Well I'm pleased to say it's been another busy, busy month.
Training wise, the month kicked off with Ross on his BMW GS and was followed through the month by Simon, Olivia and Richard (who all had 2 sessions)David and Rich, making a total of 9 training sessions for the month and quite a mix of bikes, BMW GS, BMW GS Adventure, Suzuki 650, Honda NC750 and a Honda CB650.
October saw 2 customers successfully pass their RoSPA tests. First up was David on his K1600 who obtained a Gold, closely followed by Olivia on her Suzuki who obtained a Silver.
Special mention for Olivia who only passed her DSA test in Nov 2017 and is now the holder of an advanced qualification.
A great achievement by both and worthy results given all the hard work they put into their training.
On the 4th, Kim and I had a ride out to the monthly lunch meeting for the Yorkshire Section of The BMW Club. These are organised by one of the members and are usually well attended. Octobers was no different with around 20 riders turning up on a variety of BMWs . Octobers venue was The Crosby Inn in Thornton Le Beans.
October also saw me get 2 mentions and photos in MCN to add to my tally. On the 4th they were doing an article about where people have been this year and on 31st about how many miles people have ridden. They published a photo of me and my BMW S1000R at the top of the Stelvio Pass and a photo of me and Kim together. I also got a mention in the main narrative on 31st about my years mileage.
New BMW R1250GS
On the 11th October, I was invited by Barrie Robson BMW in York to be one of the first people in the UK to ride the new R1250GS.
The 1250 models have had an engine update with all sorts of new magic going on in there, all far too technical for me to explain, but I can confirm that the bike was super smooth right through the rev range and the ESA suspension seemed to just soak up the bumps across a variety of roads. I loved the TFT dash, so informative and easy to use and all in all it was a great bike to ride. In fact I liked the bike so much..............watch this space !
In between training I put my Examiners hat on and conducted 3 RoSPA motorcycle tests. All 3 were carried out in dry and sunny weather, which makes a change. (although I spoke to soon ....read on)
I also received my new Examiners polo shirt and a nice new clip board....I do like a freebie !
On the subject of RoSPA, they produce a monthly magazine called 'Care on the Road' and Octobers edition saw me get an article printed, it won't bring me fame and fortune but always nice to get something published.
Nearing the end of the month, new advertising transfers arrived for the panniers and they're already on, so if you see me at any of the many cafes I visit, please come and say hello.
On the 27th October I was due to conduct 5 assessed rides for a local IAM group. All the riders are National Observers looking to potentially take their IAM Masters test in 2019 and wanted an appraisal of their current riding.
It should have been a great day but
unfortunately we had our first sleet and snow, with temperatures struggling to get above freezing. We stayed optimistic for as long as possible, but once the snow started to cover the bikes we decided to postpone for another day.
As well as being involved with the IAM, I also managed to join my own RoSPA group for a couple of training sessions in October. The group are based at York and I continue to assist in my role as their Training Officer.
Now I know this is a 'looking back' article but just wanted to mention that I've again been selected to work at Motorcycle Live at the NEC. The show runs from the 17th to the 25th November. I'll be representing Motorrad Tours working on the main BMW stand. If you're planning on going to the show, please pop along and say 'hello'. I'll be there from Saturday 17th to Wednesday 21st.
Moving away from training, I'm very pleased to see that my FaceBook page continues to thrive and has now passed the 400 'Likes' mark with the current number being 434, so a massive 'thank you' to all of you for your continued support.
And finally, as the summer draws to a close, I thought I'd leave you with this 'arty' photo. I took it at York Race Course at their annual balloon festival back in September.
So that's all for this month....well last month, and I'll be back again in December to tell you all about November. Until next time......
Ian S