S-Westerly

At the moment it's my dealers courtesy bike. So when the Guzzi was in for some warranty work I had the Strom for about a week in fairly crap weather so didn't ride it as much as i might have. However when I did, I found I could get some fun out of it but had to ride it like I stole it. Was quite well planted too but I won't be swapping the Guzzi for one.

The show i really want to go to one day is the Italian EICMA one. That always seems the best going.

Don't count on it. Recently the Iranians have detained French, Italian and Canadian citizens so they are equal opportunity ar*eholes.

No it's the Iranians fault but if you voluntarily put yourself in their hands it's a bit like choosing to grab a live wire. There will be consequences.

Ditto.

That's one issue we don't have. If you're on board you're working. As long as you get a mandated minimum 10 hours rest in 24 of which 6 must be continuous and no less than 77 hours off duty per week. For every day on board I earn a day off although don't always get all my leave I can then cash in the days I didn't get at home or keep them as leave.

I'm with you SD. Too many people think that if they are all warm and fluffy to everyone then it'll be reciprocated. Unfortunately there are countries where although the ordinary people may well be the government is a bunch of thugs so you are putting a target on your back. I've had issues with Iran for years for personal reasons and my company doesn't allow any of our ships to go there since they highjacked one of our ships.

I've got heated grips now and I've been using heated inner jacket and gloves for ages. There's a reason my winter jacket is a size larger than my summer one!

Taken through the window and it's bird shit from my unwelcome passengers.

Or...not

Good morning. Basking in the Mozambique Channel. 30 C in the shade and 40 C in the sun. Sea temperature 30 C too. Fine for me strolling around doing inspections not so much for poor peons having to actually work.

Ask the supplier where they source their bearings from. If it's unbranded China suggest you don't use them. We use SKF bearings which may be made in China but the quality is still OK. I had this removed from the Ducati and it was unbranded and only 2 years old. I think it had been fitted when someone took the wheel off to change the tyre and wrecked the original.

f**k the locals pardon my French.

That's so true. My previous helmet is used to have a Drift camera on it. Took it off and a lot quieter. With new helmet I mount the camera on the bike.

Good afternoon from the Southern Hemisphere. A balmy 31 C and blue skies and seas. However the skies are occupied by blue footed boobies who have decided my ship is a nice place to rest on when they take a break from their fishing. They produce enough stinking guano to fertilise a small country. Absolutely reeks of fishy bird shit. Had I a shotgun there'd be a few less. I just shout rude things at them which has no effect at all except giving me a sore throat. Feathered f**kers.

I switched from Bennetts to Hastings when I got the Guzzi. Bennetts wanted over £1200, Hastings £350.

I don't think the poet laureate (whoever that might be) needs to worry too much about competition at least from the would be poets on here!

Good to see you back and still with a decent bike. Facebook? Each to their own I guess.

Would be helpful if you said what type of bike it was.

So what did you buy then? Another motorcycle is being very coy!

Old properties and there are a lot in this country, are virtually impossible to bring up to C without spending loads. If it's listed at all then it's even worse as there's a lot of stuff you can't do anyway. Relatively new stuff can be just as bad or worse if it's built with cheap and shoddy materials. Mine is B and was built in 2017. I will not be doing anything "green" to improve it as the costs are not too high with little return.

WW2 is really Normandy certainly for D-Day and it's aftermath. Then there's the routes that ended at Arnhem or the Bulge. WW1 is Northern France and Belgium. I have Ypres and the Menin Gate on my bucket list as apparently my grandfather's brother is on it.

The Greens will get you one way or another.

When I went to Munich a couple of years ago went from Calais to near Metz. Started off avoiding the motorway but the innumerable villages with low speed limits and cameras everywhere meant that after 2 hours I'd barely made 100 km and still had 300 or so to go. Hello autoroutes! It's interesting to see, especially the WW1 sites but it's not really practical in a day imo unless you get the autoroutes. Also when I did it the day turned out to be the hottest of the year and the Ducati I had then at slow speeds in hot weather was like sitting on a lit stove.

See that it took the jury only an hour to acquit him of all charges. The CPS needs f**king with a fork as it should never have gone to court in the first place. Both the scrotes had rap sheets as long as your arm and need to be locked up for years.