Unfortunately my new Givi luggage didn’t arrive in time so this trip became a test of the bike, its capabilities and making sure I had made the right decision trading the Monster for the Strom. I’m also able to test the mobile blogging software for the first time too – this is coming to you live from Dartmoor!
We started the morning with sleepy showers and a bacon sandwich, at 11:00 Shep and Geri turned up as planned and it was time to hit the road. I started off following the cage until we hit our first queue of traffic on the outskirts of Dorchester, then it was time for me to peel off and take the bike lane.
There were intermittent queues all the way to and through Bridport. Once out, the roads were pretty much traffic free, surprisingly even Exeter wasn’t too bad! It’s important to note I was riding free of maps and GPS, using only road signs to get to my destination, which seemed to be working right up until I took a wrong turn 2 miles from the campsite! An hour and a half later (there are some nice roads here) I turned up at the campsite to be greeted by my three fellow travellers and a pitched tent.
The Strom took me 140 miles today in about 3.5 hours, the ride was fantastic and the weather was beautiful. The bike felt great; I could still feel my fingers and the seat isn’t as bad as people make out, though I may still be tempted by a gel upgrade. I also now know the tank range is well over 200 miles being on 220 now with about 4 litres left to go.
There are no doubts I’ve made the right decision now, a couple of tweaks and a lot of luggage testing and I’ll be ready to go anywhere…