Not Doc not in Cologne

I Will be there for two weeks with the missus in April. Really enjoyed this thread. I will have to check out Canary Ride.
 
Fabulous last day . One of the best days riding I’ve ever had and overall the best weeks riding I’ve ever done . Was great in 2023 with wife but we’ve had even better weather this week and being on the awesome Vstrom 800 DE all week was the icing on the cake . There is no bike I’d rather have been on .
And we were very lucky that for the last two days it was just the three of us out with Nigel , an ex fireman and bike instructor and a great guide .
Had a great morning then lunch at Puerto Rico harbour .
We then rode the Valley of Tears followed by the Ultimate Challenge which was very steep and gnarly with the tightest hairpins you’ll find anywhere .
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One of our fav cafes

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Which has this picture in the restaurant of a baby being fed by her nanny 😜

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We’re off for a night on the town in Maspalomas shortly .

Will post a couple of vids from today later when I can upload them .
 
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Some vids from yesterday , if you have insomnia later 😜.

Heading out in the morning


The Valley of Tears

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And what CMT call the Ultimate Challenge , known as the Carrizal locally . Much steeper than it looks and very tight uphill hairpins

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And that’s the end of the trip .
Meeting the boys for brek in an hour then Wapping and I are flying out on BA back to Gatwick .
Our plane departed LGW a minute early so good job Monsieur isn’t here as he’d have nothing to moan about .
Stevie4Scoops flies back to Birmingham mid afternoon with Jet 2.

I can thoroughly recommend this trip to anyone but I’d suggest you’re a competent rider as the island has some of the trickiest roads I’ve ridden anywhere in the world .

We’ve basically had blue skies and 22 degs all week apart from low cloud and mizzle for 20 minutes leaving Las Palmas when we rented from Canary Ride and 10 minutes of the same on return .

CMT is very well organised and groups no bigger than 8 .

We had 7 the first 3 days then just the 3 of us on the last 2 which was fabulous .

The trip costs about £1300 which includes b and b in 4 star hotel , bike hire, guide and petrol.

I guarantee it will be the best weeks riding you are likely to ever do .

Mention my name when booking , not that you’ll get a discount 😜

I’ll be back in the future, but doing my own thing as I now have a good grasp of the island , but some people come back year after year and do the same tour and I can see why .

It’s a stunning place with the biggest variation of roads you’d find anywhere from open sweeping bends up and down mountains , around coasts etc to tight gnarly roads through gorges and riding through a rain forest .

Highest road is up to the Picos Las Nieves which is at about 6600 feet .

Utterly mind blowing scenery . Beautiful unspoilt villages in the mountains with some lovely cheap restaurants, contrasting with the naff resorts such as Maspalomas teeming with Brits .

CMT rent NC750Xs both manual and DCT , loads of Vstrom 650s, one new Transalp, one Vstrom 800 DE and one 800 RE.

I’ve ridden them all apart from the RE . I was on the DE all week and it made this trip perfect .

Martin , the owner of CMT agrees with me that it’s the best bike they have . Apparently it handles much better than the RE even though the DE is on 21/18 wheels . The Transalp is crap here as always in between 2nd and 3rd, trying to find the right gear whereas the DE could be left in 3rd most of the time .
On paper its stats don’t hint at what a stunning bike it is , ‘only’ putting out 82 bhp . But it has loads of midrange , flies when you wind it up .
I rode it in B mode first 2 days as Martin said A was a bit fierce . But stuck it in A last 3 days and it was just more instant , bit like a KTM but with perfect fuelling .Gearbox very smooth as is quick shifter . I’d say it’s the best parallel twin on the market .

Great riding position and all day comfort . And the best handling 21/18 wheel bike I’ve ever ridden .
It was in Metzeler Tourance NXT and they have great grip and feedback .

CMT had to remove the OE centre stand as it was being ground away .

I’d say the DE is in the top 5 bikes I’ve ever ridden , and I’ve owned about 75 .

It just needs cruise control to be perfect .

I will be getting one at some point . Hopefully Suzuki might add cruise for 2026.

I would then possibly source a taller seat for my knackered knees and perhaps bar risers to keep the same riding position .

A unicorn bike

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Thanks again to Wapping and Stevie4scoops for joining me . We had a giggle . Shame that Skid06 had to pull out due family commitments.

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Thanks for tuning in . Cheers

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Is he standing up so he can see where he is going ?
Roads look nice and smooth.
 
Is he standing up so he can see where he is going ?
Roads look nice and smooth.
Yes, as hairpins so tight you had to use all the road . That road was gnarly but many roads have new tarmac in preparation for the WRC round here in a few months .
 
looks like a fantastic trip. I'm there on thursday using a 1300GS from Canary Ride (i actually wanted a Desert X or Stevio but it was all they had left!).

are you still impressed with the new lid? i got one on the recommendation.

Barry
 
looks like a fantastic trip. I'm there on thursday using a 1300GS from Canary Ride (i actually wanted a Desert X or Stevio but it was all they had left!).

are you still impressed with the new lid? i got one on the recommendation.

Barry
Yes . Lid was fabulous . Used it in open position 95% of time .

Just landed back at LGW . Grim .

Got to wait nearly two weeks before I can ride in the sun and warmth again. 😜😜😜
 


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