A growing dose of nerves....

[Blackbird]

Well, I've just washed the Blackbird and checked everything over for the umpteenth time and the stomach is just beginning to turn over as I start to think a bit more about next week :no:

Next Wednesday afternoon, I head off on my ownsome for the 1600 km ride down to Bluff to meet up with Mangell6 and Jantar for the start of the Southern Cross a week tomorrow. Bluff > Cape Reinga > East Cape > Cape Egmont, in 5 days with checkpoints that are only open for an hour, then ride home again. A total ride distance of around 6000 km. The physical and mental requirements of such a ride are just starting to hit home as I try and visualise the distances (and pain) on each leg. :whistle:

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:

[onearmedbandit]

On a Blackbird? Girls blouse!!!

[XTC]

Mmmm I'd like to be a girls blouse.......:o

[Wolf]

Well after riding back from Palmy on the LS400, I'd certainly be a bundle of nerves worrying about the pain if I were to contemplate that journey again on that bike...

[Blackbird]

Ummm... I've done the 24 hour 1000 miler ride on it and the low bars are a nightmare on the wrists - that's part of the worry :yes:

[SPman]

Mmmm I'd like to be a girls blouse.......:o

Prevert!


Which girl?

[Kickaha]

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:

Definitely a " big" girls blouse :msn-wink:

Call in on the way down or back if you get time,phone number is in my user notes

I did this run back in 93 or 94 on my Darmah and I didn't find it to hard going,athough I think we had an extra day,longest day was about 800km in that one and 5500km for the week,you'll love it :niceone:

[James Deuce]

Well, I've just washed the Blackbird and checked everything over for the umpteenth time and the stomach is just beginning to turn over as I start to think a bit more about next week :no:

Next Wednesday afternoon, I head off on my ownsome for the 1600 km ride down to Bluff to meet up with Mangell6 and Jantar for the start of the Southern Cross a week tomorrow. Bluff > Cape Reinga > East Cape > Cape Egmont, in 5 days with checkpoints that are only open for an hour, then ride home again. A total ride distance of around 6000 km. The physical and mental requirements of such a ride are just starting to hit home as I try and visualise the distances (and pain) on each leg. :whistle:

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:

You'll be fine! You have "maturity" on your side, and that hard little bastard Mangell6 to make sure things run to plan. (Don't tell him I said that!)

[Teflon]

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:

Yes, i have to plain fuel stops. I'll be lucky to get 130k's out of a tank. Too many times i've hit reserve and wonder how many k's away is the next petrol station.

[Legolas]

A few years ago I was invited to Bruntingthorpe test track by Ride magazine. The plan was to test my carbed Blackbird against the injected version and the Suzuki Hyabusa.
By the time I arrived at Bruntingthorpe I had worked myself into a right frenzey and nearly turned round and came home again.
Glad I didn't. I had a real blast riding the three bikes. The nerves soon turned to excitment and I had a great day.

Don't worry Geoff. I'm sure you'll be fine once you get going. At least you know what to expect.

Steve.

[Blackbird]

Hey Steve :niceone:

So how did you go with the others???

Went and bought possum fur socks today, an icebreaker merino undershirt and a silk balaclava. Super thin and apparently leave polyprops and fleece for dead.

Must go - super 12 rugby is on!

Cheers

Geoff

[dangerous]

Next Wednesday afternoon, I head off on my ownsome for the 1600 km ride down to Bluff to meet up with Mangell6 and Jantar for the start of the Southern Cross a week tomorrow.

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:

Mate, have a sweet time aye sounds like a mission tho, but the Birds the bike for it.
re: nerves man I get like that even before a small ride, a pain in the ass but once on the bike it turns to shere injoyment.




Call in on the way down or back if you get time,phone number is in my user notes
same goes here aye besides you guys will have to pass within 5m of my joint so need a rest the ass or a coffee, giz a ring. :ride:

[Skyryder]

What's with this southern Cross thing. One hour check points etc.

Skyryder

[Kickaha]

What's with this southern Cross thing. One hour check points etc.

Skyryder

Just a little ride thse guys organise http://www.rustynuts.co.nz/default.aspx?PageID=40

[Zed]

A total ride distance of around 6000 km. The physical and mental requirements of such a ride are just starting to hit home as I try and visualise the distances (and pain) on each leg. :whistle:

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:Have you got a custom seat on that 'Bird of yours Geoff? Or do you use a sheepskin cover or summat? Either way your journey will be quite an adventure indeed, hopefully a reasonably comfortable one.

Have fun, be safe, stay warm, return home and post report and pics! :niceone:

[idb]

Do other people get a mix of nerves and excitement before a big ride or am I just being a girl's blouse? :laugh:
Yep!
5678910

[Big Dave]

Harden up and enjoy it.

[Blackbird]

Hi Matthew - yep got one of the McDonald Rider seats specially for the ride and it's fantastic. Now have a custom sheepskin tailored for a bird seat free to a good home. Thanks for the good wishes. All the Chch guys - thanks for the kind offers. Dinner with daughter might preclude a meet-up (I'd hate to upset her, she's scary when riled, haha).

Big D - I always enjoy the long rides when I'm on them. Just getting nervous as I haven't done this one before! Those one hour checkpoints are a bastard if anything goes pear-shaped :yes:

[Big Dave]

So control what you can, prepare as best you can and relax - stress is just a waste of energy.
roll with it and have a great ride :Punk:

[Bob]

A few years ago I was invited to Bruntingthorpe test track by Ride magazine. The plan was to test my carbed Blackbird against the injected version and the Suzuki Hyabusa.
By the time I arrived at Bruntingthorpe I had worked myself into a right frenzey and nearly turned round and came home again.
Glad I didn't. I had a real blast riding the three bikes. The nerves soon turned to excitment and I had a great day.

Don't worry Geoff. I'm sure you'll be fine once you get going. At least you know what to expect.

Steve.

Steve,

I think I remember that test - any idea which issue it was in?

(What am I saying, of course you'll know! Not like you do something like that every day!)

I used to have a full collection of RiDE, but I decided when we moved a few years back something had to go... so now I've just got something like the last three years worth (and Bike, and quite a few TWO's, not to mention all the UMGs and UBGs... only 'cause I'm in them...)

Blackbird,

If you weren't getting excited about going out for a ride - and especially a "bit of a voyage", I'd worry! If you've not undertaken this long ride before, then a few butterflies are understandable... but a lot of them will be the thrill of going off and just doing it, I reckon.

Personally, I get that little tingle of "I'm going for a ride" each and every time... and that includes the ride to work! I always take a few deep breaths and focus my mind before I set off on any ride.

[LB]

'
'
Congratulations on the new underwear BB. Hope it does the trick.

And you'll be fine - just remember that if it gets REALLY bad you have the choice to pull out (as it were).
'
'

[Sniper]

Good luck mate, a great rider such as yourself should breeze through it

[Legolas]

Originally posted by Blackbird.
So how did you go with the others???

Geoff.
The injected bird was similar to mine in ride and performance. The throttle response was better though. It also had stainless braided brake hoses all round and the brakes were definitely better than mine. I managed to lock the front brake at 150mph at the end of the straight and got a nice puff of smoke off the tyre.
I loved the Busa but it wasn't a feasible bike for me, as it didn't look comfortable for a passenger. It felt a lot lighter and smaller than the Bird and handled better too. Also went like the preverbial.
I learned a bit about me that day too. I found that I couldn't get passed 175mph on any of the bikes. At that speed I lost my peripheral vision and found it hard to register where the braking point was.
I think that the top speed through the timing lights that day was 184mph for Bird. Can’t remember what the Busa did.

Bob.
I think it was in the June or July 1998 isssue. I'll try and dig it out. I know I kept it.

[inlinefour]

I reciently did NP to Whangarei and back. Had to get off every so oftn for a bit of a run to get the blood flowing back to the important bits. However was a good way to get as one with my bike, don't tell it but it left me really wanting the fireblade :msn-wink:

[Blackbird]

Geoff.
The injected bird was similar to mine in ride and performance. The throttle response was better though. It also had stainless braided brake hoses all round and the brakes were definitely better than mine. I managed to lock the front brake at 150mph at the end of the straight and got a nice puff of smoke off the tyre.
I loved the Busa but it wasn't a feasible bike for me, as it didn't look comfortable for a passenger. It felt a lot lighter and smaller than the Bird and handled better too. Also went like the preverbial.
I learned a bit about me that day too. I found that I couldn't get passed 175mph on any of the bikes. At that speed I lost my peripheral vision and found it hard to register where the braking point was.
I think that the top speed through the timing lights that day was 184mph for Bird. Can’t remember what the Busa did.

Wow! what an awesome day :niceone: - no wonder you were crapping yourself! Funny, but on the only really fast run I've done on the 'bird (270 k's indicated), I lost my peripheral vision too as I was concentrating so hard about a km down the road for furry animals running out of the bush. It was like riding in a tunnel - weird! I guess that the more you do it, the more you get used to it. Russ and 1200 Pete went to B/thorpe on their 'birds and it was reported in a recent Performance Bikes. I think Pete got 195 mph on his big bore before he ran a piston :no:

Right, I'm off to do some gardening and packing!

Cheers Lynda - no courier delivery of possum underwear required!!! :msn-wink:

Geoff

[pritch]

Outside of a BMW RT/RS your bike is a bout as good a tool for the job as you could get.

Write us a report when you have recovered :-)

[Ixion]

Good luck, God speed, ride safe (though fast). And watch out for Mr Plod. :ride:

[Jantar]

No need for the nerves, I'm really looking forward to the ride.

I've planned for 600 - 800 km per day which should be quite comfortable. The only pain I'm expecting is in the legs as the seat on the GS1200SS doesn't allow for any movement at all. For that reason I'm planning on stopping and having a 5 minute walk every 2 hours or so. :D

[Jantar]

What's with this southern Cross thing. One hour check points etc.

Skyryder

Its not too late for you to join us... :yes:

[wkid_one]

Good luck - take heaps of pics and post them here!

[mangell6]

No need for the nerves, I'm really looking forward to the ride.

I've planned for 600 - 800 km per day which should be quite comfortable. The only pain I'm expecting is in the legs as the seat on the GS1200SS doesn't allow for any movement at all. For that reason I'm planning on stopping and having a 5 minute walk every 2 hours or so. :D

Hmm, nerves. Mrs M6 asked if I was nervous, replied that I would let her know on Friday.

At every gas stop I try and do stretching exercises, it was an article I read in the M'Cycle Consumer News a while back and I found that it has helped me.

And for those reading this thread, it is time for another adventure, when did you last have yours???

Mike :msn-wink:

[Blackbird]

Now I'm starting to visualise it, the nerves are settling down a bit. If you ask me on Wednesday and Sunday with horizontal snow in the air, it might be another matter, haha. I'm hanging on Jantar's predictions!

Good idea about stretching at gas stations. I also try to do them on the move so if you see me standing on the pegs and waving my bum about, don't get the wrong idea :msn-wink: Confession :whistle: : I've been visiting the company gym at lunchtimes in what I'm sure will be a futile attempt to reduce pain, particularly in the wrists.

You're right about everyone needing an adventure or a challenge from time to time when life is a bit too cosy or work is boring!

Catch you soon.

Geoff

[Hitcher]

Jammy bugger. I am so jealous. Would love to be doing the Southern Cross. It's a bugger about this working for a living gig and only four weeks annual leave...

Enjoy the ride and have a ball!

[Blackbird]

Hehehe :laugh:

I have close on 100 days owing. I get bollocked for having so much but when I try and do something about it, there's always "another little project" that needs to be done pronto - can't bloody win. Not this time though.....

Agree that working really gets in the way though. Intend to move to Coromandel in 3 years when I hit 60 and do consulting, fishing and riding in more or less equal measure (well, maybe not the consulting :D )

Geoff

[James Deuce]

Jammy bugger. I am so jealous. Would love to be doing the Southern Cross. It's a bugger about this working for a living gig and only four weeks annual leave...

Enjoy the ride and have a ball!

4 weeks! Luxury!

[Hitcher]

4 weeks! Luxury!
Oh yeah. I forgot to mention that there were eight of us living in a box in the middle of the road...

[dangerous]

At every gas stop I try and do stretching exercises, it was an article I read in the M'Cycle Consumer News a while back and I found that it has helped me.

And for those reading this thread, it is time for another adventure, when did you last have yours???

Mike :msn-wink:
Today Mike I had an adventure.... raced buckets for the very 1st time LOL, interesting it was.

As for ya stretching exercises if you guys fancy a stop in Belfast then txt me and I can meet ya at home for a coffee... have a bute time you guys.

[magnum]

good luck for the ride,have fun and b carefull :ride:

[Biff]

I vote girls blouse. But maybe you're just mistaking those nerves for pangs of excitement and intrigue.

The best bit of advice I was ever given before setting off on a trip of Europe once upon a year was, "If you forget everything else, always leave with a positive mental attitude."