rally fever

Well that's me got my first, or to be more precise first Harley Davidson riders club, rally under my belt.

It was a great weekend. Just like the camping weekend to Gairloch except with lots more bikes and live bands.
The HDRCGB are a great bunch and certainly know how to party.
I even enjoyed the ride down and back in a group on the motorway. Though, if I am really honest I would have enjoyed it more had we not been on motorways. I enjoy the scenery that you get and can appreciate much more when riding on A or B-roads. I also much prefer taking my time. Bimbling along at around 50-60 suits me much more than haring down the road at 80-90.

Anyway, I can't wait for the next one. That will be the North East at the beginning of August.

excitement

I woke up really early this morning.
So, now I've got a couple of hours to kill before setting off to meet the rest of the guys to make our way to Kirkby Lonsdale.
Just like it was when I was a wee kid!
Will post report with pics when I get back.

packing

I'm off to the Lakes tomorrow morning. So, last night I started looking out everything I need to take with me.
It looks like rain over the weekend so I've decided to take the roomier of my two tents again. The smaller one would have fitted in the side pannier but the larger will need to fasten on outside.
I was considering not putting on the sissy bar and rack. Everything will fit on to the mudguard rack if I put the tent and my seat into the roll-top bag I've got. Then my bag with waterproofs can bungee on to the top of that. The only concern I have with this is that the whole weight of the tent and seat are fixed to the rack. It's only fastened to the mud-guard with two fasteners which sit in-line. There is a little side to side play in the rack. This is not an issue for fastening fairly light items to the rack but I'm not 100% convinced that it's strong enough.
I'll have another look today to see if I can work out some other fastening points. If I can't, I'll think about fitting the sissy bar as I did last time out. Everything will still load up as it is just now it will just be bungeed on to stronger points.
Safety should come before appearances.

refuelling

I was in the garage getting the bike ready for the weekend.
I fixed the cross strap for the panniers, fitted the gel pad (after a bit of a repair as it's beginning to unravel) and looked out the sissy bar. I'm not too sure yet, how much cooking gear I'm going to take so I don't know if Ill need the sissy bar and rack. If I can get everything into the panniers and roll bag I'll just do with that.
Anyway, I decided to go and fill up the tank with fuel, ready for the journey down the M74 on Friday.
Went to the petrol station, filled the tank then decided to go for a short ride to make the most of the weather.
Well, a hundred and so many odd miles later and I'm back to a half tank.
That's me going to have to start off by refuelling on Friday morning!

Another P.S.
The axle covers are billet aluminium so the magnets won't stick to them. I considered glueing one inside but there isn't enough room for the magnet to allow the cover to seat properly. Will buy a new pair but as it's costly I'll wait 'till after the Lakes weekend.

bits ....

..... falling off.
I was out for a ride this afternoon. Just making the most of the summer, now that it has arrived. I was sure that I heard something metallic hitting the road, not long after I had set off. I didn't pay much attention as I didn't think there was anything that could fall off like that.
When I got home I was checking my tyre pressures when I noticed that one of the rear axle covers had gone. it's purely cosmetic but as it looks good, it's going to cost me about £30 to replace.
I've got to buy the pair.

P.S.
I've just had an idea. I've got a few of the magnets I bought to fix to the oil filter. I'm wondering if one of them would fit inside the axle cover. That would give an extra bit of security, if used in conjunction with the grub screw which they are supplied with.
I'll try it in the morning.

just riding

Have been out for a couple of twenty mile runs in the couple of hour breaks between rainy spells. Nowhere in particular. Just getting out and riding is fun enough. I don't really need a destination.

It's a week today before I head off down to Kirkby Lonsdale for the Lakes rally.
Can't wait. There's a few going down from HDRCGB Region 2.
Same crowd as Gairloch, so it should be some thing to really look forward to.