When Colin from CROSS Christian Bike club asked me if I'd like to go with him to a biker's breakfast in the West Country, with some of the members of the Knights of Antioch Christian bike club, I thought "Great, a chance to go on a really long bike ride". I love riding, and don't get the chance as often as I'd like, so this sounded brilliant. Ride down there, do the toy run, home for tea. Well, err, it didn't quite work out that way.
I was woken up at six o'clock - what's going on, it's still dark out there - and by 7.45am I was sitting on the back of the GSX750 (comfy) and ready to go. t was a cold, grey morning, but dry - so far, so good. Along with Martin and Fiona from Ronin bike club, we set off for Exeter.
Everything went well until, at about 9.30am, it started to drizzle. Within half an hour it was pouring, and due to the useless ventilation in my helmet, I was having to rid with my visor slightly open. Cold draught and more wind noise - YUK!
We then squelched and dripped our way to a service station on the M5 to stop for a quick and very welcome break. By this time we ere all soaked and very cold. The last ten miles to the caf� seemed like 100, and I don't think I've ever been so glad to see a caf� in my life.
Jim greeted us and said he was really glad to see we'd made it. I think the word used was: "Outstanding". Thanks Jim.
FOOD ! Fantastic! Tea, toast, a fry up and apple pie! Bliss! It does wonders for a persons outlook on life after being freezing cold and wet for over an hour. Highly recommended for anyone in a similar situation. I was soon warm, full, and comfortable. Time to get back on the bike for the toy run. Here we go again...
Water, spray, rain. Lovely! I really need to get some waterproofs. The second care home that we visited was closed, so we went on to a children's ward. Walking was not easy at this point, so I thought it would be a good idea to borrow a wheelchair for the visit. This was agreed and a nurse appeared - with a commode chair! What?! I thought hospitals had wheelchairs coming out of their ears.
Our next stop was another children's ward, and this one had a wheelchair. Bonus! With four flat tyres! D'oh! It was worth it to see the surprised looks on the children's faces. And after a while we were lent a wheelchair with working tyres. Nice one. Then it was on to Paul's bike shop, PGH Motorcycle Centre in Torquay - nice bikes, friendly people, good selection of clothing and accessories, great drinks machine - good place. All this was rounded off with tea at Jim's house, which, believe me, was very much appreciated. Thanks Jim and George.
Then came the beginning of a very memorable ride home. Colin asked Jim for directions back to the main road. When we found ourselves in a cul-de-sac at the top of a hill we knew something was wrong somewhere.
Anyway, everything would have been fine except for the horrible weather. By five o'clock we were riding along the M5 in a raging gale. The rain was not letting up at all, and Colin knew that we wouldn't make it home that night.
This was confirmed about 45 minutes later as, on the approach to the A303, the rain was freezing on the road, and all four of us were so cold that we were in real pain. Riding like this was really dangerous, so we decided to stop.
It was six o'clock on a Saturday night and we didn't have any bookings or a change of clothes. But before long we found a hotel and stopped, hoping to find some shelter.
What we got was better than we could ever have hoped for. By seven o'clock we'd paired off into two huge rooms and were tucking into steak and chips, Excellent!
The next morning, after a great nights sleep we all scoffed down a large cooked breakfast and headed for home. Snow had fallen durin the night, but was not affecting the roads...until we reached Warminster. We rounded a corner on the A303 and the scenery changed from green to silver and white. Oh NOOOOOO!
The rest of the A303 was a case of watching the ice patches (we even had to sit behind a gritting truck for a while), and stopping once to thaw out again. Any stops took careful planning. No way were we going to cross a busy main road with a thick layer of snow and slush in the way.
I don't think I've ever been so glad to see the M27, and the sight of Eastleigh was like a dram come true. It was the longest, and hardest ride I've ever done even though I was going pillion), and I'll never forget the feeling of achievement when it was over. I wouldn't have missed it for anything and I'm sure I'll remember it as one of the best experiences of my life.Thanks to:
Colin from CROSS Christian bike club, Southampton
Martin and Fiona from Ronin bike club, Eastleigh
Jim and the Knights of Antioch Christian bike club, Devon
Zombies bike club, Devon
Angus Rymer, DRAG