Coming up for air

I'm back!

It's been a pretty hectic few months here and I've not dropped by much. We expanded our business by building a new lab that is just over ten times bigger than the last one, doubled the number of employees, then acquired our biggest European competitor which doubled our size again, and are now in the process of opening two offices in Germany and one in Spain. In the middle of all that I found myself in hospital for the first time since the late 1970s, this time to have some internal organs stapled back into place after a slight 'motorsports' incident before Christmas dislodged them.

Most significantly of all though, the mighty and much-loved ZZR1200 has gone. It was 14 years old and showing its age, and after another of my epic 800-miles-in-a-day blasts across Europe I came to the conclusion that my body (which is also showing its age) is beyond that kind of abuse. My wife also got shot of her ZZR600 at the same time, and the current occupants of our garage are a new HD 750 Street Rod and a 2012 Electra Glide. Any reservations I might have had about becoming a Harley owner vanished immediately when I took it for a test ride, and saw the effect its stage 1 tuned V&H exhaust had on a load of people coming out of the local bible school. Massive tick in the appropriate box as far as I was concerned, and the cash was duly handed over. I'm now getting it fettled ready for its first pan-European jaunt, which essentially means kicking the tyres and putting some Bob Seger on the iPod. We'll have to see how easy it is to live with long term, but so far I'm liking it!

Sounds good. Bikes can have interesting effects on people.

Our bishop commented on me rolling up to events in bike gear. I said to him, you roll up at a secondary school wearing a dog collar and you've got a hostile audience. You roll up wearing a dog collar and leathers and you've got an intrigued audience. At least you'll get a hearing.

Hope the health issues improve.

Good to see you back!

Enjoy the new bikes!

Sounds good. Bikes can have interesting effects on people.

Our bishop commented on me rolling up to events in bike gear. I said to him, you roll up at a secondary school wearing a dog collar and you've got a hostile audience. You roll up wearing a dog collar and leathers and you've got an intrigued audience. At least you'll get a hearing.

Hope the health issues improve.

I remember the vicar who came to our house after my gran died 26 years ago, who roared up the road on his bike (a VFR 750, if memory serves). After a couple of abortive attempts at trying to tell me that he knew that which can't possibly be known, or that he had special divine insight that was unavailable to me, he stuck to talking about bikes. We got on famously!

Alright Mark. Good to see you back!

I'm sorry to hear about your misfortune but don't worry, we all still love you even though you've got a hog.

Let me know when you're planning on expanding in to Suffolk as I'd like to submit my CV for the role: "somewhat perplexed lab manager/ditherer". It is my understanding that all good scientific companies must employ someone who asks rather too obvious questions in presentations and who's purpose is not readily apparent.

Glad to see things are looking up, hope you enjoy the new bikes

Well I'm glad they stapled things back in the right place and you're back!

Be interested to know how you get on with the Glide as I think I'll be riding one on our trip later in the year!

Yeh welcome back

I though you'd been off campaigning to reverse the brexit vote.

Glad all your bits have been stapled back in the correct places. Be interesting to see how you get on with the bikes long term.

Welcome back matey.......I'm very concerned about the sudden outbreak of Harleys on the forum......hopefully science will find a cure before I get infected!....

Glad all your bits have been stapled back in the correct places.

I'm assuming they've stapled them back in the right places: when the surgeon comes in 20 minutes before the op and says "Just remind me which side we're doing" and then draws a big arrow on you in biro, it does make you wonder...

Be interested to know how you get on with the Glide as I think I'll be riding one on our trip later in the year!

The key thing I've learned so far is to pick your foot up as soon as you set off: leave it trailing behind you - even for a second like you can on a regular bike - and the left-side pannier will run over your ankle and pin it under the bike. Not cool.

I actually much preferred the 2018 Fat Boy that I took out on test (aesthetically and in terms of handling) but I didn't fancy riding an un-faired bike across Europe. We'll see how I get on with the Glide, because there's no getting away from the fact that it's a bit of a whale: with me on it and a full tank of fuel it's significantly more than half a ton.

Let me know when you're planning on expanding in to Suffolk as I'd like to submit my CV for the role: "somewhat perplexed lab manager/ditherer". It is my understanding that all good scientific companies must employ someone who asks rather too obvious questions in presentations and who's purpose is not readily apparent.

Oh you'd be right at home with our lot!

Welcome back matey.......I'm very concerned about the sudden outbreak of Harleys on the forum......hopefully science will find a cure before I get infected!....

As a Speed Triple man I reckon the new 2018 Fat Bob could be right up your street: I took one out and was grinning for the rest of the day - it's the perfect hooligan tool!

Welcome back matey.......I'm very concerned about the sudden outbreak of Harleys on the forum......hopefully science will find a cure before I get infected!....

 

As a Speed Triple man I reckon the new 2018 Fat Bob could be right up your street: I took one out and was grinning for the rest of the day - it's the perfect hooligan tool!

But I'm too young to ride a Harley!.....

Glad all your bits have been stapled back in the correct places.

I'm assuming they've stapled them back in the right places: when the surgeon comes in 20 minutes before the op and says "Just remind me which side we're doing" and then draws a big arrow on you in biro, it does make you wonder...

There is a reason they do that. When you’re lying there in pre-op you’re a bit prone to agree with whatever a doctor says to you, ie you don’t always listen as carefully as you would usually do. So people have been known to agree with whatever a surgeon says, even if they’ve got it wrong.

By asking you to tell them what you think they’re meant to be doing it avoids leading questions. It scared the hell out of me when the guy asked me what I’d come in for. He must have seen the look on my face as he explained why they do it that way.