Riding a bike allows you to be in contact with all your senses – you feel the land you are travelling within, smell the delicate natural nuances and on occasion the industrial belching’s, but it forces you to be one with the environment. Smells are evocative and as I write this I can vividly remember fields of deep purple lavender which were the precursors of millions of insects scurrying for pollen in central France. Of course the bike of choice is crucial and I have seen workaday scooters whose range may be less than half a kilometre to excellent classic bikes lovingly maintained and cherished by doting owners – I know which one I would prefer…
Category Archives: Travel Blogs
Fauno Bar
An ice cold beer and a bowel of green and black olives would refresh most travellers. Over the last weeks I have spent many happy evenings in Fauno Bar, simply watching other travellers cascade past or admiring classic motorcycles as their effortlessly cool owners stop for engaging conversations and socialisation.
If Ferrari made scooters
If Ferrari made scooters would they look like this… Italians simply do everything with style and squeezing a scooter down tiny cobbled alleys is a lot easier than a top heavy GS, just don’t ask me how I know
Wonder why we do it?
When we left this morning the temperature was just over 34 degrees and in just 3 hours it was 2.8 and I was brushing sleet out of my hair… for August the driving rain and ferocious wind is unusual even at this altitude even though this is the highest paved mountain road in the Alps. Lunch at Le Canyon in Val D’Isere was a good choice and we were joined by two Spanish riders on a Yamaha and a FS800 one of who had discovered her waterproofs were leaking – with today’s rain if they were going to leak then today would have been the day…
Out of Adversity comes Fondue
So breaking down on the D925 in the beautiful environment east of Lac De Roselend meant that we needed to find shelter and call for help. The biking fraternity came to my rescue again and a friendly GS1200 rider ushered Gareth and I up to La Pierra Menta (highly recommended) to wait for rescue from Gaage Des Carroz. Not ever wanting to turn down lunch a Savoyard Fondue was ordered and jointly consumed – all I need now is help to get the bike back on the road…I am thinking Hall Sensors?
