First year of riding (bandwidth warning, some pics)
 

Hey all,

None of you will recognise me but I'm still around. Turns out I have very little to say, but I thought an update might be fun for some of you.

I got my license just over a year ago, and my first bike around this time last year: a CB500F (ex-showroom) that I love.

For reference I live in London, UK. This year I've been to:

The Peak District/Manchester to visit my sister:

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Dartmoor on a (one night - just testing the water) motocamping trip, and I went halfway back again to view Stonehenge which I could actually appreciate whilst it was quiet:

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Wales with the CEO of the company I work for:

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The Lake District, Galloway National Forest, and N. Ireland to visit my mum:

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I did my 8k mile service myself, which took more time than I expected (I somehow broke the upper arm of my gear lever a couple of times since I've no idea how any of this works - at least now I know to expect a wait for parts, and which way a nut screws in):

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I unfortunately had to cancel a 2 week trip to Scotland in October, and an i2i riding course that was recommended by Flipflop, due to how long I was waiting on this same part (twice...). i2i were kind enough to rearrange to next year and I hope my bike will be in working order at that time (though my tyres are next on my list... but I bought the tyre replacement vimeo vid so hopefully I can get it done in time). I'm still hoping to bag myself a pair of Alt-berg boots as well whilst I'm in the area for the i2i course.

My plan is very loose right now, but I do know that it's Africa. I have explored a lot of Europe and Asia already using trains and various other methods of transport, and whilst I would love to go back to Mongolia on a bike, I am determined to see Africa next and I have to do it by bike, it's just perfect.

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I am planning on a standalone trip to Morroco, the High Atlas, inspired by the glowing reviews I've seen here and elsewhere. But I think it will be a while yet. In the meantime, next year I have the i2i course, another 2 weeks off to try Scotland again, and I hope to visit a friend in France to get used to riding on the wrong side of the road (this time not by accident).

A couple of things I'm learning:

Patience. I only discovered this past year that I have none. I definitely need some to tackle a goal like this. I was imagining I'd be ready for Morocco next year but this takes more time than I expected.

Humility. I've had to apologise a lot on the road. I've made a lot of mistakes. I'm also finally coming out of the "must go fast no matter what" phase. I had an amazing time in N. Ireland riding beyond my limits but I pushed my luck a bit.

Outside of the motorbike the startup I'm working for is doing very well. We deliver an addiction treatment platform and this year we published a peer-reviewed randomised controlled trial demonstrating a 53% quit rate among smokers, far higher than any other technique available. We are currently tackling alcohol addiction and I am very challenged and motivated.

Thank you all for the inspiration and showing me that a personal adventure is possible. Seeing so many people tackling these sort of trips before has given me a strong belief that I can do the same. Hopefully I'll see some of you at one of the meets (Switzerland sounds fun) although given my timeframes are a little out of wack I'm not sure when that will be yet.

Merry Xmas and I wish you all a stellar 2021! :scooter:

Matt

Nice report and it's great to see happy smiley faces for a change :rofl:

Way back, when I was first into riding, Stonehenge was one of the first 'substantial' trips I did. It brought home to me the difference between seeing something on tv or in a book and standing there in front of it, looking with your own eyes. That feeling has stuck with me. Of course when I went the place wasn't the semi sacred, feel the vibes, essence of our ancestors, national treasure and gift shop it is now. It was so long ago I think the original builders guarantee had only just expired and you could wander around and chip bits off the blocks to your hearts content. I think the original druid squatters had only just been evicted. I even remember it in black and white.

Morocco is a good plan but (IMHO and Covid notwithstanding) France is a better one. A couple of weeks wandering around the wrong side of the road in Provence will convince you there's an upside to the world after all.

Rather than warning people about bandwidth have the courtesy to resize your images to a more respectable size, your first image is 4032 x 3024 (7.7 MB) scale it down to 1000 x 750 & it becomes 751 KB it makes no difference to picture quality but saves people (like myself on mobile data) muchos money.

Mezo.

Here is an excellent write up from a couple of guys who circumnavigated Africa.
https://ukgser.com/forums/showthread...=Gael+warnings
https://ukgser.com/forums/showthread...=Gael+warnings
https://ukgser.com/forums/showthread...=Gael+warnings

Africa is a trip I’m planning for 2023, although I have a terrible reputation for changing my plans doh

Personally, as lovely as Scotland is, it doesn’t feel as adventurous as a trip abroad - even if it’s just to France or Spain, different languages, food etc.
Shout up for info and advice
bier

A couple of things - first, the Alt Berg waiting list is quite long. I ordered mine a few weeks ago and will get them in February. I am assuming 2021 ;). I have ordered the Hogg All Weather Boot which may be the issue. It is worth checking the website to see when they are open - they were shut when I was planning on going.

The second is that the ride reports that FlipFlop pointed you to are a really, really good read.

Don't forget to check out all the travel stories on HU - there's hundreds!

Morocco is biking heaven, some lovely tarmac.

If the weather is kind to you Scotland is also wonderful, I particularly like the extreme north and the islands, see https://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hu...scotland-77073

I love the wealth of experience on this forum, and the humour :) I hope I can make similar jokes about the pre-internet world when I'm older.

Duly noted, I will do that in the future. Sorry for the costs. I'll buy you a cold one to make up for it beer

Thank you so much for compiling these for me. It looks quite different to how things are portrayed in Long Way Down, much more real and personal. It also gives me hope that I don't need an entire office/team to make it happen although if I wouldn't mind if I had the money

I look forward to reading about it ;)

Thanks for the heads up. I can deal with that, I just need a factory fitting because my feet are hard to please

Thanks Grant, it's a big list! Very inspiring stuff as with everything else around here.

Tim, you've been a big inspiration in convincing me I need to get there and sooner rather than later!

Thanks all for the encouragement bier

I, for one, am positively SHOCKED to hear this.

Tim, I just downloaded your .gpx file for Scotland and that is incredibly comprehensive. Thank you so much for that! Where the hell do you find the time?

I am anal about planning. I can't wait to go on my next trip so I start collecting information, working out routes, and so on. I can't bear the thought of arriving back home and realising that I was very close to somewhere incredibly interesting that I had completely missed.

The reality is that often I don't follow the original plans at all. LOL.

I spend some time working out a plan / route . but the reality is not allways the same ! So best plan is .... no plan !:scooter: