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Decided to sod the front garden off for today and do my Annual Pilgrimage to Strata Florida Abbey instead. Most of you have seen these places before but if Pete can keep repeating himself them so can i LOL I set off a little late it was 10:30 by the time i was on my way the weather was overcast and cool, i had a nice slow road ride until i hit the road from Ystradfellte to Heol y Senny i always seem to get carried away on that road and it brought me to my first lane of the day where i ended up fixing the gate as it was off its hinges the dopey fucker who fitted it put the bottom hinge upside-down so all the weight is on the top hinge a rough fix it should go in the bodge section but it works fine don't know how long for though. While i was here i found one of those Geocache things it had a £1 coin in there a pack of fag papers and some weed so i nicked the quid and threw the weed i didn't have a pen to sign the register LOL I stopped to open a gate further on and when i turned around the bike was on the floor it had rolled off the stand and ended up breaking the rivet pin on the gear lever so this is what i had been riding with all day it was ok and it didn't make any difference to shifting and i saved the bits before they got lost there's been some tree maintenance on the next lane this was all enclosed, certainly was easier to ride not ducking under low branches Further up it's still overgrown The track goes down to the right in this photo and the easiest way to ride it is straight out into that fecking gate almost pushed my spine out my arsehole when i hit my head on it From here i headed over the firing ranges to Tirabad and through the Crychan Forest onto Cynghordy and this lane which is very wet and mucky though the winter months a lot easier to ride in the dry From here i was onto the Llyn Brianne road another one i seem to speed up on, no photos as the riding was fast and flowing and i didn't want to stop, the top end of Llyn Brianne brings you to the start of Strata Florida in the background is the road to Tregaron another great road When i got back to the bike i spotted a flat fox poor fecker Onto the baptism and there's plenty of water for it the river crossings were straight forward enough it was the puddles that would catch you out when i rode through two of them i knew they were deep because the bike went quiet as i rode though At the furthest point from home here just past Llyn Teifi and onto Claerwen Res Top end of Claerwen Res this kind of track is where the XR excels it is so nice riding it along here. Looking over the dam wall i'm heading for the track on the right of the river But there's another river to cross first i played it safe and swept around to the right straight through almost had me in last time A bit further along after Bobs step A long road ride from here to Talybont on Usk where i headed home over to Trefil and across to Merthyr Talybont Res i'm riding the other way just turned the bike around to take the photo same on the Pontsticill res photo Pontsticill res From here it was over my mountain and home, it was a ride I've needed for a while spent most of it on the pegs because my arse was sore. It was a 172 mile loop. I'm in the middle of changing the oil and filter now ready for the next ride.

On route to the ferry, sausage and chips in Wickham

Preparing everything for the NL trip! We leave the house for Alicante at 5AM on Wednesday morning.

Close to the same spot sometime in the late 90's. I went off exploring in Wales on my own, got home way after it had got dark. I took that photo by balancing my old camera on a wall , setting the timer and then running over to the bike. It took about 5 goes until I got that shot

Last sleep in my own bed tonight for a while, the joys of the tarp and the bivvy bag await me

I use a very similar bag for flights @XTreme, but mine is a KTM bag . So far it hasn't broke down once ..........

As soon as the ground staff see it they’ll probably offer you assistance. How long are you away for?

I did that two or three times, always in the back of my head is the thought that a lone goat shepherd is looking at me in a distance running back and forth from the bike and striking the same pose, laughing at the scene.

Yes when i take new riders on that lane i tell everyone to just keep going don't stop but leave a minute gap between the guy in front before setting off, there is a gate half way up in the worst possible place to start off again i usually go up and open that before everyone giving them a clear run. There were other riders not with the group coming down so that didn't help either.

looked like a sniper up on the grassy knowle got him

Just watching a video of a TRF outing on the weekend with some new to the trails riders that poor Norden and brand new and the guy at 7:20

Doubled the value of the car now Clive!

Dacia/Renault are shite, do not stock the window switches, have to order one in, could be 3 weeks till they receive it, but (the guy said) it may well end up on back order. But when he said how much for said switch £85 I said Forget it.

Got out of bed at 5:30 this morning to get to a site in Tenby to disconnect a valve the people I’m meeting were a hour late so that’s pissed me off to start. Luckily the valve turned out to be a plug in job undo four screws and it’s unplugged now I’m sat here waiting for these two numpties to fix it but I don’t think they have a clue what they’re doing not often I get an easy job

That would do for me Bob…….must get another dirt bike of some kind to tick the Stella box. Maybe something very unsuitable……….errrr maybe not a DR600S though

I get people on the TRF site asking me if routes are doable on a CRF1000 i always reply i could do it on your CRF but not mine

My brother and his wife had their first baby this morning. So I'm an Aunty for the first time. Weird!

As I mentioned earlier in the week there was a big Harley Rally just outside the town so I went to take a look! Had a run round first......came across an overturned car facing the wrong way on a completely straight road! As you do! Then into the Rally venue but I think most of them were out! Hideous assortment of machinery......but what do you expect? They had stalls there selling various items that obviously are a part of this particular lifestyle. To add some authenticity to this scene they had a Spanish version of "Born to be Wild" blaring away! I think this pic says it all really! But the action was only just getting started......because the next stop was the Petrol Station where a number of the Harley Crew were in attendance! It's difficult to describe what I saw there......all I can say is one of them had what looked to be a homemade sex doll on the pillion! It may well be something that Buck needs to consider I suppose. It was quite funny at the Petrol Station actually.....you can see it on the vid. The guy was so proud that I wanted to photograph his friend! Cos after taking the pic I was going back to the bike and one of the Harley guys and his missus were laughing at the performance! So I said: "Look I'm a Guiri.....I don't understand this shit! We put real live women on our bikes like you do with your missus". He said "We all do as well.....except him. He's just fucking crazy". As @Slowlycatchymonkey will confirm, Andalucians love to have fun, and don't take themselves too seriously. Admittedly some of that fun may involve putting homemade sex dolls on the back of the bike......but who are we to judge? I think I'll stick with the Honda lifestyle myself!

Did 300 km today....it's the civic holiday here...so no work for me...the thing looks fast just standing there...

Just inexperience

I think he means this one Instead of this one

Got a 2nd hand switch off of Flea Bay........£12.

Okay, so as long as I get the CB back before then it won’t be a problem. Safe trip mate.

It's needs it for the tour pack I've ordered...the reg antena is just to long..

The wife is taking one of those cases on wheels and I'll just be taking hand luggage for my laptop and any other odds and ends which don't go in the big case. I was going to take one of the backpacks I've got but then I found this......a freebie from David Jones Honda Centre in Shrewsbury when I bought a new Transalp 20 years ago. Never actually used it before.......but it's a decent size, much more space than a backpack. And it fits in with the Honda lifestyle of course!

A trailer is the natural habitat for an Indian motorcycle, you will be taking it to rallies like that as well no doubt.

A few years ago he said he wanted to have kids, preferably a girl and she'd be just like me. I hope he get's his wish, it'll be good payback for what a pita he's been over the years

Could’ve been similar for us last night as our very nice Belgian neighbours let their place to a Spanish family who then invited at least a dozen more with four dogs between them. Continuous banging euro-pap tunes from one of the cars which they turned up loud enough so they could rave around the pool which is on the other side of the house. Because I was in pirate mode yesterday I was all for asking them ‘politely’ to turn the music down but I was persuaded by the galley maid to video it and send it to our Belgian neighbours. Worked a treat, music went off within a couple of minutes. Apparently our Belgian neighbours rang one of them and told them to turn the fucking music off as there was a convalescing pirate next door. Had a few dirty looks this morning as they shuffled around the garden, a few heavily slammed car doors too. One of them caught his fingers as he shut the drivers door………. laugh? I nearly shat myself.

Don't believe Buckster has and impact gun... and you need a heavy-duty air compressor with a large tank...to run those.

Absolutely no planning at all going on there, and a lot of stopping specially dictated by other people.

Spent all afternoon in the hospital with the Mrs. She was in excruciating pain and I suspected her kidney stones have flared up. She ended up on a drip for a couple of hours and feels better having been dosed up to the eyeballs with antibiotics. I even had to cook my own tea.

It's how Ren sounds when he talks with his teeth out

If its the same in other parts of the UK they ain't sunbathing or sitting outside a pub,, pissing it down here.

Nice pen collection Fred

I just use a roll up rag...works well..between the Chain and sprocket.. doesn't hurt anything....and old trick I picked up from the old harley guy.

We get back to the house around 9PM Saturday evening!

Haven't talk to them about it..but I will definitely mention it this coming Saturday...I'll be double checking everything back home...I will be trailering it over there again..got to much stuff to carry back with me ...rear crash bars...passenger floor boards..two oil change kits..low profile antena..k&n filter.

No I've never owned a pair of chaps even in my harley years...I find it's the gayest things ever...mostly worn by pretenders..

Pre-worn by Marcel from his harley days, now he has an Indian I have a feeling the hole isn't big enough

Strata isn’t as exclusive as it used to be now it’s part of the TET. I met two different groups of quad riders and a couple of 4x4s No bikes though and didn’t see anyone on the other lanes I rode lots of road bikes out yesterday though

I would surely do it on a borrowed GS I don’t care about, just not my own. They are capable bikes on easy trails, but if you don’t care about them they suddenly get 50% more capable . I don’t fancy dropping mine on water, or flooding the shaft drive.

more like that train in the thomas the tank engine stories who refused to come out of the tunnel cos it was raining...

This isn't the time or the place to discuss your anus Marcel!

TOTY is 5 months away Marcel.....you're making your move too early!

And there was two...