First ride home

[Keithy]

So, following on from 'Collection or Delivery' I decided to collect my new (to me) bike and ride it home. Having committed to this I dropped the delivery charge from the invoice, sorted the VED, finalised the insurance and gritted my teeth. Quite a bit more than anticipated actually as I awoke yesterday with a pain in the right foot.

One semi sleepless night later as I 'rode' every bit of the road home worrying about big steep hills like Harley Bank etc. I awoke with the gimpy leg (yet more worry!) put in a half a day of work and prepared to set off.

11:45 depart Shrewsbury
11::55 turn around at Cross Houses and return to Shrewsbury to get my helmet
12:05 depart Shrewsbury- again.
13:20 lunch at Black & Whit3 in Worcester.
14:45 arrive at Malvern

After a good going over all the oily bits and what I need to check I had no option but to get on it and ride it home.

After setting off I fogged up quite quickly despite the pinlock, mainly 'cos my pulse must have been around 150bpm. Wobbled around Worcester, including a stop at lights on the bridge where my gear indicator kept showing "2" while I was convinced I was in first. Yet more gritting of teeth and a big handful of revs whilst praying it was in "1" and we are off again.

Settled down a bit, negotiated Kidderminster and set off for Bridgnorth, an interesting bit of road. Gave it some of the beans on an uphill bit and started to wander off towards the other side of road. 4 weeks and it is easy to forget 'you go where you are looking'.

Climb up the hill at Bridgnorth was brisk and at Wenlock caught up with an i10 doing 24mph, which was a bonus as it meant a steady descent of Harley Bank followed by a somewhat quicker ascent.

A quick blat around the bypass and I start to realise why every weekend here sounds like a race track! Having gone from an Alfa to a diseasel beemer I'm really out of practice when it comes to giving it a spanking. 3,000 rpm on the Bimmer, the odd 6,500 on the Alfa but FML 10k!!?

Managed to pull on my sloping drive without without dropping it, which surprised me, took a photo for posterity and the spent 20 minutes re-arranging the garage while herself grumbled about moving stuff around.

I keep finding things that I need to get from/take into the garage and when I do I keep going "F*^k me! There's a motorbike in here"

[arry]

Nice job.

It gets more normal. But even after a decade and a bit I still get the urge to go for a massive turtle birth in the period just before I get out to the garage and just after I've got my full gear on.

All of this and still no pics? Is your phone a poh-tay-to?

[Keithy]

Tried off the Poh-tay-toe & it didn’t work, second attempt...

[ThunderGuts]

All a learning curve; arguably some of that initial familiarisation was forced onto you because you had to get the thing home. It'll get easier from here on in, just get out and ride it when you can and don't shy away from wet days as being familiar and confident riding in the wet is handy for that dry ride with an unexpected downpour.

Glad you got it home safely - looks a nice bike.
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TG.

[UncleFester]

When it's your first big bike and one you've chosen i always felt there was something special about riding it home yourself. Happy for every bike after that one to get delivered but the first one should be ridden.

Once you're mentally and physically over that hurdle it makes taking it out again a lot easier.
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Module 1 and 2 passed - October 2014. Happy owner of a 2017 Z1000SX, ex owner of a YBR125 / CB500 / VFR800.

[arry]

Loving the Alfa too.

[GSTEEL32]

[Andy_Pagin]

When I got my first big bike the one mile ride home took five hours, I took a slight detour, and then another detour, and another...
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They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[Freddyfruitba...]

[arry]

So how are you getting on with it now Keithy?

[Keithy]

[arry]

Great - glad to hear you've settled into it

[ThatDippyTwat]

[pepperami]

[thx1138]

I remember the day i went from an MZ250 to a CBX750f, just at the happier side of a 2 day hangover too.

[Keithy]