December 2020 - Legacy 85 - Commissioned Art

 

A visit to Legacy85 this morning saw Lou hard at work on my commissioned artwork.

https://www.legacy85.co.uk

I just can't imagine the number of hours it must take to produce this fabulous artwork drawn entirely by hand;  in pencil...   

Take a visit to her website for some more great artwork. 

  https://thedrawn.studio

You can also purchase original pieces or prints.   You could even purchase a print on my bike once its finished..

December 2020

A couple of busy days delivering for the MyTimeYoungCarers of Dorset. I spent Thursday delivering in the Weymouth area, and on Friday I was joined by two other riders from the Bike Shed Community Volunteers. I did a long round trip to Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Sherborne and Salisbury. I believe I may be out and about again on Monday or Tuesday.

Another landmark is the mileage will soon to reach 00000 KMs - I will then have to get out the white marker.

September 2020 - Tenting in North Devon

Sound on. !!!!

 

Sep 2020 - The Overland Event - Oxford

Another brilliant event despite the COVID19 problems.  I met with some great friends and had a great time even with social distancing.   There were some excellent presentation and the music/bands in the evenings were fabulous.  The nights were a bit cold so I must remember to take the thermals next time.

       

                         

         

A wasted week

Well that was a wasted week... it started with the car breaking down and having to be recovered (again)... this time it was fatal, as the cam belt inside the engine has broken and took a few of the valves etc with it... so I contacted the beakers yard and eventually it has been taken away. Then, having purchased another car, we finally went to collect it but something wasn't quite right with the engine..... Bugger. So handed it back on the Tuesday and waited for it to be sorted.... I waited all day wandering around Southampton until they announced that they needed it for another day or so.... they then phoned to say that they think they have located the problem and are awaiting the parts. So it is now Saturday and still no car... maybe Monday then!!

In the meantime Debs car had a problem with the heater fan.. it stopped working and so the screen steams up when driving in the rain and no way to clear to de-mist it, a nightmare drive... so I am waiting for Monday to go and visit the same breakers yard to see if I can pick up another fan unit... (a new one is about £260...). The only good news is that I had the bike serviced and all is good.

Now with all this going on I have managed to strain a muscle in my back and can hardly walk, and I'm like a stranded turtle when trying to get out of bed.... it is so difficult trying to do stuff when attempting not to use a whole muscle group in your lower back... so today I am staying in bed as much as possible. It's the Overland event in Oxford in two weeks and I really don't want to miss that.

All of this has meant that I was unable to attend the 3 day Malle Mile event in Kent this weekend.... what a bummer.. Although not as bad as David's situation as Roz his partner fell down the stairs and broke her arm in two places and he could not go to the Malle Mile either.

I suppose I had better unload the bike as I hope to be delivering stuff for the #MytimeYoungCarers on Tuesday.

Ahh well life goes on......

3 August - Wales

I think this is on the B4343 heading south to Tregaron - aka the middle of bloody nowhere....

I stopped of at the Honey Cafe at Bronllys for a full English breakfast - excellent.   Then rode for about 5 hours over miles of hills and valleys.   Gertie Garmin was doing her best to keep my on the very narrow country lanes.   Now at a campsite south of Beulah   ///along.blackbird.wool. Is the What3words location.  

The sun is shining and I am charging up the phone via the Goalzero solar charger I purchased in the USA in 2016 - never thought I would be using it in Wales...    

Now back to the book before supper “Twenty Thousand miles through South America” by Kirk Wilson....   Tomorrow I head for home the long way.....   N

Sunday 2 Aug - Herefordshire/Welsh border.

I had a very sadate ride up to this campsite, via Tintern Abbey, although it was busy going over the bridge at Chepstow and a little breezy too. 

Gertie Garmin lead me up a very dodgy farmers track - that’s my off-roading for the day...  This site is so very quiet and there are a flock of Red Kites circling above - I will certainly be using this site again.

The problem with winters and lock-downs is that shopping on-line is still available - so I now have to test out any new kit that Santa sent me.... sleeping bag, floor mat and fold out chair etc.   I shall resist any temptation to review these items....

Tomorrow I will be making an assault on the Brecon Beacons - once I have located breakfast and then another campsite - I am led to believe its next to a river...

It’s now 3pm - so it must be time for a cup of tea and plan supper.....   then a couple of hours quiet reading....

Bugger - the family at the end of the field have just broken out the football ....   “on me ‘ed Mate.....   f&@£.”   Ahh they have given up - great..

What3words location is:
///speaking.shows.speeded. 

Later.....

7 July 2020 - Another long day

Good evening dear reader

I thought I had better write something to add to my Blog - of course I should have been arriving back from the USA this week!

By the looks of the situation in the USA at present I am not sure that they are going to be clear enough of COVID-19 by next May either!!

I set out at 9:30.   Today I was delivering food for the #MYTIMEYOUNGCARERS in Dorset - it was 3 sets of ingredients, as the young carers will be learning to make pizza via Zoom on Wednesday.

So I travelled from Parkstone to Dorchester, Iwerne Minster and Winterborne Kingston (such wonderful village names), and having delivered them I headed north to Shaftesbury to get onto the A30 as I had a PPE pick-up at Wilton.   Once I got to Shaftesbury I found that the A30 in Wilton was closed and I was diverted all the way back down to Bulford and then onto the A354 to Salisbury - that wasted about an hour.

I finally got to Wilton and collected the PPE material and hit the again and headed to Redhill in Surrey - oh how I hate the M3 and M25…..

I delivered the PPE and headed for home, more M25, so I turned off and headed towards Guildford and the A31. 

I finally arrive home at 5:30pm having covered 301 miles.

Now I just need to sit……. No more riding this week - hopefully

23 Jun - Volunteer Driving

Finally nearly finished painting the bathroom on Sunday, so I took Monday off... then today it was back to driving for the South Central Ambulance Service. A late start and another drive to Bletchley via Slough, High Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville dropping off PPE. A hot drive in a Sprinter with no A/C but fun nevertheless.

Tomorrow is the last food run for the Young Carers in Dorset with the bike... unless they get more funding. It's been fun...

Friday 17 June - GOPHER

Dear reader,

Monday this week saw me in van delivering PPE to Ambulance Stations at Slough, High Wycombe, Stoke Mandeville and finally Bletchley. Tuesday I was back with the Ambulance Service taking 300+ white onesies to Didcot.

Wednesday and Thursday was a day off from Volunteering so I managed to mow the lawn etc.

Friday. Despite the start in heavy rain at the start, things did get better as I approached Churt in Surrey. I collected the PPE face shields and then headed for Eastleigh near Southampton, from there I headed to Lockerly Green north of Romsey Hampshire.

The main road being closed I had to do a wide loop to get to the rest home.. then a long loop back through very very narrow lanes to Romsey - I am not sure that Gertie Garmin is of sound mind..... Now onwards to the final drop at a care home in Blackfield near Fawley and the dry ride home to Ringwood - refuel yet again.

A quick wash down of the bike and a well deserved cup of tea.... Nothing on the cards for tomorrow but I may have to start painting our bathroom!! It never ends...

I must say that I am quite looking forward to the barber shops be opened next month!! I will have to take care of the beard myself....

Your looking quite tired today Nigel !!!

4 June 2020 - tank to tank

Good morning dear reader,

Yesterday was yet another long day in the saddle. I left home early (7:30am) to go to Ilminster to collect a PPE package. I stopped at the local petrol station to fill the tank (1). Everything was fine until I was 3 miles away from the pickup and they had closed the A303 due to an accident.... all traffic was now diverted through the town - where it just happens they had also eased parking restrictions so cars were parked everywhere and all the big trucks had trouble getting through - it took over an hour to travel 1.2 miles.....

So finally made the pickup and off to Bodmin to hand over the package to Craig and he was going to take it onto its final destination in Hayle. Arrived on good time and even manage a tea break in the cold empty services - no place to sit down. Handover now complete.... and petrol tank nearly empty it was time to fill up (2) just short of 200 miles ridden.

I then took advantage of my return trip to visit a friend in Port Isaac - I have not seen her - or her late husband for over 27 years so a visit was due. A pleasant ride up but I missed the turning and Gertie Garmin suggested a route via St Ewe's Highway .... this is was certainly not a highway - my panniers were touching the bushes on both sides!!

I finally arrived at Port Isaac and found the house, Jill was at the door to greet me ... (Note: everything in Cornwall is on a slope) so as I parked the bike and in my haste to say hello ... I put the side stand down and climbed off... I then looked away only to see the look on her face as the bike tipped over and landed with a crash .... bugger. We both managed to get the bike upright again and safety parked properly - I did feel so foolish - not too much damage, just a broken indicator. The Lomo bags on the engine bars sure did cushion the fall...

Anyway we had a very pleasant distanced cup of tea and chatted about the past 40 years since we were altogether in NATO SHAPE in Belgium.

Time to hit the road, as it is about 3.5 hour ride back home in the drizzle. I got as far as Wareham and thought I had better top up the tank (3) and put on a extra layer as it was starting to get cold.

All done and I arrived home at 8:45pm. Knackered.... just a 365 miles round trip.... not sure about the economics of riding all that way, using two full tanks of petrol to deliver a 1kg package of PPE that could have been posted via the Royal Mail for less than £3.00 1st Class and signed for .... ah well crazy times....

Nite nite.....

Dorset Food Drops

What a busy day:

Down to Parkstone near Poole to pick up two sets of shopping, ready for two drops : Weymouth and Dorset.

I got back home and got the call for an urgent collect and drop from Southampton to Warsash. Then I got text from the local Sewing Group and they needed a boot full of scrubs material collected from Southampton to go to Lymington !!!! So I took the car.... all now sorted and back home.

Our 31st Wedding Anniversary today - celebrated with a takeaway Indian.

Lots of miles today - tomorrow is another run to Ilminster to pickup and to deliver to Craig in Bodmin for onward transit to Hayle. I am hoping to visit an friend on the way back - we have not met for over 27 years.

29 May 2020 - White Van Man

Another day driving PPE to Ambulance Station around the south coast for South Central Ambulance Service. I didn't get the extremely comfortable Ford Galaxy, so today was a large Ford Van with only 3500 miles on the clock.


So off we go to Havant, Fareham, Portsmouth, Gosport, Dorking and Eastbourne...  I am so glad that the weather was good and the traffic fairly light.

It was so good to being doing something and feeling needed....  The guys at the Ambulance Stations are so friendly and cheerful.

So, I have no volunteering plans for this weekend, just a little gardening, ironing and a little time in my “man cave” aka the garage.

Thursday - a comfortable cruise

Today was different - instead of the bike I was driving around in a Ford Galaxy delivering lots of boxes full of PPE to Ambulance Stations around the South of England.. Portsmouth, Havant, Southsea and Eastbourne.....  all found through the volunteer site of HireHand....

It was certainly less tiring than the bike, but with a/c, radio and a soft seat....  I'm not complaining ; in fact I'm doing it again tomorrow !!!

I must get a photo tomorrow ....

GOPHR Food Run - Weymouth 27 May 2020 and more ...

Dear reader,

Today a group of us from the Bike Shed Community Motorcycle Volunteers did a food drop for a Young Carers charity in Weymouth. We collected to food at 1100 and then all set off for our designated addresses.. all was delivered by 12:30 then back home. Arrived home and sorted the bike and settled down with a cup of tea when .... ping ping ping the messages started.. it's was an urgent job required to be collected from Salisbury and delivered to Warsash near Southampton. So it was back on the bike and another ride out....

Arrived back home at 6pm. And what do you know .... another message.... this time for another volunteer group.... so I am off to Southampton in the car tomorrow to run PPE to hospitals and ambulance stations (all day)... I promise to be at home on Friday ...