The final update from Alan Lowe’s 3500 mile Sponsored Motor Bike Ride around the UK….
Day 12 -  7th of July - The Voyage Home.

Well with a beautiful room and fantastic breakfast the Magnolia lived up to its 5 star rating……

well worth the extra, and also £5 towards the charity too, as did the Mayfield(£10) and Glenan lodge (£5) and the haisthorpe (£10 discounted room to put towards charity), I thank them all for there kindness.

Any hoo, the day got of to a damp one with immense amounts of standing water I was soaked in an hours, not a good start to the day! Roads were pretty busy, and the Dartford Tunnel was fun, I made lots of noise through there, Kawasaki exhaust notes are the best, I headed along the A12 and took in some of the East Coast which was pretty flat, the weather eased for a time and I had a break in Great Yarmouth before it was time for the final leg inland and home.

One thing I noticed is that the amount of traffic on the roads is by far the most in England and the worst down South, the driving standard down there is also questionable, as I had two incidents of note today one was a young lady who couldn’t be bothered with looking if anything was coming or for that matter slowing down for the give way -  she piled out of right in front of me, good skills, and to rub ash into the wounds her passenger flicked her fag out the window and it hit me on the helmet, nice.

The second was a Lady who didn’t understand the concept of lane discipline and used all of them instead including the one I was riding in, I used my horn as she moved towards me, that made her jump, of course if it was in a BMW it would have been acceptable and I would of yielded but in a fiesta I’m afraid not!!

As I got on the A17 towards Boston I could see a huge storm up ahead and the lightening looked very nice but when I hit it the rain was the heaviest I had encountered the whole trip, I got wet through to the skin again, traffic was heavy and riding was hard work, I eventually got home for 5:30 tired and wet but greatly relived and so happy that I’d actually made it through the worst riding conditions I’ve ever faced, happy days!!

I like to thank everyone who has donated you’re all stars and thank you for supporting me.

The total mileage worked out to 3300 at a cost in fuel of £331.11 and accommodation costs of £400 - sweet.

Oh yeah and I’ve raised around the £2000 mark for the charities, nice.

Its been emotional, until the next time,
Big Love Alan

Many congratulations on completing your gruelling trip Alan. You can be very proud of what you’ve raised for the charities. I’m pleased you’re home safely.

If you’ve enjoyed Alan’s updates, you can still sponsor his ride and help the two charities by going HERE.

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More from Alan Lowe’s 3500 mile Sponsored Motor Bike Ride around the UK….
Day 10 5th of July

I’m up for 6am and on my way by 7am good early start today as I have 300 miles to cover. weather is pretty good and traffic low, as I skirt the coast on the A39 and the roads are great, twisting and turning and dropping steeply down to sea level and back up again.

The views are fantastic as I get to Lynmouth….

but as I come out and get to the top of the hill (Exmoor National Park) the weather takes a dramatic change for the worse! The wind is blowing a powerful gale and the rain is driving as hard as I’ve ever seen it, this should put my waterproof measures to the test.

I ride with increased focus and concentration with the wind driving the rain straight at me with only a few occasions of side winds unsettling my bike. As it gets worse I pull in at a café and have breakfast hoping things will improve. No such luck I’m afraid but I’m still dry and I push on towards Lands End.
I would like to say the views are great but the heavy rain and wind bring the visibility right down, I keep a close eye on the spray from the cars to see where the wind is coming from and to prepare myself for any cross winds, this proves very effective and I cope well by doing so.

As I get into Penzance is sing the ‘Pirate King’ from ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ (I couldn‘t help myself I‘m sorry) as I get to Lands End I take a quick photo and head back….

when disaster… I notice my fuel is now on reserve and not a petrol station till I get back in Penzance, oh dear! I coast a lot of the way and just make it to a Tesco’s fuel stop and fill up(new record for a tank of fuel for the bike 186 miles nice), as I leave my bike to pay an impatient driver cuts round the queue and comes from the opposite direction, on a one way only petrol station, and parks up close to my bike, at the pump I was using , he then attempts to fill his car directly over the very hot exhaust of my bike, not clever, then struggling to do it and knocking my bike in the process, decides to move his car forward a couple of yards with the hose still in the petrol tank, oops, as I come back out and point out his folly, he angrily tells me, that if I was Cornish I would have had the decency to move my bike out of his way as Cornish are more courteous, pot/kettle jumps to mind and I have a few idea‘s what type of abuse that is but I‘ll let you all make your own mind up. I tell him that he’s a silly man and head for Plymouth.
By this time the wind is behind me but the damage has been done and I’m soaked through and my boots, have set up their own private swimming pool for each of my feet, which was nice of them, its not as cold as when I got wet in Scotland and don’t feel the chill as much even though I’m far wetter. I get into Plymouth at 2:30pm and my digs for the night are good (right on Plymouth Hoe) and get to drying my stuff.

Big day tomorrow with around 400 miles to travel and the weather report saying that it will get better the further across I go, wish me luck, Alan.

Day 11 6th of July

A hearty breakfast and I’m away for 8am, the Kynance guest house was spot on , they gave me use of there dryer and I got all my stuff nice and dry. It was still raining in Plymouth but the wind had dropped right down into a breeze, and the weather was to clear up for most of the day.

I got on the A38 and headed towards Exeter, the roads were covered in a lot of water and the spray from the cars was unpleasant, luckily not to much on the road being a Sunday or so I thought as when I got to the M5 traffic jam, booo! Not to worry I’m shortly off there and on the A30 all the way to Salisbury, and it’s a fantastic road through rolling hills and beautiful country side.

As I head out from Salisbury I can see storm clouds looming in the distance and sure enough I’m in the thick of it again, just like yesterday woohoo!! I keep dry this time and my feet only get treated to a paddling pool by my boots and are very disappointed.

The A27 is good and has lots of picturesque villages lining its roads, as I get into Hastings the sea is very stormy and the sky is looking a bit dark….

but its not long till I get to Canterbury, 5pm long day, and get settled in and have a walk round the town and Cathedral, it is spectacular and the town is old and beautiful.

Been a long day today and it’s the last day of the trip tomorrow, looking forward to getting back and seeing everyone and catching up, until tomorrow, Alan

Keep up to date with Alan’s future updates HERE and you can still sponsor his ride if you wish by going HERE.

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Day 9 4th of July
Earlier start today, breakfast at 8 and I’m away for 8:50am, weather is good and no need for the wet weather measures, sweet. 30 mins in and my butt is feeling it more than normal, good thing is it keeps me awake, he he.

The Welsh coast is gorgeous and roads are good…….

I’m on a mission today as the forecast looks bad and according to the weather report on bbc it is set to throw it down just where I’m heading at around 2pm and with just over 200 miles to do I hope to be in Weston-Super-mare for around then and miss the lot.

Pembrokeshire Is beautiful and I hook onto the M4 for the longest motorway riding of the trip, its pretty steady and when a police car passes by I’m glad I’m keeping to the speed limit unlike the Audi who got pulled by them 10 mins later ha ha. This however did not affect him as 15 minutes after that he came flying past doing at least a ton, what a hero!! I get into England and the M5 is solid, Welcome back! I filter for about 10 minutes and I’m in Weston and soon to Toms flat which have the best views ever!!

We go out round Weston for a couple of cool beers and a meal and then back for a chilled night in. Now the weather forecast for tomorrow is heavy rain and Gail force winds! I will be heading out at 6:45 in the morning and going for as long as I can till it is safe to do no more and the find the nearest b&b so fingers crossed its not as bad as it seems its going to be! Wish me luck and I will hopefully be successful in my plans for the day, big love Alan

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Day 8 3rd of July
Time for the second half of the ride!! My spirits are high after my day off and a great visit from my parents Fred and Barbara, and my wonderful girlfriend Sandi whom I missed a lot wishing I could of shared the ride with her more.

The weather looks damp but armed with my new waterproof measures I was confident I would stay dry from here on in.

I cruise down towards Liverpool and as I ride through you really can see how the credit crunch is affecting businesses here as there are a lot closed down with the shutters shut. I go through the tunnel to Birkenhead and head for North Wales.
The heavens open as I head down the A55 towards Anglesey and the clouds are dark but I stay very dry for the first time, happy days! The views are great to Bangor and on Anglesey and I park up on the dock for ten in Holyhead and watch the ferries head out for Ireland.

I ride into Snowdonia in the afternoon the peaks are covered in cloud but its still a fabulous sight and great riding roads all the way through the park, When I get to Dolellau, I have a car decide to pull out on me completely ignoring the give way sign and then go 5 miles an hour, Muppet!!

The weather becomes sunny and stays like this for the rest of the day, the views and the road into Aberystwyth are fantastic and I find the ‘Glyn Garth guest house’ quickly, my room is fab and I go for a walk round the town and it is beautiful, the views of the coast here are magnificent and so are the castle grounds, I think I’ll come here again.

Talk to you all tomorrow, Alan

Keep up to date with Alan’s future updates HERE and you can still sponsor his ride if you wish by going HERE.

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More from Alan Lowe’s 3500 mile Sponsored Motor Bike Ride around the UK…..Day 7 - Rest Day

Time for a well earned rest at the half way point, Windermere is beautiful…

…and so are my digs for the next 2 nights, my Parents and girl friend, Sandi, get here at 10am, its good to see familiar faces again, they’ve also brought fresh clothes, different boots (more water proof I hope) for the rest of the trip.

Earlier in the morning I looked up the only bike shop in the area, rang them to make sure they had some all in 1 waterproofs and water proof gloves in my size which the reply was ‘sure we’ve got all you need here, so 10 minutes after my parents get here we head of out towards Kendal to the shop for better water proofs, however when we get there and ask for the gear, the man wanders of to the back and comes returns saying actually we don’t have those size’s after all!! I have to bite my lip and keep calm, #**$”XX+##**?!! Is going through my head as we leave and with the next nearest shop 30 miles away with leave it.

We then go to Bowness for a few hours and I manage to pick up some really good water proofs in a hiking shop for £50 now I’m set for the next 5 days, we chill out for the rest of the afternoon and go out to the ‘Lighthouse Restaurant’ in Windermere, the meal is fantastic, my fillet steak is cooked to perfection and is beautifully tender, we take our fill and call it a night.
Back to the ride tomorrow, Windermere to Aberystwyth Vie the Isle of Anglesey, till tomorrow, Alan

Keep up to date with Alan’s future updates HERE and you can still sponsor his ride if you wish by going HERE.

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