Ireland
| DUBLIN 11 MAY 2002 Finally, after all the preparation and hard work we arrived in Dublin for the start of our world tour and two world record attempts. Only 14 months earlier -- but at the time it seemed much longer -- we had actively set about preparing for our world tour and if I had known now how much work, time and energy was required to achieve stage one, I would probably extended in the Navy and settled for Skegness twice a year. Maybe not, but what a long hard slog: Medicals, Visas, Bike Documents, Passports, Domestic issues etc etc., Finally we were ready, or so we believed. It was now a case of what have we forgotten to do, rather than what remains to be done, so I was happy with our achievements to date. Blackrock is a well-to-do suburb of Dublin and home to Maxwell's BMW car and bike dealership. On hearing of our plans to launch from Ireland, Mr John Fennel, the senior bike salesman, kindly offered to host our departure. But this was Saturday, and the launch was still one day away. So after a long rest from our 1500 mile journey from the Czech Republic we met up with some local BMW bike enthusiasts and went for a ride out to see the local sights. Charles Dobson and Norman George made the effort to attend our departure, arriving from Belfast and Plymouth, England, respectively. Together with a few other local friends from GSCLUBUK, Luke  Scott and Gary Finley and a further dozen riders, we set off for
a pleasant ride to the seaside. As nice as the company was, all we kept thinking
about was is everything ready? What else remains to be done? Are the bikes
properly prepared? Will we have enough money? Will our loved ones that we leave
behind be OK? Such a lot for us to think about, but less than 24 hours remaining
before our departure. We arrived back at Maxwells just as a large, black 4 x 4
pulled in and, after parking his car outside the dealership, a Chinese-looking
gentleman, well dressed, but casual noticed our bikes by now fully laden for the
trip. He approached and enquired about our intentions and, after informing him
of our impending departure, he told us his name was Mr Wong and that he was the
owner of a exclusive chain of Chinese restaurants. He insisted that Monika and I
and all our friends should be his guests for the evening. Such a generous offer,
and what a fantastic night! All the stops came out to give us a tremendous
evening which included nearly 20 courses, free wine and our own dedicated
waitress. What a perfect way to spend our final night in Ireland. After a
wholesome meal and a bottle of wine then we returned to our hotel.12 MAY 2002 DUBLIN  We awoke in the morning knowing this was going to be a special day. John Fennel
had worked extremely hard to provide us with a fantastic send-off, which
included removing all the cars , and there were many, from the show room, and
installing little podiums for our bikes, which by now had been given the
once-over as well as a service by their mechanics. The bikes looked fantastic;
elevated and glowing from the beams of spotlights. We had been given strict
instructions not to clean the bikes in order to provide that 'worldly overlander'
impression. But clean or dirty there was no way anybody looking at the two GS
bikes could have thought anything other than that there was a special journey
about to start and that the riders were going to be away some time.Our send-off was scheduled for 14.30 hrs and by eleven in the morning the place was buzzing. The car park was  surrounded by barriers and tall flag-poles. Flying
from the top were BMW banners flapping in the wind, adding to the carnival
feeling. As each minute passed, more and more people arrived - including a local Harly-Davidson chapter, and what a nice crowed they were, too. By 12.30 hrs
there were well over 150 bikes crammed into the car-park and surrounding lanes.
How nervous we both felt! Just to add to the occasion, a few hours earlier John
Fennel had asked us to do a 30-minute presention, by talking about our planning,
preparation and basic modifications to the bike. I thought this would be OK
until I saw the ever increasing crowds , laser pointers, large screen and the
stage! But once the nerves had settled I think I managed to convince everybody
that we where not only ready but actually knew what we were doing -- no small
feat as we had not ridden around the world before. One touching moment was when
the chairman invited us into his office to personally wish us good luck. We even
managed to swap a few naval stories, some older than others, as he had
participated in the second world war, whereas my last campaigns were the
Falklands and the Gulf.So, after a final few world from the chairman and a roar of applause from a generous audience, we set off from Maxwells for the first goal of our journey, the west coast of Ireland. This was never going to be a quiet departure as we were escorted to the motorway by over 50 bikes, all with their horns blowing and lights flashing - a very emotional and touching moment, and one we both know we would never forget. It had been agreed that Norman George, who travelled from Plymouth, would ride with us to Sligo, a beautiful seaside town, some 100 miles to the north west of Blackrock. But after some 20 miles into our journey I noticed yet another GS motorbike riding some 30 meters behind. Curious as to his intentions, and since I had no idea who it was, we pulled in and I waved him down, only to find out that it was Gary Finnly. I asked Gary what he was doing, knowing that he lived in Blackrock. His reply was forthright : "Well, you have just had your send-off from southern Ireland so now its time to sample some west of Ireland hospitality". We were about to find out that he had telephoned ahead to arrange yet another party with more bikers from the west coast. After a short, two-hour ride we were seated in a beautiful local pub enjoying yet another batch of the local Guinness. The hospitality was overwhelming and one biker even travelled a 10-mile return journey to the local pizza shop in order to ensure we didn't go hungry. 13 MAY 2002 -- SLIGO, WEST COAST IRELAND  After a brilliant night with fantastic company, the following morning we set off
for Scotland in pouring rain via northern Ireland and the city of Belfast. In
the course of a coffee break in the journey, and a ten minute rest, we were
approached by the waiter who asked if we were the same couple who were in the
Sun newspaper that day. Astonished at his remarks, we quickly set-off in search
of a local newsagent and, sure enough, our Global Adventure had made page seven
of the Sun. We arrived at the ferry port about six pm only 20 minutes before the
ferry departed for Stranraer, Scotland, and so with out much sight seeing and in
horrible weather we said goodbye to the West of Ireland and relaxed during the
90-minute sea crossing. 14 MAY 2002 -- SCOTLAND, ENGLAND and WALES
Admittedly we have slightly longer to make the
distance. And so, before we knew it, we were given the three cheers and yet
another round of applause and then we made away from our friends and the GSClubUK enclosure, and headed for Folkestone with about 10 members and friends
in pursuit. They had insisted on seeing us off by riding with us to the channel
tunnel, which was our exit point for France. We had finalised our European route
some months earlier and the first weeks riding was about getting countries
crossed off the list, as yet another Guinness World Record challenge is for
Monika to visit over 106 countries by bike and, if she achieves it in one
journey, she two will achieve a new Guinness world record. Richard Jakobek, a
long time friend, had asked if he could join us for the fist week riding. I said
yes if wouldn't mind taking care of the accommodation, thus providing us with
one less thing to worry about. He very kindly agreed.
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Our next destination was Wales, to have a relaxing few days with my parents and
to fit our improved suspension units, generously supplied by Ron Simpson The units arrived the day before the BMF show and
Colwyn
Bay Motorbikes agreed to suspend all their bookings to accommodate the fitting.
All this was done at a discounted price too. Brilliant support from a very
friendly motorbike garage.
So if I needed
any last minute travel tips I was certainly in the right place. As it turned out
it wasn't long before the said advice came and it was without hesitation: leave
the spare tyres behind and simply post them out to your location when required.
So without much hesitation, we jettisoned our tyres and were extremely happy for
the extra space and weight saving this gave us.