Its been pretty quiet on the bike front this past week. It started with another sudden drop in temperatures and a return of the snow, so the bikes stayed firmly in the garage. After the fun and games of driving in the snow last time, I stayed at home, working from the comfort of my kitchen table. Couple this with a few days off and the car has been the fall back position for getting around. 
Thankfully though, this secondary cold snap didn't last too long and with the clocks in the UK returning to normal this weekend, it was time I got around to sorting the Ducati in readiness for 2018.
The chain and sprockets were on their way out at the end of last year, so I've got some on order from B&C Express. I've gone down a tooth at the front and up one at the rear, which means I've had to invest in a new sprocket carrier as well. My neighbour and fellow 1098 owner, Dean, who is an engineer by trade and a constant bike tweeker in his spare time, is going to help me with the service. It's better to have a mate helping me as that way I should be able to a) finish the job b) keep the number of swear words to a minimum and I'm really looking forward to it.

​While doing the drivetrain, we're also going to do a few basics, oil change etc. I headed up to Moto Rapido in Winchester this afternoon to get what I needed. Rapido is a highly respected dealer within the community, run by a really dedicated team. Oh did I mention they also run a British Superbike Team? Hopefully my small purchase this afternoon will pay for a takeaway for the crew on the way to or from a meeting. 
If everything goes to plan (including the arrival of parts) I might just be able to take the Ducati out for a spin this Easter weekend.

It may not have been the warmest, but yesterday was the best day of the year. It was definitely Full Leather Weather and I headed out in vented gloves for the first time this season.
I much prefer wearing full leathers to textiles for a number of reasons. Of course there's the protection question, with leathers undoubtedly providing better impact and abrasion protection, but leathers also hold you in a better way. With additional levels of support available to your limbs, riding is far less tiring and enjoyable. It also helps that the leather a far less exposed to turbulence, making the whole riding experience more streamlined.   

The forecast for the next few days is pretty positive, but they are reporting a colder snap may be returning by the weekend and into next week. I guess I had better make the most of this weather then. Now, where is my helmet?

The long way home. Are there any words more emotive in motorcycling? Those four words mean so much and often lead to new experiences or reaffirm long standing feelings and beliefs.
7 days ago, my neck of the woods was buried under 6 inches of snow, which within 24hrs had turned to sheet ice, trapping Carolina and I in the house. Today, this was my view at lunchtime.

Looking out across to Charminster, I was greeted by a blue sky and high clouds and no indication of the cold temperatures from last week. The roads were dry and the temperatures had surpassed double figures. Lets just say this afternoon seemed to last an exorbitant amount of time.
After finally being released from my financial obligation, I embraced those four magical words and let fate dictate the route. At key junctions, if the vehicle in front went one way, I went the other and I soon found myself carving along the light grey tarmac, getting a bit of a sweat on in my full winter kit in the process.
Despite the sun and blue skies above my head, the roads, as you would imagine, were still far from perfect. Mud dragged on from the fields by local farmers, combined with rows of small stones that rains had pulled from the banks made observations skills earn their keep.
The forecast is for rain tomorrow, mainly in the afternoon, but that won't stop me from taking the bike. Dripping a bit of water on my hard wooden floors will a small price to pay.

With the cold weather peaking this week with 6 inches of snow where I live, biking was pretty much an impossibility. Couple this with a garage with no heating, meant I'd barely laid eyes upon my bikes this week. So today, with free time on my hands, I showed the FireBlade some love and changed up the front pads in readiness for the great 2018 and gave her a clean to boot.

There is no getting away from it, but riding a bike in winter takes its toll on the exposed components as you can clearly see from my front right caliper. I'm not overly precious about the FireBlade, using it as more of a work horse than a cherished possession, but seeing the calipers like this made me feel a little guilty. There had been no discernible dip in braking performance, but I could have probably cleaned the bike more. It's only when you take bits apart that you can really get into the deepest recesses of the machine. Thankfully is all superficial and not structural.
The pads that came off weren't too bad, with a few mm of life left in them, but even seeing that, I wanted to get some new pads in there. Being a fan of EBC brakes for both their price and quality, I ordered up a pair from Sportsbikeshop and they arrived quickly and safely.
​After a clean, I had a slight issue fitting them this time as the backing plate on each caliper was an extremely snug fit over the lower pad mounting. What followed was a few choice words, a bit of persuasion and eventually two fully fitted calipers. I really must invest in a workbench for the garage as working so close to the floor is a pain in more ways than one. 
The weather this week looks to be okay, with half decent temperatures for good measure. Following the Siberian blast the UK was exposed to this week, it will feel positively balmy out there. Not quite vented leathers time yet, but soon dear friends, soon.