First Long Bike Trip - Luxembourg

Post by **Clingy** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 9:19 am

My first long bike trip and my first time riding abroad. Took the Tunnel, with my brother (Ducati ST4) on Thursday morning in the rain. Still raining the other side but it soon dried up as we made for a rendevous in Ypres with the third member of our group (also Ducati ST4). Some sightseeing at the Menin Gate and the Yorkshire Trench and then onto Luxembourg arriving at our hotel late afternoon. A wonderful one hotel hill top village with narrow cobbled streets and a monastery. After checking in we deposited our bikes in the nice new secure garage (with about 20 others) and then a shower and cleanup before making for the bar. This was a near perfect Hotel. Experienced at hosting bikers, excellent food and a large comfortable room. Next day up early (monastery bells started ringing at 6 am) for breakfast and on the road by nine. Now without the panniers, our first trip was to a garage for fuel. Probably one of the best routes we did all weekend! Wonderful smooth roads, open views, switchback corners and beautiful scenery. It set the tone for the rest of the holiday. The roads tended to deteriorate when we moved into Belgium or Germany, but reverted to good quality when we got back into Lux. The pre-planned routes were proving hit and miss and relying on the Garmin Zumo was soon found to be a big mistake. After sending us down a few farm tracks we decided to use it as a general guide rather than a route finder. The second day we plugged in a route provided by the hotel and had a much more rewarding experience. On the last day we made our way back toward the Tunnel via the Ardenne. It was a hot day and as we got into Northern France the winds became more of a problem. Back in Blighty, still strong winds, but safely made in home by 8pm. 1200 miles in total and the bike didn't miss a beat. Now planning the next trip

Post by **Phant0m** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 10:09 am

sounds fun clingy glad u had a good time

Post by **Eagle** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 6:01 pm

pics????

Post by **Screwy** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 6:43 pm

Ah the joys of continental touring

Sounds like you had a great time Clingy , I,m heading back to the Limousin region of France again in August to visit friends that have moved out there .

Post by **Clingy** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 8:08 pm

Eagle wrote: pics????

LOL...only ones of us drunk in the bar!

Post by **Eagle** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 8:34 pm

Clingy wrote: LOL...only ones of us drunk in the bar!

Well they're the ones we all wanna see

Post by **andrew** » Wed Jun 25, 2008 9:38 pm

Sounds like you had a hoot m8

Was this a last minute trip or had it been planned for a while ?

Much like your experience of garmin, i'm ditching tomtom when I go in a few weeks (ring trip), just going to use a regular map book and hopefully common sense..... plus I can't be pestered paying TT price of Â£30 for a map of germany :/

Post by **Dangerous Bob** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 8:18 am

haven't toured in a long time.

just got to wait until the kids are bigger so we can leave them behind....
Oh and for someone to throw us a wad of cash...

What bike did you use?

Post by **Hippy** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 11:24 am

Sounds good mate!
I love the ST4, did you get to have a ride on them? What bike were you on?

Post by **Clingy** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 8:24 pm

I was on my GTR1400. I never got around to trying the ST4.

Trip has been planned for 6 months Andrew, but I just went along for the ride and let the experienced boys do all the planning.

Post by **Dangerous Bob** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 9:59 pm

tbh the GTR is a better touring machine.
The ducatis are a laugh, but I find anything with too much of a racing position kills me after the first day and then I don't enjoy it.

Be interested to know how alike your 1400 is to my 1000...

Post by **Screwy** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 10:20 pm

Your thinking of the wrong Ducati's bob , The ST4 is the sports tourer [attachmentid=193]

the riding position isn't as extreme as sports bike but you still get great handling because it's a Ducati

Post by **Clingy** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 10:33 pm

I was very pleased with the GTR Bob - all I can say is it is THE bike for me, but probably not for others. If you look at the forums you see most USA owners and many in this country mod the bike with...

Bigger, sometimes hooooge screen
Change exhaust
Bar Raisers
Gel Seat
Re-map the engine timing
Big topbox

....which makes it a full on tourer. I have kept mine standard (and will try and keep it that way). This makes in neither a perfect tourer nor a perfect sports bike.....but I do get a fair chunk of each. Certainly the ST4 boys struggle on highway routes about 80mph like many a sporty sports tourer. The GTR is fine at 100 if you get the hang of the screen adjustment....but with the screen down it still makes a half decent job of "scratching" on all but the slowest corners. The biggest shortcoming of the bike IMHO is the weight (280Kg dry). The best thing, the brakes

.

I was surprised at how comfortable I was. My only problem was a bit of back ache, which I get anyway sitting at a PC for too long!

Edit:- My brother has had his ST4 from new (6 years) and although he has money to burn just can't face parting with it. He adores the thing.

Post by **Dangerous Bob** » Thu Jun 26, 2008 11:39 pm

you're right screwy, I'm thinking of the other S models..
That looks quite comfy.

only adjustments I made top my GTR1000 are a lower screen, neta exhaust and upgraded the aging front springs.

'H' reg makes it a little long in the tooth, and I would love another gtr, but cant afford it at the mo.
On the lookout for a bandit though.

Post by **Turts** » Fri Jun 27, 2008 3:30 am

You're a lucky chap Clingster

Sounds like a great time bud.
the guys I usually go away with have just got home from Spain.. Normally it's somewhere abroad in Europe with only 3 annual trips in the UK (2x Wales ...wouldn't go back there if you paid me...fantastic scenery but the cops are a real pita !!... and the other Uk was in Scotland ..and was one of my all time favs) I think the furthest was to Saltzburg...very sore bum !
I can never put my finger exactly on what it is that's so special about riding abroad, is it the old ladies waving as you pass (as opposed to over here where they give you the bird !! )..or is it the wonderful surfaces that you can find.... or the never ending bending roads without bushes , which enable you to view the whole corner and see if there's some 'herbert' coming your way ... OR maybe it's the fact that you can ride all bloody day without seeing more than a dozen other vehicles !!
Of 74k miles, I guess 55k has been done abroad...
Try Switzerland Clingy... a lovely place

Though you said you passed through the Ardennes which is pretty special too.
That wind coming into Dover gets a bit fearsome eh

..always pays to carry a bit of bulk bud

...Andrew... are you riding to view the 'ring' (Nurburgring ? ) or are you planning on riding a bike round there bud ? The reason I ask is that it can be a little 'scary' . We did it once... and these were guys who have ridden bikes for years... my friend in Strasbourg actually used to race in France and he wont touch it.. The problem with the ring is that you have cars, bikes, taxis, trailers, buses ALL going round at the same time. Then you have the 'regulars' who go there every evening, they have either a car or a bike !! and christ can they move and often get airborne !.. ! You need eyes in your arse m8 honest ! .. One guy passed us at the start on a GSXR1k and passed us again just before the start finish.. You get to where you think the apex is and b*l*x you've missed it, because the road goes the other way

There are so many corners like that..
21km of superb tarmac with 70 odd corners ...and too many mad buggas .. I've heard that the bookable courses are absolutely superb..but not for the faint hearted

Where's your next trip to Clingy ?