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5 Routes | Post Lockdown Miles 2/5

Apologies it has taken me so long to getting to the second route on my list. Unlike the first route, I do not know the roads of this route so well and have only ridden about a third of them. Thus some of the detail may be a little lighter than the last, I will endeavour to give a more detailed account of the route once I have ridden it all which is now booked in (government announcements allowing) to happen between the 4th and 6th of June.

2 | Welsh Coast 400 (WC400)

Distance: 412m Time:10hr Difficulty: Medium

Broad Brush Strokes

My plan is to do route in a day with a couple of similarly enthusiastic friends, which at 412miles and 10hr is completely possible. However it will be a challenging days ride the majority of the route should be fast sweeping welsh A roads, connecting destinations that require a few tight twisty, single track lanes.

Overall this should make a nice weekend ride, starting on a Friday night after work with heading to a hotel or Airbnb near Cardiff. Setting off on the Saturday morning after a sturdy breakfast to complete the route before finishing the day in a hotel or Airbnb in Llandudno, finally using the Sunday to make out way home down either the middle or east of wales before heading our separate ways.

In a little more detail…

The start of the journey will see us making some fast progress taking advantage of the smooth flowing M4, though this is a little boring versus some of the surrounding roads it is a necessary evil for us to make good time and get to the better roads that will be more enjoyable after Carmarthen. If we I were splitting this route up over more days then it I would plot a path up towards the Brecon Beacons first before then going across to Carmarthen which would make the ride a lot more interesting.

Our first more interesting location is Tenby, I have not in my adult memory been here before however when looking at the map it made a nicer looking more coastal route and gave some twisty roads away from the A40. There is nothign wrong with the A40 but after sitting on the M4 and the start of the A40 I figured a change in scenery and style of riding would be good. It also connects nicely with a location I have been to, Dale, which is a lovely quiet costal village tucked on the inlet of a headland with some wonderful wiggly roads. I figure the A477 should be an easy ride across from Tenby to Pembroke and then across the estuary towards Dale, if the weather is nice we should see some stunning sites from these roads.

The around Dale

After Dale we will continue to follow the costal road which is single track and winding through Little Haven and Broad Haven, it is here that it become “welsh road” literally that is the name of the road. In the image below you can see that the default route would be to take the faster roads (dark blue) however having ridden this section is is a worthy detour with the fantastic little hamlets being great places to get a photo, in particular if you end your day in this area there is some great sunset photography locations along this road. This get’s us to newgale and a lovely set of uphill hairpins with camber a plenty, before the fast headland road winds us into Solva another picturesque village with some lovely little shops and a brilliant restaurant called the Cambrian. After Solva the road opens out and is fast with some bends thrown in at random intervals all the way to St Davids.

St Davids is a wonderful place and a fantastic holiday location, it is a mini bustling city perched on the south western tip of Wales. It has coffee shops and character a plenty and depending on how the gang are holding up we will likely stop quickly for fuel both for the bikes and the bodies. We will however likely skip the trip out to Whitesands bay which will no doubt be busy and focus on making fast sweeping progress up the coast.

We will use step in from the costal road here to use the fast sweeping and fantastic A487 here however we will dive off to keep minds awake down to Abercastle, it is to pretty to miss.

Abercastle back in December 2020

Cutting back to the A487 by Mathry and then cutting up to join the A40 into Fishguard. Our next target for stoping is Llangrannog so we will keep the progress hard and the hammer down continuing on the A487 when I road it in Decemeber it was a fantastic bit of road with fast sweeping bents and the odd tighter bend to keep you awake. Making progress on it was just joyful and it has some brilliant spots for overtakes. Continuing after Nevern, note though the B4582 is tempting and the more direct route it doesn’t have the same momentum and by this point I suspect the pack will be in full synchronised swing and thus making hay whilst everyone is together will be crucial. Continuing until Brynhoffnant where we turn towards Llangrannog…

Down to Llangrannog

The B4334 into Llangrannog is a beautiful road that leads steeply over brow and then down into a beautiful scenic village, the bends pictured above are an extremely steep downhill and on tree covered roads and very much a technical riding challenge. If you are not comfortable with steep hairpins and performing near enough U-turns on inclines then you may find it better to head further north and come in on the B4321.

I would suggest going right down to the harbour front to park however be aware that the harbour car park is ANPR and there is no designated motorcycles slots so you will need to pay for parking. This is a bone of contention with the locals they are extremely friendly and hate that this carpark which was acquired with the pub next door is run by a generic parking firm in Birmingham who do not care about the village.

If you want to know more about the village I suggest taking a look at the classic simple website they have created here

For us as a group this will be about halfway and thus we will intend to stop in Llangrannog not only to take in the beautiful scenery but also to grab lunch at The Beachhut, I stopped there for lunch on a training ride with TVAM back October 2019 and the food was fantastic. If however you want a faster stop for something sweet there is an icecream parlour right next to the harbour car park.

If however you want to keep momentum then the next leg of the route below has several good location to stop, including passing right by the edge of the bustling Aberystwyth where there is no end of places to stop and get a bite. This will be the backup plan for us, if the group want to keep moving or the Beachhut isn’t open then we will head on to Aberystwyth and try and make a timely stop.

This next leg is where my personal knowledge of the roads runs dry although I have done the section fo road from Llangrannog to Aberystwyth I just remember it being busy. Therefore I have stuck mainly with the larger A roads for continueing up the west coast, adding Porthmadog in not for a fully stop but for a passing Photo and because I remeber there being some good roads around there. (The Imp Club national 2011 was in Bangor and we did a day run out to Porthmadog)

From Porthmadog we head out onto the peninsular to Uwchmynydd, however that is pronounced… I have not seen this area before so it will be interesting and I am hoping there is a good photo spot that we can stop for a quick leg stretch and evening photo. Maybe if we a lucky a coffee shop where we can get some caffiene to keep us going as I suspect by this point some people will be feeling it a bit being roughly eight and half road hours into the journey. From here we will head up to Anglesey and the race circuit…

I have been up to Anglesey Circuit before and although not the most visually fantastic place its still pretty cool, If we are lucky there might even be something going on round the track for us to take 10 and have a watch. If however the weather is crap and the riders are tiring this is the leg we will most likely cut off and instead head straight a long the fast easy A55, after all the miles whilst not the most picturesque road it will be a welcome sight and a nice way to finish. Cutting north up to Llandudno where with any luck we will have a hotel by the sea front so that after unloading, showering a meal and a beer we will be able to take a stroll and stretch the legs along the front.

Link to route on TomTom – where you can view, edit and download the GPX file. And if you fancy joining us on the route or just a section of the route get in touch…

22nd Mar 2021
Castle Combe Skills Day 25/5
At the start of March with the route out of lockdown having been announce a friend and fellow TVAM member gave me a heads up… “A skills day at Castle Combe has gone up on the web shop for the 25/5”, I immediately went online and got myself booked in, I was desperate after all to start planning biking activities for post lock down and this is a perfect activity to have in the calendar lined up.

It’s called a Skills Day because this isn’t a generic track day, in the words of the TVAM…

Due to our size, TVAM is able to hire the Castle Combe track for the day to enable members to develop their road riding skills in the safety and security of a track environment. These are not track days but an opportunity to hone your road riding skills.
taken from https://www.tvam.org/training/

it’s a private event for club members only, where we are split into groups based on experience. With experienced instructors for each group. The aim of the day is to improve your overall riding and get to know your machine better.

Castle Combe 09/09/2020

Last year I had one booked on the 5th May but we were in lockdown so it got moved and ended up being the 9th September. I was originally down to be in one of the novice groups, having not done a one before, but when I got there, the organiser of the event having seen my riding elsewhere before suggested that I moved up to the Intermediate group. He had someone in the intermediate group that also wanted to move down into novice so it worked out well.

Castle Combe 09/09/2020

I have always considered myself a quick rider, and I enjoy using my physical size to throw the large Versys into a corner whole heartedly. However it is some much fun to have the space and the safety to really start to push it, to find where the ground clearance really runs out when you lean over and when the braking is at it’s limit. It gives you an upper marker for your’s and the bikes ability, when you are riding on the road you have so many more variable to take in that finding the upper limit tends to only happen by mistake. That corner you went into a little hot and somehow made it out of or that distance that you got wrong and are now having to stop in… in those situations although you learn it is difficult to take in all the additional information and know how close you really were and whether actually you tensing up made it worse. On a track you can take variables out and focus on feeling the bike and yourself.

Castle Combe 09/09/2020

With this in mind I think the one in May is perfectly timed, by the time I sit back on my bike it will be April. I won’t of ridden since the start of December the best part 4 months, one of the things in advanced riding is about knowing yourself. I know it won’t take me long to start getting comfortable on my bike again and get back into the advanced flow or mindset, but I also know that not having ridden at all in that time period has sent me backwards in skill.

My feel for the bike won’t be there like it was before and although I will have got some of it back before May this Skills Day will be a perfect oppertunity to recalibrate and get back into the swing of things. It will also be a lot of fun, regardless of the weather, back in September we were lucky it was the perfect day sunny and dry but not too warm. In the end I did 100 miles on Castle Combe in I think what was 5 roughly 15 minute sessions, and I was knackered, by the time we got back to High Wycombe I was ready for bed!

One thing that is different for this one is that I am now booked into Intermediate group from the off, meaning that they would prefer I were wearing leather instead of textiles. Cue the laughter…

They Fit…

Back in 2013 I was displaying my Imp at the 50th anniversary display at the Beaulieu July auto jumble for a weekend, whilst taking a wander round and a look at the stalls on the last day for any closing bargains I got accosted. This man looked at me and he said I have the perfect thing for you… He had ordered it a few years before from a custom leathers company and being a portly fellow himself needed large leathers, however he was not tall and for some reason they had not done the adjustments for his height. Before he could send it back the company went bust and closed down and he was stuck with leathers that were way to big for him, they then sat in the cupboard for a while…

This worked out to be my gain as I bought the set which is heavy good leather and well stitched as far as I can tell for £85, I have worn it a couple of times before but never more than a couple of short rides. So I thought I best try it on again especially with lockdown weight gains…

It fits me relatively well however the sleeves and legs are two long, meaning that whilst I can do the sleeves fully up it bunches on my forearms a bit. The legs because of my fat calfs can only do up just down to the above the ankle there I end up with about 2 inches unzipped. I think I will be able to tuck the legs into my boots and get my gloves on possibly under the sleeves, I may try and get it adjusted and also to get some leather gloves and sports style boots before May so that I don’t scrape my nice suede finished Daytona waterproof boots. But we will see…

Hopefully this one in May has good weather and goes just as well… some pics below from September…
20th Mar 2021
A little look at Tyres…
Earlier this week I took a look at my facebook notifications and the latest posts in the Kawasaki Versys 1000 forums and saw a post that is all to familiar, “What tyre should I go with X or Y”. I would say about once every two weeks someone is posting asking about tyres, this gave me an idea that maybe it would be worth doing a simple survey and getting a look at what the people are running, paying and how long they are lasting.

I am still likely to get a few more responses but I think I have the majority of people who will respond, I hope I have enough responses to draw some conclusions…

What Questions did I ask?
- What generation of Versys 1000 do you have?
- What tyres are you running on your Versys 1000?
- How many miles do you get out of a front tyre?
- How many miles do you get out of a rear tyre?
- How would you rate the dry grip of your tyres?
- How would you rate the wet grip of your tyres?
- How much did your set (Front and Back) of tyres cost you fitted?
For all these questions I gave set response’s to make things easier, for tyres I listed the most common ones from the facebook group and added an other box. For mile I broke it up into 1500 mile steps up to 12000 and the rating was between 1 extremely slippery – 5 extremely grippy. Finally for price I put £100 bands and offered an ‘other’ choice…

What did you learn / find?

Well the first thing I found was that people are lazy and don’t read, nor are they naturally constructive. One of the first comments I received on my post where I shared the survey being “Crap survey it doesn’t list my tyres” when my post had included an invitation to add tyres I had missed… but my favourite responses are the ones where people have used the ‘other’ option on price to enter values in different currencies because they couldn’t be bothered to convert. I suppose I should have expected this as people will always find a way to make things harder than needed.

However after these we find some interesting pieces of information…

1 | What generation of versys is most common?

I was surprised to see that the second is the most common I was expecting it to be a fair chunk but not 55.9%, I was also intrigued by the relationship between 2019 SE and Standard models. It would maybe be interested to survey the 2019 owners again and see how many SE owners have had suspension issues or use all of the additional electronics and how regularly, as when buying my Standard 2019 bike i figured I didn’t need the features and the electronic suspension was just another thing to wrong… but that is a subject for another time.

2 | What tyre is model is most popular?

Before I posted the survey to the Versys Club page the Michelin Road Pilot 5 was around 30% and Metzeler Roadtec 01 around 25% changing to this after… These are often the tyres that I had mentally noted got recommended and I was expecting some outliers but I wasn’t expecting either the number / variety nor was I expecting the Bridgestone T31 to be so popular. This leads me to wonder if the distribution varies versus the gen e.g. people with older gen’s had stuck with older model tyres because they knew them and were happy?

It seems that there are no Gen 2 riders with Road Pilot 4 GT’s and only one with the standard 4’s, where as there are a lot with the 5 and 5 GT. Gen 1 riders seem to be pretty inconclusive and Gen 3’s it looks like most that have replied are still on stock T31’s or Road Angle GT2’s.

3 | What mileage do people get out of their tyres?

Note that I gave the option for ticking if you have not yet gone through a full tyre, for these chart’s those and blank responses were filtered out.

4 | How grippy do people think their tyres are?

Scale of 1 to 5, 1 being extremely slippery, 5 being extremely grippy.

Although this shows us that no one has rated any of these tyres as a 1 for either dry or wet and that the majority of people rate their tyres as extremely grippy in the dry and just below this in the wet it doesn’t show much more. If we look at these rating versus the tyres:

There are some interesting data points, if we for instance compare the Metzeler Roadtec 01, Roadtec 01 HWM and Roadtec 01 SE then the variance may indicate that we do not have enough respondents to draw a solid conclusion.

Note I have ridden with both the Roadtec 01 HWM and 01 SE on the rear of my bike and would rate the dry and wet grip as 5 whilst the bike still has the HWM front tyre on. Which is suprising considering I was riding in Wales in December in the wet at temperature below freezing at times. This unfortunately leads me to judge that for the most part given how close all the tyres are that this data is not particularly significant and that for this to likely work we would need all riders to have a baseline from which to rate.

5. | How much are a set of tyres costing?

This table shows that for majority of people a set of tyres is costing between £200 & £300, I would like to know how someone is getting a set of T31’s for less than £100 and where I can get that deal… Interestingly if we look at the most popular tyre the Michelin Road Pilot 5 / 5 GT (combining them as derivatives in this case) then the majority of people are paying £200 – £400 a set, raising the question of from a mileage and grip point of view given some of what we have seen above are they worth that pice tag?

Summary

If we look at our 5 most popular tyres and there front and back mileage and cost it is difficult to draw a clear consensus, part of this is down to the way I structure getting the data. Maybe I should have asked for values and had asked people to put in costs / mileages as numbers.

However the data for the top 5 ignoring their variants such as the GT and HWM, there are a couple of thing I think we can summarise but very much from a visual / personal judgement of the data.
- All of these tyres seem to inspire relatively good confidence in the wet, with the Micheline Road Pilot 5 and Metzeler Roadtec 01’s being the top scorers with no one putting them less than a 4 in both wet and dry conditions.
- Front and Rear seem to get around the same mileage, this is surprising as from my experiences and those of my direct biking friends front tyres seem to last longer than rears.
  - Could this be because people are always changing them at the same time?
  - Could they be changing them at the same time because they are switching models?
- Mileage wise looking at the above more as a heat map given the variance in responses, it seems like all of these tyres should do at least 6000 miles,
  - T30’s it seems you should expect between 6500 to 7500
  - T31’s it seems you should expect around 10500
  - Roadtec 01’s it seems you should expect around 5000-7500
  - Road Pilot 5 it seems you should expect between 7500-9000
  - Road Angel GT2 it seems you should expect around 6000
- Price versus performance it seems £200-£300 is the sweet spot, it seems a fair number of people are paying for that confidence in grip with both the Metzeler and Michelin having customers paying between £300-£400.
  - Note one thing I have notice is that both the Metzeler and Michelin have dropped in price, I was quote around £330 about a year ago for either where as now I can find them both for around £260.
- Bang for buck the T31’s win with them being cheaper and getting higher mileage however you are sacrificing confidence in all weathers and that is where the Michelin’s seem to be the next best offering. It would also help to have some more data points here.
A couple of things to consider, this data set is limited and skewed towards 2nd Gen riders, there is also a skew in the number of Michelin Road Pilot 5 riders that could be pulling the data off to one side.

It’s been interesting to take a look at the data and I will leave the survey open, maybe running another more detailed one in future.

Personally it has changed my outlook a little, the original Bridgestone tyres for me supplied on the bike did about 7300 miles both front and rear, I then changed to the HWM Roadtec 01’s and they were a significant improvement in terms of confidence in the bike in all conditions.

I then got about 6500 miles out of the rear before changing, I could have probably squeezed 7000 miles but although they still felt great I didn’t want to risk it after getting caught short on the original Bridgestone’s… I found the threads… Right now the front is getting low at ~ 10,000 miles and I will change that out for another Metzeler Roadtec 01 especially now the price is dropping.

However I ride in all weathers, am 6ft 2″ 24 stone, often ride with pillions or a load on and at a high pace down poor quality roads. So for me I don’t want to change the tyre and risk finding myself in a bush or ditch for lack of the confidence / grip the Metzeler have. That said I will be interested to see what the reviews on the new Bridgestone T32 are like.

If I were to switch away from the Roadtec 01’s it would be to the Michelin Road Pilot 5 GT’s or if I continue to do high mileage and they have good reviews I might try theT32’s. There is a part of me that would love to have some form of taster day for tyres to justify if the change in grip/profile is something I am happy with and could ride with to increase the mileage as I would love to get 10,000 out of both front and rear…
19th Mar 2021
General Update

Hey all, when I started this blog properly over the Christmas break I had intended to try and do one post a week, something that I have been failing at… There are several reason’s why but one of them is that I have been trying to organise and plan some more long term content and work towards getting the podcast side of things off the ground.

Over the next few weeks there should be some more posts including the rest of the 5 routes post lockdown, with the government giving an update on the road out of lockdown my calendar is rapidly starting to fill up with exciting bike related activities. Which I am hoping to share with you in both written and vocal form possibly even some video clips.

The other reason things at least for the past month haven’t move forward as rapidly as I would’ve liked was due to getting COVID-19 and the starting up of a new and exciting project at work. I can multitask as long as the tasks are in the same vain or area as soon as there are multiple exciting things it get’s a little difficult to focus. The COVID passed over a 2 week period and I was lucky the most severe symptom I had was the loss of taste and smell, which is now back thank goodness. One morning it was so bad that I couldn’t feel / taste mouthwash…

However that came with the challenge of working from home and after another housemate getting a positive test, spending even longer in isolation. My focus was just shot and my brain wasn’t firing on all cylinders but I am back now!

Expect a more consistent flow of posts over the coming weeks, thanks for reading and coming along for the journeys!

15th Mar 2021
5 Routes | Post Lockdown Miles 1/5

Lockdown is a real struggle for me, I deal with a lot of my emotions and thoughts by driving and riding, clocking up miles. Music going and thought process running in the background whilst I focus on a simple purposeful task, to make it somewhere else or awake somewhere new. There is something particularly simple and settling about waking up somewhere new, and particularly primal about taking in the sunrise especially on a the coast. However whilst we have been in lockdown I haven’t done any journey’s further than about 5 miles, therefore I have been thinking about the rides that are going to be top of my list when we are able to ride properly again.

Here is the first of the five, a perfect day ride to warm back into the saddle…

1 | Portsdown Loop Twisty’s

Distance: 205 Mile Time:7:28hr Difficulty: Medium

At 205 miles avoiding motorways this is a solid days ride, if you are not a fan of slightly gravelly roads or single track lanes then this ride is probably not for you. It has some larger more open roads but to keep to a reasonable time including stops this route requires making good progress when it is safe and possible to do so on all roads.

I suggest starting off with a good breakfast and an early start, on a nice summers day, some of the roads towards either end of this route are not conducive to being ridden first time in the dark.

In the clockwise direction the first ‘stop’ is Loomies in my opinion it’s a bit over hyped, it’s on this route as a meeting point for friends to join me from the south. It’s also got a conveniant petrol station next to it, which makes sure everyone has gogo juice for the rest of the day. The ride upto this point is a good technical warm up to have you prepped for the rest of the ride.

After some wiggling round East Meon the next place that is worthy of note is Old Winchester Hill, from here you can on a clear day easily see the stacks at Fawley and the Isle of Wight. If you want an easier day this is a brilliant place to stop and take a walk round the top of the hill / iron age fort, though if the weather is good it is often busy in the carpark… I would pause and get a couple of good photo’s but continue on as the road takes you over the back of the hill.

After wiggling over Old Winchester Hill and finding your way down the other side, there is a lovely tea room in Hambledon called The Old Forge Tea Rooms. They do a reasonable coffee, fantastically sweet / sickly cakes but best of all a proper sized home cooked sausage roll! If you went light on breakfast this will definitely keep you going for the next couple of hours.

The route then wiggles through the back of Denmead to Southwick, this is a great section of road though the forest that often smells fantastic after the rain. Southwick is a unique place in the fact that the whole villaged is still own by the Southwick Estate and you have to get there permission to buy a house there. They hold a wonderful historic WWII revival event every year and there is a fantastic pub at the east end of the high street called The Golden Lion, the landlord and regulars really make everyone feel welcome and they do fantastic food if you can get a booking. The limit is the size of the kitchen not the number of tables!

From Southwick it is a clear run up to Portsdown hill, if you skipped the other stops there is the well known ‘Micks Monster Burgers’ on the top of the hill. With classic burger van quality but with large size servings, the real treat here is the fantastic views out across Portsmouth and Southsea.

Down from the hill we cut across central Hampshire via Winchester to stockbridge, Winchester is a beautiful place and well worth a wander round especially near the cathedral. If you are breaking this route up or have more time you can break this transition up avoiding Winchester and take the twisty roads further south. I suggest cutting through the back of Bishops Waltham, Colden Common, Otterborne across to Hursley and then out the back of Hursley (Standon) toward Braishfield before heading towards Kings Somborne and finally to Stockbridge.

Stockbridge is easy to stop in there is a long parking layby on the outskirts of town , alternatively there is street parking either side in the centre. There are plenty of places to stop and eat, though I normally only spend 5 minutes stretching my legs if I stop here at all.

If you want to have a little fun on this next section then miss this right turn (picture below) and take the second one on Winchester Road (B3420) and come back on yourself into Wherwell, that little kink is a cracking downhill hairpin that requires smooth bike control.

The reason I don’t normally stop is because it is worth keeping the momentum and instead making a stop at the Red Lion in Overton, this is on the west of the village as you enter and nicely tucked away. Does nice food and drink and is perfect for a mid afternoon snack / stop before going for the finish line.

This route takes you out of Overton towards Kingsclere on this road lies White Hill and the views from this point are breath taking, making it a good photo stop if there aren’t too many badly parked cars around.

From Kingsclere the route becomes the ‘skirting Reading’ technical challenge with a lot of windy single track lanes again up until Henley On Thames, which if you want to stop for a fancy dinner is an excellent stop. The route then takes the main road from Henley towards Marlow, this is a cracking section of road that just flows beautifully, again Marlow (Just off the route continue past the Frieth turning) is another great dining location. If you want upmarket the Botanist does great food and cocktails (for your pillion), alternatively if you want a good eatery style dinner the Britannia is worth stopping at for a solid meal to end the day.

Finishing off the route with a nice twisty ride up through Frieth into Lane End before crossing the M40 to head back into High Wycombe. If you are going to finish the day with Dinner in High Wycombe, then the Mad Squirrel does great fresh Pizza and excellent beer, Kappad does great South Indian Food or if you fancy American then there is Bluegrass.

Maybe this time when I do this route, I will take some more pictures to go with this description.

Link to Route on TomTom – where you can view, edit and download the GPX file.

9th Feb 2021
Raspberry Pi Internet Speed Monitoring
TL:DR – Raspberry Pi Zero + Cheap Ethernet Adapter = 4Mbit/s, Raspberry Pi 3B Ethernet = 82Mbit/s, Don’t trust router USB ports and no one seems to make an easy off the shelf tool for measuring your home broadband speed.

Warning if you have been reading my other posts and are not technically minded/interested in tech this post probably isn’t for you and you might want to skip it.

High Wycombe is in that wonderful belt to the west of London where all the tech companies are based, thus, despite the dull grey colour that you would use to describe High Wycombe to a visitor it is expensive to live here. It is actually in terms of quality vs cost worse than west London in my opinion, I can only assume it is because just five minutes north/west of High Wycombe you will find the beautiful Chiltern hills. Because of this & despite earning what I would deem a reasonable wage, I have no hope of ever owning a house in this area and chose to live in an average House of Multiple Occupancy (HMO).

HMO’s appear to be abundant in this area and all have the same downsides as far as I can tell, no matter how good the pictures look; kitchen to small, no communal area’s other than the kitchen, mould issues and having to pay for the washing machine and tumble dryer in coins!

However I digress, back in September the old company that managed at the property I live in decided that the BT Broadband that had been struggling to give a consistent 20Mbit/s would be replaced by a Virgin Media Business connection. This was excellent however when they did install it they failed to take into account the size of the house and existing network architecture, which has lead to some issues.

The most notable is that the Virgin Media router/modem was installed in the kitchen, in the middle of the house, as a HMO every door is a fire door and has an auto closer on it. In addition to this the there is no physical connection from the Router to the CAT5E ports in all the rooms. Resulting in my NAS and some other equipment became dark, the 5GHz struggling to make it out of the kitchen and the 2.4GHz is taking the majority of the load barely reaching the other housemates at the back of the house.

In addition to the wireless coverage within the house being troublesome, we have been seen serious dropouts in incoming speed, where at time I have struggled to get 1MB/s download speed. This lead me to wondering how can I help the new management company that took over in December sort out these issues and get the right information to them to pass to Virgin.

I wanted to measure the speed coming into the building because we already know how to fix the Wifi and Ethernet connection issues. Thus to take the variance of WIFI performance out of the speed measurement I figured the best approach was to measure using a device connected directly to the ethernet of the Router.

Approach 1 – Raspberry Pi Zero with USB Ethernet Adapter

A quick google found that there was a library for interfacing with Speedtest.net’s CLI, and that this could be easily set up on a Raspberry pi. The logic behind choosing a zero and ethernet adapter was thus:
1. A Raspberry Pi Zero + Ethernet Adapter were cheap ~ £10
2. I didn’t need a display out on it so why the low processing power
3. Low power draw meant I could likely power it from the USB port on the router.
A side bonus that I had found in looking at the articles for what I wanted to do was that I had found a new way to talk / setup a pi headless. I have been playing with Pi’s for a couple of years and had never realised you could use a USB to Serial adapter to connect direct and get the terminal over serial. So I ordered a USB to Serial adapter to go with the Pi Zero and Cheap Ethernet to Micro USB Adapter.

Once they had all arrived it only took me a couple of hours to get it set up and logging to a csv, this is where I realised my failings:
1. The cheap Micro USB to Ethernet Adapter was despite being advertised as USB 2 only really USB 1.1 and the maximum speed I could measure over it was about 4Mbit/s. Googling the chipset found plenty of article explaining and giving realistic speed achievable with other chipsets / dongles. A maximum on the Pi Zero being Pimoroni’s adapter (out of stock) @ 96Mbit/s
2. The USB port on the back of the router seemed to supply no power what so ever and therefore I still needed a power brick plugged in somewhere to supply power to the Pi.
So quickly adapting to over come this I moved to a second approach.

Approach 2 – Raspberry Pi 3B

I remembered that I had a Raspberry Pi 3B not currently in use and that this has a proper ethernet port built on and thus maybe this would be a better solution, this was surprisingly easy to set up as I was able to just move the MicroSD card from the Zero and dig out the correct PSU and away I went. The new measurement system was up and running.

I then did some tweaks for how often it was measuring and how I would access the data setting up the CSV in an Apple Share so that it was easily accessible from my MacBook on the WLAN.

The internet wasn’t running at full pelt when I set it up and Virgin had admitted to doing engineering work explaining that there may be network speed issues. Thus I have left it running this last week, below is the headline figures (It’s wouldn’t let me attache the raw CSV or TXT).

What’s interesting about this is that the max speed I was able to measure was 82Mbit/s, theoretically the Ethernet on the RPi 3B is 100Mbit/s capable. Now I knew from searching the web whilst having the issue with the Zero that it was unlikely I would get the full 100 but I was hoping to get 96Mbit/s.

This solution at least for now tells me enough to know when Virgin are really struggling to give the 150Mbit/s plus that I suspect is being paid for, the Median currently being 64Mbit/s and there often being times when it is down in the 40’s. However it would not show me issues/performance above the 82Mbit/s which does skew my data.

Approach 3?

Thinking about what a solution to this would look like… This evening I sat in the kitchen and did a speed test from my phone connected to the 5GHz wireless and got speeds in excess of 250Mbit/s. Which is firstly crazy but secondly made me think how common speed monitoring issues must be for several reasons:
- Most people when checking speed are using the available device, there phone maybe there laptop and most likely wireless either 2.4GHz or increasingly 5GHz.
- In a modern house the number of wireless devices can greatly change / the load can vary.
- You are reliant on using third party servers to test your speed, Speedtest.net or Google or others.
- In most cases there is no direct utility built onto the router to check internet speed or log it.
This last one is in some circumstances becoming not true, from my own personal experience I have installed Google Wifi in another house and that itself performs daily checks on the speed being received. But that is over £300 of routers… Given that most ISP’s in the UK are now making some form of Ofcom based promise on their performance it would seem logical to me that they would want to make it easier to be clear on the speed to a given house.

I also spent a few minutes looking for solutions to see if anyone had developed a product for this specific purpose, a small device that you plugged into the back of your router. That say ran a little web server and you could go to it’s address on your local network or an online page and see your speeds plotted over time, something like this that was sub £50 would be worthwhile in a lot of situations especially when dealing with ISP’s failing to meet their promises.

However I could not see any such solutions, in fact I came back round to cheapest / easiest solution to get up to 300MBit/s being another Raspberry PI. If I had for instance the RPi 3B+ it would have 5GHz wifi & Gigabit Ethernet which would enable measuring speeds up to 300MBit/s, it is still hampered by the USB bus being used to connect the ethernet. Or a RPi 4 which has 5GHz wifi and a Gigabit ethernet, reports say it is capable of around 900MBit/s on a wired connection.

Other than this my only other method (once the Ethernet port in my room is back alive) is a gigabit ethernet port on one of my desktop machines, though this is a power hungry and wasteful way to measure the speed of the internet in a house…

Final Thought

The QA Engineer in me looks at my approach and identifies these key areas where I failed to correctly come up with the requirements and look at the details for what I wanted to achieve.
1. What is the Value you are expecting to measure and why?
2. In order to measure something you must first have a measurement device that can exceed the value you are expecting to measure.
3. Always consider a system or flow diagram down to the lowest level you can with the knowledge you have
4. Everybody / Everthing lies
If I had thought further about items I could have identified that I needed to measure up to ~ 300MBit/s that a raspberry pi zero wouldn’t be able to nor would any of the hardware I have laying about (except a full size computer). By considering the flow diagram I might have noted the possibility for the USB bus to being a limiting factor in the architecture of the test hardware. Finally if I had followed Dr Gregory House’s golden rule I wouldn’t have trust the listing for the USB to Ethernet adapter…
7th Feb 2021
Normally I drive for the Dawn
I sit here in my Mum and Stepdads lounge in front of the fire drinking a bailey’s over ice, coming to a strange realisation as I glance up at the time 01:00. This is the first time I have been in a house at this time on a new years eve for a couple of years. You might assume that is because normally I am out getting drunk in a pub or club but you’d be wrong, although I have nothing against those activities they are just not my scene.

I, every once in a while really enjoy just dancing to the early hours but most of the time I am more of a scotch and dark corners with easy going piano music or jazz sort of guy. Though I don’t find a good location for that much these days, thus scotch and a decent BBQ at a mates house is definitely my scene, sitting by the grill smoking cigars talking serious till the early hours… However I am also a restless soul and so more so than not at this time on a new years eve I have been in the car heading towards Cornwall to catch the dawn.

I know that the sun rises in the east and thus Cornwall being to the west would not be the normal place to catch a sunrise. Especially when you consider that normally on new years day the weather isn’t that good, often overcast and grey. However, I don’t care, North Cornwall between St Ives and Portreath is a special place to me and always will be.

This sort of unconventional journey is something I have been doing for about 10 years, and was a natural progression in a way. When I was 17 and had my first bike I would often after babysitting on a Friday or Saturday night just take roads I didn’t know and head roughly in a given direction till I read a road sign name I recognised. This often was in inclement weather and was about freedom and pushing myself, I had a vehicle there was nothing stopping me so why not. I had nothing urgently waiting for me at home after all.

When I passed my driving test at 19 this developed to further distances, it wasn’t uncommon for me to go out and do 60-100 miles of an evening just to find new roads, listen to a cd and work on my driving.

For my 21st Birthday I had nothing planned, other than to hop in my 1972 hillman imp and take myself down to Gwithian to sit on the coast, maybe fly a kite. When a friend found this out he asked if he and a couple of mates could join, before I knew it there was 4 of us on route to Cornwall for the day. We flew kites got a nice lunch and then headed back up, it was a mini adventure and I loved it, I remember listening to Weezer from a minidisk player on the way back reflecting on turning 21. (Note the MiniDisc was old tech then it’s just my iPod was broken at the time, I’m not that old).

We went in two cars, note I had no front passenger seat in at the time (it had been removed to measure up for a bucket seat replacements) so Bob had to sit in the back with no seat belt and had to brace himself every time we entered a roundabout…

Around November that same year one night I had been out in the car to the normal hang outs with other friends, nothing much was going on so I headed home but having split up with my girlfriend about a year before and still thinking about her, I was restless and didn’t feel like sleeping. So I started heading west, deciding I wanted to wake up somewhere else and see the dawn no matter what it looked like, just somewhere other than home. I awoke in the car park at Gwithian to a cold November morning but to about 40 surfers taking advantage of a good morning’s surf.

I remember writing a poem as I sat taking in the scene I think I titled it “230 miles for a smile”, I still have it or a digital copy somewhere I will have to dig it out… since this I have done it many times, at different points in the year, as well as to other locations.

The tradition for me of doing it on New Years Eve started as we went form 2015 to 2016, once again I had split with my girlfriend, this time gradually between that summer and Christmas.

She had gone off to do what she loved (acting) at uni in London and I had stayed doing the commute from the New Forest up to work in Wokingham, things hadn’t been perfect for the few months before she went but I still had hope. She however had a new direction and I didn’t fit with it, so after a particularly awkward night at my works Christmas party in a hotel things were clear and we parted ways.

A month later a friend was throwing a New Years Eve party at his parents with his brother and bunch of friends, it looked like it could be a good laugh. Having not had dinner I turned up with both dinner for myself and desert, everyone loves a chocolate gateau. Whilst shopping for these on route I had decided that not knowing half the people there and being a little in my own head I didn’t want to get drunk and to serious for the crowd.

You know that feeling when everyone else has there respective places at a party, beds and partners etc and then theres you the odd guy who is just a little too intense for most people.

So I decided that at 13:00 I wanted to head off and wake up somewhere else. So I thought about the time scales and chose Gwithian as an easy target, I was mildly hoping that I could enchant with the spur of the moment adventure nature of it a nice your female or a couple of friends to join me. However that was unsuccessful so off I went to catch the dawn in Cornwall driving solo.

The joke being that a couple of friends said the next day they had wished they had joined me as two young ladies had got well out of hand, trashed the bathroom before refusing to leave and causing a ruckus. They said they could have done with my help and that I got out at the right time…

Although since then there have been years where I have stayed at the house party or the LAN party at home, more of them have been spent the same, driving to around Hayle to catch the dawn. The last couple of years friends have joined me realising that it’s an easy going night / early morning of music choices, sweets / snacks and chatting as the mile role by.

I find you get the most honest and fruitful conversations when your in a car with someone for a few hours or more, all that stuff that there was never space for before in your friendship comes up. You get to the bottom of those missed communications and understandings of the passed and find a clear way forward.

If it weren’t for COVID and the importance of keeping everyone safe I would be doing the same again. There will certainly be more dawn rides and drives to come both at new years and at other times, there are just some nights where I get home and you don’t want to be there or my mind needs more time on the road. These are the nights I look at the time and pick a place on the map and a route, go inside shower/take a nap and pack a bag and start heading in that direction.

So although it’s a strange New Years Eve sitting in front of the fire as it dies down and my glass has run dry, not seeing my friends or getting to be on the road, I am looking forward to the year ahead. I am already in my head thinking about how I can get more out of the time I will have where I will be to travel this year. Whether that be to work on the Hillman Imp or to clock up the miles on two or four wheels.

Happy New Year! below is my favourite dawn run from this passed year, that I managed to squeeze in when we came out of lockdown earlier this year, I suspect I will do this one again at some point this year…

July 2020

I know some of you already think I am crazy but what a wonderful way to feel alive…I didn’t feel like sleeping Friday night and had to be in the New Forest for 9am Saturday to give my brother a hand, so I thought where could I go in between.

So I took the long way from High Wycombe to Margate got there about 4am leaving me enough time to find a nice spot before the sunrise at 5am. After that, I hopped back on the bike and rode across country to the new forest not a motorway on either journey. Arriving for 9am…

It was a beautiful morning and lovely scenery to ride through as the sun continued to come up. I was lucky to arrive at a nice cooked breakfast and a fresh coffee.

Following that, after an early night, I started early on Sunday, meeting a friend at Loomies, before taking a nice winding route around Hampshire and clocking up some more miles over Sunday.

All in all clocking up around 280 miles Friday night / Saturday and a further 200 on Sunday for a total of about 16 hours in the saddle. Definitely worth it!
1st Jan 2021

YBR125 Project

I always have had several projects of some description on the go, whether they be small electronics (ESP32, Arduino etc.), 3D printing or slightly larger; such as a classic car in pieces. I am also that guy that people come to know as a car/bike guy and they random ask if I am interested in old vehicles, not because I often need a vehicle myself but because I will take opportunities to get bargains ready for friends and family when they find themselves in need. (I like wheeler dealing and always find better bargains for others than myself)

The Clio I got for my younger brother at a steal from a colleague who was leaving us and moving back to Italy

Rover 45 I got off another colleagues mum who was giving up driving, it has now been with another colleague for over a year commuting in and out of London.

Olive the Imp on the car Rotator I built to be able to work on it more comfortably, it now needs a lot of rust replacing with solid metal.

Which brings us to August this year when my younger brothers partner informs me that as a surprise for my brother for her birthday she is going to do her CBT. He has been riding for about 10 years and she often goes pillion with him but thinks she might enjoy it even more if she had her own bike. This was rather fortuitous as 48 hours earlier Owen, a good biker friend, had made me aware that his mothers old YBR125 was once again up for sale, and he just needed it gone from his garden.

I have known Owen and his twin brother Patrick since I started riding having met them at the old Southampton motorcycle club, ever since we have all been friends as a little circle of bikers. They are good lad’s to know in a storm, as it were, being the first ones round to lay in the dirt with a spanner when you’re really in the shit and you need a vehicle running the next day.

The YBR in question was their mothers which had been purchased nearly new back around 2009, she didn’t take to biking so it sat in their garden. Getting regular MOT’s for a while and being used as a backup bike when one of the lad’s bikes was off the road. That was until about 4 years ago when it stopped wanting to run properly…

At the time they had diagnosed the fuel pump a not uncommon issue on these bikes, and had ordered an aftermarket replacement. A sunny Sunday I just happened to be round there catching up whilst they replaced it in the garden, however after replacing it the bike would now start but didn’t want to remain running. After I had left another issue had been theorised with the TPS after some static measurements but it had never been fixed.

As with so many little projects like this it sat for a further couple of years before his mother was happy to part with it for a sensible figure for such a project and was due to go to another friend in the group, however after a failed attempt to collect it in the back of an estate car and then to further collect it his loss was about to be my gain.

I took a look at the bike in it’s gardened state half the panels off and various things randomly disconnected, a collection of bolts lay in a side panel and a top box elsewhere in the garden. Owen told me the classic line of “It just needs a new battery and starter solenoid, then it should be had to get running”… I looked at it and knew that it wasn’t in terrible condition and had much life to give but also any number of things could now have become wrong with it after it hadn’t been used for the last 4 or so years, not being in the position of needing the bike leaves you with a clear focus. To me the risk level of this project and what it might need / cost and what it’s worth once running made it clear that I needed to get it cheap, £150 later and a elbow bump and it was mine.

The next challenge was collecting it, earlier in lockdown Ryan another mate within the biker group (he is in the process of trying to get his license) had been unlucky and been made redundant. However in a stroke of luck he had found a new calling as a motorcycle mover – Transportmybike – a few messages and a sweet mates rate deal was done to get the bike from Chandlers Ford up to my garage in High Wycombe.

Knowing that the starter solenoid and battery were definitely gone, I got those on order straight away along with a Haynes manual so that i would have them there ready to further diagnose when the bike arrived. I am pretty handy at most things but from experience if it is available it always pays to have the right information to compare to hence the Haynes manual.

After fitting them I had an FI system error code flashing on the engine management light, looking at the connections that were loose and the state of them I was note surprised. A little contact cleaner and few cables reconnected and that error was gone though it took me longer to realise the fuel pump connector was not connected than I would like to admit. No remaining error codes and the bike now cleanly cranking but not starting the real troubleshooting would need to begin.

I checked the oil and a few other basic things with my father being a useful extra set of hands, with a little break cleaner in the bore the bike fired into life. It was possible to get it to run after letting the pump prime a few times but it would never continue and would not rev. Given the bike had been sat and there was signs of rust around the petrol tank inlet the prime suspect was dirty fuel of some sort causing issues and not enough fuel getting through to the injector.

The fact that it had fired and run was enough to give me confidence to get on and order the rest of the bits I figured it needed to be fresh and ready to go back on the road. So we proceeded to de-rust the tank and whilst I was waiting for that and the new tank seal to be ready I ordered a bunch of other parts and cracked on with getting them fitted.

So as it stands:

New Starter Solenoid
New Battery
New Fuel Pump & Filter – Aftermarket
New Fuel Pump Seal
New Michelin Street Pilot Tyres
New front brake pads
Brake fluid drained and replaced
New DID Chain and JT Sprockets
New front left indicator
Tank de-rusted

And the bike still didn’t want to run and keep running! So I took a step back and went back to the troubleshooting and now have a new likely candidate for the cause of the non running. My workings as it were:

AIR

The air filter is clear and has no problems passing air, I have had the throttle body and injector out and there is nothing restricting the flow to the bore.

Spark

I have removed the spark plug and cranked over the engine to check for a clean clear strong spark, no issues seen however I had a new plug to go in which also has been tested and fitted without showing an issues sparking. However this does not stop there being a timing issue as the spark timings are controlled by the ECU.

ECU

I have no way to establish that this is good or bad at at current however it is not giving any error codes and I have checked the performance of these sensors/voltages against the values in the Haynes manual:

(Note that for most of these sensors even if they were flashing error codes the bike should start and consistently run)

Throttle Position Sensor – (Previous suspect from Patricks investigation – there was a concern over this jumping value suddenly causing the ECU to kill bike but I have not been able to replicate this.)
Air Intake Pressure Sensor
Air Intake temperature Sensor
Injector Impedance
Injector Voltage Feed

Most of these tests require the Throttle body to be connected to the bike and powered, particularly the TPS as it uses some electromagnetic field to detect position. Testing these took the longest as its not easy to get a good electrical connection on a sealed connector, in the end I resorted to sharpening an old set of Multimeter probes so they would cleanly pierce the outer insulation of the cables and get clean measurements.

Compression

I have misplaced my compression tester however a finger over the spark plug whole indicates good pressure and given there is enough compression to get it to start it is unlikely that the rings etc have any issues. It is still possible that this could be an intermittent sticking valve but it is unlikely given the behaviour seen.

Fuel

It’s worth noting that the investigation for some of these areas and double checking has taken place over a couple of months, often checking certain things more than once. What is difficult is that some of these items the specific test is not easily possible either single handed or without specialist equipment.

I have removed and cleaned the injector and confirm that it is fires into a loose pot, however I have no reference for what the exact spray pattern or amount of liquid should be.

I have also disconnected the hose from this and pumped directly through the pipe into the pot. This is the smoking gun that I have so far missed, my prior experience is with gravity feed non fuel injected vehicles. I am not used to expecting tones of pressure and I figures as I did have fuel there and it’s a small CC bike surely it should run even if not right.

This assumption may be my failing as checking the Haynes manual and some online sites I note that there is a fuel pressure regulator and it is built into the setup inside the tank. This should give 35 PSI however testing this is easier said than done.

Diagram of the system:

However now I look at it it would seem clear that the fuel coming out of that pipe is unlikely to be at 35PSI and that when the pump re-primes it doesn’t seem to take very long (suggesting the regulator maybe blocked with rust in some way and it is getting up to pressure in the wrong section). Given I have replaced the pump and the filter, and these had been replaced in the first garden session originally 4 or so years ago that really only leaves the regulator and hoses as being the remaining parts.

Therefore I have ordered a second hand hose and will swap this first (unlikely but just in case) then cut it in half to enable me to make a hose with which I can measure the pressure coming from the regulator. If this is low then the tank will need to be drained and the regulator inspected, the catch being here that Yamaha only sell the pump as a complete assembly for £270 that includes the fuel level sensor the regulator, pump and filter.

There is no way to get the regulator on it’s own and I have already paid once for a new pump and filter… this leaves the only cost sensible option as finding a suitable second hand pump complete unit on ebay.

My diagnoses is not infallible however if it is not this then that really only leaves things like the ECU, to really diagnose any further I would likely need a known running donor bike that I could swap parts between to confirm what was wrong.

So that brings you up to date, hopefully I will have some time over January to test this theory and either confirm or deny a diagnoses. I had hoped to have had this bike done for October however as long as it is running and ready for the new season in April it will serve it’s purpose.

Current Total	£528.85	Received	Fitted	Notes
Purchase Cost	£150.00	1	1
Moving Cost	£55.00	1	1
Haynes Manual	£12.69	1	1
Battery	£25.00	1	1
Starter Solenoid	£15.00	1	1
Fuel Pump Kit	£22.00	1	1
Fuel Pump Seal	£14.00	1	1
Front L Plate	£5.95	1
Rear L Plate	£6.99	1
Indicators	£15.00	1	1
Front side undertank trim	£9.95	1
Battery retaining strap	£5.99			Bought in error, it was the toolbag strap that was damaged / missing
Rubber sheet to make Fuel cap gasket	£7.69			Didn’t work, in the end used rubber grease on the original seal
Tank to Injector Hose	£10			Second Hand Ebay
Service Items
Oil	£7.88	1
Spark plug	£2.99	1
Brake Fluid	£4.09	1	1
Front Brake Pads	£12.29	1	1
DID Chain & Sprocket kit	£31.26	1	1
Tyres	£99.08	1	1
Sprocket lock washer	£7.00	1

Fuel Tank Derusting
Bilt Hamber Deox C	£15.00	1	1
Bilt Hamber Surfex HD	£2.00	1	1	fag packet estimate
Bilt Hamber Korosol	£2.00	1	1	fag packet estimate

Costs spreadsheet not including any tool purchases for the YBR125

28th Dec 2020

A Week Exploring West Wales in December
Earlier in the summer, when we came out of the first lockdown being in a particularly positive mood, I took the opportunity with my then girlfriend to book a beautiful holiday cottage in West Wales. The plan was to take the car and have a cosy cwtch getaway in November, avoiding the rain by spending time with coffee and books watching the weather roll in…

Unfortunately time has a way of changing plans by the time I was actually able to get away for the week three key things had changed, it was not December, I was now single and thus decided to take the bike in place of the car.

I was incredibly lucky as 48 hours before I was due to head to Wales the Welsh government updated there restrictions re-opening the border, if it hadn’t of been for this my first week off of the entire year would have been the week before Christmas. I was determined to make the most of the week away as it was duly needed and thats what led the decision to the last minute decision to take the bike.

The night before I umm’d and ahh’d as I hadn’t ridden since the end of September, making me a little apprehensive especially as there had been some snow across some parts of the route and the temperatures were likely to remain at levels where ice is a concern.

Intending to take the above route was a minor failure on my part in route planning selecting leave now at 22:00 the night before failed to how the fact that the A465 was closed. After ignoring the diversion, turning off, riding about 20 minutes out of the way to Crickhowell I did the sensible thing and stopped to have a drink and something to eat and look at the TomTom.

View from Crickhowell of the hill I was about to traverse

Lay-by just outside Crickhowel – perfect place to stop have a drink from the thermos, a sarny and some Pringles

Looking at the TomTom there was a white road over the hill that I could take… this was maybe less sensible as 45 minutes later I was surprised after making a wrong turn to arrive back at Gilwern and the same junction where I had come off the closed A465. The white road had turned out to be a refresher in just how good the Versys is as a bike and how helpful traction control is, making me very glad I had thrown it on 3 (full intervention) at the start of the day.

Following the diversion this time I went back towards Abergavenny and then down towards Newport and took the M4, A40 route across. The whole way chasing the sun, unfortunately there is nowhere to stop as you pass Port Talbot in the average 50 as the sun and low-lying light fog over the town looked beautiful.

I arrived at Chapel House in the dark, a little cold and ready for a nice warm bath a glass of wine and a movie. Waking the next day I wake to a view of the sea out the front window of the chapel.

View from Chapel House, Penycwn

Following this wonderful dawn I spent the week trying to clock up the miles and explore the hidden coastline of the south west of Wales, so here are some of my favourite little finds…

Abercastle, Pembrokeshire

In 1876, The harbour was the landing-site of the first Atlantic Ocean single-handed sailing, west-to-east, starting from Gloucester, Massachusetts, by Alfred “Centennial” Johnson. More info about Abercastle can be found here

Tucked away just off the costal road north of St Davids, Abercastle is a hidden gem, you could easily drive through it without realising what you had missed. As you come into Abercastle from the south and see the houses hugging to the hills there is a little turning on the left before a sort of bridge. This little road is single track and hugs the cliff taking you out to the harbour masters house and the small carpark right at the harbours edge.

You won’t find any cafe’s or posh coffee but what you do find is a breathtaking views with a stream feeding down from the hills weaving round the carpark out to sea. Walk round the costal path round the headland and there is another little stone beach.
Dale, Pembrokeshire

Over a glass of wine I took a look at the TomTom for places round the coast to the south of the Chapel house, finding the St Annes Headland and Dale which looked like it might be a good spot to head out for a ride. I choose to follow the coastal road from Newgale to Broad Haven and then cut across the headland.
- Dale
As I got off the bike in the beach carpark in Dale and looked at the dirty state of it the words “some people worry about using them too much, I worry about using it too little” went through my mind.I then walked along the beach and pondered that statement, and realised it worked better the other way round. This is what then resulted…

Dale Ditty

Some people feel that they use there’s too little, I worry I might use mine too much, no not that my dear, but never fear, I’m always happy to make you blush.

No I’m talking my bike, you know two wheels, handles bars and engine between my legs. I guess I’m just happy to be clocking up the miles from east to west.

From one shore to another, come rain or shine, it is nee ney bother, I don’t mind getting a little wet.

I know you like it less but I find I like it best when you join me from behind. No, not that my dear put your filthy mind at rest, I mean sat on the back nothing to do but watch the world go by.

Dale, Pembrokeshire – Colourful Houses by the waters edge at the Southern tip of the beach

On the way back from Dale, I took the coastal road back and stopped in Broad Haven for a coffee. It was lovely to see so many people out enjoying a walk along the beach, if you continue to follow the costal road towards Newgale you pass through Nolton Haven this is the perfect place to get a stunning sunset photo. There is also a good place you can stop on the road and get a good view across towards Newgale.

Poppit, Cardigan

Another glass of wine and look at the TomTom this time north of my location found Poppit Beach, having got my confidence back up with the bike worked out a little more challenging route through some more narrow muddy single track lanes. Coming off the A487 toward Nevern gave me more chances to practice using the bike in challenging conditions and the traction control to keep me on the road.
- Poppit Sands
The beach parking was empty and seemed a little wrong so I skipped stopping at the actual beach and continued following the road towards Cardigan, finding the perfect stopping spot on the way into St Dogmaels just by the side of the road is a launching slipway and a couple of park bench’s.

Whilst taking these photo’s I sat drinking my coffee, I noticed in the house behind me there was a room right at the front of the house where a gentleman was sat playing the guitar. I sat for a while longer and wondered what it would be like having these views directly outside your house every day.

LLangrannog, Ceredigion

Last year whilst doing a training weekend with TVAM (Thames Valley Advanced Motorcyclists) I taken on a ride across the central Wales with the lunch stop being LLangrannog, it is a beautiful place and reminds me places like Clovelly, Devon. It has a brilliant cafe right by the front called “The Beach Hut” which unfortunately was closed this time of year but if you get a chance to go in season it is a worthy lunch stop.
- Llangranog Beach
If you look at the map above the B4334 has a beautiful pair of hairpin turns which are a good vehicle control challenge when the weather is dry and sunny let alone when its wet and muddy.
The only thing that you have to be careful with in LLangrannog is the parking, earlier up the hill there is a free carpark however the parking right at the front by the beach is full blown ANPR. Everywhere else I stopped in Wales whilst I was down there the parking was free out of season, a couple of local ladies very kindly came over to warn me so that I could pay for parking in time. It is a bone of contention with the locals the story going that the carpark was originally with the pub however someone purchase this pub as well as some others in the nearby villages. At the same time farming off the parking to an outside company based in Birmingham, which has no interest in the villages best interests.

On the way back from LLangrannog I cut across towards Haverfordwest which took me on the B4329 across the tops of the hills, the view although not sunny was fantastic and full of colour.
- View North from near Tafarn-y-bwlch
- View South from near Tafarn-y-bwlch
Is it worth riding in Wales in December?

Yes, the days are relatively short which means that it gets dark and cold early. It is difficult to know if COVID was a factor or whether it is just West Wales out of season but most of the Cafe’s and pubs in the smaller locations were closed, this means if you are hoping to travel light you might want to think again. I would definitely get yourself a Thermos, it gives you a lot more freedom on stopping locations.

The weather was actually pretty good though you will still need to where decent all weather gear and your thermals, with the temperature most days being around 4 degrees.

What do you do whilst there in the winter?

For me this was a perfect opportunity to take in the beauty around in peace, most places were extremely quiet which made taking in the real feel and sound of a place much easier. From a travelling perspective this has acted as a perfect spotting trip enabling me to drop some pins on the TomTom for future trips find awesome roads and note some ideas for routes. Other than this read, and cook good food, drink wine and sit by the fire.
27th Dec 2020
Welcome

About a year ago I started writing a short snippet to introduce myself for a dating app and found myself starting a small poem but it didn’t fit the character limit! So I cut my losses and copied it into my google notes, proceeding to then write something humdrum, shorter and more traditional and moved on with my life.

Lazy Modern Traveller

I don’t mind clocking up the miles on a motorcycle or in a car. To catch a sunset or sunrise, any hour night or day.

I’m just happy to get away. Brunch is my preferred start, after sleeping in and wishing the world away. Poach eggs on toast a real treat to make me strong and steady on my feat.

Anything with an engine takes my fancy, two wheels, four wheels, it doesn’t matter to me. I even prefer those items with marks and lines to show that they have lived in their time.

Afternoon comes and I like my coffee, strong and sweet, if I’m lucky served in a cozy seat. Maybe in a bubbling cafe with a well-trimmed barista and radio a-play or just from the thermos at the side of the road, stretch the legs, and on we go.

Finally, when the day is done, sunset felt, photography done. I like a whisky and a cigar, maybe to hear someone else’s tale across the bar. For I am a lazy modern traveler, no hurried pace of life for I’m just wanting to watch the world go by, one mile at a time.

I often have little blocks of words like this floating round my mind, often they are in a particular accent that makes them smooth and flow better and tells a better narrative. However I don’t often share them, and normally forget them without ever noting them down.

That’s about to change though; over the last few years whenever I regal a friend or colleague with a holiday, adventure or share hidden gems for an area they are about to visit they all say the same thing… you should write a blog and do a podcast!

Welcome to the blog and the podcast will follow as soon as I get my act into gear, given I work for Focusrite I really have no excuse. All feedback is welcome but keep in mind I am not doing this to please everyone, it is my travel diary and thoughts for my account and if people find it useful and interesting then great.

26th Dec 2020