Public holiday in the UK, planned to get out on the bike and have breakfast somewhere, what could go wrong? Well, woken by the rain at 06:00, which persisted until 09:00 ruined any chance of that. So despite making sure the bikes were ready to go yesterday, they've both sat, unloved in the garage.
This week is a bit all over the place. Family funeral during the week and a day out with my father at the weekend could really restrict riding time, but we shall see. 
We've all waited so long for summer to get here, buts its racing past and is almost over. Need to grab as many rides as I can really, but will life get in the way? Don't bet on it.

After a week containing, what can only be described as biblical rain, I needed to get out on the bike, however when I woke, I felt bloody awful. My choices were stay in the house feeling sorry for myself, or get a bike out and find a decent coffee shop. Pretty easy choice really.

By the time I got to the Quay, I was already feeling better and two coffees and a croissant later I felt 1000 times better. Funny that. 
However, I get back to the bike to find that some flying rat and crapped all over it. Swings and roundabouts really. 

As its Bank Holiday weekend, Im going to get out on the bike on Monday too. The weather is looking very promising so should be a nice ride. Question is, yellow or black?

I hadn't intended to get out on the bike today as there was talk of a ride into Wales tomorrow. Poor weather and a really early start to work on Monday put an end to that, so when I woke this morning, I thought it would be rude not to.
Firstly let me apologise to my neighbours. You don't need to be hearing my 1098s fire up at 07:00 on a Saturday morning. I tried to leave as quietly as I could and after a quick fuel stop, I spent 90 odd minutes ripping it around Wareham, Weymouth, Bere Regis, Bovington and Wimborne before I stopped and grabbed some breakfast.
As I'd never been to Crescent down in Verwood before, I thought it the perfect opportunity to correct that mistake. You don't get too many World WSBK and former MotoGP team based that close to home after all. Wow, what a showroom. Double floored, with a great selection of Suzuki and KTM machinery and a great range of clothing etc. upstairs. Friendly staff too. 
I've never ridden a GSX-R1000, but do quick fancy it, so may try and arrange a test ride before the end of summer/autumn. I know I've not been too complementary about the development of the GSX-R in the past (its basically been the same bike for at least ten years), but they have their loyal following and it does look good in the MotoGP paint. Could the 'Blade be in for a trade in?
By the time I left, it was already past 10:00 and traffic was starting to get too busy for my liking. Its the air festival in Bournemouth this weekend and that draws people from far and wide. With that in mind, the bike is probably safer locked away in the garage.

Another busy few weeks, hence the complete lack of updates from me, so again my apologies. The main news however is this:

Yep, after faaaarrrr to long, the 1098s has come back home. The bill, was well, massive, but now everything is where is should be, working as it should be, its was a price I was prepared/had to pay. The first ride wasn't perfect. I got about three miles down the road, when the rear wheel came loose and rubbed itself up against the inside of the swing arm because the chain adjuster wasn't locked into place. Far from ideal, but I didn't come off and the shop will be supplying me with a new rear tyre and I don't want this to overshadow the great work that they have done.
Anyway, last week we headed over to the Sammy Miller museum in Hampshire, mainly for a bit of a mooch and when we got there, we found an autojumble, which we described as more jumble than auto. 
The crowds were good and as the weather was fabulous, it was a really great day. The museum was as amazing as ever. Each and every bike inside was spotless and the museum really gives you the feeling that those running it are doing it for all the right reasons. National Motorcycle Museum - take note. Here are just a few pics from the day, including some of the machines that turned up.

Today I rode a bike further than I have since July last year, when on the last day of my holiday I rode 700km+ from Colmar in East France, all the way home to North London. Now today I didn't really get near that sort of distance, but it was still around 225 miles and that, dear readers, is now my daily commute.
At the end of last year, I was commuting the 8 or so miles from North into Central London, taking around 35 minutes. Between January this year and the end of July, I was riding the bike around 16 miles to work in around 30 minutes to one of the most Southern parts of Dorset. Now, I have the chance to ride 112 miles one way in two and half hours to my new job in Surrey. 
Now here's the but....there is no way I'm going to ride that distance to work on a regular basis. My plan is to drive a few days and maybe take the bike once a week, assuming I don't have to go anywhere else. The last thing I want to happen is my riding becomes a drag and something that I don't look forward to.
Anyway, back to the ride. The ride to work was great with dry roads, and little traffic on the A272, which is always good to ride. The way back however, was eventful to say the least.
Rain had started to fall lightly in patches along the route and by the time I was approaching Loomies in Hampshire on the A272 / A32, the roads were wet and greasy. The bike was behaving itself and I was getting enough grip from the tyres, but when I was joining the M3 motorway I nearly highsided the bike. It was probably a combination of the wet greasy roads, a brand new tyre, not enough weight over the rear and more importantly, too much power for the conditions. I was eager to get some speed up in order to join the motorway safety and the back stepped out, popping me out of the chair in the process. Thankfully, through sheer dumb luck and stupidity I managed to stay upright.  Then, about 20mins later, less than 5 miles from home, a pigeon flies out of a hedge and bounces off my front fairing and helmet. Im just glad that now all rides are like this.