Sons and Daughters, Brothers and Sisters...

Boys

Sons are just the best, they like to play with cool toys, they are full of laughter and they surprise you every day with just how much they grow into a damn cool guy. Alex is doing this, he is great fun to hang out with and it is amazing that it was not that long ago that he was a boy. Well now he is a man and as such he drinks, farts and fiddles with motorbikes. We could not be more proud. So when my Brother Pauly came to visit, we had to go out to play in Pauly's truck.

You can just see Alex sat about a third up the way the cliff face

So we headed out into the hills of Somerset and tried our hand at a bit of local offroading, which we loved. Pauly is an expert driver and approaches any challenge with his usual gentle humour and then climbs his truck up the sort of rocky slopes we loved to ride our bikes down so many years ago. While out and about we checked out some of the old places we visited as kids, including the caves we explored while on a school trip in 1990!

The entrance to Sidcut Swallat cave, Mendip.

Going underground!

Nothing like a bit of solo climbing forty feet up a cliff with no rope!

More solo climbing at height

So after a whole day of adventuring we wandered home and Alex declared that he was in love with Pauly's truck and we both had a new hobby. Let's OFF ROAD! A massive huge thank you to my dearest brother Pauly and my lovely step son Alex, who made a day out a pure pleasure.

Girls

Girls are just great, they are pretty, they smell nice and they like cuddles. Can you tell that I always wanted to be a mummy? So when Alex announced that his lovely girlfriend Beth was moving in with us, I was overjoyed. You see, Beth is lovely, she has filled our home with laughter and seeing Alex this happy is just wonderful. You have never seen such a beautiful couple who compliment each other so well. 

The thinker goes Gothic!

Well, once Beth was moved in and had settled into the comfortable life of enduring Jayne's almost continuous farting and Carol's horrendous snoring, she let us know that she would like to travel north to visit her Mum and introduce her to Alex. Well, any excuse for a ride out...

So we decided to take the motorbikes and ride the ninety three miles to Beths Mum's house. Only Carol's bike had packed up, with leaking fork seals, blowing exhausts and a failing cooling system. Noreen needed a lot of work to make sure that she could make the journey. 

No forks or cooling system

So over two weekends Carol tore Noreen to bits and put her back together again. 

Going back together

It took some time, a lot of work and a few cups of tea. Once sorted, it was a quick test and then we discovered that the cooling fan had melted. Thankfully a dear friend of Curious Adventures, Wayne of the bashed up ZXR sports bikes stepped in and offered us a new fan. With Carol off the road, another friend of Curious Adventures, Rich stepped in and rode over to Wayne's to pick up the fan. Both of these men are utter gentlemen and with out them, we would have been stumped. So huge thanks to them both. 

So with the bikes sorted, we hit the road and headed North...

Beth and Mummy

Jayne meets long time hero, Vlad the Impaler...

Then as we left Tintern on the way home, Carol discovered that during all of her work, she had not adjusted her head light correctly. Oops, but it was a simple fix... until her bike over heated once again and spewed coolant all over the road. So we stopped for a short break and took in the fabulous view that we could see in the dark, in the woods on the edge of Newport.

Finally, with Noreen fixed once again, we hit the road, quite literally in the case of Beth when Sylvie dropped down an unmarked bump in the road and hurt her ribs. Cue another pain relief stop in Oarst services. Damn that place is shit. 

Three numb arses and one case of sore ribs later...

Finally at just after midnight, we rolled up the hill and home. I dropped Sylvie back in the garage and as we were locking up the bikes Alex came back and told us that we were locked out. The front door was locked from the inside. Fortunately it turned out that he was just so tired, he forgot that the door has two locks! Bed that night was welcoming for us all and after two hundred miles of riding Jayne's shoulders were completely ruined, her hands no longer worked and just keeping her eyes open as she took off her leathers was a challenge! 

This was Beth and Alex's first Curious Adventure together, just as it was Pauly and Alex's first Curious Adventure too. A month of firsts and a month spent with some of the most beautiful people I could ever ask to be with. After many years of wanting, I have the family I always wanted and I could not be happier.

A huge thank you list this month and in no particular order

Alex - for being so much fun and the perfect son

Beth - For being so lovely and the perfect daughter

Pauly - For being the brother every sister wishes for

Rich - For going beyond the call of duty and being a true friend

Wayne - for being a fountain of knowledge and so kind

Finally, I want to thank my beautiful Carol, the woman who has given me so much over the years, so much love and happiness, the family I always wanted and the partner who makes Curious Adventures so much fun. Thank you my family, I love you all.

What do you have to do to get five years?

You have to be some pretty nasty things to warrant serving five years in prison, yet my Darling Carol has just served five years with me! This week we celebrated five years of our glorious and somewhat curious adventures together. Five years... In five years you can fly to another planet in our solar system, you can breed lots of cats and in prison you can be raped one thousand, eight hundred and twenty five times! In five years you can eat five thousand four hundred seventy five meals, you can also expect to go for a dump at least two hundred and sixty times (that is once a week for those of you who are trying to work out why so little!). Five years is sixty monthly pay packets.

Five years is how long Carol and I have shared our lives together, had many adventures and shared many kisses. They have been five of the happiest years I have ever had, not bad for some one who is very nearly thirty ten! (I refuse to admit that I am forty this year, because forty is old and I am not old, I still crave lego!)

I was working on my precious motorcycle today, changing oil, filters and plugs when it occurred to me that I was lonely as I worked alone on the garage, away from Carol. Funny how the little tasks that we often do together are so much less fun when we do them on our own.

So after five happy years, I am sat here hoping for another five happy years and then ten more happy years after that.

Our secret for happiness though is simple. Always remember that as a couple you are not stuck together, you choose to be together. Occasionally sit back and look at your partner and see why you love them as they interact with other people in the pub. But most importantly of all, never make them a prisoner, always set them free. A person who is free will stay where they wish to be and love who they wish to love.

Bye bye for now folks, I have a wifey to cuddle.

Even in fancy dress, she still looks fab.

The truth is out there

As many of you will know, Weston's Grand Pier burned down a couple of years ago and the cause of the fire had local people gossiping. Well Carol and Rich found footage of what caused it to happen.

You saw it here first folks. 

Death Trap Mk III The Movie

Well, you could say that it works, the grin factor alone is worth all of the confused looks I get while riding the thing. So here she is in all of her splendor. Death Trap Mk III.

I owe a huge debt of thanks to the man who welded the frame, Biker Rock Radio's Mr G. Nothing has snapped yet despite crashing it up curbs and through potholes. So if he can weld up something that I can't break, you know that he is good.

If you like the music, then check out the bands who provided it. Both pieces of music just fitted so well with the project.

The first song I believe in Anarchy is by a very good Punk Band called the Tantrums, who we are lucky enough to know a couple of the guys from. You have to love the anarchic spirit of the music, just as you have to love the anarchic way we built this mad machine.

The second piece of music, Fools is by multi-instrumentalist Chris Walker and believe it or not he plays every instrument you hear in the piece. Not only that but he writes the music too. They guy is seriously talented.

The Tantrums

Chris Walker 

WTF! Two wheels, pedals and a sun lounger!

There is a time when art and engineering combine into making a beautiful machine and then there are times when humour and engineering combine to make something that just forces the artists to laugh!

Firstly before we get into this story there are a couple of people I need to mention. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Biker Rock Radio DJ and fabulous Welder, Mr G. It was Mr G who has spent several hours of his time making this ludicrous machine for me. I also owe a debt of thanks to our friend Wayne who made the frame for Death Trap Mark One, a frame that sadly caused me to crash on the first ride!

So ladies and gentlemen, I now present Death Trap Mark Three!

It lives, my creation lives!

It even goes up hill!

The science behind this is simple; a recumbent bicycle is a very efficient way of propelling a human being around under their own power. They are more aerodynamic than a conventional bike and when covered with a full fairing can speed along at some very impressive speeds for a pedal powered machine. However you wont see that many of them in the mainstream for two reasons. Firstly learning how to ride one of these takes some doing and secondly, the officials who run cycle racing banned them from competitive use!

This machine is my attempt to get back into cycling because following some pretty heavy duty medical treatment, I am no longer able to ride my precious mountain bike as much as I would like. Because of this lack of cycling I have been stuck on motorbikes (which I love) or being a pedestrian (which I really do not enjoy).

We still have a couple of small issue to sort out, the front wheel has a speed wobble that makes the whole bike feel terribly unstable on sweeping corners and my cheap trainers slip off the pedals really badly. However, riding it is a riot and had me in fits of giggles. 

Going down hill!

Gareth the builder having a go.

Getting started is the hardest bit.

Death Trap Mark Three is on the road folks, so look out for us!

A list of thanks to the people who have helped by providing old bikes that I can chop up for spares.

Gareth the Welder.

Wayne the Motorcycle engineer.

Alex for giving me his push bike.

Pete at Bicycle Chain.

Steve and Sue at Bridge Motor Works.

Various People who have donated bikes.

Carol for ferrying me about to pick up bits and for bringing the bike home on top of her car.

"This is easy!" Two seconds before she fell off.

If anyone would like any welding work doing, Gareth is available and can weld almost anything. Do get in touch and I can pass his details on.

Good bye my friend

Today was the funeral of one of our friends, Heather. She was the sort of person who always had a kind word for every one she spoke to, she was gentle, kind and supportive and when we found out that she had passed away, it felt like a bright star had gone dark. She leaves behind five beautiful children and a partner all of whom must feel bereft.

It is hard to be happy at the loss of someone so lovely, but today her family and her friends including us celebrated her life as she would have wanted. Despite the joy that was spoken of her, the truth is that all of us present would have wanted to still have her there with us. 

There are no words that can stop the hurt that those who loved her must feel. We at Curious Adventures will miss you Heather, New Year at Scallys wont feel the same when you are not there.

Heather and Brains

I would guess you are now on the most curious adventure of them all now. Rest in peace dear Heather and our condolences go out to the family and friends of this kind and gentle woman.

Spring is coming and new life is breaking through the cold

Thank you for my friends

When I heard that one of my very closest friends had been involved in a car accident, my first thought was to her well being and hoping that she had not been hurt. Remembering back to when another dear friend of Curious Adventures had a nasty bike crash some time ago, my fears for dear Jan were somewhat serious. Fortunately Jan climbed from her ruined car almost unscathed, a miracle for which we are thankful.

So once she was home safe and wine had been drunk, we planned on how to retrieve the bits that she had been forced to leave in the knackered car. So last Monday I got my bike out of the garage and picked up Jan from her flat and we set out for the dealership that was assessing Jan’s car. After an hour we admitted defeat and stopped, pulling over into a safe place where Jan phoned the dealer. After a quick chat we rode home. The dealership had relocated from Weston Super Mare to Bristol. The rain had soaked us both.

On Tuesday I had a day with another dear friend which involved tasting Japanese fast food as a celebration of his Birthday. The evening passed joyously and upon my return home I pondered a trip to Bristol the following morning with Jan. I borrowed Carol’s Sat Nav unit and picked up Jan once again. This time we set out for Bristol, heading down the A370 towards the motorway. As we exited the roundabout and swooped into the sixty miles per hour speed limit I accelerated my precious Sylvie and we tore down the road towards the next roundabout, as our speed dropped we entered our lane and I brought the bike to a halt at the roundabout and waited for a safe moment to pull out. As we pulled away and curved into the corner the back tyre gave way and went completely flat. I managed to stop the bike safely and Jan and I were forced to push the bike to the safety of the side of the road.

Once parked safely in the supermarket car park, I phoned our friends Steve and Sue of Bridge Motor Works and requested a pick up and repair. Despite being swamped with work, Steve collected us in his fantastic works truck and loaded Sylvie into the back of the truck. She was carefully strapped down and Jan and I climbed into cab of Steve’s truck. We then unloaded from the truck once we had got back to Steve and Sue’s workshop. Sylvie was sat on a paddock stand and her back wheel removed, the hole was located and worryingly it was almost too large to repair. However we were lucky and Steve was able to patch us up. By the time we were ready to go again it had got too late and so we retired for the evening.

Jackie the dog, Sue & Steve our rescuers.

Thursday dawned bright and dry, so Jan and I decided to set out once again. The injury to my shoulder was now horribly painful due to the amount of exercise I had undertaken trying to ride my bike, so we decided to take Jan’s van. The engine purred into life and we prepared to go. I stepped out into the street and waved to Jan to back the van out. The gear box screamed and growled as she tried to get it into gear. The van resolutely refused to move, the clutch was completely unable to disengage the drive from the gear box making it impossible to change or even engage a gear. Defeated once again, we phoned Steve and Sue and arranged for the van to be picked up and repaired. This was after I spent two hours trying to adjust the clutch cable which was at the limit of its adjustment. That evening we retired to Scallys and played cards.

They are good Folks at Bridge Motors.

Friday dawned once again bright and sunny, a perfect spring morning and I was just about able to climb out of bed and climb into my bike gear. Jan was ready bright and early and finally we had run out of time, after Friday the car would be taken away and crushed. So once again we pulled Sylvie out of the garage, loaded up the tank bag and set off from Bristol. The pain in my arm, hand, shoulder and neck was horrible before we even passed the point of our puncture.

We passed over the motorway and descended onto the A370 to Congresbury, we had a lovely ride on quiet roads and I managed to keep just below the speed limit. Finally we hit the limits of Bristol and once again I pulled over to a quick rest and to switch on Carol’s Sat Nav. Once the Sat Nav was on, we promptly got lost and went in completely the wrong direction. After a hundred meters of travel, the small screen suddenly flipped as it worked out which direction we were moving in and by then it was too late to turn around, we were committed to a road of heavy traffic.

We stopped for another rest a short while later after nearly running a red light. The light had changed to amber as we approached and I had pulled on the brakes but with our momentum I had to pull a little harder, this made the bike dip her nose down and Jan slid forwards on her seat a little. As she slid forwards, she slid into me and I was pushed into the fuel tank, however we were still moving forward and I had to brake a little harder, which in turn caused Jan to slide a little harder into me! We stopped at the lights in fits of giggles and Jan readjusted her seating position!

Our break was in a lay by behind a resting coach, we spent a couple of minutes chatting as I rested my arm and shoulder before we remounted and set off once again. From there it was a few more minutes before we were pulling up outside the dealership. We parked up and wandered inside before being directed back outside and into the car park. Sat in the far corner was Jan’s Mazda, looking almost fine, yet as we drew closer I started to see the damage and was suddenly shocked and grateful for the safety of my friend.

One crunched car

The car was crooked, shorter on one side that it was on the other. The drivers door was staved in and firmly jammed closed. The drivers seat was stuck fast and would not move back or forward no matter how hard we pushed it. The rear door would not close due to the bent chassis and the drivers window would not fit in the door frame anymore. How Jan managed to avoid being hurt I just do not know and when she showed me how she had to crawl from the front to the rear of the car to exit though the left hand rear passenger door.

Jan and her protector

We cleaned out the car of the various things that gather in a car when it is used every day, empty bottles, a few biscuits and a duvet cover! We also found the few things that we needed like the CDs and the little mascots that we decorate our cars with. It was an emotional moment and then we climbed back onto Sylvie and headed our way back home.

In the day to day running of our lives do we ever think about those we hold dear to us? When I heard that one of my most beloved friends was in an accident, my response was of worry and fear. Seeing the car confirmed that I had been right to worry. On the way home I was thankful for the safety of my friend and when I needed a rest so we popped into see Wayne, another person I am thankful for.  

Be safe out there folks, the roads that we love can be a dangerous playground.