Track Day - December 2005 - Cartagena

Moto GP Valencia - 2005

I went to the motorcycle GP in Valencia a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed it. It was the last one of the year and Rossi had already won the championship. You can check out the details at the MotoGP site here. The atmosphere was fantastic over the whole weekend and very friendly. On the Saturday night, outside Cheste Town Hall, the Movistar teams set fire to a falla (a wax and wood statue copied from the famous Valencian fallas) of themselves.
The day of the races, Sunday, saw the Cheste track filled to capacity.

Motorcycle Touring - 1

I've been touring around Spain on my various motor bikes for about 20 years or more. What I've liked about that experience is the way you are made welcome wherever you go whether that's to a Parador, where the staff carry your tank bag and panniers to your room even though the bags are covered in the dust and crud of days of travelling, or a hostal with just enough room to fit the beds in and squeeze yourself and your bags in.

When I lived in England I used to travel down from Merseyside to one of the southern ports, more often than not Dover, and then carry on down through France over the Pyrenees and down in to Spain. Since I've been living and working in Spain I've done less touring on the bike and more in the car, which is a shame because Southern Spain has the ideal climate for bikers most of the year round. The main reason for the car journeys is that I can't stand the idea of using a sidecar although my daughter might enjoy it. Unfortunately you can't legally take three on the bike.

Anyway I'm going to attempt to resusitate my failing memory and recall, with the aid of notes and my wifes more numerous brain cells, some of those trips and the stories around them. Stay tuned ....