ rings me while at the cemetery visiting his parents graves & feeling very sad. He asks me to “ pop upstairs & find his Uncles address….” I then have to tell him I am in hospital…. He nearly falls to pieces. As he cant return home without a Passport! 25th: I have an emergency endoscopy - some gastric issues but it looks like the main problem is in my gut. 26th: still not allowed to eat or drink & prepared for a colonoscopy. I have another bleed thanks to the bowel preparation medicines. 27th: the culprit is found - lots of gut issues found but none sinister but severe diverticulitis seen & bleeding is stopped.By this time I am even more anaemic. An iron transfusion is commenced. 28th: sent home from hospital - still very fragile & so weak & barely able to walk to my friends car. All week we have spent hours on the phone to the Passport Office as they had sent him the wrong link to get his passport- it was to take up to 6 weeks & be sent to Spain!!!!! They had also given him incorrect info on 4 occasions - The emergency helpline was not able to cope with a British citizen who as an expat needs to return home to Spain & not to the UK!!!! The emergency phoneline is also the same number as for any other enquiry!!! I speak to the British Embassy in Madrid for advice, they are shocked to hear about all the problems with the passport office but cannot intervene on anything to do with passports 29th: Russ gives the passport office an ultimatum, ring him by 3pm or he will be contacting the newspapers! They had wanted my medical records translated by their official translators in Spain - the webpage they send him too is sending error codes so we cant get them translated. They also wanta doctor to write in English that I am too ill to be home alone. Try getting a Spanish doctor to do that! I finally contact a doctor in Jávea & book an appointment for him to confirm how ill I am. 4pm Russ finally gets a response from the Passport Office- his passport can be collected after 2pm the next day! He doesn’t need to prove how ill I am so doctors appointment is cancelled. 1st Oct: Russ collects his Passport & books his return crossing for Sunday- Now I tell him all about Harry’s accident! I just hope he gets back home here on Monday without any other misshap!!!" And that didn't include my search for fuel the day before I left or the fact that I nearly missed the return ferry and was the absolute last vehicle boarded. fun Eh? I'm going to sell the bike wrap myself in bubble wrap and not leave the house from now on.

Golden Eagle

He gave her eggs salmonella.

Nah, the Yam 450 enduro bike is a beast as well . I've ridden my mates 2019 model, not as mad as a Maico 490 but not far off

Come on man you cant still be sore you didnt get a party bag

I smell a troll trap flapping… back away Clive back the fuck away

Crap weather today, 16 c only and huge cold front moving north and west across the country. It cleared a little in the afternoon so I went for a ride, thermal liner in my jacket and winter gloves on. By the time I got home (around 18:30) i could have done with the liner inmy trousers too and had had the heated grips on for half an hour. Soon as the sun goes, th temps drop fastnow and autumn is apon us. Whilst driving to a job yesterday I passed this place and decided to come back and have a look, today was perfect timing. About an hour south east from home, on the N151 between varzy and La Charité sur Loire there is a cllection of metal sculptures on the roadside and a small workshop called " L'atelier des Afranchies" ( the workshop of free men, or Free man's forge) Julian who's place it is is young, not 30 I'd guess and full of zeal and slightly naive ideas and ideals about anticapitalism ( he probably hugs trees and knits his own wholemeal yoghurt in his spare time...) but is open and freindly and clearly gifted. He collects scrap metal, drift wood from the Loire, bits of knackered bikes from the areas scrap yards and turns them into : He even has similar ideas as me about what Suzukis are good for Predator made from a motocross bike and 2 scooters I came home on the back roads, skirting round behind the trailing edge of a strom cell that must have gone through about 15 minutes before me. 190 odd km and an interesting interlude discussing stuff with Julian from the Free man's Forge.

To celebrate 2 years of my current venture and because it was bank holiday, decided to take my Dad for a little escapade into Alentejo and see as many dams and monuments as possible, seeing he is addicted to history and interesting stories. Obviously it was a car affair, so very sorry for the fact its not a 2 wheel report, but 4! Not too much bla, bla, bla, I am exercising silence... And failing but one can only try!! We stayed in a converted hamlet. The old houses were transformed into holiday homes, in a very tasteful way, respecting all the tradicional building technics and with a very simple decoration. Very lovely and welcoming pets, so the doggies had a great time! Scientifically proven, this olive tree was over 1150 years old. It finally died last year and it was decided to make and art piece out of it. For me, a tree lover, this idea is simply beautiful. The visit to the National DVLA involved 3 hours of waiting, so in between went to the local motorbike dealership, with lots of Italian stuff, and was positively impressed with the number of bikes and the selection. Only took a very poor picture outside, deserved better!! After getting the paperwork I needed, we proceeded to explore this part of Alentejo looking for historical sites and places relevant to the make up of Portugal. This region is very rich in said historical sites, many pre-historical monuments like Dolmans, Roman ruins and countless Castles conquered to the Moors in the 9th and 10th century and updated to continue fighting our oldest enemy, the Spanish!! But, alas, it is not easy to find these places... Being the little Terrier that I am, i kept digging and pushed the VW Passat over unpaved roads with the guidence of my Dad and his many years of experience of Off road as a Tank Commander. In fairness he was not best pleased and it wasn't a pleasant stroll down memory lane, his back was hurting and he was missing some tracks on the vehicle! Any way, here is a picture of the ruins of a Roman Villa I eventually found after 12 kms of bumpy searching!! The sheep are the regular public that visits this site and they seemed very happy. The gate has a key and a hand written sign said "for the key, ask in the house" and this was the house: Maybe there was a key, but there was no one to ask, so we carried on, now looking for a Dolman, but that proved impossible to find... But the search lead us to one of the most beautiful Cork Oak I have ever seen and we stopped there for a bit admiring it. After a few more failed attempts at finding monuments, we returned to our home away from home and organized a mini pre dinner snack followed by a dog walk at Sunset. The following day the quest continued!! We managed to find a few historical places and also visited a few dams, that are so full a bridge clearly visible on Google Maps, on arrival, was not there and has been submerged by the water! Had to turn back and go round the long way!! The doggies had lunch next to the first abandoned church of the day. This one was not derelict enough to please Pete, so I didnt take any more pictures! Next to the missing bridge we found this abandoned Church, original from the Templars, now falling down because the latest owner, a Spanish man, run away when the debts were to much to bare... This one was a @xtreme special! Exactly where the under bridge is!! Taking this picture was scary because this is just above where the celling fell and it started making noises, so I exited quickly! this is the Templars symbol and I now have to seat down and research what this place was about! Lunch was had on the other side of the water, a delicious dogfish soup for me, one of my favourite things and this was a really nice one. After lunch more dams and a Castle! I missed the the way in to the Castle, assumed it was not accessible but then the dogs found the way in! Its a bit low, fortunately they put a rubber tube to avoid head injuries! Another very important national monument simple left to its own devices, built on the 13th century on top of the remains of a Moorish fortification and used to protect the region from the attacks of the neighbours. It was an active castle until the 17th century and from then on has been slowly watching the fall of its towers and walls. Where is the Nation Trust when you need it... Oh, yes, we dont have one!! 1 km down the road there was a signed church I wanted to find. Yo guessed it, abandoned and derelict My Dad was getting seriously fed up with all this disregard for Portuguese history so I deceided to retreat and visit something that turned out to be the best kind of monument, another dam!! I had great fun off-roading trying to find history!!

I had a hotel group email me claiming my footway (constructed a year ago) was stopping their fire door opening. Honestly, it's the slightest thing with these people! Their desk staff were obviously not informed of this dangerous fact because I now have 3 lovely photos of one of them holding the door fully open for my contractor Jim.

I only realised after I left that they have made a big change inside one of the barns. They used to have a metal platform and stairs at one end so you could stand right up amongst the roof beams to see them close up, with some of the makers marks and numbering systems highlighted. They also had sample jointed pieces of timber that visiting kids (and me) could pull apart and refit to show how the place was put together.

Sometimes Pete but it's mostly simply a matter of going out a lot and keeping an eye out for a photo opportunity Though one particular shot has eluded me for nearly 4 years now, need the right circumstances to coincide with opportunity

Take no notice @Six30 he’s a fucking troll .

It would probably cost them less.

No Bob......I just find it pretty fascinating what some of these guys do to vehicles to turn them into motorhomes. I can't help thinking that if they want a motorhome why don't they just buy a proper one?

he is going to be Bucksters conductor.... wont be no fighting over Olive though, cause Buckster is a noncy bender.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, stealth campers, coverted buses , have you got something to tell us @XTreme ??

Yes, here's the shot immediately before that one, you can see the panicking bumble bee easier in this one

You did a great job Pete, I hate that cow , she's worse than Thatcher

One thing that I've noticed about living here, is that many people are not badge snobs, so consequently bikes like the Himalayan still go for good money! But it's worthy of consideration if one comes up at the right price. As an aside, my OH's brother has a Bullet and an old CG125, which are his only vehicles. So he goes all over the place on them loaded up with camping gear for his holidays. He loves both of those bikes.

First, glad your wife is better, that was quite the scare. Don't you have any friends near to home, or neighbours, able to help in such an emergency? Secondly, that's a kickass looking car, don't know if I would want to be strapped inside that thing though. Probably just one time Out of curiosity: I once had a business partner from Belgium visit me in Porto. The afternoon before his early flight back to Belgium my car gets robbed and he looses all his identification, wallet, computer, etc, except his phone. After a police report I get the belgium consulate (not embassy) to write him a temporary passport. All they had were pictures of him taken on the spot, and his own information about his personal data, and myself as a testimony of character. He got a handwritten passport on the spot valid for a few months, containing all the necessary stamps to be accepted anywhere in the world, that he used to board a plane the very next morning having no other document with him. Bear in mind this was not long after the Brussels terrorist attacks.

It goes everywhere the old XR250s go

Royal Enfield Himalayan, cheap as chips, plenty of character, enough power for the dirt, decent comfort to get you to and from trails, more capable than most of us, easy to fix and crashes well. It’ll do almost 90mpg no matter how much you thrash it. Not only that but looks cool-as-fuck when you pull up next to the latest bit of expensive, light weight, made-from-unobtainium, plastic coated hardcore, purpose built dirt bike in your cheap, nothing-matches riding gear (that’s compulsory ) a minute or so after they’ve arrived. Oh, and you’ll laugh your tits off most of the time too.

no thanks , he's a prick .

Really enjoyable, I’m reluctant to use this word because its misused and maybe slightly sickly sounding but this writer is a real gem. Love the brick story

We've seen slow motion vids of the Scooters cruising! They were going so slow they weren't using speedos they were using calendars! Bruce would have been in his element!

you seen the prices of em !! , if you got the know how cheaper to convert yourself

Wow, they really did come in a three! I hope that your missus and dog are both doing ok now? That's a shame about the Pod! I first went there in the early 1980's and would leave all my bike gear, etc in the tent with no worries. Unfortunately there are gangs of thieves who target any big events these days. Which event was it that you were competing in? Hopefully the car can be fixed OK too?

Wow, it's hard to believe that one family could have so much bad luck in one short period. I hope your wife is recovering ok .

No not as a rule up untill recently I have always had good luck....strange

Pedro the dragster is a blast and yes it is a bit of a beast as well but like anything in life if you do it often enough you get used to it. You can still get emergency travel docs but they are only for people who ned to return to the UK from abroad for emergencies such as loss of passport death of loved one etc but I was already in the UK and that system doesn't work the other way around. I put in an emergency passport request which took longer to sort out than a fast track passport would have grrrr

Well, having a supermarket close by.. in this case within walking distance is very handy. I can’t be bothered with cooking. I do enough of that at home. And this is a holiday after all. So, usually we eat while out for the day a hot meal when the opportunity presents itself and then grab the makings of a cold al fresco meal as well as beers and ice for the evening. And breakfast for the next day, of course. So no need to bring pots and pans. (Shudder) I do bring a stove, kettle and cafetière, as there’s nothing better than a proper coffee first thing. Having a petrol station close by is great too. I like to brim the tank last thing so that’s one less priority next morning and we can make progress, so all this makes the campsite at Tassenbach ideal. There are other things I look for, like a covered area or room we can use for eating and drinking if it rains. Much nicer than being forced to huddle in our tents. This campsite has that too. Oh, and the other nice thing about this campsite is that I'm not going to be called a Hooligan by a load of very drunk Austrian football fans who seem to equate that word with anyone from Britain!! That is a thing that happened. Me. A hooligan!! Before we get to Tassenbach, we will try for the Grossg lockner and spend a couple of nights at a campsite at Zell am See. this is a great place, with the most stupendous view across the lake. There are live webcams on the Glockner, so we can see what the conditions are like and if ts worth spending the day up there: Right now its covered in snow, but this is what Im hoping for in June. Though there will likely be more snow.

Not surprising I second this! Id say have a test ride on it and any of the other contenders you can because one is bound to be a much better fit for you and then an extra bit of moola (if needed) for a great fit seems irrelevant.

is it Buckster bus ?

I shall miss this blogger when he finally packs it in. Sometimes he writes about his childhood, very odd tales they are, if I see one of those I'll pop it on here.

Another good one today, Spitalfields but in Suffolk??? https://spitalfieldslife.com/2021/10/06/peter-minter-brick-maker/

Looks like my tracer.

Here’s a few, different bike each time , rugged individualism and not a scooter in sight…

Its a low point isnt it. When someone youve never met occupies that much head space you think of them while doing something far more interesting

Sad old fuck!

I must have had 23 or 24, not sure. I had just bought the Transalp. Am 40 now.

Argh theres so many jokes there but they wouldnt be well received

You called?