January 2025
A 3.15am start in early January saw us leave base for delivery of a Ducati 888 to Rotherham, South Yorkshire
The route taken was A1/A1(M) and it soon became apparent once north of Cambridge that the weather was changing…
..progressively it became whiter, and whiter, and upon arrival to Rotherham, a thick blanket of snow was in evidence
Our customer lived in a side road, accessed by a steepish incline, and there was no way our Transit could be coaxed up it without assistance. Fortunately, our customer was a resourceful man and with a snow shovel and grit enabled enough of a run up for us to traverse the incline to level ground
Around 500 miles and 10 1/4 hours on the road, but the delivery satisfactorily completed…
December 2024
A little business with pleasure this weekend…
I had a couple bikes to deliver within close proximity to each other in Warwickshire, one in Rugby and one in Coventry
Noreen and I thought that we would take a ‘jolly’ so to speak, and have a one night stopover in Warwick
Chris took delivery of his Honda Fireblade 954 in Rugby, followed by David taking delivery of his Ducati 749 Dark in Coventry (and part exchanging a KTM Duke 390)
Noreen and I then headed to a hotel within a few hundred yards of Warwick town centre
Warwick is a truly charming place and it’s hostelries were greatly enjoyed, along with it’s magnificent castle of course
It truly bustled with joy and exuberance, and anticipation of the festivities ahead
With no shortage of eateries, we decided upon The Giggling Squid for a Thai meal, which was just wonderful, in terms of the food, ambience and service
A most enjoyable Saturday evening, in a wonderful county town, enhanced by the feel good factor that surrounds us at this time of year
November 2024
We made a sale to a customer living in Amlwch, on the Northern tip of The Isle of Anglesey in North Wales
With the delivery address 350 odd mies from base, it fell outside of our delivery inclusive radius of 250 miles, but the customer was more than happy to pay a fair additional delivery charge
We decided to make life easier for ourselves and booked into The Dinorben Arms Hotel in the centre of town for the Friday evening, with delivery to take place early Saturday
We drove up on the Friday and took the more scenic route once north of Birmingham, that being M54 toward Shrewsbury, then Llangollen across to Betws-y-Coed, onwards thru’ Bethesda and across the Britannia Bridge into Anglesey
Amlwch proved to be a pleasant town, with 3 pubs and a curry house, and so a good Friday evening was had !
The Dinorben Arms was excellent, with a truly scrumptious breakfast prepared by hotel owner Gary
Upon delivery of the bike, a Ducati Monster M900ie Metallica, our customer Dave was over the moon with it, and we were extremely grateful to subsequently receive the glowing review below…
quote ‘Amazing service from Damon, start to finish. I was able to tell straight away that he was a total gentleman and trustworthy. He made everything so simple, totally hassle free, especially when you’re buying a bike. In my case id willingly do business with him again without a second thought. Never in all my years have I come across such a genuine bloke who’s a dealer. All you people out there this is the dealership to go to and the bike he delivered to me was a 14 hour round trip for hime. Total respect, and the bike what can I say I’m already totally in love with it immaculate machine no regrets top top man’ unquote
October 2024
A very good day was had in France and Belgium yesterday with Paul, Max and Lewis…
As usual I met Paul at Folkestone services for 7.15am, where we filled up our respective bikes and headed to Le Shuttle to meet Max and Lewis…
…Max was characteristically the last to arrive 
and so Paul, Lewis and I enjoyed coffee/tea at the terminal whilst we waited
and so Paul, Lewis and I enjoyed coffee/tea at the terminal whilst we waitedWe had a somewhat eclectic mix of motorcycles with Paul’s American Harley XR1200, Max’s Italian Ducati Multistrada 1260S, Lewis’s German BMW RS1200 GS, and my own Japanese Kawasaki ZZR1400…
…if we had added a French Voxan and Russian Ural in to the mix, than we would have pretty much had bikes from all the major protagonists from The Great War, for which our destination countries still so commemorate
The weather was a little grey, and somewhat chiily, but thankfully dry
Le Shuttle proved super efficient, which in my experience is pretty typical of this service, and we were on the French side by around 10.15 local time
Max was squadron leader for the day and the group winged it’s way around 20 miles south to the little town of Desvres, stopping at the village of Alincthun enabling Max his first opportunity of the day to get his photographic equipment out (if you know you know 
)
)Desvres was a town I had visited previously, but on that occasion on a sunny Sunday afternoon during school holidays, and I remember the town so vibrant with a fairground in the central square and music blaring out
On a grey October Sunday morning, as to be expected, it was quiet with barely a soul to be seen
Leaving Desvres, we pointed eastwards towards the large town of St Omer, known for it’s medieval architecture, cathedral and the ruins of St. Bertin’s Abbey
Max’s route was somewhat (too
) rural and Max, Paul and I were dismayed 
to find quite wet and muddy roads, much ‘enhanced’ by local farmers and their loads, to be negotiated. Certainly, my big ‘Zed’ would have benefitted from something more suitable than it’s S21 Evo tyres as indeed would Max’s Duc and Paul’s HD with regard to their respective rubber…
) rural and Max, Paul and I were dismayed to find quite wet and muddy roads, much ‘enhanced’ by local farmers and their loads, to be negotiated. Certainly, my big ‘Zed’ would have benefitted from something more suitable than it’s S21 Evo tyres as indeed would Max’s Duc and Paul’s HD with regard to their respective rubber……of course, annoyingly for the three of us, Lewis on the big GS, riding tail end charlie, lights ablaze and with a maniacal grin, was enjoying every moment of it with his farmyard specification rubber 
Passing thru’ I snapped a couple of photos of one of St Omer’s catholic churches, actually Eglise Saint Sepulcre, and of it’s impressive railway station, and we were quickly underway again
Continuing eastwards, we aimed towards the French/Belgian border, and the Belgian West Flanders town of Poperinge, again a place I had visited previously as it often finds it’s way in to routes to Ypres
As someone interested in classic Fords, I was delighted to see a bright green Ford Taunus parked in the square. Around 1975 vintage, this was the European specification of the UK’s much loved Cortina, a facelifted Mk3 in this case, a 2 door version, badged as a lowly L model, and with it’s characteristic differently styled rear end that differentiated it from the Cortina
From Poperinge, it was onwards to Ypres for lunch. It’s always a pleasure to visit this wonderful city with it’s awe inspiring architecture, and bustling, cosmopolitan feel…
Essentially destroyed, and raised to the ground during Word War 1, the city has been effectively rebuilt, in the last 100 years, whilst maintaining the the elegance and detail of the original buildings
…famed for it’s Menin Gate, commemorating the lives of British and Commonwealth soldiers lost in the Ypres Salient of Word War 1, whom were never found, but immortalised and forever remembered by this magnificent memorial. The Last Post is emotively played every evening at 8pm, and their memories live on
With many choice of eateries on offer, we initially sat down to eat in one only to be informed that the kitchen was closed However, a restaurant that was still serving food was quickly found and a great lunch was had…
However, a restaurant that was still serving food was quickly found and a great lunch was had……for my part I had carbonnade flamande with fries and salad, as did Lewis. This is a flemish beef stew, with carbonnade flamande the French expression of it in this Flemish speaking region. It was truly excellent, hot, very tasty, beautifully tender, and most importantly, filllng. 
Paul has left his ‘Monza’ Italian roots behind now, and is sometimes referred to as ‘Milwaukee’ Paul. Nonetheless, Paul is often to be found scoffing Italian food, pizza or pasta, and went for a lasagna bolognese. Max chose a rib eye steak burger with fries and salad
All meals were excellent, and very much enjoyed 
Following lunch, it was to be a cross country route back to Le Shuttle, but via Audruicq, a small town around 15 miles from the tunnel…
..Audriucq is full of little bistros and bars, and has proven to be a very nice place to finish day trips previously, as one can take in refreshments with just a final 20 minute hop back to the tunnel…
…my last time there was on a beautiful sunny Friday evening, with the town alive and thrumming, but as with Desvres, on an October Sunday afternoon, it was somewhat quiet, and all bars were closed !
Max, as always, took the opportunity for photographs, and following this we headed back to Le Shuttle where we managed a seamless embarkment on to an earlier train than the one we had booked
A great day indeed, with very good company. The group had a good dynamic, and Lewis was on good form with his usual amount of banter (aka p*ss taking
)
)For me a 13 hour day, leaving home 6.15am, arriving home 7.15pm, and around 225 miles covered in total
September 2024
Our delivery to France, of the French Voxan motorcycle via Eurotunnel freight passed off ultimately successfully yesterday, but not without a hitch or problems encountered..
Eurotunnel Freight is very different to the ‘normal’ Eurotunnel that we are quite familiar with. Ultimately, it is slick and well organised as one would expect, but nevertheless an interesting experience when used for the first time as with us on this occasion
We arrived at Eurotunnel around 6.50am and checked in in the usual way. We say usual, but of course everything is designed around 44 tonne artic lorries and that includes the checking in booths. Honestly, the touch screen was barely reachable, even when standing on our Transit’s foot board
Surrounded by a myriad of european artics, we progressed to a set of barriers where each vehicle is given a walkaround. At this point we were asked for our GMR (Goods Movement Reference) which is a bar coded document that we had produced via our Government Gateway portal online…
…it had been produced following our creation of a Full Customs Export Declaration and is essential for onward travel. We had no doubts that our export paperwork was in order, and it was scanned successfully. As we were carrying goods, we were then asked for our EAD (Export Accompanying Document) which was also scanned successfully and we were cleared onwards to Passport Control
On Eurotunnel Freight there are no French Customs on the UK side, and so following UK Passport Control we were steered towards the loading lanes and queue’d to embark
The Freight train is entirely different to the ‘normal’ Eurotunnel, and is an open sided rig. Think a ‘car transporter’ but for lorries, albeit on a single level..
..with the vehicles parked, the drivers then leave them, and board a bus that takes them to a conventional train. The drivers then all travel via that train to Calais, and upon arriving, then board another bus and are returned to their vehicles
Not all vehicles are required to pass through French Customs, and many are allowed to access straight onto the A16 Motorway. As drivers leave the passenger train, there is a computer display that allows them to check the customs status of their individual vehicles. In our case, it was stated that we needed to clear customs…
…and so, upon disembarking the freight train, we followed directions to ‘Francais Douanes’ (French Customs) which in effect is a huge lorry park
It wasn’t immediately obvious as to the procedure, but resultantly drivers park up their vehicles and take their relevant paperwork to the customs office
So far, so good, It was only 9.30am French time (8.30am UK time) our customer had confirmed they were waiting for us at the agreed meeting place just a few minutes away, and with just a final presentation of paperwork, we’ll be on our way..
…or so we thought
The customs office was not busy, and we quickly presented our paperwork consisting the GMR, EAD and a sales invoice for customs excise duty calculations
The EAD specifically is referenced back to The UK Customs Export Declaration, and carries an MRN (Movement Reference Number)…
…from this, the bar code can provide every singular detail from the Export Declaration, specifically the exporter (us) the goods, goods value, dates/times etc
Anyway, (very) long story short, our customer (and indeed us) had not realised that at this point in the process a Full Import Declaration must be made to the French authorities, at which point the vehicle is registered to France at that point, with all customs excise duties also due at that point…
…this had not been completed
Having contacted my customer Frederic, whom spoke very little English (but more than my French !) the French authorities deemed that he was allowed to come to the office, and upon his arrival we were happy to let him communicate with the authorities and do what was needed
Ultimately, a third party professional had to create the Import Declaration on Frederic’s behalf, and the French Douanes had companies whom could do this
The upshot was that almost 5 hours later, and Frederic 3600 euros of excise duty lighter (he knew this would be due, just not yesterday) we were ‘free to go’ just subject to the bike being inspected which it was without delay
During the 5 hours in the customs office, we witnessed a myriad of european lorry drivers, from Lithuania, Romania, The Netherlands, Spain, UK and more, presenting their documents, some also with lengthy delays. We were surprised at how many drive in flip flops !
We wasted no time in joining the A16, skirting around back to the Eurotunnel Freight and making our way home, which we did, but with a reasonable delay to embark upon the train
Our empty van was directed to an inspection bay following UK Customs (on the French side) but that took very little time, as in the words of the UK Border Control officer ‘well that’s an easy one, it’s empty !’
Whilst queueing on the French side to embark onto the train, it was notable how dogs are used in the pursuit of drugs, Two beautiful labradors were being walked joyfully up and down between the lorries, just enjoying their walk, but performing such an important task x
An interesting, eye opening day, leaving base at 6am, and returning around 7.30pm
August 2024
A great long weekend from Friday 16th until Monday 19th in Waterloo, Belgium on our trusty BMW R1200 RS
Friday saw Noreen and I meet Tom, Michelle, Gaz and John at Le Shuttle for onward travel and arrival to Cocquelles around 10am local time
Weather was damp, dreary and at some points very wet. We travelled to Chereng, just the other side of Lille to Le Petite Belgique, a busy brasserie for a good lunch, and then with the weather failing to improve we took the fastest route to Waterloo, arriving at Ibis Waterloo around 4.45pm
Freshened up, Leffe beers ensued in the bar and we met Steve and Neil whom had just finished leading/back marking a Harley Davidson Tour 1 route across the Vosges mountains
We strolled towards Waterloo town centre and had dinner in a Lebanese restaurant, comprising grilled meats and flat breads
On Saturday morning, the sun was shining and everyone’s favourite Belgian, Kris, arrived at the hotel and then led us back to Chris’s beautiful house and grounds at Blaine le Chateau where a charity fund raising party was to take place that evening…
..here we met up with Chris, ‘Belgium’ Bob, ‘Dutch’ Bob and Paul
Kris led us ably on a 60 odd mile ride around the Belgian countryside, on his Chesterfield liveried Tenere 700, with a coffee stop in the beautiful town of Feluy where a wedding was taking place, and with the town alive to the sound of church bells
Later that evening, the party took place, with around 70 participants from Belgium, France, Netherlands, USA and UK. 50s themed, with the truly brilliant Dutch Rockabilly group The Eight Boppers, and very good fresh pizzas from a local van. An exceptional affair that resultantly raised £2300 Euros for Whizz Kidz. Very well done, and congratulations to Chris whom had organised this
Sunday saw Steve lead a ride across to Namur, where incredible views were had from the Citadelle high up above the town. From there, tracking the River Meuse south to Dinant, and onwards to Hastiere for a choice of tuna or chicken sandwiches (yes, that was the only choice) but that proved very good indeed…
…from there back to Dinant, onwards to Anhee, and then along the magically twisting tree lined road to Denee and back to base
Dinner consisted of ‘Big Daddy’ cheeseburgers, and more chips than anyone could possibly imagine ! Neil was the winner in terms of chips consumed, but in fairness he had not had the huge chicken and tuna sandwiches enjoyed by the rest of us earlier !
Our last day, Monday, saw us to the Battle of Waterloo Memorial and Museum, the site where Napoleon was defeated by the British and Prussia, under the command of The Duke of Wellington and General Blucher respectively. Fascinating, interesting and awe inspiring all at the same time
And then, a quick 135 odd miles back to Le Shuttle via the fastest motorway route and back home
A great 4 days in all…
July 2024
Always an absolute pleasure to be riding this Italian rarity…
SMS alert !
This upcoming Sunday Morning Steed (SMS) is one of my more unusual bikes..
A 2008 Moto Morini 1200 Corsaro Veloce, with 140ps 122Nm V-Twin, and the best Italian components from Brembo, Marzocchi, Weber Marelli and Termignoni
Engine is MM’s own, designed by ex Ferrari man Franco Lambertini
A brilliant, naked, hooligan of a bike. One of my favourites, and owned 11 years now
June 2024
A great couple of days down to the City of Reims in the Champagne region, and taking in the remains of the Reims-Gueux motor racing circuit
Monza Paul plotted the route, but sadly at the last moment was unable to go, and so Andy, Bob, Pete and myself rode the 200 mile, or so, route to the Ibis Hotel on the outskirts of Reims city centre
A stop halfway down at a little trattoria near Gouzeaucourt proved a great success, with first class service, excellent tasty food, and more than reasonable prices. My dish was Pates Carbonara (pasta/penne carbonara) whilst the others tucked into 29cm pizzas at around 10 euros a pop
We visited the circuit on the way down, around 15 minutes from our hotel, and for me it proved very interesting, so evocative of a previous age, and the scene of so many great races thru’ the roaring ‘50s and ‘60s
The evening saw us grab a taxi into the town centre and specifically Place D’erlon which had a truly electric atmosphere on what proved to be a beautiful summers evening…
…this thoroughfare is full of bistros, eateries and bars and was a most wonderful place to be. Kronenbergs were downed, food consumed, a short to finish, and then an uber taxi back to the hotel courtesy of Andy’s uber account which proved to be magnificently effective
A good continental breakfast was had in the Ibis, and then our route took us back out along the motor racing circuit and onwards to Thiepval where we spent some time at the Edwin Lutyens designed memorial…
…this commemorates 72000 service personnel lost during The Battle of the Somme, both French and across the Commonwealth. Each name is carved in to the stone of the memorial. Very touching, poignant and a stark reminder of what we all have to be so very grateful to these people for
A lovely little restaurant is in the grounds, and we enjoyed croque monsiers, and a charcuterie/fromage selection
Close by to the Thiepval Memorial is the Ulster Tower, in respect of the 36th Ulster Division of whom so many were lost during 1916. The tower is quite beautiful, almost as from a fairytale, and overlooks a lone German gunner post in the fields, marked with a flag, that proved so deathly to the allied forces
A little further along, is yet another reminder of how many Commonwealth servicemen were lost in The Great War. Beaumont Hamel remembers Canadian servicemen from the Newfoundland Regiment and is a quite unusual ‘monument’ signified by a huge Caribou, the emblem of Newfoundland. 90% of the Newfoundland Regiment were lost during The Somme
From Beaumont Hamel, it was time to return to Le Shuttle, with Monza’s route taking in many entertaining rural roads, proving most enjoyable
In total, just over 400 miles covered on French soil
An excellent two days on the bikes
May 2024
Our very good friend Bob, turns 80 in the next couple of months..
He’s been mentioned on here by us a few times, and with very good reason
We first met Bob in February 2016, when he rode up from Redruth in Cornwall on his 1999 Yamaha R1 4XV to p/ex it for a 2003 Fireblade 954. We remember him telling us how he had ridden across Bodmin Moor thru’ sleet and hail on the way up…
…anyway, the deal was done, and one cup of tea later Bob was on his way back to Cornwall. He covered around 675 miles that winters day, on an R1 and a Fireblade. Still, at that point he was only 72 years of age
Since then Bob has purchased a further 8 bikes from us, all Superbikes bar one, so all bikes purchased as below:-
2003 Honda Fireblade 954
2004 Yamaha R1 5VY
2006 Suzuki GSX-R1000 K6
2009 Suzuki GSX-R1000 K9
2012 Fireblade RR-C 20th Anniversary
2012 KTM RC8
2013 BMW S1000RR
2018 Suzuki GSX-S1000 AL8
2013 Suzuki GSX-R1000 ZL3 Millionth Edition
Bike number 8, the GSX-S1000 was supposed to be Bob going all sensible, but he found it far too sanitised and quickly p/ex’d for the GSX-R1000 Millionth which he still has, and is seen astride in the photograph
Bob also plays a guitar very well indeed, and still bench presses some serious weights having been a body builder in his earlier years
We think the word ‘inspirational’ is very apt here
Keep doing what you are doing Bob 
April 2024
A great couple of days in Leicestershire, and taking in a track day on Monday at Donington GP circuit with Peter Stiebritz, Chris Fountain, Lee Richardson, Andrew Goodsell and Graham Saunders…
Noreen and I travelled up Sunday afternoon, and met Chris, Lee, and Lee’s daughter Maddie, whereupon we all stayed at The Coach House Bar in Kegworth, just 4 miles from the circuit
The Coach House proved to be welcoming, clean and entirely fit for purpose (thankyou) and also sold Aspalls in the bar so I was quite content
Kegworth a little limited on eateries, but nevertheless a couple of Tandooris were present, and we all enjoyed a good meal..
An early start saw us thru’ the gates to Donington GP, and into the garages by just after 6.30am, where we met up with Peter, Graham and Andy (and also Greg)
The track was damp, and the majority of us ran wet tyres for the first 4 sessions, then switching to dry tyres for the final 2 (actually a 7th session available, but none of us took the option given the lengthy drive home)
All 6 of us enjoyed good fortune, with essentially a drama and fuss free day, with some very good time on the track
Donington GP is a truly wonderful circuit, that really has it all, from fast left/right sweepers, to tight hairpins, numerous crests and undulations, and long straights with hard braking zones…
Great photography, as always, from MSV Trackdays, and a couple of the shots show me being (aggressively ) pursued by Chris (blue GSX-R1000 no.6) and Graham (green ZX-6R) Great stuff
) pursued by Chris (blue GSX-R1000 no.6) and Graham (green ZX-6R) Great stuff 
March 2024
My wife Noreen and I enjoyed a fabulous 5 day (4 night stopover) tour of Dorset, Devon and Cornwall…
We covered a total of 799 miles on our BMW R1200RS Sport SE, and had overnight stays at Glastonbury, Penzance, Beer and Winchester
Highlights of the ride were the fabulous north Cornish coastline route from Glastonbury to Penzance, and then the southern Cornish roads to the Lizard, across the water at Fowey, to Looe and up to and across Dartmoor to Beer…
..whilst highlights of the stopovers were the fabulous taverns in Penzance, the Bay View Guesthouse in Beer, and the positive vibe from Winchester, a great city for an evening out
February 2024
Monza on his Z900RS, Andy on his Panigale V4S Corse, and myself on my ZZR1400…
Very mild for this time of year, but blustery at times. However, with all things considered, we were fortunate and the weather kind
Ultimate destination was the Vimy Ridge Memorial close to Lens and Arras, and which honours the memory of all Canadians who fought during World War 1
Monza led his pre-planned semi rural route, around 145 miles on French soil and taking in a coffee stop at a Cafe Tabac in Blendecques, and a very good lunch at an Italian Trattoria in Lievin
An excellent day 
January 2024
Panigale 1199 Tricolore S..Major work ????
…nope, just a spark plug change. Looks worse than it is, but radiator off and wheel out makes the job a lot easier and is a good opportunity for coolant flush and fill with Motul Organic..
Nevertheless, this is one of the trickiest and involved plug changes I’ve had to do 
Apparently some dealers book this at 6 hours, and in fairness with a methodical approach and the opportunity for some hidden cleaning, it is definitely in that region
December 2023
Good blast up to The Pied Bull in Farningham this morning on the big zed…
Weather mild and dry, ensuring a fantastic turnout with a truly eclectic mix of motorcycles
Unfortunately missed my friend Ron by a few minutes, but did bump into the legend that is Cosmo, so all was not lost
Took main roads up as just couldn’t resist the opportunity to ‘pick off’ everything in sight 
thanks to the ZZR’s sublime powerplant, with a more typical rural route back
thanks to the ZZR’s sublime powerplant, with a more typical rural route backEnjoyable run, and good to be back on a ‘big’ bike following mainly SuperMoto exploits in recent weeks…
November 2023
Great ride on our SuperMoto ‘winter’ bikes today…
Chris in excellent form and providing a brilliant route with plenty of suitably rural, muddy and sometimes slippery lanes
Plenty of noise made by the six bikes (particularly Wesley ‘s 250 2 stroke 
) and resultantly gloriously filthy, just as they should be and used as intended 
) and resultantly gloriously filthy, just as they should be and used as intended PS. If you like a decent portion of beans with your beans on toast then The Airport Cafe is the place to be. Very nice x (see pic)
October 2023
A brace of Black Beauties…
Our 2017 FPM375 Focus RS Mk3 nestles against our recently acquired 2004 Maserati Gransport…
Ballpark similar bhp and £££ value, but oh so different
September 2023
Ride of the Ruperts 2023 has taken place last Sunday, and truly goes from strength to strength..
Conceived and managed tirelessly by Stefano Morrelli (Steve) and his wonderful wife Agata, this registered charity raises money for https://www.whizz-kidz.org.uk/ whom provide motorised wheelchairs for young people, ultimately transforming their independence and quality of life
The ride itself is the signature event for Ride of the Ruperts, but is actually just one part of the overall fundraising that goes on throughout the year, with other rides including The Hop Run in Kent, and Ride of the Wellingtons in Belgium, a sponsored 10km winter walk, and numerous raffles for some truly fabulous prizes including Sarah‘s magnificent hand made bears and beautiful watches from sponsors Tesouro Timepiece
For my part, I only became a part of the Rupert ‘family’ during 2022, and since then have met so many wonderful people, and made new friends. The icing on the cake was The Ride of the Wellingtons in Belgium during July 2023, where an utterly brilliant time was had by all
My wife Noreen has also recently joined the family, and has been made to feel so welcome by all, and we thank everyone for that
Remarkably Ride of the Ruperts has raised £31000 this year from it’s varied activities, and this sum when added to previously raised amounts now means that the charity has donated over £100000 to https://www.whizz-kidz.org.uk/
2024 will surely be bigger and better – Get involved….
August 2023
We had a truly enjoyable 3 days in Snowdonia last week…
Our BMW R1200 RS was a wonderful companion, and for us, for this type of riding it is hard to imagine a better bike to be on
It offers grunty performance, excellent comfort and ergonomics, but is such a capable and enjoyable bike when ridden in a more ‘enthusiastic’ manner
Real best of all worlds stuff
Just brilliant
July 2023
I was very fortunate to be a part of this fabulous ‘Ride of the Wellingtons’ four day trip to the Wallonia region of Belgium with 30+ other bikes and riders from the UK…
The scenery in parts was nothing less than stunning and the roads in The Ardennes among the best I have personally ridden
The group camaraderie was something to behold and many new friendships made for all
The Belgian Tourist Office Wallonia filmed and photographed the trip as part of their future marketing strategy for this beautiful region
June 2023
Busy Summer Solstice for us yesterday…
A 1.30am start, 655miles, and 12 hours in our faithful Transit Custom resulted in these two absolutely beautiful KTMs being collected from Penryn and Whitemoor in Cornwall, and returned to base
1290 SuperDuke GT and 890 Duke GP await photography in the warm summer sunshine this morning
We were well past Stonehenge before the druids and pagans arrived for sunrise, and missed them on the way back too
May 2023
A most satisfactory couple of hours spent cleaning, fettling, checking and the obligatory oil change on our little ex Bemsee Thunderbike Sport Yamaha R6 5SL…
Brands GP beckons at the end of June and she is now all ready other than a new set of tyres that will go on in the next week or so…
April 2023
An excellent ride yesterday on the RIDE FOR UKRAINE fundraiser…
The event ably organised by Dominic Santana with assistance from Bob Lock, Neil Westoby, Paul Sacha @ Stefano Morrelli whom ensured that the large group of bikes all ended up in the right place !
The group convened initally at Shoreham Airport and winged (no pun intended) along the A259 through all the seaside towns, with two stops, prior to arriving at Goodwood for around midday, whereupon photographs of the group were taken on the start/finish straight
Around £3000 raised in total, and so a worthwhile effort by all
March 2023
This beautiful Yamaha XSR900 Abarth arrives into stock. The second of these special little bikes we have had…
Just 695 of these were produced, all with a numbered plaque, with this one being no. 357
With only 1320 miles covered, it is about as close to a new bike as a used one can be, pristine and original
Sold within one day, and delivered to it’s new keeper in Inverness by our trusted couriers ‘The Bike Bus’
February 2023
Quite busy with deliveries in our faithful Transit Custom this month…
Saturday saw us to Ashton Under Lyne near Manchester, Wednesday to Swansea, Saturday to Sheffield, and then Monday to Tintagel in Cornwall, 2200 odd miles in total
January 2023
All loaded for early start tomorrow…
T500 should be in Northwich, Cheshire by 7.30am, and CB1000R dropped off at Purfleet maybe around 11.30am..
December 2022
A good day today on The 31st Christmas Toy Run in aid of Golden Lion Children’s Trust…
A very good turn out, and a nice ride via Cuckfield, Balcombe, Worth Corner and Tinsley Green leaving from The Motorcycle Workshop premises in Bolney, to The Gatwick Manor Hotel in Lowfield Heath where a most decent amount of toys were deposited along with many cash donations
Our good friend Peter and myself decided to take the scenic route back to the Hastings area with a planned stop at the delightful Gallipot public house in Hartfield
Alas, Peter suffered a puncture near Turners Hill and after an unsuccessful attempt to plug it, the beleaguered 765 RS was limped to my sister’s home in Copthorne, whereupon it will be collected by van this week
And so it was, that Peter and I rode the 50 miles home two up on the very pretty VFR, complete with tinsel and lights..It must have looked like Pride on 2 wheels
November 2022
The Bike Buying Legend that is Bob has returned again for his 9th purchase 
Now knocking on the door of 79 years, Bob had decided that his last purchase, a 2018 150bhp Suzuki GSX-S1000F just wasn’t quick enough
..and so, he has returned and bought one of our own personal bikes from us, a lovely Suzuki GSX-R1000 ZL3 Million Edition which will be replaced in our own collection by the 2016 GSX-R1000 30th Anniversary Edition shown with Bob and his new bike in the photograph
Bikes Bob has purchased from us are a Fireblade 954, GSX-R1000 K6, R1 5VY, GSX-R1000 K9, CBR1000RR-C, RC8, S1000RR, the afforementioned GSX-S1000F, and now the GSXR1000 ZL3 Million 
Bob, we salute you 
October 2022
A great day’s riding in Devon and Cornwall on this K1300S 30th Anniversary…
BMW collected near Exeter on our way to our holiday base in Combe Martin, North Devon…
270 miles round trip covered from Combe Martin to Lands End…
Temperature 16 to 18 degrees celsius all day long…
Big BMW awesome bike for this ride, very powerful and beautifully stable through the long fast sweepers on the A39…
Literally 100s of cars overtaken, picked off all the way along on our brusquely ridden route….
Great fun
October 2022
A pleasure to meet octogenarian John this morning, along with his wife Joyce, and two labradors Harley and Monte, at their home in Walderslade…
John had purchased our Enfield 535 GT, to go alongside his Bullet 350, Bantam 175 and Harley Sportster 883, amongst others…
Two particular points of interest in his garage were a 1932 BSA Sloper engine, and a remarkably clean and original 1982 Jaguar XJ6 4.2…
The Jag had been owned from new by John’s friend for the first 30 years of it’s life, and subsequently by John. All original, with excellent ownership provenance, and a genuine 56000 miles; would not easily be found elsewhere…
September 2022
A great day was had on the other side of the English Channel on our ‘new’ BMW R1200 RS SE Sport complete with BMW’s Navigator Vl
Solo riding, as one of our riding partners is suffering from a leg injury and the consensus was to put this day trip back a couple of weeks
Eager to properly put the BMW through it’s paces, and indeed to see how the Navigator Vl performed, we cracked on nonetheless and went anyway
Primary destination was Ypres in Belgium, but via a route advised by our friend Monza Paul (the one with the gammy leg 
) that passed through Watten, Cassel and Poperingue on the outward bound route, and back via Staden, Veurne and Dunkerque inward bound
) that passed through Watten, Cassel and Poperingue on the outward bound route, and back via Staden, Veurne and Dunkerque inward boundRoad between Watten and Cassel was notably nice to ride, in contrast to the cobblestoned streets of Cassel, beautiful nevertheless 
A coffee stop in Poperinge preceded a decent lunch in Ypres, and a later stop in Dunkerque
All BMW equipment performed faultlessly. Correct tools for the job, and will surely see many more days like this
All in all around 140 miles covered in France and Belgium…
September 2022
A magnificent day was had on our astonishingly period looking Kawasaki W650 at The Ride of the Ruperts Ride of the Ruperts 2022, the 4th time now that the event has been run…
Meticulously organised and carried through to great effect, this event is essentially down to the efforts of one man Stefano Morrelli…
This year, around £20000 has been raised for the charity Whizz Kidz, which dedicates itself to providing wheelchairs, and other mobility aids to disabled children. A wonderful cause…
The ride itself involves around 250 riders, each of whom have paid a fee, which goes directly to the charity, to take part, winging themselves around 65 miles through the Sussex countryside in a most convoluted and scenic route, commencing in Rudgwick West Sussex, and culminating on Golden Cross near Hailsham, in East Sussex…
Traditionally, a ‘Rupert’ will wear his/her finery, often tweed, as seen in some of the pictures here
Up to 40 riders are employed as drop off riders, ensuring that no one gets lost en route, and for the most part this works very well
All-in all, a brilliant event, and a fabulous day, with a real worthwhile outcome and benefit to the charity and it’s young people…
A big congratulations to all involved, but particularly the organisers, and very specifically to Stefano
August 2022
A brace of Ducati 1098s in the sun today…
Our 2007 Tricolore S, and 2008 R..
The R has just been MOTd, and a running issue with the Tricolore S now resolved, resultantly a cam timing problem on the vertical cylinder inlet camshaft, completely transforming it’s power delivery…
July 2022
Bit of an MOT day at Moton today…
The ‘3 Rs’ and an ‘S’
Triumph Thruxton 1200 R, Triumph Speed Triple 94 R, Ducati 999 R, and Ducati 998 S…
