100 days with Henry III
Sad sad day indeed.
My time in England has come to an end and I have to say goodbye to Henry. What a superstar he has been! What an absolute trooper to carry my carcass around Europe for 3 months with barely a hiccup.
People ask why I don't get a "real" bike. They seem to think I am just making do with a scooter until I can afford a motorbike. They don't understand that I choose to ride a scooter. Coz I Can! It's not about the machine - it's about the attitude.
Any numpty can ride the Swiss Alps on a 1000cc bike - indeed many do every summer - there's no challenge in that. They whizz around the roads testing their "skills" on the corners, seeing only tarmac and whinge when scooters hold them up.
Hundreds of fully set up BMWs ride the Road of Bones or the PanPacific every year - there's no story in that. I wanna read about the guy who did it on an old Indian or did the Dakar on a Vespa... or Mongolia on scooters! I can't wait to read Paul Carter's new book about the challenge of taking a Biofuel bike around Oz.
Mandatory reading for all scooter riders should be Two Up By Scooter by Michael Marriott. It's about a guy and his wife going overland London to Aus in the 1950s, two-up on a 150cc scooter mostly on dirt roads. Coz they could!
Or read Scooting Through by Ruth Bayne. Two young ladies UK to Aus on a Lambretta in 1954.
Thousands of bikes cross the Nullabor, when I do it, I wanna go on a 110cc Postie Bike!
And now, thanks to meeting Belle and Nads, I might actually get the opportunity.