The Journal

March 2012

Motolug Limited, manufacturers of collapsible motorcycle trailers have kindly agreed to lend us one of their two-bike models for our ride.  This is excellent news as it will mean that Sylvia will not have the problem of towing an empty trailer, not the easiest thing to do with limited rear visibility.

April 2012

The two Ariels on display on the Ariel Arrow and Leader Club stand at the recent Classic Motorcycle  Show at Stafford.  Despite the awful weather there was a pretty good turnout and for us it was an ideal opportunity to promote our upcoming charity ride.

May 2012

Out for a photoshoot –  the photographer is our son, Chris.

The full set of Chris’ pictures can be seen at: http://www.flickr.com//photos/pixelhut/sets/72157629705177568/show/

Donations

To date we have received £225.00 in sponsorship for our ride, this is excellent and our thanks to everyone who has donated so far.

22nd May 2012

Motodirect, manufactuers and distributers of quality motorcycle clothing and equipment have very generously agreed to supply all the two-stroke oil for our trip.  This is fantastic news and our thanks go to Stuart Millington and Terry Birtles of Motodirect.  The oil they are supplying is  MOTUL 710 2t FULLY SYNTHETIC which is 100% synthetic lubricant based on Ester-Technology. Specially designed for 2 stroke bike engines with premix or injector lube system, operating at high revs and under high load. Very high lubricating properties decrease friction and wear improves power output.

With all this quality oil the Ariels will think its Christmas!

6th July 2012

Preparations now well under way; the Ariels are primed all ready to go, Motolug have despatched the trailer – we just need the weather to show some signs of improvement otherwise it could be a long wet ride. Knowing that punctures occur more frequently on wet roads we’ve taken the precaution of treating the tyres with ‘Gloop’ puncture preventative and hope it’s as good as it says on the tin!

Fundraising for the NSPCC  now stands at £499.50 and this means we’re almost half way to our target figure of £1,000.  A big thank you to everyone who has donated so far.

10th July 2012

The trailer arrived yesterday and it’s now assembled and ready to go. We’re planning to leave for Land’s End on Thursday and all being well start the trip early on Saturday morning.  As Michael is a reporter for Motorcycle News he is going to write a feature on the trip to be published later.  In the meantime keep on eye on the MCN website for an introductory video.

Fundraising for the NSPCC is now at £544.50 and it would be great if we could reach our target of £1,000.  If you would like to make a donation  this can be done via http://www.justgiving.com/thearielsride or alternatively via Vodafone Just Text Giving by texting NCTH 85 plus the amount to 70070.  Once again our thanks for the donations received so far.

11th July 2012

Introductory video now showing on YouTube – http://www.youtube.com/user/motorcyclenewsdotcom

18th July 2012

We had hoped to have been arriving at John O’Groats sometime today but due to completely unforeseen circumstances we had to call a halt to the trip.  Day1 (Saturday) went very well, no problems or rain and we rode, as planned, from Land’s End to Burnham-on-Sea (approx 200 miles).  However, the following morning Michael received a call from his wife to say that their 4 year old daughter had been taken ill and was in hospital.  Michael returned home immediately riding the Ariel Arrow 130 miles from just south of Bristol to Hertfordshire.  Sylvia and I decided to continue our Day 2 route to Tarporley in Cheshire but it was a very difficult day as we were concerned about our granddaughter.  That evening after speaking to Michael we made the decision to abort the trip for the timebeing.  We are fully committed to completing the planned ride from where we left off and very much hope that we will be able to do so late August/early September.

29th July 2012

Our fundraising for the NSPCC continues and now stands at £588.50.  At the moment we plan to continue our Land’s End to John O’Groats trip at the beginning of September.

17th September 2012

We had hoped to have completed our trip by now but unfortunately due to Michael’s demanding work commitments and a protracted and complicated house move- all still ongoing- this has not been possible.  I did consider completing the journey alone but Michael is very keen to do it with me.  Therefore unless his circumstances change in the near future we have no option but to postpone the trip until next Spring.  We are all very disappointed that we haven’t been able to complete our Land’s End to John O’Groats challenge as yet but remain committed to doing so as soon as possible.  We  are of course aware that many people have made a donation for the NSPCC but if anyone is concerned that we haven’t yet completed the trip and wish to have their money returned please email me at: don@dsguy.co.uk   All money received so far has been forwarded to the NSPCC.

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