French France then .... wash out

[Swagger]

We had three fantastic riding days in Northern France. It rained most of the time but the company was so good it didn't matter. Didn't get any real opportunity to shoot pics as we were too concerned about into the dry, warm cafe's :
We went via the Channel Tunnel .... nice piece of engineering that. The exulted company was three GSA's (2 x 2011's, 1 x 2009), Warrior ???, V Strom, FZ1. Note, one of the GSA's had TKC's freshly applied and it did not like the wet conditions one bit.

This was outside our hotel 8)

We pitched up in Rouen just as a bike protest kicked off. The feds had obviously been told to go easy on the protesters as they were allowing crazy shenanigans like burn outs, wheelies, stoppies and loud bursts from unrestricted pipes. It was kinda different ... we found a cafe and watch with great interest. They reckon over one hundred thousand bikes took part in Northern France

Swag's machine waiting patiently for the train through the tunnel

The company

Those GSA's don't hang about ....

We only did about 850 miles but it was well worth the effort. You'll be pleased to know that the XT1200Z never missed a beat although somewhere along the line the plug to front brake lever switch came adrift causing some concern to the followers .... the comment was 'Jeez you have amazing bike control you don't ever seem to touch the brakes when charging through roundabouts' ??? .... actually I do and I don't )

Riding at circa 4.5K RPM you're doing 85/90 mph .... getting better than 175 miles to the tank.

We saw a lot of the old WWI & II cemeteries. I'm going back in a little while to visit them properly and to pay my respects. I also want to visit the beaches and the fortifications whilst I'm at it.

Whoops .... wife's just got back and I'm s'possed to be doing something else :

 

[Simon]

Good to see so many folk at the demo, the French authorities want all bikers on bikes over 125 cc to wear high-viz jackets, the demo was to protest against it. If they do make it law anyone travelling through France will have to comply too. For me it's serious stuff, if France make it law how long before Brussells tries to impose it on the whole of Europe?

Looks like you had a great trip though, nice sticker collection already!

 

[MotorcopBBQ]

swag nice pics, sounds like you have a good time in the land of stinky cheese and wine

 

[eemsreno]

Thanks for the pictures Swagger, Must be nice having Europe to explore.

 

[Don in Lodi]

Just curious, what do they get for a Chunnel Crossing/bike?

 

[Swagger]

Just curious, what do they get for a Chunnel Crossing/bike?

Ummm .. does that mean what do they charge for bikes to use the tunnel? If so, I paid 22 of them British pounds each way. It's all very civilised. Ride on the train .... park it up ... wait twenty minutes and you're there ... ride off the otherside remembering to swap sides of the road.

 

[Don in Lodi]

Yup, that's what I meant. Very quick crossing as well. What's the price like for a ferry crossing instead? I know the time for that would be quite a bit more.

 

[Swagger]

Yup, that's what I meant. Very quick crossing as well. What's the price like for a ferry crossing instead? I know the time for that would be quite a bit more.

If you plan ahead and book early the ferries are competitive with pricing ... they have to be. Really depends on where you want to start from. Calais is always my preferred start point. Ships take a fair few hours and you run the very likely risk of rough seas and sickness that can go with it. I hate that nonsense it's bad enough when the Navy boys give us a ride ... not my idea of a great time.