July 2025

 

July 2025

 

The third Tuesday of the month is the LE Club night. It was just me and Anthony or was it June? I now have to write things down or I forget when I do things.  Anthony has newly passed his test for a big bike and it was opportune to discuss riding techniques. I was horrified at him being told not to use his front brake. I recounted an incident I saw in Delhi where I saw a guy desperately trying to stop on back brake only and promptly collided with a car ripping its front bumper off as he failed to control his skid. Tossing himself and his passenger into the middle of the road. Totally avoidable, had he known how to use his front brake he would have stopped in good time and avoided an incident. My advice to Anthony was to practice using the front brake. I question the training practices of some of those who are trying to make competent riders. After passing on some of my knowledge we parted with Anthony having to great deal to digest.

July started on the Tuesday. The first Sunday of the month is Observed Sunday with the Wey Valley Advanced Riders. It is also Bike Day at Brooklands. I spend the morning at the shop and leave early to join the Wey Valley stand at Brooklands. There were lots of road closures around Cobham and messed up my route to Brooklands. It took me ages to get across Weybridge and finally to Brooklands. When I got there the test hill was being used so I could not get to the Wey Valley stand straight away having to wait for everyone to go up the hill. I was great to see the junior trials club taking turns in blasting up the hill. What an event to be at for those kids!

As the stand is to encourage new members I talked to many people, but I am not sure if my talking achieved the objective. I went off to find some food and found old friends and colleagues. Before I got anywhere I got asked a question “Do you remember me?” If someone is out of place it takes a little while to recognise them. A biker a bike event it is almost instantaneous but someone who is not normally associated with bikes takes a bit longer. It was Cammie who I had worked with at Ashford before moving to Hillingdon. “I catch up after I’ve eaten”. She was on the Junior Trials Stand doing her bit for that club. I was well past one and there was limited choice. I ended up with a burger. While waiting for it to be cooked I was accosted by a mobility scooter with a familiar face. It was Steve a former member of the LE Club. We exchanged Covid medical history and complained of the damage the vaccine had done to us. From fitness to invalid in a few short years. He said he would come to a club night soon. It started to rain and we both headed for cover but in different directions.

Junoir trials course behind stands.

After the rain and most of the burger I went in search of Cammie. I continued to eat my burger while doing catch-up. She had a new life with a ten year old son. A family keen on motorcycles. The young lad was in the group doing the test hill when I arrived. What an introduction to Brooklands! We spent an hour talking when I realised I should be back on the  Wey Valley stand. No sooner I was back there Phil from the LE Club stopped by. He was on his way tom find John, also a Club member, on the Royal Enfield stand. At the end of the day everything from the display was packed in our van by the time I was ready the heavens opened and I took shelter in the Cambell garage until it stopped. Just to keep me dry I wore my waterproof two piece bike suit I bought from Lidls. A £25 bargain to replace the useless one I used in India earlier in the year.

July was the time to see my dentist. A crown to repair a broken tooth and an extraction to remove a broken tooth that could not be repaired. I got a job lot over three  appointments and I suffered for it. The first appointment was preparation for the broken tooth. Just a little anaesthetic outside of the gum and inside into the roof of my mouth. This injection was not that successful as more anaesthetic came out than went in. I swallowed most of it. The rest of the procedure was fine and I went home feeling OK. The next morning when I woke I was feeling a bit off and when I tried to speak I could not string two words together and I had numbness in my face. Gita phoned for an ambulance. Have I had a stroke? The ambulance arrived then I was duly carted off to Northwick Park hospital to be checked by the Stroke Unit. I spent all day waiting to be assessed. At around 10:30 after many tests it was announced that I had not had a stroke and could go home. It was also LE Club night that I missed. I know where I would rather have been. I still do not know what caused the episode. A few days later I had a wisdom tooth out. No real problem except for pain and I took antibiotics to get that under control. A week later I had the crown fitted and that was OK post anaesthetic. The only real problem is with the anaesthetic in that it affects me for three or four days making me feel lethargic. After this episode I did a little investigating and found the method of clearance is via the blood and liver. To clear it from the body it requires to get into the blood stream first. A number of unanswered questions arise among them are how does the anaesthetic react with stomach acid? How is it absorbed and where? What does it do if it is in the wrong place? Your answers on a post card please?

Drawing

                           Reality                                     

In spite of these hindrances I have done lots of tidying up in the garden moving plant and stands around and doing an interesting plant stand from two folding chairs replacing an old cat ladder. I have replaced the downstairs extractor fan that stopped working and changed the kitchen sink from a modern material cast one to a conventional double bowl stainless steel one over a couple of days. With the help of plumbers' grease and silicone sealant gaps were filled and leaks cured. After this month I wait to experience the delights of August.

 

June 2025 Second Half

 

June 2025

Second Half

Too much going on in June to get it into one posting when I catalogued it. The third Tuesday of the month is the LE Club night held at The Land of Liberty, Peace and Plenty. It is a traditional pub with traditional beers and a member of CAMRA. I have only once been able to sample the delights of the ales. All the other times I have been riding or driving and do not imbibe. It was a special evening as I was eager to get feedback from Anthony about some of the advanced riding techniques we had discussed at the last club meeting. It was gratifying to hear that he had taken things on board and saw the advantages using them in his riding. Although not an Observer it is good to relate to people and pass on my information.

Having got the MOT o the Burton and discovering the braking problem it was time to deal with it. I had about two weeks to fix it. I removed the disc pad and discovered some brake fluid behind the pad. I ordered new seals and pads from ECAS that arrived in a few days. In between I removed the calliper, which was difficult, having to jack up the car and using a torque wrench to loosen the bolts from underneath. It really needed more flexibility than my body wanted to give but managed it with the  bolts screaming in the  process of being undone.

 As I had already replaced the seals on the callipers for the van project I pulled them from storage and fitted one to replace the one that was leaking. I had real problems with the hand brake mechanism. The inner lever fitted fine but the outer one would have the correct adjustment but as the main securing bolt was tightened the adjustment disappeared and the pad would lock up the disc. A problem I had to sleep on. When I inspected the original hand brake pad it had worn at an angle. I is all supposed to be parallel. The lever was out of shape putting uneven pressure on the pad and was never going to sit properly. Exchanging it for a better one it took only a morning to get it working and just in time for the French car day at Blackbushe airport near Blackwater. I took it to Tesco to do brake tests in the car park before filling up with petrol ready for our Sunday outing. It was an outing and Gita came along. I used the same coordinates as the last French Car meeting at Blackbushe. At the point of getting off the M3  but thereafter it was not the same route. Tom reroutes you to avoid traffic. Not only did it do that it took us to a different destination. Another case of technology failure. Why me? I reprogrammed it and it took us there but not without drama on the way. Just before the airport we were faced with a blockade of police cars. It was the final stages of a chase and there were two cars and a number of people detained. When the operation was finished the police cars moved and we were allowed to continue. The car meeting was from 9 to 12. We had left at ten anticipated arrival eleven. Tom’s misrouting and correction meant we arrived at 11:40 just in time to be part of the meeting. Parked together in a grassed area there was lots of chatting and photograph taking before we went to the cafe for an all day breakfast.

The next weekend we were in Chipping Sodbury for the Rotary Club Classic Car run for the third time hoping for a less eventful run from last year when the battery died on the Burton. Another early start to join the other entrants to be waved off by the Chairman of the Rotary Club. Joining the throng of people who had come to see the show in the High Street.

Courtesy of Mike on Facebook

 I wandered around to see the other entrants and saw two sidecar outfits. One was a modern Triumph, a very pretty set up,  and the other was a Dneiper. This was a nostalgic moment as it was close to the Ural outfit with a Dneiper sidecar. A bike that I had for twenty-six years before I moved and London traffic made using it a nightmare. I did get more information for Pikaloo about Sunbeam parts. Stuart Engineering Sunbeam has a parts website and the parts needed to get it running again.

 After a bacon sandwich and our start number approaching Gita and I were back in the Burton. Our mission today was to go in convoy to the half way stage and then return directly to enjoy the entertainment. Our line up was Torr and wife Trudy in the Jaguar, Adrian and Barry in the Dolly and me and Gita in the Burton. 

We lost contact straight away but I soon caught up with Adrian and it took a bit longer to catch Torr. I did have a little problem in that due to the work I had done on the Burton I had disturbed the retaining grommet on the throttle cable and  suddenly at a junction I had no throttle to pull away. A quick pull on the choke to give enough throttle to limp to a place I could stop and jump out to relocate the throttle cable and we were on our way again. Now in convoy we had 2CV’s that handled the narrow country lanes well. Torr not so fortunate in the Jaguar. 

Overall it was a nice outing on country lanes before our stop at Doughty Sports Club for tea and a piece of cherry cake. It had taken about two hours to do this forty-five mile leg and to return by the main roads took only an hour. We were back by two and had the last chorus from the Ladies Rock Choir from the first act of entertainment. I missed that one as there was so much interest in the Burton at the start, at the sports club and at the finish. A ploughman’s during the afternoon completed our day out in the sunshine enjoyed by all.

June 2025 First Half

 

June 2025

Glorious June has allot to offer, long days, balmy evenings and motorcycle gear to be cooked in. Time to be out and about but for me it has been a time of aches and pains looking at jobs that need to be done and not being able to do them but I have managed to do some. As usual I was at the Wey Valley Advanced Motorcyclists Observed Sunday for the shop and to take photo to record the event.

 It was also a special day as we are to inspect the alternative meeting place for Observed Sunday and the club base. It was Normandy village hall, much like Cobham with space to put our club storage sheds. This was a decent run from Cobham after closing the shop we had a convoy of three bikes. Me in the middle of John leading and Piers making sure I didn’t get lost. It was a busy run with detours to miss the traffic  to get on the A3 then  a blast down the A3 beyond Guildford taking the Puttenham turn off and wiggling our way to Normandy. The plan for the day for Observed rides was to depart from Cobham and finish with debrief in Normandy giving everyone a chance to see the possible new venue and enjoy more less restricted riding. 

There are allot of speed restrictions in the Cobham area and the grip of the Council by residents to reduce speed limits is increasing with the volume of traffic I feel that any advantage gained by being farther away from large towns will be short lived. I see the challenge for the Club in how to do progressive riding with these restrictions. It is also an interesting place having lots of parking and a cafe on site for other meetings.

 

I took lots of photos then made my way home via the Hogs Back. The A3 junction on the M25 was a nightmare and I hope the road works will soon be completed with the slip road not having traffic lights but I feel that may be too much for the planers.

The water at home has become almost unpalatable to drink. It smells so strongly of chlorine and has a very brackish flavour. Affinity is not doing a very good job for its customers. Privatisation was supposed to give us a choice. We have no alternatives with water and sewage and no control as there is poor investment and disregard for pollution they generate. What I have had to do is fit a water filter to the cold tap inlet side to get round this. It was easy enough to fit and the result was chlorine free water that no longer tastes of chateau sewage. The water has a lighter feel and is nice to drink. Success for me, I even feel better.

At the same time the tap was dripping. Was it hot or cold. The filter decided it. I replaced the hot side cartridge some time ago and the repair kit included the cold cartridge. I just had to fit it. That did not take that long except for removing the lime scale on the inside and outside to clean up the screw treads.

Other than greasing the kingpins and drive shafts and checking the lights worked on the   Burton I did nothing for the MOT. Always fraught as I have to pay ULEZ on it I set up the auto pay for it. I set it up to cover going away when I know it would be difficult to pay. This has its downside in any registration clocked with a G I get charged for. I get refunds but I feel I am persecuted by TFL for having a non compliant car. So much so when not taxed I remove it from the auto pay system. The Burton passed and good for another year. On the way home it had the feel of pulling to the left. This needed investigating. I had other things to do with my garden fence that was disintegrating and arranged with my neighbour to get it done. The preferred supplier had delivery problems in that their lorry had to have remedial works carried out and no orders were taken until it was back in action. It was delayed for three weeks. My neighbour did the appropriate cutting to size, painting and arranged with his brother-in-law to fit them. I would only have to refit the trellises and resecure the plants and shrubs. I agreed to dispose of the old fence panels. Trellises had suffered too and I had to buy two new ones. One I managed to carry from B&Q. It was not good quality so for the larger one a trip to a garden centre was needed. I measured up the car and no matter what I did it was not going to fit. So it was cut in half and it did fit. Cutting it with the saw I had brought specifically for this purpose. Gluing it back together when I got home. 

 Breaking the old panels down was easy enough, any rotten pieces of wood would be disposed of by burning in my chimenea. That was a good idea until picking it up was too much for it and it broke in the middle. Another repair job. It had three plates and six screws hold it together had rusted away. I only had that to do to  restore it. I made the three plates and drilled them. I had to drill out the existing screws as they were rusted in. I had 6mm nuts and bolts in my store of things and within an hour or so the chimenea was ready for action.

We had a plea from our daughter Ivy for baby sitting on a Friday. We went by tube and train to Hackney. The journey took about one and a half hours. Just as quick as the car but less stressful. While there I assembled the bench I had repaired the sides for. A quick, but awkward job of securing ten bolts and wood screws. Assembled it was stronger than ever. There is still half the month to enjoy.

May 2025

 

May 2025

 

It has been a busy month with so much going on in between hospital appointments and visits to the dentist it has been difficult to keep up. It was added to by Gita finally having her cataract done and me being chief cook and bottle washer for a couple of weeks. It has been a motorcycling month starting with Observed Sunday not feeling quite right I went in the car even though I had prepared the Kawasaki in readiness.

 After making an effort to get up to date with the Blog I still felt it had got away from me a bit. I had been requested to do a presentation by Louise the Wey Valley Club social events secretary to do a presentation about my ride to Arunachal. A chance to share pictures and videos of the mud bath endured on the trip. It was a 1000km challenge and was a fete of endurance.

 A few days later a group from the LE club visited Sammy Millers Motorcycle Museum. A real treat with the new facilities adding to the experience. Reminding me just how much I miss the passing of the London Motorcycle Museum. We were there until they closed.

 Magic. That was the Thursday. Friday I prepared for the Kempton Park Bike Show,  built the trailer and loaded the Valiant and prepared the stand for the show. Saturday was show time and as usual the interest in the Valiant  was good meeting new club members and owners of Valiants all wanting technical assistance Even notable motorcycle journalist, Denis Frost paid us a visit. Talking about your bikes is what it is about but being the Wey Valley Advanced Motorcyclists stand there were few takers for becoming advanced motor cyclists.  I did not go to the LE Club National Rally on the Sunday although it would have been great to go I ran out of steam to drive for four hours in the car for a day out.

A few days later was the 75^th anniversary of the first LE Club run. This was to Newlands Corner. We arranged a club meet up from 11am. Being mid week only five people turned up. A couple together on their LE, and I can’t remember their names, John on his Valiant. Me on the Kawasaki and Anthony on his Honda. Even so it was a very enjoyable outing in the sun.

The following week was the Wey Valley AGM . I go to support the Club and vote for the candidates  that give their willingly to make it such a thriving club. It was a nice evening made even nicer as I rode the Kawasaki in warm conditions for the first time this year.

The sun continued as I did a repair job on a garden seat for my daughter. It came to me as a bundle of sticks and returned as varnished completed ends of a garden seat. A masterpiece in glue and screws. Amit , our son came over and helped me out replacing my 15 year old note book with a modern Chromebook. I have a presentation to do for Wey Valley and with a week to go modern technology has left me and my notebook behind. My version of Powerpoint is not supported anymore and the connectors for a projector are just as archaic.

Perhaps it is time to update but my notebook has been round the world supporting my holidays and adventures in my retirement along with numerous articles. It suits me but I will keep you posted with how my new piece of kit fulfils that role.

It was not until the day I was able to test out the presentation when I found some of the videos I wanted to use would not play because they were the wrong format. They would play on the laptop but not in the presentation.  I replaced the videos with pictures taken from the videos and had the videos on the desk top to be ready to play. I did the presentation at the club night and it was well received. There were a few glitches where things did not work as they should even my 20 year old laser pointer failed to co-operate and some slides did not play but as no one knew of them it did not really matter. As Gita was not able to attend I did a video for her and if you want to relive the night follow the link to You Tube

https://youtu.be/BpYC1u6Xdng?si=-2Bmxs59uXCvV2Qs

It is about one and a half hours and in mirror view.

 

April 2025

 

April 2025

 

Just back from another visit to India and documented in March 2025 postings. The highlight for ma was the 1000km bike to Arunachal Pradesh. I would not say riding for three days in the rain and mud enjoyable. It was an experience and an achievement at being the oldest man on a motorcycle to do that journey and can be seen by looking at jungle_jatri on the internet. Back to more mundane things and the Wey Valley Observed Sunday and barbeque not becoming an annual celebratory event for the club. It was a cold wind but the sun was shining making it reasonably pleasant to sit outside. I went on the Kawasaki testing out the saddlebags and discovered how wide the bike had become. Something to work on.

I did a little fettling over the next few days with the mounting brackets and gave the El Cid a once over for the trip to Bristol over Easter. Staying with my brother Adrian with the plan of going to the 2CV National Rally held at Martha’s Down near Salisbury in convoy. It is a good flat camp site albeit on the top of a hill which means it is open to the weather and can be cold and windy. On the way to Bristol I could smell oil and when the oil light came on it was panic time. I stopped on junction 17 slip road of the M4 and threw what oil I had in the engine. Continuing on to Leigh Delamare services a mile away I bought more oil and topped up the sump. Only fourteen miles to go I coaxed the car along just getting to Adrian’s when the oil light came on again. I breathed a sigh of relief arriving with the engine intact. But what was the problem? Oil appeared to be coming from the rocker box seal. An easy job if that was all it was.

Good Friday was a trip into Bristol by bus to visit the Old Duke for jazz. That was pre Covid now instead of every day it is twice a week  and not today so we headed to Weatherspoons for cheap beer and food It was raining most of the day and retired to Adrian’s for a takeaway. Barry, my eldest brother, came over for a bit of a reunion.

Saturday was another dismal day. We managed to find a car accessory shop open in Chipping Sodbury and bought oil and gasket sealant. When the weather cleared in the afternoon it was time to tackle the job. The El Cid parked on Adrian’s drive blocking his garage. Nice to work on but he would not be able to use his Dolly until the job was done. Front off to gain access to the heat cowlings and reveal the oil pipes to the cylinder heads. This showed the main cause of the oil leak. The oil pipe had broken next to the union on the left cylinder head. We did try to silver solder it but we could not get the silver solder to stick. Abandoning that , Adrian retired to a safe distance while I dismantled and removed the fan and the housing  to get to the oil pipe running between the heads. Oil pipe removed it was time to stop and get cleaned up for the evening.

Sunday  was our day to visit Martha’s Down and the 2CV National Rally. With our convoy left on the drive and in the garage we went in the Picasso. At the rally there was the meeting of old friends and ECAS to buy the spares I needed. There was a really nice selection of cars and vans to look around and talk to their owners. It was cold again and we left early along with many people decamping to go home. One time I will stay long enough to enjoy the evening’s entertainment, but not this year.

Monday was another rainy morning and I had to wait for the sun to come out to start the repair.  Fitting the oil pipe the copper washers were annealed by Adrian  to make the sealing easier and for the banjo bolts to bite. Filled with oil the engine started to test for leaks. A successful job. While things were apart the oil cooler needed a clean and so did most of the engine bay to remove the oil that had been distributed. Much engine cleaner and a spray bottle to get the cleaner into where it was needed. Even requiring a brush to get the muck off the oil cooler. That had not been done for years. When we were happy it was clean enough the fan cowling was fitted then the fan, fan belt and finally the front of the car. A successful test drive and we were ready for my journey home.

Tuesday return home with a stop at Membury on the M4 to check oil. There was something below the left cylinder on the chassis. I wiped it off and continued. There was some when I got home but no discernable change in oil level. A few days later I checked the oil level and engine bay and it was all clean. Job OK and no more work to do.

March 2025 Part 3 Finale part 2

 

March 2025

Part 3 Finale Part 2

Returning to Guwahati, the main city of Assam, was to be quite busy. Staying at the India Club was a central location for us to meet up with old friends. Joonjyoti had arranged for us to join up with a ladies group on holiday from Nepal who were celebrating two birthdays that day. They were ladies who were at school together and have remained friends even though a few have emigrated to America. Two of them had husbands and sons interested in my cars and bikes that helped to make a very interesting celebration along with the champagne and birthday cake. Joonjyoti being the excellent host he is arranged the venue, music, cake, champagne and transport to bring them to the club. What a group of ladies!

The next day we were whisked away by taxi to a Homestay location to be part of a comedy show. All arranged by Lakhu, Chinmoy’s sister, and TV presenter with  writer, director, actor Nisha Kalita. It took all day to do the shooting and went well into the evening. We did have to rerecord the vocals again as they were not good enough live. That was done the next evening at Deepa’s flat. The video appeared about two weeks later.

In You Tube type

Bihu Main Season 3 Nisha Kalita Comedy series

I had a meeting with Pikoloo Deka  while he was visiting Guwahati and good to reminisce and talk about the future of the Museum and received the plaque.

More efforts from Lakhu as we were taken to News Desk 24, ND24, for a joint interview. We were interviewed for over an hour and with lots of clips from our trip to Arunachal. The interview was published within two days under ND24 #tag interviews. Hosted by Manash Pratim Deka

In YouTube type this into the search box

lovestory#assam#britain#manashpratimdeka

Not to be outdone  by ND24 another TV company wanted an interview this was Asom 24 and it was done in Deepa’s living room, by Rajdeep Bailung. 

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1F1vc91wAU/

 

Your comments please.

Having spent much time doing these things  an afternoon talking to Joonjyoti about future plans for a road trip was refreshing. In a few days were back in Delhi rounding off the holiday with seeing Omar and Roma with lunch at the Momagolo in Khan Market for a pleasant lunch with good company.

I thought the last visit to India was busy but this was a different dimension with the number of diverse things we did. So what is next? I have been promised a bike trip to Megalaya another one of the “Seven Sisters” and once again up into the hills like Arunachal Pradesh. I’m told it will not be muddy or rainy. Something to look forward to.

March 25 Part 3 Finale 1

 

March 2025

Part 3 The Finale 1

What more had this holiday installed for us. So far an Indian wedding in two locations a one thousand kilometre bike ride and now we are heading off on our return journey to Delhi via some interesting places. First stop is the largest island in the Bramaphutra river. Mejuli. Feels remote. Isolated with sporadic villages and roadside stalls selling petrol in water bottles and where people gather. 

Cattle are frequent but mostly stay in the fields. Roads are mostly straight and are on causeways above the fields and clear of the flood plain. People on bicycles going where they need to go. Nothing much for distractions but the only ones obeying rules are cows. Everyone else it is a free for all meaning driving requires full concentration at all times and necessary low speeds making journeys no quick jaunt. The remoteness is a must for prayer and Mejuli has more than its’ fair share of temples and shrines.

 It is also a place for industry among the places visited were a handmade pottery  and a theatrical mask company. The masks are made big, people size or small, monkey head depending on the character represented and what is required or the performance or parade. All made from traditional materials. Clay and cow dung. It doesn’t smell. They look real even more so when parts move like the monkey head with a moving jaw.

We stayed overnight in a Government run hotel then escaped the island on an over-packed ferry. One where the cars drove on from the side and were parked as they arrived on deck. It was the most direct route to our next destination and a couple of nights in Kazeranga National Wildlife Park.

 In Kazeranga are the rhinos Assam’s emblem a must to see. We took a safari drive to see the rhinos in an open jeep. We spent much of the time queuing to get through security to get in. 

Why am I such a security risk? There was an artistic performance at the Orchid sanctuary and not far away a Motorcycle Museum. 

The only one I knew of was just outside Guwahati that I visited in 2019 reported in Something for the museum my first blog. This one was called Treasured Wheels and new for this area. I had to visit. While Gita went shopping in the Orchid Sanctuary I went to the museum. It turns out to, be run by Pikoloo Deka and is the same museum relocated. It is being rebuilt with help from Kazeranga administration to promote tourism. He is doing a very good job at building new facilities for visitors to enjoy. I have the honour of being the first foreign visitor, the first entry in the visitors book, the first to buy an entry ticket and receive a commemorative trophy. He has still to complete the restoration of his Subeam S7 any help with distributor, alternator, and drive shaft will be much appreciated. It was a first to a transport museum for our driver Ghana who had been driving our support vehicle to and from Mechoukha and now continuing being our guide and driver.

At lunch time I had to extract Gita from the array of shops to head for Guwahati and take up residence in the India Club. We still did not see any orchids.