10 years in the making

So, 2007, the year of the Italian Nut! A Ducati Monster 900, and god I always wanted one. From the first time I saw the pictures back in 1992, I knew I had to have the Monster. I had always put off buying one, as being a Ducati and Italian, it would be temperamental and expensive. How right I was!!

The usual view of the Monster for at least the first five months of 2007

Or just waiting outside Rosso Corse for them to open!

It was good, just to go from my friends in Chelsea, across London, drop the bike off at the garage, and pick it up a few days later. Of course, after parting with a fair amount of my monthly salary.... So, what did I do, apart from having an Italian bike a wonderful Italian friend, I bought an Alfa Romeo at the end of 2007..... That buggered it up! If I thought the Ducati was expensive, well I was even more skint after getting the Alfa!

Ah, the Alfa GTV.

The photography was going quiet. The wasn't a lot of money coming from the motocross pictures. I was spending more on fuel to get there, and then on food! So, I decided to quit the early Sunday morning adventures, and decided the Monster was the way to go. It took a while to get there, but I did by June 2007! A few summer adventures, two up (the first time with a pillion since the mid 90's!), and it was fun!

This was also my final year of having a holiday! Even though I don't enjoy holidays, this was a good one. This was the reason for buying the Monster! Isle of Wight for two weeks. 1400 miles covered on the Monster, and it only broke the speedo cable! As for the old mans Peugeot, will that leaked water all the way round the island!! It was a fun two weeks, meeting the local 'mad' bikers (local knowledge is the key though), heading off into the unknown, and waking up all the island with the twin Viper cans! And not forgetting the rain, I think it rained for most of the two weeks! Soggy bike gear all the time. But the Monster worked through out.

Work was still much the same, same stuff, same hours, same people!

2008, now this was a game changer year! It started off crappy, it went down hill, and by the end, I was in a bad mood!

The Alfa is dead...

Nine month of Alfa ownership, and she died. The electrics went pop! A melted fuse box, caused by dodgy wiring to the rear heated screen and the radiator had a big hole  in it. I gave up with it. I was back in Walton, and everything was wonderful... Nearly. The Monster spent a year working.

Then on the 6th November 2008, the world was turned upside down. HMRC raided the office. The boss gone, and as the chief officer said to me "looks like you are in charge now!" Thanks....I was now the general manager of the freight company, after one interesting day! This happened the week before I was going to a filming session of Top Gear. Thanks.... We made it though!

So, the close of 2008, I became a hair dressing, biking, general manager! Enter the age of the Eunos Roadster, lots of goodies

The old Eunos at Brooklands Museum.

A nice year of turmoil for 2009. One sacking, a few idiot employees, a few repairs to the old car, the bike was put in storage due to a blown engine (the first one), But driving the Eunos, with the roof down, it was fun! The old man hated it! Well, being small and fun, he would! The roof had to be replaced, the electric window motors, the electric aerial, and I added some touches to the exterior. It was the first car I started to mod!

A year of planning things in the pub, working god knows how many hours, not riding the bike, heading to MX-5 owners club meetings, it was fun! But things change, and it did a big way at Christmas 2009. We didn't expect it, but the old man was getting more and more erratic in his behaviour.

A lot changes in 10 years.

Well, not quite.

It's 2005. I'm working for a freight company based in Hayes, Middlesex. I'm 29 years old, riding a Suzuki Bandit, driving a 1993 green Renault 19. Life is easy, working 9- 5, having fun at the weekends. There we go!

The fleet in 2005!

It all changed on January 1st 2005. A trip to Rykas for the annual Nutters New Years day meet. I think I went on a bike, it was probably the Bandit. Meeting up with old and new friends. Who knew just a chance meeting at Box Hill on New Years Day, that I would end up meeting someone who was fixing stock cars next to where I live, for someone the gang at Sainsburys were supporting at Wimbledon stock car racing about 10 years earlier! It's a small world indeed Malcolm!

As I was 30 this year, I decided I needed a new bike, and I ended up buying a 2001 Aprilia RS125. 11,000 miles on the clock, £1500 from the local Aprilia dealer. Queue the next nin months of being questioned about "how long have you had your licence?", "where are your L-plates?", and "if you've had a licence for 13 years, why are you riding a 125?" Easy, it is fun!

My last track day was completed this year, Brands Hatch on an evening session. The little 'Prila was singing, I was having fun, and the bikers I was overtaking could swear I was riding a 250! Not quite! 

Druids,, Aprilia 125, and me with hair!

Apart from adventures with the Nutters, a blown 125 engine, the Bandit put back on the road for a few months. The next plan was started on an adventure to London one night. Two idiots on their bikes, heading in to the big city, one armed with a camera, the other armed with local knowledge and wit! A new hobby was kick started in my head, photography. Something I was doing back in the days of 33mm film, with an old Olympus OM40 camera. Now, it was time to embrace the digital age.

The final picture of the Bandit still road worthy!

Over the next year, free time was spent at BSB meetings, local motorcross tracks and a few trips to Epsom Downs and London in between. My hard drive on this PC still has the pictures from those adventures buried in it. Some great times heading around the country! But, I was without a bike. I'd given up on the Bandit (shame on me). I decided it should be a project, I will sit down and start rebuilding the Bandit. I will! Then a new toy arrived......

Dusty kit after a Southern Motocross meet

But the pictures came out well!

23rd December 2006, a fecking cold day! It was raining as I sat on the train at Hayes & Harlington. I was heading to Liskeard, first stop was Reading to get on an iIntercity train to head south west! I managed to bag two seats to myself. One for me, and one for my bike gear! Back in 1993, I was just starting to get into the nasty biking scene. I done my test, I got a licence, and I was asked by my instructor, "what bike would you like to get?", a Ducati Monster....

The dawning of the Monster age!

After my doubting friends were telling me I would be coming home on a recovery vehicle, I had to make sure the 1993 Monster made it back from Cornwall to Surrey. She did, just! After annoy the night shift spanner monkey in Fleet, I headed off on the last leg for home, and the gear lever spring snapped. 200 odd miles, and a 10p spring breaks! I managed to get the bike home, and 2007 was spent in Roso Corse, East London.

This was also the arrival of the Italian Nut.....

Back to playing with the cameras

Another thing I haven't played on for a while, my collection of camera equipment. Today I decided to dust off the Lowepro bag and give the old cameras and lenses a clean down. Tonight I was going to have a relaxing session with the camera, tripod, lenses and a Maglite.

Luckily, the yard where I work has three empty units and no external lighting within the confines of the industrial estate. The bottom corner by the canal is empty, with just a builders yard on the opposite bank of the canal. With all the camera gear set up, my Canon 30D and the stock 18-55mm lens attached, I headed off to the dark corner.

After faffing around for an hour with a selection of timed exposures, from 10 seconds to 30 seconds, and running round the car with the torch, either in a Tesco carrier bag to defuse the light or just changing the light setting on the torch. I finally had a selection of pictures to sift through and edit.

It was normal service, as with my motocross days, taking loads of pictures and only finding a couple that made me think; "yes I done a good job there!"

Here are the couple of images that caught my eye this evening;

With a bit more practice, I'll get the hang of it! 

Now I've found the instruction manuals for the 350D and 30D, I'll be able to play with the bulb setting a bit more.

Time to sign off and see what adventures I can have tomorrow.