The short way round!

Today saw Fletch and I heading off early for Birmingham and the N.E.C....to the bike show of course, an annual 'must do', though it's probably 20 or so years since I last actually managed the pilgrimage! On that occasion things didn't go too well, it was April, I was camping overnight and a freak heavy snowfall caused my tent to collapse spectacularly at two in the morning....leaving me no option (I was on a bike remember) but to spend a cold miserable night holed up in public toilets for a little shelter! Ugh.

This visit went more to plan, we made the journey easily, the roads in were remarkably clear and the N.E.C as ever has the whole queuing/parking/paying malarky sussed, no problem, relaxed and easy, none of the usual bunfight gaining access to these events often is.

The show was as these things are, excellent if you're into two wheels, probably boring in the extreme if you're not....so I won't, bore you that is! ;o)

We enjoyed it thoroughly though, all the things we wanted to see/achieve were achieved and the place was only comfortably full (thank God for the Christmas shopping rush and the need for many to hit the high streets).

For me there was one most definite highlight, seeing Claudio von Planta (and his bike of course) of The Long Way Round fame.


He might not have been the one to attract all the publicity at the time but this guy was the un-sung hero who not only had to ride with Messrs Boorman and McGregor but also had the task of filming the whole thing single handedly!

As ever I am with these kind of individuals, I just gazed at him and his machine in wonder....this guy had actually, really done one of the things I would most like to do in my life!



Ok....so he did it with a support team and on a BMW (maybe you have to be a biker to understand why that is mentioned) but he did it and that mere fact is enough to more than make him a hero to me! :o))

Other than that there was the usual 'sitting' on various bikes in the hope that someday, someone might just make an adventure bike low enough for a five foot female, I have to say here that BMW (for all we deride them) make the nearest thing too it but still the only thing I can comfortably get my feet down on is a Hog, ugh, just not made for offroading is it with all that chrome!

For those taller and for we dreamers there is however this:


...assuming of course one can get it to go the distance in one piece!

Did I say I wasn't gonna bore you? Ooopss....sorry! ;o)