I arrived in Linz a day after my girlfriends birthday. It was my intention to be there on her birthday but after 22 hours and 1000+ km’s of riding it was just not possible. Nevertheless she was pleased to see me. I wrongly assumed that now that I was roughly in the centre of the universe as far BMW Motorrad is concerned all would be well and I’d have an easy journey home. Ironically this is when my problems started. The first problem was the chain. It was “slapping” and jumping about a little more than I felt comfortable with. It’s done 16000 miles now but I still expected it to be doing fine especially considering I have a Scottoiler and cleaned it daily.

The chain had loosened quite considerably and it was then I realised that I had lost some tools when my tent went overboard in Wales 3 weeks before. Not a problem I thought. I’m in a big city and know my way around. I visited Hein Gericke the next day for some supplies and as I was leaving I noticed the rear tyre was going flat. Great! My plans of an early departure were dashed. It turns out BMW Motorrad Linz is about 100m up the road from Hein Gericke and the tyre was completely flat by the time I was parallel with the showroom. My dirty battle scarred F800 GS mirrored the shiny new one on the other side of the showroom glass.

If someone had told me of this I would not have believed them. You could not have staged it for a bike to get a puncture outside a BMW dealership. As it turned out the valve had separated from the inner tube. A casualty of some of our dirt track riding I suspect. It would appear that without the necessary clamps the inner tube was slipping within the tyre. BMW also offered to sort out some warranty work and do some software updates so I was resigned to the fact that I wouldn’t be departing on this day.

During my few days in Linz I made a point of visiting Thomas Wonderka. He is a Flickr contact and also interested in Bikes. We met for a coffee and when we left the F800 Celebrity effect was in full swing. A bus load of Thai Tourists had disembarked from a nearby bus and loved it so much they each wanted a photo in turn with the bike. I had to send my girlfriend off at the airport so I had to speed events up a little by suggesting a group photo.

The following day was sunny and I was packed and ready to make my way to Bochum in Northern Germany. I thanked the Elischak family for their generosity and hospitality and after a slight delay from the temporary loss of my mobile phone I was once again eating up the kilometres. Bavaria is a truly beautiful and varied part of Germany. I could have stopped a 100 times to explore and take photos but I really had to make the time up. By early

evening I was in the forested hills of the Rhineland and with the sun setting in the west the land took on a mystical appearance. By 9pm I arrived in Bochum and was greeted by Stephanie Kotalla. She was a neighbour of mine who used to live at my apartment complex in England and only last year moved back to Germany. Once again the hospitality was exemplary. The BBQ was already running and fine Turkish bread and Campari with orange was waiting for me. We have a lot to learn in England. On this whole trip a recurring theme has been the warm welcomes and great food we have received along the way. I was initially concerned about the security of the bike as it was going to be on the street of a Northern European city. In my view a lot riskier than parking it up in the Balkans.

Once again my concerns were allayed because a Turkish Gentleman was guarding the parking area and was very interested in where I had come from and where I was going to. I gave him a Sibirsky sticker and some Euros for his time and he was happy to pose for a photo.

The next morning I had a bit more time to play with and stopped to take some photos of the area. By lunchtime I had reached Ostende in Belgium and took a short detour to sample some traditional Belgian food. Moules-Frites :). On exiting Ostende I spotted another BMW dealership and they had the new F800 R but I had no time now and had to press on to Calais. I made good time and breezed through customs and the channel tunnel, Even managing to do some filming which was of a better standard than my first attempt when leaving the UK.

I had two appointments. The first was with Walter’s girlfriend… (now, now. Nothing like that!) I had to drop off some of Walter’s excess baggage and let her know all was well. The second meeting was with Tony Pettie and his partner Marina. At very short notice (of which I am deeply apologetic) they provided a wonderful dinner, drinks down the local pub and a very comfortable bed for the night. They offered me breakfast too but I struggle with the concept of breakfast so settled for a very nice coffee instead. Tony is integral to the Sibirsky Extreme Project as he is the next rider to join Walter after he emerges from Kazakhstan and into Russia for the push North East towards Lake Baikal and Siberia.

After a few photos I was once again on my way but instead of zipping up the motorway I deliberately continued the Sibirsky ethos of staying off the beaten track and was rewarded for doing so. Quite by chance I happened upon the oldest windmill in the British Isles and later on in the day while riding up the old Roman Road of Watling Street came upon 100’s of Harley bikers. They were attending the funeral of a close friend and fellow rider and were sending her off with an escort. It was quite a sight and a fitting tribute. 2 hours later I was home and felt a changed person. Positive, enlightened, eager to explore some more and of course sad that I could not continue East. Still. better to be left wanting more.

It was a privilege and a pleasure to ride with Walter Colebatch and Marcin Safranow and to have met all the well wishers and supporters both here and along the route.