Weather permitting I am out next Friday with at least three other Himalayans for some more off road adventures. Recently I have been coming home with one wet foot, so today was the today to try some new (allegedly waterproof) boots. The weather (for those not encased in a metal cage) brings changes of clothing, and when your inside leg is already diminutive this can bring additional challenges.
A combination of being away on holiday (somewhere significantly warmer), work and going to see Australian Pink Floyd in Bournemouth, meant that my Himalayan (aka "the muddy little donkey") has been neglected down the side of the house - uncovered and still covered in mud. It seemed happy enough to see me this afternoon though.
So, pre-flight checks begin. Wheel it out. Does it start? Yes - ok then, time to fight with some clothes. Whilst I was away it would appear that winter arrived and Christmas was installed everywhere - so where are my base layers and the lining for my jacket?
Having located everything it is then a case of climbing into them, knowing that you are going to be ridiculously warm up to the point that you actually ride away. I have further complicated today with new glasses - do they fit inside my crash helmet, and new winter gloves - can I do them up and fit them inside my three-layered jacket?
The glasses are a success, the gloves are not. I fight with them outside for a while - all the time my new glasses are steaming up inside my helmet. I then give up and head inside for some old gloves. Coming into a heated house guarantees that my glasses will steam up, but I can't take my crash helmet on and off with gloves on! Such a contrast from the world of heated seats and heated windscreens (and steering wheels) that the four wheeled contingent may enjoy! If you don't ride a motorcycle then this probably never crosses your mind.
Ok, gloves sorted, can I touch the ground? Yes, just. This is the story of my 36 or so years of motorcycling so far. Now I just need some time to work out how much grip my off-road focused tyres offer on tarmac at 3 degrees. The answer is very little unsurprisingly. Again, most car drivers are unaware of how crucial this is for us - a manhole cover or shiny overbanding on the road could see me parting company with my bike very easily at this time of year, even though I may be able to easily keep to the speed limit in a straight line. I have two points of contact with the road, both smaller than a packet of cigarettes. And yes, within a minute of leaving I have a car driver ridiculously close behind me. We die out here, in a way that you are unlikely to. I don't have a heated visor or windscreen wipers either.
And so I go for a ride, and I enjoy it. I am pretty cold after an hour and a half (it takes me several hours afterwards to warm up), but I am alive - I have once again done the thing that I know is good for my stress levels and good for my mental health, I've enjoyed seeing the Wiltshire countryside in its grey December clothes, and I am longing for Spring.