Saturday, October 04, 2014

Stoptober...

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've been on here.
My how time flies when you're having fun.  Am I having fun?
I guess I am.
It's been a busy couple of weeks since I got back from my short European Tour.

I dropped Melinda off for some new Tyres and Have had her 10K service done (only 16,000km)
Last week I visited Guernsey, Picked her up from BMW and replaced the rear brake pads.
Super quick and easy, took about 15 minutes.
There were down to their backing plates, can't remember previous ones going so quickly.
I always forget that I've owned her for more than a year now.

When I bought her, I didn't plan to buy the bike of the year but it seems that I did.
And I continue to improve on the German excellence (if possible) and make Melinda even better.
Hey, due to the fact that Germans over-engineer everything, I now have a bike that will comfortably travel at over 180km/h, fully loaded, along German Autobahns, in Cruise-control.
I challenge anyone to try doing that on a Harley, Husqvarna or Ducati.

Deutche ordnung is Awesome!



There's probably one more thing that I want to get done before 2015.
I need to replace the original screen for a larger touring one.
Thinking back to my latest trip and the wind wasn't too bad, the helmet wasn't bashed about like on other bikes but there was still noise, A whole lot of noise.
There will always be noise when riding a motorcycle. It doesn't matter what you do and I have done everything I can to reduce it. I have bought one of the quietest helmets on the market, I wear a balaclava and neck scarf, but the noise is there. It's inevitable that when you do long distances for many hours at high speeds that you will be affected by noise.

Why is it a problem?  It can affect my concentration and eventually reduce my hearing.

What's the solution?  I've decided that next trip I shall wear noise reducing ear-plugs but also I'm upgrading my screen. By mounting a larger screen it will further reduce wind and rain to my upper body and helmet and reduce the noise.  Thus, making the ride more comfortable and even more Awesome.

As I get older I am becoming boring, focusing more on health and safety, being cautious.
But not too cautious, I plan to ride around Iceland (volcanoes permitting) and from Nordkapp to Gibraltar in 2015.

I haven't just done bike stuff.

Recently, I spent 2 weeks in London. It may sound strange but living at the Ritz can be tiresome.
Everyone monitoring what you're doing and noticing every little thing.
I'm sure it'd be lovely to be there for a weekend as a guest. (I wouldn't want to do that)

I did get to go Climbing (bouldering) and spent many hours in the cinema, catching up on everything and anything they were showing.

Surprisingly, the highlight was catching up with Danielle, Laurence and Oskar. Friends of mine from when I lived in Kassel and Berlin. Due to work opportunities they've moved to London now. It was as if no time had passed and we were able to catch up on the years in between. I can't believe it's about 7 years or so. I guess that happens to us all as we get older.

The week ahead looks like it'll be a busy one.  Currently Tim and I are on the search for my replacement.  It took quite some time and proved to be more difficult than expected to find me for the position and we don't want those problems this time.  CV's have been coming in, although many are unsuitable.  I'm sure that we will find someone sooner or later, preferably before I have to leave.

Next week, I expect to find myself back in London...Just because.
For now I'll make the most of having my own space and get some study done, passed assignment 7.
And while I'm here, I've decided not to drink and I'm too lazy to get my tobacco so I've stopped smoking, once again.
They say it takes 3 weeks to break a habit, it'll be that long on Tuesday.  Well done me.





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