Well that went from an unpromising start to the day, to an enjoyable excursion.
Started poorly the night before when I discovered the rear tyre I’d just fitted was nearly flat. Pumped it up again and the next morning it was still ok.
Up at 4.30, last couple of bits on the bike, into the riding kit, including the waterproof oversuit and away at 5.30. It was drizzling when I left home and the weather slowly got worse the further north I went. By the time I hit the M53 near Chester it was really unpleasant and very hard to see with all the spray coming off the traffic, particularly the lorries. The Richa oversuit is totally waterproof but the 10 year old Spada Enforcers we’re starting to get damp despite Nikwaxing them the day before.
The intention had been to go round the south of Manchester, and then over the Woodhead pass, but somewhere along the way I missed the sign I was looking for and ended up on the A57 heading for Glossop. Bugger! That meant a trip over the Snake Pass, a very nice road I'm sure but not when you are stuck behind a couple of lorries doing 25 - 35mph all the way in the rain. I decided the easiest option was just to head to Sheffield and then pick up the M1 up to Wakefield for my meet up with Mick. I stopped on the edge of Sheffield to phone him and let him know what had happened, and also (as I realised) that my rear tyre was losing pressure again.
There had been a few points on the ride by this stage where I did question what the hell I was doing riding up to Yorkshire in these conditions. Still by the time I hit Sheffield it had stopped raining and the roads were mostly dry, so a whizz round the ring road, onto the M1 and on to Wakefield Morrison’s for breakfast. When I got there Mick was waiting for me brandishing a tin of Holts Tyreweld, which he’d been and bought at a nearby Halfords.
Time for breakfast. Which was not straightforward. One full English for Mick and the advertised vegan version for me. Except that it appeared on the till receipt as a normal omnivores breakfast. Quick word with the woman on the till to get it sorted, and then15 minutes later two full English breakfasts, complete with bacon and eggs are brought to us by one of the women serving the breakfasts. I pretty sure she has learning difficulties/disabilities, so good on Morrison’s for employing folks in that position, but... She slapped the plates on the table, and then just tipped all the napkins, cutlery, and condiments off the tray and onto the table in a heap. Maybe some extra training and supervision would be in order here. Another trip to a staff member, and 15 minutes later my vegan version of the breakfast finally appeared.
The next bit was the trip across to York, so after filling my rear tyre with Tyreweld we had a fairly straightforward and mostly dry run to Infinity Motorcycles to see about my new crash helmet. They had several of the Shoei NXR helmets in stock but not in both the model and size I wanted. We were dealing with a really helpful and knowledgeable young lad called Josh who went well out of his way to make sure I got what I needed. We tried one of the other NXR lids in my size, and sorted out what custom cheek and crown pads were needed for me. None of it was in stock at the shop so he found the right size and colour lid in their Belfast branch, the cheek pads from Feridex, and the crown pad in their Christchurch branch. He arranged to have the whole lot sent to them in York, where he will fit them and then have the lid couriered to me by Friday/Monday. Good lad, nothing was too much trouble for him. Bit disappointed not to be walking out with the new lid but hey ho, it’s only a few days. Trying on the new Shoei, even if it didn’t have the right pads in it, made me realise how bad my old AVG has got. It slops about on my head like an ill-fitting bucket!
So, the main reason for my trip having been accomplished, and the weather now looking pretty good, it was time for a bit of a ride. We decided to head west as that would put me within reach of the M6 for the return journey home later in the day. We took the road from York to Pateley Bridge, and then after stopping to brew up a cup of tea, on to Hawes via a couple of great little backroads and the A 684. Quick stop there but everything was closed so we made a dash for Kendal in the hope of catching the cafe at Morrison’s there. Alas, we arrived too late so it was a takeout sandwich and one of those Costa machine coffees, sheltering from the returning showers under the eaves of the supermarket.
So, time for home. We rode down to Crooklands, south of Kendal where Mick took the A65 and I got on the M6. A really easy trip back home, very little traffic, no rain and no hold ups anywhere. It took me just over two and a half hours to do the 144 miles back home.
Total mileage for the day was 450 miles.
Things wot I learned!
- A tyre with a leaky bead won’t seal itself.
- It’s great finally having speedo and tacho illumination again, as it really helps me to keep the speed down to sensible levels on the motorway.
- Osram Night Racer headlight bulbs are superb. This was the first long trip in the dark I have done since I fitted them a couple of years ago and the difference between them, the original bulbs, and the various upgrades I’ve fitted is astonishing. They allowed me to ride confidently in the dark at near daylight speeds, particularly on full beam.
- I should have taken some photos.