C2C 2017 pictures

[m40man]

Here we are at the start, clean & dry & (the bikes at least) in tip-top condition:



(At this point Ian's baffle was safely strapped to the back of my bike )

Tea stop at Ravenglass & Eskdale Steam Railway ..


Looking out on Hardknott pass, whilst we waited for Debs to catch us up:


Loo stop ...


Short break at Ambleside awaiting Debs & Mac ...




Balloon-man waiting for his waterproofs (not!) to deflate after a hoon;



At the finish - waiting for Ian who ran out of fuel on the sea front!


T'other Ian made it OK:




No pics on the homeward journey, as pictures of drown rats don't inspire getting out on bikes!

Back home, no rain ....


It was weird seeing Ian's engine bounce up & down on the one engine bolt, after the other bolt parted company with us at some point. But even as his revs screamed at tickover, he gave no mercy & pressed-on to the end. 

[bobh]

It's no good, I'll have to scour the ads for a suitable steed for next year!

[GAv]

I have actually bought 3 bikes with the excuseaim to use on the Tiddler run, the first a restricted Rotax engined 125 Red Rose. The rational to use bits off it to get my other 125 (unrestricted ) RR water cooled two stroke back on the road for the C2 C. However after trailering it back from Nottingham and manhandling it off my trailer, it seemed my health was not gonna be up to the job, that was pre heart cardio version and when that did not work a Pace Maker Defibrillator.

However after my enforced month of road scenario, after that Christmas, I did make up for lost time riding the later Aprilia RR and it got a lot of attention later riding it to a nearby bike get together, great fun but flat out at 60/5 on the dual carriageway.

Last year I aquired what had been a stolen recovered 125 Sachs 125, but to be honest partly for spares for my Suzuki 650 version, ( currently in the spare bedroom)as things like the petrol tank are interchangeable. The sprayed red one didnt take and bubbled, being plastic, however I had some idea to get it roadworthy, albeit sticking to the Spirit of the C2 C it wouldnt qualify till this year, being 125 , not owned before the preceeding January , so I was back to the later Red Rose which by then had been.
derestricted like the one that is the longest owned bike and utilising the carb off that.

Result fairly reasonable reliability traded for a destinct dislike of upping the dorment power over two fold. Result the back wheel locked, I thought it may have been petrol but got it restarted filled up at an Asda then giving it the beans the b thing went sideways and unlike the Cagiva that spat me off in a similar scenario when it stalled and the back wheel locked after indescisiveness on a corner I didnt fall off the 125.
In fact a chap came running out of a sideroad he saying he heard the bike then the sound of skidding and laid off working on his KTM to help me. Whatever else I seem incredibly lucky with good Samairtans witness after my fuel balls upmistake on the Jock run. Sunday on route to a visit to Wattersham( formery an RAF base ) the Viva Cut out and two guys stopped and helped me push her off the main road- I found one of the bayonet clips on the recently fitted electronic ignition had worked loose but instead of convoying with an eclectic club( inclusive of Trabants Wartburgs and some Russian vehicles )went directly to the Airfield.
A couple of bikes on display, a James Captain in their museum and a Rotax engined Bombadier in the same hanger that a Tornado and Hawker Hunter ( as well as an English Electric Lightning nose cone, were housed in.

Anyway the other silly notion was to try fit the Yamaha VTwin into the Red Rose frame but that remains a pipedream, so no C2C last year.

The final of the three purchases intended to go from Cockermouth to Scarborough being the Ape Tuono 50 . I saw it locally and clearly had been cosseted. After seeing the result of a picture of a bloated me with the Red Rose on collection, I keep when the weight strats tipping the scales,it did help me shed a stone or two and whilst it fluctuates is still better than then, but even so having got another 15 KPH out of the iccle 50 after some fettling having found it topped out at 80 KPH beforehand, I was still reticent about riding it over the IOM Mountain TT course, obviously not during a Classic Manx race day, however I did and it was surprisingly perky if judicial working of the six speed box was called for.The Kangoo with bike and me aboard seemed to struggle more on the uphill bits.
I did the ride the baby Ape in both directions, however that achieved and other aims my leg and ankle were, and still are problomatic, so had to give it best and accept another proposed run wasnt on the cards. Especially as Mac had explained it was very arduous ,in the bar of one of the Scottish stopoffs.

The Tuono exhaust maybe as a result of being jammed by a couple of wheels tyres in the van or maybe the stress of full revs on mountain passes, had holed so maybe I should look for a Suzuki GT125 with badges denoting a 185 ( as to the RD twin on this years run)just like the new one I bought in the 70s and after twice being forced to bail off that by idiot 4 wheelers, it was then for a four and a half decade non accident period,

I very nearly had the same scenario at one point when going flat out down hill on the IOM course , as a van decided to overtake a truck heading straight for me , however as brakes even on Tiddlers have come on in leaps and bounds, not a Suzuki GT trait, especially in the wet, mercifully I was lucky on this occassion - maybe something is telling me to hang up my helmet rather than actually kick over the proverbial bucket, however ....

[ContourMac]

Gav
Get a Triumph T120.
5cc's to spare

[GAv]

Ha yep but did not His Royal Highness anounce an edict that anything Classic pre 64/5 was acceptable,whatever the capacity ,either way I doubt my knees are up to the kickback from a Parallel twin, so maybe a rebadged Suzi GT or RD 125 like the one in disguise (with electric starts) would be a better bet. Better still my 125 Sachs badged as a 650 Roadster,so as not to scare bigger sports bikes..I shall sleep on it, the bed that is, not the bike.