DangerRuss58

Sounds like a plan to me

Seems to be that way but it was a gorgeous day for a ride and it didn't cost me anything so....?

Sunday dawned and the sun shone so I decided to go to a bike and car show that I saw advertised on one of the Facebook pages. I rode down to Alguena which isn't that far from Alicante and found the bike show consisted of one guy doing wheelies and endos along with shredding his rear tyre, the sort of things that teenager do before they get their licence. I didn't stay long I made my way back along the N332 from Alicante which runs along the coastline pretty much all the way home. Interestingly enough I took my time I was in no rush I actually stuck to the speed limits, short shifted and never went over 71mph. When I got home my bike was showing 4,4 litres per 100 kms fuel consumption which is a little over 64mpg not bad for a 1200cc machine, I filled her up this afternoon ready for tomorrows ride out with my ex pat friends, I brimmed the tank and it only took a little over 16 litres I had dome 310 km and with a 23 litre tank, which meant I had another 100 kms left in I was impressed. I have to apologise for all my spelling mistakes I try to go through everything I write but being rather dyslexic means one or two do get through.

No I have looked around and to be honest I don't see anything I like, I don't want too many electronic gadgets. as an ex electronic engineer I cant think of a worse place to put electronics than on a bike LOL and at the monet all the manufacturers seem obsessed with making bikes lower shorter and more compact while I'm getting bigger LOL so think I will stick with the Yam for now

I really feel for all of you in England at the moment with al that cold wet freezing weather, here in Spain we have had some gorgeous weather lately I personally feel that temperatures in the low 20s are the perfect riding conditions LOL. So last Tuesday evening I got a message asking if I fancied a little ride the next day. I said yes of course. The following morning I set off for Castalla met up with a few friends and off we went around the mountains of Alicante and into the Valencia region. We stopped off for a coffee on the way and eventually we found ourselves not too far from where I live and we rode through the devastated landscape of what is left after the massive wild fire from last year. The fire that got so close to my village we were put on standby to evacuate the neighbouring village and already been emptied. I was amazed at how much land had gone up in flames we rode for miles and it was burnt trees all t he way. We eventually stopped for a lunch just outside Pego and headed for the coast and some sunny twisties.

That's exactly how I feel

On Wednesday the sun was shining the temperature was ok so I dragged the bike out of the garage early. loaded up and went for a ride to meet up with some friends for lunch in Cortas de Pallas which is in the mountains to the west of Valencia. The roads around that area are great biking roads. When i got home 300 kms later I noticed that my total for January already outstripped my total mileage for the whole of last year, Was that a bum year or what? In January last year the bike had its first ITV (mot) as it was four years old I took the crash bars off as I had added them after I bought the bike and as fellow Spanish dwellers know we have a sort of type approval thing going on here. I was going to put them back on but I never got around to it, it might be just me but I think the bike handles a bit better without them.

Yep the weather has been really kind to us here in this part of Spain, its getting colder at night now, and early in the mornings I have to put a jumper on, but I'm not complaining and yes I will be out and about a bit more now...fingers crossed

Yesterday I dragged the bike out of the garage again my brilliant wife had a day off and the weather was cracking so I decided to go on a ride out with the group of ex pats that I have been out with a hundred times in the past , so I managed 310 km and boy I couldn't move this morning lol It had been a while since I had ridden the twisites around the Costa Blanca and I have to admit I had a bit of a boo boo my foot slipped off the brake pedal and I missed the corner went down and along a concrete drainage ditch nearly hit a concrete post I managed to just miss it and steer the bike back on to the road where I had to stop for a wee moment or two until my heart started working again.

It seems like its been forever since I last made it here. The following is a boring video but for me it was like all my birthdays came at once. It took me years to sort out my licence exchange here in Spain we had been lied to, which seems to happen a lot in officialdom here, we were frauded, deceived and had all our on line records lost, but I got there in the end, just in time for the cataracts in both my eyes to be so severe that I could only see about ten feet in front of me, then came the problem with the hospital they lied to me as well. honestly I could write a book about what has happened to me in the last three years. So with he bike being all legal and with the ability to see again I rode down to Castalla to meet up with the boys that I used to go out riding with every Wednesday. I didn't go on their ride out as it was nearly 300kms and I had done 180kms just getting there and back, I'm not fit enough yet. But now I have a smile a mile wide on my face, god I missed the bike.

Sorry just seen this, yes it should go through now but I may have to have another medical as the previous one has now run out

Not yet no we have to resubmit to sort it all out our application but they have already had our uk licences LOL but we now have another 6 month grace period

Finally Spain and England agree on the driving licence exchange so I can legally go out on the bike again. My first problem was the battery was flat the bike had only been for a service along with it's firs itv (mot) test since las May. The problem being I have no electricity in my garage only a generator which packed up so I had to remove the battery which meant removing the crash bars etc. as I was doing all this I smiled to myself as a couple of weeks beforehand I found out that the wonderful Spanish government hadn´t actually made a law regarding ex pats and driving. Oh well. So yesterday I got the b ike out and went for a wee ride, not too far but far enough around 90km. When I got home every bone in y body hurt but I had a snake a mile wide so good to be back out.

Hi Pete the weather here has been very mild...at the moment so making the most of it..Happy New Year to you as well my friend

I've not stepped outside for last few weeks, don't want to tempt fate even further! but on Wednesday I decided to join my other friends for one last blast for this year. Of course as usual not everything went to plan. I bought a quad lock and anti vibration extra and...yes it still buggered up my iPhone camera. My DSLR decided to not give me any access to my aperture settings so nothing in focus and on the way back I noticed my go-pro was facing the sky! I hadn't got the screw through the holes in the camera's bracket..oh well. Anyhow I managed 450km without getting killed, the weather wasn't bad at all the temperature hit 24 at one point, we stopped off for coffee visited a couple of landmarks and I managed to get home before dark so all n all a good day out. Admin if the video I've uploaded is too big feel free to take it down. Happy New Year everyone and lets hope next year is a great riding year.

After my slightly disastrous trip to the UK and back a few weeks back I was seriously considering getting rid of the bike in fact I wasn't ever going to leave the house again. But my wife insisted that I go our for a ride so how could I refuse? We have had some serious weather going on here one day we get brilliant sunshine then the next torrential rain then sunny again. Luckily I picked a decent day for wee bimble with some of the guys around the mountains and ended up by the beach...and.... nothing went wrong!!!!!

It felt like it at the time but I did get everything sorted, replaced bank cards got a new passport and the wife is now out of hospital on the road to recovery, and I did get home albeit a few days late so depends on which way you look at it...now planning next years trip!!!!

I've been going to the Pod since 73 and yes this is a very rare event but having said that I know of a few other racers who had far more than me stolen one guy had 3000 pounds taken from under the seat of his tow vehicle.

No not as a rule up untill recently I have always had good luck....strange

Pedro the dragster is a blast and yes it is a bit of a beast as well but like anything in life if you do it often enough you get used to it. You can still get emergency travel docs but they are only for people who ned to return to the UK from abroad for emergencies such as loss of passport death of loved one etc but I was already in the UK and that system doesn't work the other way around. I put in an emergency passport request which took longer to sort out than a fast track passport would have grrrr

I set off for England on the 14th Sept heading for Santander and the Ferry I was looking forward to racing my car again and visiting kids and grandchildren, I managed a total of just short of 2500 miles but as what has became normal for me bad luck followed, in fact it was so bad I doubt anyone in their right mind would believe a word of it. I have posted some pictures of my trip....what follows is an account of what happened to myself and my wife over the three week period I was away as written by my wife................ "Russ goes to the UK: His trip to see family & race at Santa Pod Raceway has been the most unluckiest trip of our lives together!!! He went by motorbike as he loves a long trip - he was so looking forward to the adventure, seeing family after nearly 3 years & he had planned to race his Dragster Slingshot for the last time before handing over the car to his son Steve who has been racing it since we moved to Spain. 13th Sep : we took our dogs for their holiday at The Dog Grove in Oliva. Our dogs love it there! 14th: Russ sets off on his trip. & I move into a lovely airbnb for a week to allow the builders to fit the floor tiles & continue to work in practically every room in our house, including major plumbing, LOL. 15th: Susan at the kennels calls me to say Harry has had an accident! Our lovely greyhound/ border collie cross age 10 with arthritic hips is having so much fun playing with our Spanish Greyhound - a Galgo, Willow age 3 that he decides to do a bit of acrobatics…. He lept up into the air & spun around, jumping higher than the average greyhound would do at his age only to catch the skin on his back on a high branch! Clint & Susan are wonderful people who have run the kennels for 30+ years so for Harry to have reached the branch was almost a miracle & they keep the trees & bushes trimmed back to prevent any injuries! Susan said - It is a bit more than they could deal with so off they go with Harry to their vet. They kept him in & cleaned & stitched him up under anaesthetic, gave him antibiotics & Clint picked him up later in the evening. Poor Willow was all upset & they had to be in separate kennels overnight so he could rest & recover. Harry bounces back to is usual self by the morning & is continuing to recover as I write this. As this was happening Russ was on route to the Ferry. I decided to not tell him as knowing Russ he would have just turned round & come back home! I did not want to spoil his adventure. 16th: Russ arrived in the Uk. 17th: he reaches Santa Pod & had 2 practice runs in the car before the proper racing is to start the next morning. 18th: Racing starts, car sounds strange & major problems with the axil & gears - Racing is over for the team! Russ & family are so disappointed as no parts available to repair the car that weekend. They return to the pits & find out that the truck has been burgled - Russ’ bike keys, passport, wallet, credit cards, debit cards, money, driving licence etc….all stolen!!!! His was one of many racers & crews who had had huge thefts! Luckily Russ had a spare set of bike keys, so after reporting everything to the police he went to stay with his brother for a few days. 20th: Russ having cancelled all the cards & passport contacts the Passport emergency helpline to order a fast track new Passport, they send him the link to apply for the passport & he fills it in & pays for the new passport. 22nd: I return home from the airbnb & the house is coming on well. I have been feeling very tired all week. 23rd go to get my hair done, feeling more tired & tried not to fall asleep at the hairdressers!…. 7pm I start my own dire adventure as a very ill person as I have a GI bleed, this continues all night with at least 6 trips to the bathroom until 5am when I collapse into bed & sleep until 9:30 am when Russ phones me. After I phone the kennels to extend the dogs stay…… 24th:Not wanting to worry Russ I tell him I was tired & having a lie in. I then go the the bathrom & haemorrhage even more - now feeling very dizzy & trying to keep concious I phone our builder who runs to our house in monsoon like rain & he imediately phones an ambulance. I am blue lighted into A&E & admitted to hospital. Panic ensues & being a nurse I can see the concern in the staff about my condition. Once stabilised with fluids & drugs I am told that I am now very anaemic. Russ rings me while at the cemetery visiting his parents graves & feeling very sad. He asks me to “ pop upstairs & find his Uncles address….” I then have to tell him I am in hospital…. He nearly falls to pieces. As he cant return home without a Passport! 25th: I have an emergency endoscopy - some gastric issues but it looks like the main problem is in my gut. 26th: still not allowed to eat or drink & prepared for a colonoscopy. I have another bleed thanks to the bowel preparation medicines. 27th: the culprit is found - lots of gut issues found but none sinister but severe diverticulitis seen & bleeding is stopped.By this time I am even more anaemic. An iron transfusion is commenced. 28th: sent home from hospital - still very fragile & so weak & barely able to walk to my friends car. All week we have spent hours on the phone to the Passport Office as they had sent him the wrong link to get his passport- it was to take up to 6 weeks & be sent to Spain!!!!! They had also given him incorrect info on 4 occasions - The emergency helpline was not able to cope with a British citizen who as an expat needs to return home to Spain & not to the UK!!!! The emergency phoneline is also the same number as for any other enquiry!!! I speak to the British Embassy in Madrid for advice, they are shocked to hear about all the problems with the passport office but cannot intervene on anything to do with passports 29th: Russ gives the passport office an ultimatum, ring him by 3pm or he will be contacting the newspapers! They had wanted my medical records translated by their official translators in Spain - the webpage they send him too is sending error codes so we cant get them translated. They also wanta doctor to write in English that I am too ill to be home alone. Try getting a Spanish doctor to do that! I finally contact a doctor in Jávea & book an appointment for him to confirm how ill I am. 4pm Russ finally gets a response from the Passport Office- his passport can be collected after 2pm the next day! He doesn’t need to prove how ill I am so doctors appointment is cancelled. 1st Oct: Russ collects his Passport & books his return crossing for Sunday- Now I tell him all about Harry’s accident! I just hope he gets back home here on Monday without any other misshap!!!" And that didn't include my search for fuel the day before I left or the fact that I nearly missed the return ferry and was the absolute last vehicle boarded. fun Eh? I'm going to sell the bike wrap myself in bubble wrap and not leave the house from now on.

I was in a real state when I got home Pete, it looked like I had thrown a bucket of water over myself, I only just made it into the house where I collapsed in a chair my head hurt I was breathing heavy my wife nearly phoned for an ambulance, I drank about three pints of water over a 40 minute period then went for a little lie down and woke up four hours later with a stinking headache. During the night I was woken up half a dozen time with severe cramps in both my legs..might give the next ride-out a miss LOL

It's a good laugh we are all ex-pats so language isn't a problem we stop off at cafe's and restaurants along the way get to know more people, we usually ride at a fair old clip not to many sped cameras in out area yet.

I don't think it is the ramp is for people to enter and swim in the river

The track to and fro to that spot was a dis-used railway track which was overgrown rocks holes tress LOL and not recognisable as even a track if it wasn't for the tunnels trust me it was really off-road, but it was for hiking only which is why we had the road closed off for us and had to take an even worse route out of that place...never again,