Last day.

Is it wrong that I'm entering my last day in this job with a bit of a hangover? I celebrated my last "short" commute by not taking the long way into work and going by the most direct, shortest route. Rock on.

Penultimate Cross town Commute

This morning was the penultimate short commute across town and as I warmed my bike and got my stuff ready to go I realised that I'm not looking forward to the daily commute on the bike as much as I thought I would. I think if we were in full summer mode and I didn't have to worry about expensive servicing or a bike which isn't a spring chicken I wouldn't be thinking twice and loving it. Next week, expect a blow by blow account of the A34 as witnessed by a cold, wet, skint Weasel.

On a happier note, Dean's bike passed its MOT this morning. High Five! Fingers crossed mine will sail though as easily over the next few weeks.

Crusty Helmet.

Despite a quick clean yesterday, today my bike has taken on a matt, crusty white finish. I've scrubbed my helmet (settle down) and it too still has a crusty surface. I hate winter.

Another full clean this weekend methinks.

A gallon of WD40 will be needed to clean this.

Monday night after work, I packed my tailpack and rode up to Ming's in Arncote. It was freezing, the temp hovering around -3 deg. After chilling with the Ming and crashing on his floor, the following morning I packed up again and put on as many layers as I could whilst still being able to move. With the VFR covered in frost and ice it didn't want to but was persuaded to start. I then jumped on and headed towards Wales. I had been warned about the weather on the news but didn't expect it to be too bad, I was wrong. Thick fog I can handle but thick fog that instantly freezes on your visor and the cold wind freezing your breath to the inside made the ride interesting. I rode into Wales almost one handed, the other being used to constantly wipe or scrap ice off my visor. Once in Wales the fog lifted and the roads, although greasy and provide nearly zero grip, were better. I arrived in Betws y Coed mid afternoon and I decided to treat myself to a hotel room rather than the hostel. A long bath followed by a little sleep was well deserved. I popped into Betws but was soon back at Swallow Falls for a pint before getting an early night.

The following morning, at about 9, after demolishing a full Welsh I packed and headed out. I decided that if the weather was as bad today I would make all my miles in the direction of home so I picked up the A5 and filled up ready for a few hours in the saddle. The road was icy and covered in teflon salt, I had more sliding moments on that one road today than in the the last year of riding. Every corner, the front or back would start to move and depending on the corner it would either correct itself or need wrestling back into line. I was exhausted after about 30 mins and after one massive rear wheel slide which had the bars on full lock bashing my hands coming out of one corner(a little provoked) I pulled over for a quick break. A couple of pics and I was back on the A5 then the A49 then the A417 before picking my way around Swindon and home. A quick scrub (the bike not me) and a cup of coffee brings me to my current position on the sofa which I intend to keep all night. Snoogins.

I returned home to a new gadget. A cheap camera to document my excursions so expect more pictures and many more bike pic whoring sessions ahead.

Look at them shine !

After a good 125 mile blast around the Swindon area on Saturday with Big L, Dean and little L, yesterday was marked as cleaning day in preparation for the Wales trip starting tonight. Rear wheel off, swingarm cleaned, exhaust polished and tank/fairings Mer'd. Then I thought I would have a look at what the gold shiny sprocket nuts I bought last week would look like on a old sprocket and chain assembly. I didn't think they looked bad so I left them on.

Dean, despite not feeling well joned me and decided to strip his bike of fairings, rear cowl, wheel, seat, tank and airbox. After all that there wasn't much time to sort out the nasty chain with the stiff links. Limburn also briefly joined us but didn't stay long although his swingarm did look cleaner than when it arrived. I think I may have to "borrow" his bike and clean it properly for him.

A chilly -5 Deg this morning on the way to work has reminded me I was going to buy some more thermals and some decent textile gear. Shopping next weekend methinks.

Tasty Nuts

Shiny nuts arrived!

To mark the occasion, I have bought a cheap digital camera so some hardcore pic whoring will be happening over the next few weeks. Despite still being a week away from receiving my redundancy payment I've started spending it already. I'm watching a stainless steel exhaust on EBay which I think could be the next impulsive purchase. I'm weak.

RR

After a subzero ride down to Southampton to get my oil pipes sorted I was back on the road on a CBR600RR demo bike from J2. Once back from the ride my thoughts were:

• It was so easy to ride. Light clutch, smooth etc.
• Power Wheelies in 1st and occasionally 2nd are awesome. You just needed plenty of revs.
• The thing is so light. It felt tiny and half the weight of my Viffer
• The brakes are almost too powerful and have too much initial bite, especially when the road surface is anything other than race track perfect.
• What a hard seat. Although the riding position doesn't put much weight on your ass, you're still aware of the hard seat pad.
• Low bars, my bike felt like a cruiser after the ride.
• Nice basic dash. All the information, easy to read, nothing annoying.
• It looks awesome in black.
• At three figures it is very stable. Wind protection isn't great though.
• I can’t afford it.

I got a quick part ex quote on my bike just to get an idea, an automatic £2.5K with a possible £3K if the deal is right. That's not too bad as I would expect to get £3-£3200 if I sold it privately.

Being realistic, I shouldn't indulge in a new bike, especially on one that will be worse at commuting than mine is now and that would cost more to run. The idea of a second hand 600 is a possibility though.



One of the best moments of the day was getting back on my VFR and remembering all the reasons I like my bike. The way the engine feels, the noise, the riding position, the solid feel, the wind protection and the secure handling. Maybe I will just enjoy what I have for another season.

Crescent and stiff links

Crescent Suzuki is a well known dealership that sponsers some BSB and can be found at most bike race meetings in some capacity. Despite it being a mere 30 miles away I had never visited it until yesterday. Me and Dean rode down (via Burbidges) in glorious sunshine and admired the fine machinery they have on display. One GSXR thou with a custom orange and black paint job caught my eye as did the £30K thou with the superbike spec 202 bhp engine. Sweet. The biggest smiles were saved for the old race bikes on display which include some awesome late 80's two stroke GP bikes, some old Kevin Schwantz 500's being my favourites. I'm just a lottery win away from creating my dream garage which would resemble that dealership and workshop.

Tomorrow the Viffer is in for it's recall notice work. I'll be taking a CBR600RR out for a test ride whilst it is getting done. A quick call yesterday sorted it out and they seemed very accomodating. Maybe they could hear the impulsive edge to my voice and knew that I often buy with my heart not my head. I'm not desparate to sell the VTec but I do fancy something with a little more passion, I'm just not sure my back agrees with my decision to have a look at bikes with a more extreme riding position. We'll see.

Dean returned from a ride with Laura tonight and asked me to help him identify a strange noise coming from his bike I could hear his concern in his voice so I threw a jacket on, grabbed a coffee and went to help. After getting the bike onto a stand and inspecting the rear wheel we discovered the chain was far too tight and there were a few really stiff links which looked like they just needed cleaning and lubing to correct. it was dark, and we were using torchlight to do it but I don't think it is anything serious to worry about. The chain felt really dry but as I'm used to wet lube rather than Dean's choice of spray I didn't know what to expect. I think he'll have to spend some time with a can of chain cleaner and some rags to get back on the road.

Showgirls, frozen fingers and Blinging Bolts

Last weekend, despite the sub zero temperatures, me and the Marrinator decided to ride up to Excel for the MCN bike show. He had to pick up some tickets from Fratton Park (*spit) so I planned to meet him at Portsdown Hill at 10 before the ride. Icey roads slowed the ride but I was soon parked up at P Hill with a burger and coffee. Dean was a little late but after 30 mins of talking to a complete fruit loop on a new Royal Enfield, Dean arrived, some more snacks demolished and we were on the A3 heading towards London. A quick peestop and we were soon in a 90-100 mph flow on the M25. Soon the Dartford tunnel approached and after realising we didn't have to pay we both played around a bit in the tunnel playing exhaust note top trumps. Dean won, easily. Soon we were at the show. It was ok, nothing special, lots of scantily clad ladies to admire and a few bargains to buy. Dean bought some gloves and some new leathers which he decided to wear home. We left at about 5:30 and after being blown away by the spectacle of Dartford crossing bridge at night we were back into the usual flow on the motorway. We stopped at Fleet services as Dean had realised that leathers aren't as warm as his textile gear and the subzero temperatures had taken their toll. It was a good riding day.

Sunday was spent cleaning which meant it shouldn't have needed cleaning on Wednesday on my day off. It did, so I did. Fairing off, mudguard off, belly pan off, a full strip clean. it wasn't all good though, I lost one of the fairing bolts, broke another trim clip and I noticed one of the oil pipes from the oil cooler was split, not leaking but split part through. it looks like a sharp stone may have hit the pipe, it is in a vulnerable postion. A quick phone call and it appears that this part is the piece that I received a recall noice about months ago that I hadn't got around to doing. Result! Instead of paying £111 + labour it will be done free on Monday at J2 Honda.

To celebrate I bought some new Tasty Nuts. Spending £50 on shiny nuts to replace slightly pitted furry nuts may seem to be a waste of money to some people but I would rather spend it on making my bike look a little less crappy than on Beer or Pizzas.