Howard
Registered User
So this time it's me on my 2003 1150GS and my mate Tony on his little Triumph 600 speed four.
We left Chester last Sunday around 11.30am and headed up the dreary M6 until just north of Carlisle, then cut across country arriving in Edinburgh around 6.00pm, the plan was to stay with Gary an ex work colleague who has his own flat near the City. On arrival Gary is in the local pub, in fact being a typical Scot he has been in the pub for a couple of hours :-0)
The pub has no food, but we are told we can get some fish and chips around the corner and eat them in the pub, yes it was a bit rough! Around 8 ish Gary says we are going to another pub to join a pub quiz, but not to worry as the pub is a bit rough! Jesus it was like something out of train spotting!!
anyway at midnight Gary gave us a spare key and the directions for the taxi back, I heard Gary come back at just past 5.00am!!
The next morning we set off over the forth road bridge heading north, stopped in Pitlochry and had a walk over the dam and then stopped in Avimore for a bite to eat before continuing to Inverness. At Inverness we stopped for fuel and followed the road along Loch Ness to Fort William stopping at the Loch Ness visitor centre to buy tat!
So far the weather had been fantastic and the roads and scenery great apart from the road from Edinburgh to Avimore which is full of average speed cameras, but now the road along Loch Ness is nice and winding with the odd truck and car slowing us down occasionally.
Anyway approaching fort William and the heavens open up, We are heading for Oban, the roads are fantastic but it's now pissing it down and I can feel the rear wheel on the GS sliding about a bit so progress is slow.
We arrive in Oban around 6.00pm and having not booked anywhere we have to trawl around a few hotels looking for vacancies.....no fun when it's pissing it down.
Finally find a hotel, it stops raining, so time for a wander around town, fish and chips (again) and a few beers before heading for bed.
Up early and out on the road by 8.00am the next morning, heading towards Glenco, the scenery is absolutely stunning, I feel like I am riding through the Black Forest in Germany, the roads are fantastic and its dry, this goes on for wonderful mile after mile as we eventually follow the A82 along Loch Lomand towards Glasgow where we know the great roads will end and we will be back in civilisation.
And that's what happens, Glasgow appears we join the M8, then the M74 heading down to the M6.
That's where the problem started!
Looking in my mirrors I can't see Tony, looking a bit more I can just about make out his headlight far behind me, so I pull over onto the hard shoulder and slow to a walking pace, he catches up and I set off again, I am only doing about 70mph, but within a few miles I have lost him again, so I slow down yet again and wait until he catches up. At the next services we stop and I ask him what's up, he says he is just really tired (this is a guy 5 years younger than me who will think nothing of running 10 miles a night, does marathons and triathlons!)
Ok fair enough we get a drink and a snack and head off again...174 miles to go. I am following and Tony is doing 50mph and sitting behind a lorry, he won't overtake it, Lorries, Caravans, etc are now overtaking both of us!!
I am now getting frustrated and angry, I am also concerned that this is getting a bit dangerous, so at the next services we stop...yet again..and I find out the real problem...
As we were going down the M8 near Glasgow Tony was cut up by a car and nearly went into the back of it, basically Tony has lost his bottle and is scared shitless being on the motorway on his bike, he is a nervous wreck h1d1ng2
I really don't know what to do, I try to get him to snap out of it, I think maybe I take him on the back of the GS or call his wife to come and get him? Fuck his bike up and call recovery? I don't know what to do?... So I just talk to him and eventually coax him back on the bike.......it's a long slow ride back (stopping at every service station) , we even have to come off the motorway at Warrington and ride through the town so Tony is off the motorway, but eventually get home.
I didn't expect that, a first for me, but a great 3 day trip apart from that covering just over a 1000 miles and watching the mileage on the GS grow to 109,250!! :-0)
We left Chester last Sunday around 11.30am and headed up the dreary M6 until just north of Carlisle, then cut across country arriving in Edinburgh around 6.00pm, the plan was to stay with Gary an ex work colleague who has his own flat near the City. On arrival Gary is in the local pub, in fact being a typical Scot he has been in the pub for a couple of hours :-0)
The pub has no food, but we are told we can get some fish and chips around the corner and eat them in the pub, yes it was a bit rough! Around 8 ish Gary says we are going to another pub to join a pub quiz, but not to worry as the pub is a bit rough! Jesus it was like something out of train spotting!!
anyway at midnight Gary gave us a spare key and the directions for the taxi back, I heard Gary come back at just past 5.00am!!The next morning we set off over the forth road bridge heading north, stopped in Pitlochry and had a walk over the dam and then stopped in Avimore for a bite to eat before continuing to Inverness. At Inverness we stopped for fuel and followed the road along Loch Ness to Fort William stopping at the Loch Ness visitor centre to buy tat!
So far the weather had been fantastic and the roads and scenery great apart from the road from Edinburgh to Avimore which is full of average speed cameras, but now the road along Loch Ness is nice and winding with the odd truck and car slowing us down occasionally.
Anyway approaching fort William and the heavens open up, We are heading for Oban, the roads are fantastic but it's now pissing it down and I can feel the rear wheel on the GS sliding about a bit so progress is slow.
We arrive in Oban around 6.00pm and having not booked anywhere we have to trawl around a few hotels looking for vacancies.....no fun when it's pissing it down.
Finally find a hotel, it stops raining, so time for a wander around town, fish and chips (again) and a few beers before heading for bed.
Up early and out on the road by 8.00am the next morning, heading towards Glenco, the scenery is absolutely stunning, I feel like I am riding through the Black Forest in Germany, the roads are fantastic and its dry, this goes on for wonderful mile after mile as we eventually follow the A82 along Loch Lomand towards Glasgow where we know the great roads will end and we will be back in civilisation.
And that's what happens, Glasgow appears we join the M8, then the M74 heading down to the M6.
That's where the problem started!
Looking in my mirrors I can't see Tony, looking a bit more I can just about make out his headlight far behind me, so I pull over onto the hard shoulder and slow to a walking pace, he catches up and I set off again, I am only doing about 70mph, but within a few miles I have lost him again, so I slow down yet again and wait until he catches up. At the next services we stop and I ask him what's up, he says he is just really tired (this is a guy 5 years younger than me who will think nothing of running 10 miles a night, does marathons and triathlons!)
Ok fair enough we get a drink and a snack and head off again...174 miles to go. I am following and Tony is doing 50mph and sitting behind a lorry, he won't overtake it, Lorries, Caravans, etc are now overtaking both of us!!
I am now getting frustrated and angry, I am also concerned that this is getting a bit dangerous, so at the next services we stop...yet again..and I find out the real problem...
As we were going down the M8 near Glasgow Tony was cut up by a car and nearly went into the back of it, basically Tony has lost his bottle and is scared shitless being on the motorway on his bike, he is a nervous wreck h1d1ng2
I really don't know what to do, I try to get him to snap out of it, I think maybe I take him on the back of the GS or call his wife to come and get him? Fuck his bike up and call recovery? I don't know what to do?... So I just talk to him and eventually coax him back on the bike.......it's a long slow ride back (stopping at every service station) , we even have to come off the motorway at Warrington and ride through the town so Tony is off the motorway, but eventually get home.
I didn't expect that, a first for me, but a great 3 day trip apart from that covering just over a 1000 miles and watching the mileage on the GS grow to 109,250!! :-0)
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