What's your tipple?

With many anticipated hot days in the saddle, it's a sure fire bet that Sanch and I will be partaking of the odd beer or three each evening.

In Portugal, I expect we'll down a few Sagres or Super Bock, whilst in Spain, where we shall be for 3/4 of the trip, the choice is somewhat larger, Cruzcampo, Mahou, Estrella Damm, San Miguel, etc.

Sanch's preferred tipple

Sanch won't be my only companion drinking though. Ginny, as I have recently discovered, whilst happy to sip at 95 RON unleaded, right pinky in the air style, has a real liking for (her not so secret vice), 5w40 BMW Advantec liquid gold, certainly compared to any other bike I've owned. I'm told, by a BMW mechanic, that I should expect Ginny to drink a litre, every 800 - 1000 miles. She does have six cylinders, so maybe I should expect her to like the lube but it takes some getting used to. Not only that but it now presents me with a slight issue, in so much as, I shall have to carry some oil with me AND almost certainly look to purchase more during the trip. I'm expecting us to cover about 4500 miles, so potentially, Ginny could slurp her way through 5 litres. It's all part and parcel of getting used to her I suppose. Although I've had her 14 months, I've not spent the same time with her, as I did my previous bikes. They were used for commuting as well as touring, consequently, I got to know them a lot quicker.

Ginny's Ruin

Ginny's had her 6k service and will be new booted before we go away, so she'll be ready to roll. When out in France with my bro', he asked if I had a puncture repair kit. I have never had one and touch wood, have never needed the use of one on tour and for many a year in any case, however, it did get me thinking. Sanch is happy to rely on his breakdown cover and whilst I have breakdown cover for Ginny, I figured it may be better to repair a puncture myself, than sit by the side of a mountain pass for hours, waiting for Pepe the repair man. So, I've bought myself a small repair kit online. Hopefully, when it arrives, it will fit under the seat on Ginny, otherwise it'll be something else I have to squeeze into my topbox.

Talking of squeezing things into luggage, I am still tinkering with my packing, swapping some bits of clothing, for lighter items, not necessarily for weight saving but because they roll up smaller. Who knows, I might have to find room amongst my pants for some oil!

That's all for now.