MotoMania Column

This article appeared in The Inland Magazine - January 2007

Welcome to the ‘MotoMania’ column and welcome to 2007 which looks like being a good year for motorcycling.

The Tour and Track Motorcycle Club go’s from strength to strength with the Second Sunday Ride Outs becoming more popular each month. In December we rode out to Jativa and enjoyed some great riding, fantastic scenery and a mighty fine breakfast. For January we are planning a warmer coastal route. Meet up at Meson El Jardin in Castalla on 14th January.

Moto GP
Spain is the only country in the world to host more than one Moto GP competition. In fact Spain hosts three rounds of the Moto GP. This year the highest category of riders are changing from riding 990 cc bikes to 800 cc in what was supposed to be a move to increase safety and reduce speeds. In testing the 800 cc bikes, at the Valencian circuit, Dani Pedrosa has already beaten his times on the 990 Honda.

2007 looks as though it will be a very close competition and therefore very entertaining viewing. Tour and Track will be at a number of the events in Spain and Portugal. If you are interested in attending and sampling the brilliant atmosphere of these events get in touch.

So This Old Lady Decides She Wants To Buy My ST1300
Sumarised from Forty Years On Two Wheels Blog by Doug Klassen.
A 62 year old woman who is only about 5'5" tall and 125lb? Normally I would think that it was a bad idea to match up a gray haired lady with a 600lb ST but money's money, right?
In this case the bike went to my friend Gail who has just finished rolling up 200,000 miles on her 2000 Honda ST1100. Yup, that's 200,000 miles in 6 years. She does like to ride and I can tell you she's no slouch in the twisties either. Gail is proof that you're not old until you decide you are; you young (anyone under 50) whippersnappers remember that.By the way, I rode Gail's ST1100 a few weeks ago and with 202,000 miles on the odometer it still runs like well oiled sewing machine. I have to be honest and say the ST1100, even with mega miles on it, is probably 98% of what the next generation ST1300 is. If ever a bike was a testament to top notch Honda engines the ST series V4 is it.

See you next month.
Ray (687 206 908)
Tour and Track SL

NEXT MONTH: Thoughts on car drivers and motorbikes.

Twas The Ride Before Christmas

12 bikes and 14 bikers set off from Castalla for Jativa on Sunday 10th December. We arrived at Bocairent for breakfast and the temperature had soared to 1º!!

Emigration - 31 December 1988

Emigrating with my Pan European to Spain. Waved goodbye to Liz, my wife, Rosie, my daughter and Rita and Reg, Liz's Mam and Dad heading off for a new life in Castalla near Alicante in Spain. Liz and Rosie were flying down a couple of days later - no sense of adventure or wish to suffer hypothermia. Set off from Southport in the sunshine and reached the motorway in cloud. It didn't rain until I reached Oxford and the weather was reasonable considering the time of year.

I only made one stop on the journey down to Portsmouth and that was at a mind numbing motorway service station - god knows where, they all seem the same. Arrived early at the Brittany Ferries terminal and got talking to Nick, from Wigan, who was taking his Yamaha FZR400 to sell to his mate in Villajoyosa, that's one hell of a journey on a bike with a tiny sports seat. Nick has a 3 year old son but has recently split up with his girlfriend and is feeling down and hence he is making this trip to see his mate and take his mind off things.

Next.... 24 hours on the Ferry from Hell.

Motomania by Ray French

This article appeared in The Inland Magazine - December 2006

300 plus days of sun, fantastic and often un-cluttered roads and some of the best racing circuits in the World and what does that add up to? It adds up to a fantastic place to live and ride for motorcyclists.

Spain is without doubt one of the best places in the world to own and ride a motorcycle and the TnT (Tour and Track) Motorcycle Club have set out to make it even better by bringing together as many local and visiting motorcyclists as we can muster on the second Sunday of every month to “Ride Out” in the beautiful countryside of Spain. The club welcomes anyone with a motorbike be it Custom, Sports, Tourers, Trial or whatever.

On a glorious Sunday 8th October we organised two separate routes for off-roaders and tourers. Meeting up at Meson El Jardin Restaurant in Castalla the six off-roaders left for their mountain trek starting at the back of Onil and riding on past Ibi and round to Tibi before returning home, all via high mountain tracks. The report back is that it was challenging and breathtaking in more ways than one.

The seven tourers took a more sedate route up to the winding mountain pass, Carrasqueta, which leads down to Jijona. The views from the top of the pass are spectacular and you can see miles of mountains and down to the shimmering Mediterranean sea. Just before reaching Jijona we took the road for Torremanzanas and headed along great twisting roads up to Benifallim, Penaguila and stopping at Benasau to meet up with 50 more motorcyclists for almuerza (brunch).

Some of us went for the full special which set you up for the rest of the day while those with lunch dates or for health reasons stuck to the toast. The service was friendly and efficient and the food delicious.

The route back to Castalla took in Benilloba and then back down to the autovia and home. Both groups had a great morning out and have agreed to come back on the 12th of November for Tour and Tracks “SECOND SUNDAY RIDE OUT”.

Note: Between the time of writing this article and the time of publishing we have been on the 12th November 2nd Second Sunday Ride Out to Pinoso and an impromptu Ride Out on 19th November because those attending on the 12th enjoyed it so much. The 19th of November was a round trip to Agres with a stop of for almuerza in Bocairent and saw an equal number of Spanish and British riders. The next Second Sunday Ride Out will be on 10th December. At the 2 November events there were a number of classic bikes and we are due to visit the owners collections over the next few months.

TnT Club has been formed by Tour and Track SL which is a company, based in Castalla, offering everything motorcycle. Among the many services that we offer are:

· Guided motorcycle tours from half days to two week holidays.
· Track day training on racing circuits for everyone from beginners to experts.
· Motorcycle clothing.
· Motorcycle accessories and spares including GPS.
· New and used motorcycles at great prices. We can find the bike of your choice.
· Motorcycle hire – fancy a day or a week on a Harley?
· Motorcycle maintenance.
· Moto GP and Superbike tickets, transport and accommodation.
· Corporate/Club incentive days at locations including the Cheste Circuit in Valencia.

For more details of the Second Sunday Ride Out take a look at our web http://www.tourandtrack.com/ or call Ray on 687 206 908.

Agres Round Trip - 19 Nov 2006

8 of the 10 bikes out for the morning run. My Pan European is blocking out the beautiful Morini 3 1/2.

TnT Club Page on GroupRider

2nd Second Sunday Ride Out - 12 Nov 2006

Midway break for coffee in Pinoso.

Moto GP Valencia - 2006

Did you see Troy Bayliss? Friggin great!!

The First 2nd Sunday Ride Out??

Thirteen people turned up for Octobers Ride Out with 6 going of on trail bikes in to the mountains and 7 taking a road route. For the road riders it was a great morning with plenty of twisties and panoramic views with a break for brunch at Benasau.

The trailies took a route around the mountains surrounding the 'Foia de Castalla' and reported back on a very tiring, exciting and beautiful tour.

The Second Second Sunday Ride Out takes place on Sunday 12th November - Come along and you'll be welcome.

2nd Sunday Ride Out

Starting on 8th October 2006 the Tour and Track Club Second Sunday Ride Out will, as the name suggests, start a series of motorcycle Ride Out's. We start off from El Jardin Restaurant in Castalla, Alicante at 9am on the Second Sunday of each month.

First 5 to turn up get an exclusive Tour and Track T-shirt - cor blimey!

For more details ring Ray on 687 206 908 or e-mail him at ray@tourandtrack.com.

Mountain Quad Trip

A trip to the top of the mountains around Castalla on quads.

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 ....