Where did you ride today?

[Mick_J]

Visited another of the Rorke's Drift graves yesterday, this time it was the grave of William Allan VC.  Grave was well hidden, took ages to find and it's not as well looked after as the others I've seen so far.  Just two more to go.

[Mr Gee]

You have been busy, if you have already, done six.   

[Tony Nitrous]

I was loading the log burner up at 5am, and although I didn't see a frost the water pump to house didn't want to start until I poured a kettle of hot water over it!

Wasn't quite as bad by 9am.

134K's / 83 miles.
Mostly dirt roads but a bit of exploring a bitumen road I hadn't seen before. DRZ is getting more use than I expected.   3,300K's so far.



Spotted another "Blue Tree". Not sure if it's just been started or if that's it, but someone had a go so that's the main thing.



There's talk of doing one locally. It was mentioned by a few folk in town. I'd like to do one but I don't have a tree or location that's ideal. Won't rule it out though.

[Mr Gee]

Monday, I went through Stourport, Bromyard, Ledbury, Ross on Wye, Monmouth and down alongside the River Wye to Chepstow and visited the Castle.

Returned following the River Severn on the A48 but wish that I hadn't. The whole stretch is now restricted to 50mph and is dotted with average speed cameras. 

The gate is the oldest surviving one, in Europe and is 800 hundred years old. Dated 1190.

The view up, was taken from a terrace that can just be seen, near the bottom of the picture looking down.

[Mr Gee]

Wish I knew how, to pack more photo's onto one page but I don't.

[GSXKING]

WOW 😯 just WOW. 🙏👍🏆

[Mr Gee]

Final few.

Models showing the original castle and the later extension.

[Tony Nitrous]

Monday, I went through Stourport,

Never lived in Stourport but I knew it pretty well.

I used to play pool for The Hollybush Pub, my MOT tester was there too, Alex Dorrel and Ben.

Heaps of us used to meet up at Enville Common on a Sunday, wheelies and clowning about, then it was a mad blast to Stourport to play on the fair and the little hire boats on the river.  Heaps of the lads had hotted up Mk-1 Escort and a family called "The Nunns" from Stourport had the fast trick ones.

Always went that way to Shelsley Walsh and Whitley Court.

[Mr Gee]

Knew Alex well and young Ben, too. Used to work on those little, hire boats, the putting green and model arena. 

[Tony Nitrous]

Knew Alex well and young Ben, too. Used to work on those little, hire boats, the putting green and model arena. 

A few years back I was showing my Aussie wife where I grew up. When we were teens there was no gates or security on the Whitley Court ruins. We used to turn up at night, climb all over it, get down in the cellar corridors. Never did any damage, just exploring. Looking back it could have ended quite badly !

[GSXKING]

Final few.

Models showing the original castle and the later extension.

They give so much perspective as to what they had achieved. I'm absolutely flabbergasted.   

[Mr Gee]

Knew Alex well and young Ben, too. Used to work on those little, hire boats, the putting green and model arena. 

A few years back I was showing my Aussie wife where I grew up. When we were teens there was no gates or security on the Whitley Court ruins. We used to turn up at night, climb all over it, get down in the cellar corridors. Never did any damage, just exploring. Looking back it could have ended quite badly !

When I was a lot, younger. I worked with a man who, lived out that way as a boy and used to go beating there, in the shooting season.
On one occasion or so he told me. He and the other boys had sixpence given to them, by King Edward VII

[KiwiCol]

Not ridden yet, but locked in & booked.  10 day (for me) tour of the North Island with my brother (who lives in Wellington on his Thruxton 900), booked in for 2nd week of March next year. 
Here's a pic of the route,



going to be taking in some of the better NI roads and some regional good ones as well.  Covers Gentle Annie from Taihape to Napier, the Coromandel Loop and The Forgotten Highway.  We'll do Tiniroto Rd from Wairoa to Gisborne as well.  Planning a morning tea stop at 497 Oropi too, on the way to Whangamatata for the night.  Gonna be great.

[KiwiCol]

Also in the planning stages of a 7 day South Island loop for 2nd week of January 2027.  Just checking motel availability and pricing. Crazy at that time of year.

[Tony Nitrous]

Cold morning. No frost but once again the water pump to the house took a couple of kettles of hot water to wake it up.

Didn't leave home until 9am.  Dash said 10 degrees C but at 100kph with some strong cold winds it felt worse.

Down in the valley the dash said 17 C but it didn't feel much warmer.  Instead of my normal leather jacket I'd worn my quilted dirt bike jacket so I could wear an extra work shirt and jumper.

I'm sure I'm feeling the cold more every year.

Back up the hill, a spirited lap around the back of Meringandan and Goombungee and I headed home.



Only 171K's / 106 miles, but that's my 63rd ride this year. Regular seat time seems to have helped my aches and pains, despite my poor health I'm a bit more ride fit, and I havent needed a battery charger on any bike so far this year.