On the Road Again!

I should claim another 50-50 Challenge 5E today as well.  I am writing this in the Eurotunnel terminal at Calais after a 90kms ride from Vimy in drizzle and the occasional proper rain. Presumably mild for the Canadians stoically singing "Oh Canada" at the end of the ceremony in drizzling rain. I did sing "God Save the Queen" but seemed one of the few.  There were quite a few British there and a lot of bikers. I will finish it off when I get home and add a bit of detail. Back Home! So to start from the beginning.  I was up at 0645 and by 0720 had got washed etc, togged up and fed the dog. Pepe started without the dbpower unit to give him a jolt.  I had it with me all day and fully charged just in case! I was lucky to get on the 0806 train rather than the 0820 I was booked on and curiously I was loaded in with the cars rather than treated like an inconvenience and tacked in the last carriage. Waterproofs went on before I had left the terminal area! It was misty at hom...

Vimy on 2017 Time has moved on since the last update on this potential run and I have heard back from the Vimy people in France. As with most years that aren't a big anniversary there will be the usual smaller scale commemoration at the Memorial. So I expect  numbers will be back into the hurdreds if not tens as previous years. The ceremony itself usually takes place on the other side of the memorial itself to that in the picture, although this side allows for a far larger flat space for the visitors! Last year there were many thousands and thousands of people. Mostly Canadian to celebrate a date that many see as "the birth of a nation". In 2014 there were maybe 100 people, no more than 150. So the plan. Unlike 2014 I will entrust my route to a TomTom. Which one I haven't decided but I have yet to try the 410 on the bike.  Once one gets used to it, it is a better piece of kit than the old Rider. I have fitted a new Bosch style plug to the end of the OEM wiring loom a...

After attending Vimy100 in April 2017 I have been looking at going again 2018. I fully expect that it will be a more relaxed affair than the Centenary this year where there were around 20000 people attending the event. When we went in 2014 we were able to park in the parking​ lot right by the visitor centre. Unlike this year (2017) where there were park and rides setup with buses to the site. I'll probably be Billy No-Mates/Jean Sans-Amis again but hopefully less of a cock-up like 2014 when I managed to get lost after deciding to leave the satnav at home! Although I did all the planning for the 2015 trip I was unable to go after my heart attack less than week before. So fingers crossed for good weather etc. More information. Update 23/10/17 Booked the Eurotunnel shuttle today. The cost is £30 so no point using the £50 voucher they gave me after so many delayed and cancelled services.