Strong beer

All a bit worse for wear this morning. Taking beer back to caravan was not the best idea ever

A long day

The day started very wet, we called in the Honda dealer that was opposite the hotel. I brought a pair of €39 gloves, Rob moaned about how expensive the beer was last night again and Richard put a deposit on a new blade, only joking shel, I never brought the gloves.

Today was a day of revelation on the intercom, only 24 hours earlier I had had to listen to Richard taking a pee because he had forgotten he had the intercoms on. Today was moan day, "argh I have sweaty b@"locks", "I need to pick my nose", "I need a pee break" it was relentless. 

Richard witnessed a Renault Megan drive into the back of a citron, Rob witnessed a kid on a 125 super moto fall off it next to the McDonald's and I saw nothing because u was alway la concentrating on the satnav 

War cemetery

Today we stopped in one of the many British cemetery's in this region of France . It's very moving how well they are all maintained. 

The cemetery was mainly for British service men but there was also one German in there and a few Canadians . 

My own little slice of Ibiza

Last night we canceled the premiere classe hotel through fear that it would be as bad as the one in Chambery. We ended up booking a hotel called Bal just outside st Omar. At the time we booked it there was 3 rooms, only 2 when we turned up though, fortunately they were very apologetic and offered us a mobile home which I gallantly agreed to take. It has its own verandah, BBQ, kitchen and satellite dish. Brilliant!

A little bit of hotel research

A little bit of research discovered that Richard had managed to book the only hotel in Chambery with less stars than a dog kennel.

After a mornings ride we Stopped for a McDonald's in a place called Soissons. I had had the signal from Rob about 40km earlier saying he wanted a coffee. We must have ridden through 10 villages and non if them had anywhere to drink. We then entered Soissons and saw a sign for McDonnalds. 30 minutes later and 5 laps of the town we found it. We then waited a further 24 mins to get served, I'm not exaggerating. They has an offer on and the French obviously like free stuff.

Depressing blog post

27 years until I retire, 20 until Rich retires and 9 years for Rob.

Who got us onto this subject?

3 very wet bikes

Rob has just joined me for breakfast, it's the usual ritual where he brings down his map and we all pretend to plan the days route properly knowing full well we will forget it the second we chuck an leg over the bikes. Oh yeah and we don't have a hotel for tonight, a minor detail.

 Richard is definitely fatigued or not woken up properly yet, they do have bowls for your cornflakes you know. 

Popping into Lille

Off to Lille today, sky is cloudy, bikes are wet but who cares. Decided to shave off a weeks worth of chin fluff last night, two main reasons, first I was starting to look like a hobo and secondly it was worryingly grey, still no one knows when you are wearing a helmet. Happy days! Off to breakfast for some morning cake, never really understood the fascination for cake in the morning in continental Europe but I think I could get used to it.

Great day not dampened by the rain

Another fab day, highlights include Richards colour coded water proofs, my fermented bulls todger lunch, Geneve, escape from Alcatraz (last nights premiere classe), me doing a ton past a speed camera (few sleepiness nights coming up for me), Rich and Rob M getting to see me do a ton past a speed camera, realisation that hotel is not as bad ad last nights, beer for less than €7 per pint, my failed wheelie attempt, expensive cars and watches, very expensive McDonald's, looking forward to a bed that you don't have to share with wildlife.

Yes, yours eyes are not deceiving you that is a couple of lightly warmed burgers  wrapped in 2 hash browns,

Our chosen eatery for the evening, you can have anything so long as it is meat and uncooked 

We made it to Troyes

It might not look like much but compared to the premiere Classe hotel from yesterday this is like the Ritz. Mind you we nearly didn't make it, Rich and Rob M  made the fatal mistake of assuming I knew where I was going. I got us to the premiere classe Troyes using the free satnav on my IPhone. I was quite proud to be honest, how was I to know there are two Premiere Classe hotels in Troy. Looking forward to my tea tonight after the fermented bulls todger with suspect cheese sauce at lunch 

It's raining

Is it a bird, is it a plane, no it's bumblebee man! What does he think he looks like 

Geneve, they really like their scooters here

Scooters and Japanese everywhere. Not raining yet but give it time

Old faithful

Poligny, well earned stop off

This morning we left the Premiere Classe hotel in Chambery. Two words you could not associate with this hotel however is premier or class. What a tip! I can honestly say that is one if the biggest (or smallest) Sh1t holes I have ever come across. It stunk, was dirty, noisy and over priced. Anyway enough of that. 

We headed out into Switzerland (Geneve) . Stopped at a lovely lake and had a coffee and then set off towards Dijon on the N5. 

We stopped a a small town called Poligny. Rich an Rob had Salads and I had this sausage thing with a bowl of cheese sauce. It was horrible but being British I told the waitress it was lovely.

What a difference ANOTHER 24h makes

Riding through the Alps today, simply fantastic. Stopped for a coke and a look at the map, see we have learnt from our mistakes yesterday.

Breakfast on the verandah

Football in the Alps

Grass could do with a trim. After 3 hours of playing we decided it would be more fun if we had a ball

Spot the gay table mat

I'm saying nothing 

Rich lays on some entertainment

The guilt from the traumatic pee moment and the blame earlier in the day had got to Rich, as way of an apology he laid on some open air entertainment 

That's a big donut

Maybe spent slightly too long in the bag!

What a difference 24 hours can make

Yesterday we were cutting our way through some of the best biking roads Europe has to offer (probably). Today we did over 300 miles of mostly A roads and tolls. We did have a nice little excursion after Merseille  after a well earned McDonalds stop (we also discovered that Rich AKA Alice, does not know how to say Milkshake in Frog). And :- 

A) All our satnavs are crap, 

B) We should have brought better maps C) We should probably stop to take stock when we get lost

D) The engineer in all of us cannot admit we are lost

E) My bike is still faster than Rob M's

F) They have no laws in France on filtering (or we hope not)

The last point refers to us getting back onto a Toll road for the last 60 miles or so. We were all tired so it seemed like a small price to pay. We had not banked on 4 things though, point A and D above,  the unbelievable traffic jam heading into Nice and the torrential downpour that was about to occur.

The French are nuts, no really, nuts, while filtering we passed one car slamming into the back of another, a Ferrari driver who was determined he could filter better than a bike (idiot!), and we also discovered the tinny slither if a gravel covered hard shoulder should be used by all bikers to undertake stopped traffic at great speed.

Our hotel is high on the hill top, the three of us gingerly zigzagging our way up the slippy wet road to our hotel only to be passed at great speed by some frog in flip flops, a t-shirt and an colander for a helmet (ok I am exaggerating about the colander but everything else is true  including the shorts and no gloves).

Rob M lucked out and got the only room with a balcony view, git! Did I mention my bike was faster than his?

Lets hope for some better roads tomorrow :-)

 

French motorways are officially crap and expensive

150miles of motorway and toll roads. No wonder the French are so grumpy

Meet Morgane and Alice

Bit of an identity crisis going on. 

Had a bit of fuel panic when Morgane decided to ride past the fuel stop. We think it was her age. Bike was on fumes when we pulled into petrol station. 

Who would have thought that there would be somewhere more expensive for fuel than the uk. Bloody French.

3 countries in a day and were knackered

300.12 miles, started in Spain, (Sabinanigo), then picked up the N260 (amazing), stopped a couple of time on route, Me and Rob had some kind of fish bone pizza thing. We met a Dutch couple with matching bikes, matching helmets and matching suits, the wife even looked like him. Then we detoured by the police in campo (yep that really is the name of the place and the coppers are a little mincy). Then we went to the the town of Sort 3 times ( that will teach them to follow me). We stopped for a coffee in sort and met a really nice English couple on an old BMW GS.

It had done 140k miles, and so had his wife by the look of it.

Finally after much blame (you know who I am talking about Edwards) we found our way into Andora. It was here that we had the comedy piss moment. Someone, who shall remain nameless (Edwards again) forgot he had his headset still connected to mine while he went for a wee, I had to listen to everything (never heard and taps though).

Out the other end of Andora (through a 2km tunnel. 25 degrees on the way in. 8 on the other side, not joking. There was heavy fog as we headed into France.

This was then followed by lots more twisty but not so well kept roads and a high speed run, BMW 151 Honda 145, gloat? Me?

Now in Perpignan in the Ikea hotel.

All that is left of Rob Honda after doing 145. But we know it is a Honda so it will still start in the morning

Night !

Just to prove we were here

Andora, finally

194 miles, some fantastic roads. Rich and Rob m learnt an important lesson, never never trust that Rob W knows which way we he is going. Lets just say that 30 miles of those were spent doing the same route 3 times. 

The town of Sort

What a fantastic days riding. 25 degrees, me and Richard swapped bikes, could tell strait away that something wasn't quite right. Turns of the the preload had been wound right off. We put it back to where it should be and Rich is suddenly like Barry Sheen. At Campo we got pulled over by the police, brown trousers time we thought. No need to worry he was very friendly and just telling us that the road ahead was closed, he asked us where we were heading to and then he proceeded to get out his Biro and draw all over my map. It was not very detailed so he decided to add the detail himself.

Detour turned out to be fantastic. 360 bend after 360 bend, tunnels cut into the mountains, rivers everywhere cutting between picturesque mountain ranges. 

Not open ;-(

Happy biker

Wow, the N260 my new fav road