InvictaMoto's On The Road Again!

Sadly due to illness we have had to abort the mission. I have cancelled the Groningen hotel and as it was after the free cancellation end date we might have to forfeit the €111 cost of the room. I have sent a "special request" to them through booking.com to explain why we had to cancel in the vain hope they will do something.  It's not as though they won't be able to let the room as rooms really are sought after for MotoGP weekend. Luckily Eurotunnel have rebooked my shuttle ticket for another date in the future and I can still use that again. I advertised the Assen e-tickets via Twitter and have had no interest. So we will definitely be stuck with the loss. It's a shame but Neill's health is far more important than money. Update 4th July 2018 It was only in the early hours of this morning that I got a reply to my request to waive the cost of the room. I had emailed booking.com customer services to see what what has happening as it was (at the time) about 230...

DELAYED??? We are due to set off tomorrow afternoon, an overnight in Gent and then up to Assen to see if we can arrive for some practice on Saturday.  But. Neill had to go to hospital today and they kept him in.  So I guess it depends on how he feels... and when the let him out. Best case scenario is early tomorrow and he feels chipper. Or later and we go Saturday.

Insurance My insurance renewed automatically today and I have the certificate printed ready to be stashed away in my little folder ready for the weekend. It must be a sign of being old, or at least 62yo, as I have never had a renewal come in cheaper than the year before. Insurance always goes up despite your careful driving/riding habits. No convictions and no accidents.   When I was testing the comparison sites I did one set of quotes where I mentioned the accident I had in 2015 when the van driver ran into my car, and another set of quotes not mentioning it.  Incredibly it made very little difference.  Although not at fault there was a claim.  When I got the car back I had to pay the excess to the repairers and then a few months later I got a cheque from the insurance that covered it.  No loss financially at the time. Breakdown Cove r In the past as we went abroad very often it was cheaper to have full cover for both home and in Europe.  The club that I don't mention its name (CT...

After a less than glorious first game against Tunisia where England won 2-1 despite being subject to WWE grappling and tackling, hopes were higher playing the lowest ranked team in the group. God alone knows how Panama are ranked 55th in the world. It's out of 205.... The WWE tackling continued at corners and free kicks but at least the Egyptian referee was wise and gave the penalties. England led 5-0 at half term. Could have been more. The second half less glorious though. A 6th after 76 minutes and then they were a little slack and let Panama score their first ever goal in their first ever finals. Belgium await on Thursday evening. posted from Bloggeroid

Took the bike up to Laguna Triumph at Ashford and left it whilst we had errands and a visit to my Aunt to fit in.  Why choose Laguna to fit the tyre I had sourced myself?  Although Oponeo have a network of fitters there are none within 50 miles of where I live.  In fact the nearest two were in Essex and Brighton. I had a look at a few of the places I have had tyres fitted before and the nearest ride in/ride out place was in London and 65 miles away!  Also, these guys are tyre sellers too. Laguna charged me half an hours labour inc taxes and that still meant the tyre was £40 cheaper than they would have done it for as supplier and fitter of the big fat Avon. When I collected it they had noticed an exhaust clamp had broken and so they had replaced that in the same labour charge. It will need a bit of scrubbing in. It's the first "road" tyre I have had fitted to a bike for many years.  The last was years back when I had BT020/021's fitted to the GS as a trial. All ...

The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) is looking forward to a meeting with the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to discuss questions regarding environmental fairness, crime and road safety regarding motorcyclists in the city.The Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) has thanked Greater London Authority Assembly Member Keith Prince AM for securing a landmark meeting with London Mayor Sadiq Khan, to discuss motorcycle safety, environmental charging and crime issues. Bikers held up signs outside London's City Hall on Thursday 21st June with words echoing the film 'Three Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri.'  The billboards said: '70+ DEAD BIKERS' 'AND STILL NO INVESTMENT?' 'HOW COME, MAYOR KHAN?' Tim Fawthrop, the Motorcycle Action Group's London Representative, says: 'compared to cyclists, four times more bikers died on London's highways in 2016   with 9 cycling fatalities versus 36 fatally injured motorcyclists. But, while the...

Tonight is the British Bike Night at the Wagon and Horses at Charing.  It's about 19 miles from home. I have been a few times as long as it is dry! Last year was pretty good and as most times, I was Jean Sans-Amis with no Meldrews making the trip up there. Probably same again tonight. This year the newly formed Triumph Owners MCC "East Kent" section will be going as a group, or individually and meeting up there.  The "Rother" section will be there as well although I know not a one of them! Hopefully it will stay dry and as today is midsummer's day it ought to stay light a long time. Or at least long enough for me to get up there and take some pics.  I have charged the little pocket Sony in readiness.

MAG has used Clean Air Day as a good opportunity to underline the fact that a shift from cars to motorbikes will help clean up Britain's air,  and is calling on all those who own motorbikes or scooters to ride to work  on two wheels to help reduce pollution. MAG's Director of Communications & Public Affairs, Lembit Öpik, says: 'all the evidence shows the more motorbikes there are, the less pollution there is. Bikes also reduce 'secondary' pollution because there is less congestion for cars to sit in. It's a virtuous circle proved time and again by science. 'Really, two wheels are common sense. Bikes are smaller, lighter and generally more economical than cars. Since clean air is something everyone should support, everyone should also support motorbikes and scooters. So, go on, get your bike out and help reduce emissions. It's the simplest way to make your commute cleaner – as well as a lot more enjoyable than sitting in stationary traffi...

I had the day off leave today to take Claire to the hospital as she is on the waiting list for a total hip replacement operation. That appointment was at 1215 and we had to get up there in enough time for the traffic etc.   Before that I had to take the car to a body shop to get an estimate on all the damage to the front and rear left corners. None of it my fault.  All three "damages" were done by what I can only call "arseholes" that have run into it and then driven off leaving my car damaged. No note of course. Estimate was £250 for the lot.  Need to see when I can book it in. Anyway once back from the hospital and lunch Claire went back to work and I was free to either watch the World Cup on TV or get out on the bike. I chose the latter. I decided to have a run up to Maidstone to J&S to have a look for a new summer jacket.  My Joe Rocket is mostly mesh and I wanted something a little more like Claire's RST with more material and less mesh.  In the en...

Off-road racing and riding could be banned unless YOU act The Motorcycle Action Group has backed the Motor Cycle Industry Association's attack on a European Commission edict that could end motorcycle sport. MAG is urgently appealing to riders across the UK to contact their Member of Parliament and help prevent the effective banning of competitive, off-road riding of all kinds in the United Kingdom. 'The threat comes from a European Union Directive,' explains MAG's Director of Communications & Public Affairs, Lembit Öpik. 'It would require all mechanically propelled vehicles to get full third-party motor insurance to cover injury, damage and loss, on public and private roads or land. By changing what's called the 'Motor Insurance Directive' (MID), it could end competitive riding in the UK and EU.' The extreme threat arises from a single legal case regarding liability (known as the 'Vnuk' Judgment). It...

I'd love to. But. Once I had passed my motorcycle test in 1978 I have commuted pretty much everyday until around 2014  from wherever I have lived, Surrey, Berkshire, Bedfordshire and Kent. My daily commute was (and still is) a 160 mile return journey since I moved to South East Kent. Apart from really snowy or icy day, I have commuted by bike for nigh on 40 years. I only gave up as it was very tiring and post heart attack simply too dangerous. Now I take the train. However, for more local riders it's okay. Paul ---------- Forwarded message --------- News from the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) The third week of June is national Ride to Work week, which is run by the Motorcycle Industry Association and calls on all riders to try commuting to work on their bikes.  MAG's Director of Campaigns Political Engagement, Colin Brown, is encouraging leisure riders to grasp the opportunity and support the initiative to #CommuteHa...

I decided to get one of these after the crap app, Active 10, and also because I wanted a new watch. With genuine Fitbits coming in at over £100 I was a little undecided. Okay. Not going to happen... I had a look on Amazon. Claire has one that tracks steps and distances and it works pretty well and connected to her phone easily. I decided as a recovering cardiac patient that one that included a heart monitor might be good. So here we are the MPOW Heart Rate Monitoring version. 4.5 out of 5 stars on review. At £22.99 it is much cheaper than the branded version. So far I've been wearing it for 24 hours and it accounts for steps but the sleep monitor is eye opening. How it knows the type of sleep I am having I have no idea. But out of 9 hours I managed less than three as deep sleep. Almost bedtime of second night. So see how tonight's sleep goes. Update 3rd July 2018 has been working quite well as a watch and a step counter. I have associate...

I do like to listen to music and have been looking for a decent pair of discreet headphones. Looking like a Cyberman with flashing blue lights is a no-no. Something without wires. I saw these MPOW Bluetooth headphones. They had a good set of reviews although some reviewers said that they were a bit heavy on the bass. That doesn't bother me with my different musical tastes. Currently my phone has some ska from Madness and the Dualers (recommended), The Shires, Joe Bonamassa and plenty of metal with Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Metallica... They connect, pair, to the Samsung Galaxy S6 really easily. The controls are simple. On the right side is the power/pause button and both + and - volume buttons. And of course the micro-USB socket for the power lead. I chose the "sports" style with the over ear loop. Not because I am sporty but so the damned things don't fall out of my ear. When turned on, holding the button in for three or four seconds. A voice pi...

Another couple of books that I was reading on holiday and of course, as I commute to and from London everyday. Avenged by C.M. Sutter My rating: 4 of 5 stars As a second outing as the "main character" for Amber this was another fast paced thriller. The "doh" moments when the officers actually meet the baddies and not realise are a little frustrating but that adds to the tension. Vendetta: An Amber Monroe Crime Thriller Book 3 by C.M. Sutter My rating: 4 of 5 stars Another good read. View all my reviews

Being stuck with school holidays, and being told by our manager to be "more creative" when looking for somewhere to go doesn't really help. All the other "creative" types are also looking and on top of that, airlines and resorts are adept at pricing their flights and accommodation at a premium to catch the people with kids.... and us silly bastards that work in the Education field. So I am currently looking for places to go where the airfare won't be too terrible and the timeshare "points" will get us a couple of weeks away. Europe apart from Hungary and Finland is way too expensive.  Airfares are about 35-50% of the US fares and for around 25-30% the distance at most. As for RCI. the weekly points costs in Europe is way too high. All the places we have stayed at in the Florida or Arizona have been way less than the shittiest place in Spain. Once again it is a weigh-up job.  Higher airfare to the US but cheaper when you get there, unless that nice ...

One of the problems with the lazy-boy set up is the need to maintain a loop at the front that allows the 'bars to be turned left and right to full lock. ( https://rocket3man.blogspot.com/2018/06/tomtom-410.html ) With a cable coming up from around my left ankle to the headstock, it needs to leeway as the unit is mounted quite high up on the left bar. On the old setup it was easy to keep a loop that worked. The new cable seems more limp and keeping a loop seems much more difficult. So I need an alternative. Hard wring the cable into one of the connectors under the tank might solve the power problem and also ensure that power was only available when the ignition was on, but doesn't allow for a clean removal of all but the ball. So after a hunt around my brother, Neill, found this solution. It's handlebar mounted. Available in chrome to match the bars and other stuff on Pepe. But...... How much? http://www.powerlet.com/shop-by-vehicle/triumph/2008/triumph-rocket-iii-touring-20...

The Avon Cobra rear tyre arrived today. It came from Germany. And there I was thinking they were made in UK. Perhaps they are and the company, Oponeo, might be based there. It's globalisation. So Pepé is booked in Saturday week for it to go on. Some pix. Lots of rubber not much tread cuts.... posted from Bloggeroid

After a drive out to Biddenden Vineyard for their open day with Claire and Reggie followed by a stop at Sissinghurst Castle Garden I took the chance to get out on Pepé. The original plan was to just go out for a short run to make sure it was running. In the end I went for another 5E. Firstly, I thought I'd head up to Canterbury and fill the tank with their cheaper ASDA unleaded. Then out towards the Sarre Windmill. I didn't get there as the fork I took missed it. In the end I turned off the A28 and went cross country via Preston to Wingham, then down through Elham Valley and home. The end picture shows 52 miles. The Rocket odometer deals only in whole miles. The trips are better and at least have tenths. posted from Bloggeroid

I charged the Cardo Teamset, or at least the rider unit. Oddly it is sticky and covered in fluff! A bit of soap on toilet paper and I managed to clean most of it off. I went out for a short, 52 mile, run around East Kent and wore my Shoei instead of the LS2. The LS2 has plumbed in Bluetooth to pick up the TomTom but the Shoei needs the Cardo tacked on the side. In the end I left the TomTom at home so will need to get it set up in the next week or so. It will need pairing with the 410 and that should be all. After all these years it looks as though the plastic case is starting to crack. A solution I have been told is clear nail varnish. I expect colour to work as well. posted from Bloggeroid

Okay. I actually forgot all about these boots. Back in 2013 I bought a pair to replace my old faithful Oxtar boots. I wore them on the run to Scotland on the Ashes Tour. They were okay. Very stiff but they performed okay except for the rubber gear change protection on the left boot wore through . In 200 miles before it showed was not very good at all. It's not as if the gear change on the Explorer was particularly stiff or hard. Au contraire it was silky. So I sent them back after when I got home and after a few emails and new pair arrived. I didn't even unpack them as I had no confidence in them and so they sat in the box for nearly two years (!) and I then wore them once but that was it. Back of the wardrobe and Old Faithfuls came out. So today I dug them out. I need them for the Assen trip and so they need wearing. They are leather and cordura panels with a Goretex lining. Today on a fifty-two mile (5E) they were okay. The cordura helping to make them bend more easily althou...

Finally got around to testing the "new" TomTom mounting kit onto Pepé. I've used it on a few trips away in the car and to Spain recently and Florida even and used the hire cars there with no problems. The new kit includes a locking bracket to the handlebars and one to lock the 410 itself to the bracket. It will stop the casual passer-by scumbag thief but the determined thief will get it. It will save me unshipping it at petrol stops and slipping it in my pocket. I like to leave a little as possible on the bike when I leave it, such as overnight, and with the old setup I have removed the whole lot just leaving the ball bolted to the handlebar. With this I just need to undo the connector and remove the cable at the mounting end and pull the plug  from the socket. Cleaner and easier. I had fitted a Bosch type plug on the end of the cable when it first arrived, but didn't test it. I have "sealed" it with my usual foot of insulating tape wrapped tightly so seal t...

Finally got around to testing the "new" TomTom mounting kit onto Pepé. I've used it on a few trips away in the car and to Spain recently and Florida even and used the hire cars there with no problems. The new kit includes a locking bracket to the handlebars and one to lock the 410 itself to the bracket. It will stop the casual passer-by scumbag thief but the determined thief will get it. It will save me unshipping it at petrol stops and slipping it in my pocket. I had fitted a Bosch type plug on the end when it first arrived, but didn't test it. I have "sealed" it with my usual foot of insulating tape wrapped tightly so seal the plug where the wire goes in. The same has worked for a long time on the older model. The 410 doesn't seem to have a battery charging icon on the front page but as a test I took the plug out of the socket. Sliding the unit in had no effect. Popped the plug in and it powered on. The same as it does in the car. I need...

And to "celebrate" I had a really banging one last night that ended up with an early night and then another during the night. Feeling drained today. The "migraleve" work to alleviate the attacks but what is the cause? posted from Bloggeroid

Woody's North Coast 500 Adventure: Welcome : Crazy, I know. Three blogs on the go at once! Another month though and it'll only be two again. This then, is my North Coast 500 Tour ...

🎶  " What a difference a D makes "  🎶 I'd look even more stupid with a banana on my head. It certainly wouldn't keep the sun off my head. Bought this one expecting it to be sunny at Assen at the end of the month.

🎶   "What a difference a D makes" ....     🎶 I'd look even more stupid with a banana on my head. It certainly wouldn't keep the sun off my sparsely thatched dome.. Bought this one expecting it to be sunny at Assen at the end of the month.

On a personal note I have yet to see any improvement in the amount of crap I get landing in my Yahoo account inbox. I use Yahoo as a dumping ground. So if I enter a competition I can use that account where I expect to be inundated afterwards.   I use my Gmail account for blogging and emails I care about. As I ignored or replied "drop me" to loads of emails I had expected post May 25th 2018 to have less in my inbox every morning, but it seems those that I said no to, and that seem to have removed me, were the ones that I hardly hear from or had not heard from for years anyway. On a work front, I have been given the job of going to schools in the borough and auditing there preparedness for GDPR. Although May 25th saw the law coming into force in the UK, it is such a massive job that the Information Commissioner has given everyone a break until October 2018 before they will start pursuing any cases..... See how that all pans out.

My employer, Islington Council ,  has signed up to Active 10.  It will run for six weeks and the idea is that we will use an app on our smartphones to measure the amount of walking we do and it calculates the amount of "brisk" walking we are doing. It's what caring responsible employers do.   The plan is that everyone should do 30 minutes of brisk walking a day, at least, and the app expects you to do this in three 10 minutes slots. It has been running since Monday and I signed up yesterday. Too late to join the six person team we have from our team, so we started our own - The Mongolian Folk Metal Ramblers. Currently we have three members. We need to recruit three more or the organisers will give us three from the poor saps that have no friends... and we know where that will end up.  We'll get the nerds that no one else wants.   Still, all they have to do is follow the link and join us listening to the Mongolian Throat Singers...... ...

UK Registration opened a little later than usual but it's up an running. This year I will be accompanied by my brother Neill. I have created it as an event for The Meldrews and maybe someone will turn up. At least not Johnny No Mates!!! http://www.alliedride.org/index.php/uk-home/uk-registration posted from Bloggeroid

UK Registration opened a little later than usual but it's up an running. This year I will be accompanied by my brother Neill. I have created it as an event for The Meldrews and maybe someone will turn up. At least not Johnny No Mates!!! http://www.alliedride.org/index.php/uk-home/uk-registration posted from Bloggeroid

I have no idea why using this theme was a problem a couple of weeks ago when I was forced to change it to a "dynamic" theme - https://invictamoto.blogspot.com/2018/05/blogger-theme-changed.html Although the "dynamic" theme was more modern looking it missed off a few of the things I like to have in the sidebar. I follow a few other bike/biker oriented blogs and I had no idea how to get that link to show up on the front page of the dynamic blog. So today, at lunch, I had a look to see if I could fix it and then got thoroughly pissed off and tried my old layout and er..... it looks okay again! The sidebar with all its contents and links have returned and they aren't located at the bottom of my posts! Yee-hah! Fingers crossed it doesn't eff up again. posted from Bloggeroid

Away for a week and the garden has erupted.

I've read so much about tyres and it looks as though it will be a straight swap between the Metzeler ME880 as fitted as standard or the Avon Cobra AV72. Googling isn't much help in this size of rear but US sites have the option of a Bridgestone alternative. I am hoping that this one will get me to Assen and back at the end of the month. Fingers crossed. This Metz has just short of 7000 miles on it and hopefully I can get another 1000 out of it. On the various R3 sites some guys are saying they only get 2500 to a rear! But most of the UK R3 people are recommending the Cobra. Update: 4th June 2018 Had a Google search and found the cheapest place for the Avon is Oponeo at £146 with free delivery. So I ordered one.  It has 4 to 5 days delivery. Now to see when I can get it booked in the Laguna to fit it. Even though there looks to be plenty of tread left I decided to change it before Assen. Laguna have it booked in on the 23rd June. Links: Avon Oponeo Update: 11th June 201...

Reggie collected from the kennels. We arrived at 11.29am just as they were going to close the door as they close at 11.30am and not Noon as I had thought.   He was really excited to see us and jumped up into my arms and couldn't wait to get out. He even jumped into the car without being asked! Another holiday over.  Better start planning the next one....  Norway cruise in August.... The next one for me is:   https://paulandneillsexcellentadventures.blogspot.com/ posted from Bloggeroid

Up, packed and breakfast had before we set off at around 10am for the 332km drive back to the airport hotel where Centaur have their rental office. Unfortunately, I had a dickhead moment getting the car out of the parking space and bumped the rear into a concrete post. The underground garages are a forest of posts and some of them quite large to hold the building above up off the ground!  I was just rolling back and "bang".   There was a  minimum of damage, just a little paint chipped off the bumper. More my pride was hurt. It is lucky I opted for the "smart" all inclusive insurance. I hope. The 1.0L Polo seemed very economical to run. Admittedly it is a little underpowered on the autovia but cruised at 110 to 120km/h okay. It was supposed to be full when we left last week but this might have been the gauge rather than the actual level of fuel. I filled up in Badajoz and it took 8.78 gals to the "click" and we had done 313.5 miles. That comes out at 35.7 m...