Fresh from the triumph of fitting my new crash bars to the BMW yesterday, I celebrated by having a short ride on it today. Having both been laid low by the flu for two weeks, dearly beloved and I have postponed our Xmas jollifications until New Year – assuming we (still) feel like doing so by then, so today there were no distractions like presents to open or any such nonsense – it was on the bike and off! More accurately, it was about 11 am when I dragged myself to the garage, determined to prove to myself that I was still capable of getting the bike off the centre stand and out of the garage, mounting it and riding it.
I accomplished all of the above, only to discover that far from the imagined peace and quiet that would be prevailing on the roads at this time, countless, godless, antisocial idiots were already abroad, cluttering up the place just like a normal weekday. I turned as soon as I could onto the byways and quiet country lanes but found them so covered in mud and water that even with my new TKC-80s, I felt a mite insecure and given my kitten-like feebleness, I reckoned that it would be quite beyond me to pick the darn bike up if I fell off so I headed for home a lot sooner than I planned.
Aside from anything else, it wasn’t that warm. The bike claimed 5 degrees but my thumbs were sure it was sub-zero. Ah well, time to look at Gerbings heated gloves I reckon..