Escape

 It looks like most of the UK has suffered some poor weather this week as another "beast from the east" rolls in but Perthshire has had sunshine all week. It has been cold but the fact the roads are dry its been ok to get out. I have been getting the Guzzi V85's ready for next month, new tyres on both which were a PITA but that's another story, thanks to Stephen Marshal at Sandy Bloys and to Hamish (and Jimmy) at Cherrybank for their help. Normally I get stuck in with the tyre levers but the wheels on the new Guzzi's are too new for me to attack plus the fact that my bike came with tyre pressure sensors in the wheels and I didn't fancy buggering them up. I have asked the main dealer to find out about disconnecting the system so I can go back to kicking the tyres before I go out rather some computer telling me its not safe. Technology we don't need adding a cost to our hobby and profits to the dealer and manufacturers, anyway its only been 4 Months and its obviously too difficult for the dealer or Guzzi to answer.

When I was a bit younger (ok a lot younger) I was a sad child who liked to look at bike instruction manuals, they gave owners pretty comprehensive instructions on how to rebuild engines, fix electrics and change tyres and tubes. Modern bikes instruction manuals now tell you to go to a dealer if any warning comes up on the screen. I wonder then if the young mechanics who have been brought up on video games and the Internet get a huge shock on the first day at work when they are shown a spanner rather than a laptop and its explained to them that the engine isn't all fixed by software but will need human intervention with spanners and maybe feeler gauges, just thinking about that maybe "feeler gauges" will have to be called something else in case people take offence and thing its a form of sexual deviancy. I digress....

Like I said it was a braw morning with the temperature the right side of zero so we were out for a wee hurl just to get my head straight, it's funny how motorcycling is a very calming influence, the worries and the complete nonsense that goes on in life disappear as soon as you are out on the open road! We only wen't as far as Tullybannocher to sample a bit of Cake and a Coffee and to check it was OK for our Norton Meeting on the 2nd of April. The cake and coffee as always was excellent, we probably stayed longer than we originally thought we would as first we met an old pal Steve Pirie (a motorcyclist of course) and then just as we were leaving we met Alan from Kinross who brokered a deal for me to sell my original John Player Norton back in the 80's (I think) Good crack and then a very nice run home to give the bikes a good clean and still no snow!! I suppose we could have gone to the Scottish bike show in Edinburgh but as always I'd rather be out riding my bike than paying someone to look at bikes.....    

 

Sun shining ready for the off

Ok Petrol first!

Tullybannocher

Cake and Coffee

No snow thankfully