SW France to N Wales and back on an MT09

[lew600fazer]

Left home in SW France for a meet up with mates from the SX forum in N Wales on the 21st September and got back home on the 29th. Mileage covered 2460,yes did suffer from a numb bum at times. Great craic at the meet. Booked into the Oakely Arms and there cottages near Portmaddoc. Not a bad place but not sure if I would ever stay there again as a group. The cottages are smashing clean and comfortable. What did pee us off though was when we went to eat in the restaurant (15 of us) as we had booked a table one would have thought it would have been laid out for dinning. We were then informed as the bar was busy we would have to wait and then go to the bar to order our food. 15 hungry bikers voiced there opinion on that idea and guess what suddenly found someone to take the food orders.
Thankfully we had excellent weather for the ride out and I also kept dry for my run up to N Wales and again my run back down to France.
One thing I will say, no wonder Europe is full of terrorists, not once did I have to show my passport leaving France, entering Britain (Dover)leaving Britain or entering France again, border controls are a fecking joke.

[celticdog]

2.5k miles, that's good going Lew.    An awesome tash there, it's so manly it could buy it's own beers.

[fatbloke62]

looks like you had a cracking trip, nice pics of the ponderosa café and the horseshoe pass

[BBROWN1664]

You were (in)lucky with the passport Lew, every time I go I have to show it on the way out and on the way back at least once. I use the tunnel though so may be a bit different from other places.

[bri h]

looks like you had a good trip Lew. Lovely part of the world with great roads. .

[lew600fazer]

Couple more Photos, cracking number plate on the orange MT09.

[BBROWN1664]

Spot the illegals bits in the number plate photo :pokefun

Spanish registered, actually lives in France. Probably still driving on a UK licence. Lucky you weren't stopped Lew :pokefun

[Dave48]

Lews plate is ok. Its the silver on black one thats technically breaking the law(Pre 1974 vehicles) unless its a "vintage" MT09 :lol

[BBROWN1664]

Dave - The issue is not the physical plate but the combination of plate and licence.
I was looking at getting one of my bike French registered to keep and insure it in France but the rules mean that I could never (legally) ride it in the UK unless I managed to register the bike to a company.

[Dave48]

Thats interesting-I learn something new every day. So a French owner/rider can come to UK on holiday & we can do similar. But if you live in UK & also have a home in France you cant bring your French registered machine here?
So what about all the cars I see with European plates-with the owners presumably living/working here?

[BBROWN1664]

If you have a UK issued licence you can only drive a UK registered vehicle in the UK except if the vehicle is a company owned vehicle.

If you live here for more than 6 months (same goes for France/Spain etc) you effectively become a resident and at that point you are meant to exchange your licence for a local one. Many of the Poles etc who bring their cars over are meant to have changed their licences but wont have as it means they escape points when they get stopped for speeding etc. Exactly the same reason may Brits living in France keep their UK licences despite living there for years and years.

[stevierst]

Lew, how did you find touring on the MT? I'm off to Morocco next year on the bike, and I'm hankering after an XSR900!!!!


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[lew600fazer]

Lew, how did you find touring on the MT? I'm off to Morocco next year on the bike, and I'm hankering after an XSR900!!!!


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Absolutely no problems at all, only niggle is the tank range it has a 14 litre tank so if you are heavy right handed you will be filling up pretty often. That trip was my second long haul this year. I did from SW France to N Ireland in April again that was 2000 miles + in a week. Not sure what the seat is like on the XSR900 some complain the the stock seat on the MT09 is poor personally I cope okay with it.

[lew600fazer]

Spot the illegals bits in the number plate photo :pokefun

Spanish registered, actually lives in France. Probably still driving on a UK licence. Lucky you weren't stopped Lew :pokefun

BB , Spanish licence actually, as I was resident in Spain and driving Spanish reg Car + Bike had to get the Spanish licence. I am in the process of changing the bike over and licence. I did the car last month. As I had the trip planned and ferry booked decided to wait until I got back. One other reason as well for leaving it on the Spanish plate. The UK do not have an agreement with Spain for speeding tickets? The French and Spain unfortunately do.

[BBROWN1664]

:thumbup

One of the few then Lew. Most of the Brits that live near my place in Mayenne have been there years and still drive on their UK licences though most now drive French reg cars.

[Dave48]

How did you find the screen you have fitted to the MT09, Lew?

[lew600fazer]

The screen is okay deflects enough over the top. I have had the bike flat out and it is not ripping the arms out of the sockets or knocking my head off either , but will add I am built like a brick shithouse. Yo will get wet though when it rains lol.

[Val]

Great trip Lew 

[Don71uk]

Lew,


what sort of tank range/mileage were you getting? As a mt09 might be my next bike,


Don.

[lew600fazer]

Don I did a recent check with mixed throttle behaviour averaged out at 53 mpg but that was the bike in STD Mode all the time. So it is achievable to get around 160 miles to a tank full, but you are on fumes by then.  When in Wales because the other lads were running mostly Z1000SX's I kept the bike mostly in A Mode. That is the beauty of the MT09 it is a wolf in sheeps clothing. But it is a very thirsty wolf, you can empty a tank in just over 80 miles, but what a buzz lol.