Round Britain's coast 5000 mile ride - ideas

[JasonHar1]

Hello,

Suggestions please.

I'm at the early stages of planning for an unsupported solo ride around the coast of Great Britain, beginning and ending in Plymouth, on my G9 Super Clubman. My Grandad bought the bike new in 1952 and took my Mum & Aunt all around the Lake District, North Wales & the NW in general when they were kids. It was the family transport for many years.

My Dad had custody of it from the early 80's before storing it off road in the mid 80s. In 2013 I began the process of getting the old girl back on the road. In early 2014 I passed my bike test and began riding in earnest. Our "oily rag" restoration was duly completed and in July 2014 my wife and I used the G9 as our wedding transport. Since then I've completed a few thousand miles with her and carried out general maintenance and have been rewarded with pretty good reliability.

Sadly, my Grandad & Mum are no longer with us but my Aunt is well and living in Blackpool. I hope to take her out on the bike when I get there.

I'm looking at taking around 7 weeks to complete the trip and will be camping as I go. The idea is to keep costs to a minimum.

I will keep a record of the trip and will look to write it up as a book afterwards.

I'd really appreciate any ideas or suggestions that may help in terms of financial support or opportunities for publicity. As I said, I'm at the early stages of planning now, I haven't done a trip like this since I was a kid and I don't have any contacts who can assist. Perhaps there are some folk on here with experience or ideas that they could share with me?

Thanks in advance, all ideas gratefully received,

Jason

[SPRIDDLER]

Sounds like fun!
If you follow strictly along the mainland coast it's about 7,000 miles so roughly 1000 a week.
I'd be wary of sponsorship and publicity (if you could get any) since it inevitably adds unwanted pressure in order to meet reporting commitments/achieve deadlines and do 'interesting' stuff. It sounds like a great personal adventure but I have to be honest and say that I doubt that the trip itself would attract financial support or a great deal of interest unless you had a worthy/charitable cause but a write-up for the Jampot would be interesting. Take lots of hi-resolution photographs. However, much would depend upon your writing style and details of peripheral events or incidents which were not necessarily related to motorbikes. At bike shows there is invariably someone looking to sell a book about their travels to Timbuktu on a Honda 90, BSA Bantam etc. It helps if you're 23, slim and blonde with big panniers
Camping is probably the least expensive but you might wish to consider Youth Hostels (especially for a night or two in spells of wet British weather) as they are open to all travellers. On the other hand Members might be willing to put you up for a night en route......
For my retirement I mostly wild camped for 2 months and 3,000+ miles through France, Spain, Andorra and back on my '54 350 Matchless, meeting up en route with ladies from foreign 'Grab-a-Granny' websites, and one occasion when a couple of spinster sisters in the Dordogne took me in as thanks for changing their wheel when they needed someone willing to get their nuts off. (You make your own luck).
Don't get hung up on too much detail when planning, bike preparation, or what spare parts to take for every conceivable eventuality; you're not going to the Moon. Just do it!

Resting in Pyrenees (480x322).jpg

[Mick D]

Blimey Jason

That's some undertaking, 5000 unsupported miles on a 67 year old bike

Think very carefully on the spares you can carry and how - spare cables taped to in use ones, use the space inside the headlamp for bulbs etc. store things inside the handlebars.

Compile a list of contacts for all of the coastal Club sections.

Join the AA or similar.

The Scottish coastal route could be well be in excess of 1000 miles - there's only one Scottish section - don't forget your midge spray.

Good luck and keep us informed of you plans.

Regards Mick

[Rob Harknett]

http://www.jampot.com/C_AssistList.asp
Some of these peoples contact details may be out of date.

[SPRIDDLER]

Think very carefully on the spares you can carry and how - spare cables taped to in use ones, use the space inside the headlamp for bulbs etc. store things inside the handlebars.

Totally agree with that, but just to add: Take a new plug and check that the spare cables fit. I went to use a spare clutch cable that I had transported many thousands of miles taped to the one in use only to find that it didn't fit. Luckily I was near a pal's place to scrounge another.
I'm sure you already know what likely spares to carry but essentials include spare inner tube, primary and secondary chain links, bulbs (bubble wrapped in the headlamp shell), a foot or two of fuel pipe poked inside the h/bars...........

[JimFitz]

http://www.jampot.com/C_AssistList.asp
Some of these peoples contact details may be out of date.

The assistance list does not seem to be on the main site any more. The link just goes to the home page. I have looked at all the drop down menus and there is no mention.

Jim

[SPRIDDLER]

Rob's link works. Click on 'Club' on the main Jampot website - then it's the last but one at the bottom of the drop-down menu (5 pages) - you have to be logged in to see it on the drop-down menu:
http://www.jampot.com/C_AssistList.asp

[clive]

The usual advice with carrying spare cables is to buy new ones and fit them, then attach the existing ones alongside them as spares. That way you can be sure the spare fits. From my own experience of long distance rides I would advise a spare petrol tap, and a carb gasket set, a cylinder head gasket set and of course the cables. After that take any spare that you really don't want to have to fit. The principle is whatever spares you carry, it won't be that which goes wrong hence carry parts that are a pig to fit and you know you won't have to. The forum will probably help with getting you out of trouble when something else goes wrong. Good luck.

Edit should have said if something else goes wrong

[JasonHar1]

If you follow strictly along the mainland coast it's about 7,000 miles so roughly 1000 a week

5000 seems to be common if one takes the odd bridge across an estuary

For my retirement I mostly wild camped for 2 months and 3,000+ miles through France, Spain, Andorra and back on my '54 350 Matchless

That sounds like an amazing trip. I've done a lot of riding in Spain and the Pyrenees on modern machinery, fantastic roads.

Thanks also for all the general and spares advice.

then attach the existing ones alongside them as spares. That way you can be sure the spare fits. From my own experience of long distance rides I would advise a spare petrol tap, and a carb gasket set, a cylinder head gasket set and of course the cables. After that take any spare that you really don't want to have to fit. The principle is whatever spares you carry, it won't be that which goes wrong hence carry parts that are a pig to fit and you know you won't have to. The forum will probably help with getting you out of trouble when something else goes wrong.

More good stuff, thanks.

http://www.jampot.com/C_AssistList.asp
Some of these peoples contact details may be out of date.

That works for me, thanks.

Compile a list of contacts for all of the coastal Club sections.

Join the AA or similar.

The Scottish coastal route could be well be in excess of 1000 miles - there's only one Scottish section - don't forget your midge spray.

Cheers Mick, good advice.

[Peter Morris]

The assistance list does not seem to be on the main site any more. The link just goes to the home page. I have looked at all the drop down menus and there is no mention.

Jim

http://www.jampot.com/C_Assistlist.asp? ... 2815123433 It's on the main site under the 'Club Details' tab Jim, but as Rob says, it isn't up to date.