GOOD MOOOOOOORNING ALL.
Well I rode in this morning - again - 45*F Raining, however, I rode in this morning on a new back tyre. Are you sitting comforatbly?...
Well, yesterday I had to attend a meeting at Oban, up north on the west coast about 100 miles away, all fairly small backroads actually a sweet ride.
However 25 miles from Oban I feel a wee bit of misbehaviour from the bike every time I hit a bend, I'm leaning it over and it feels as though it wants to get back up! Hmm. road conditions, a wee bit wet scruffy surface quite a lot diesel about, not too sure.
As I progress the bike is geeting more and more unco-operative, so I decide to pull over.
[Thinks.. took the fake swingarm off the other day, p'raps it's not that fake!]
and LO! the back tyre almost flat! FLICK!, passed a hotel about a mile back and there was some activity in the car park. So off i battered at 20MPH on a VERY grumpy bike. Get's to the car park and saw a chap in his own world of pain, poor sole was tossing engine parts over his shoulder whilst trying to get a very old and tatty Rover 400 going. He looks up and still manages a smile and loans me his foot pump.
Next petrol station 6 miles. Back on the bike gets to the next petrol station and bought some tyre weld.. Hmm maybe not.. Next station 12 miles, Oban 14 miles. Topped up the air againmade a dash for Oban.
Made the meeting 40 minutes late.. not too bad considering.
After the meeting took the bike to the local Tyre joint, "no can help" says spotty yoof.
However the is a M/C dealership in Oban - STODDARTS. Gets there and the guy says they don't don't like to repair M/C tyres, for various very valid reasons, however, I explain that it only has to get me 100 miles down the road and it will be replaced (we had determined at this point that they did not have one in stock). So faced with an unplanned overnight stay in Oban, the man offered to take a back tyre off the brand new Shadow sitting in the showroom and shove it on my bike and order in a replacement for the Shadow.
(And he didn't screw me over neither, as a lot of dealers would have done!)
Service well over and above in my book!
Once again my faith in humanity has been reinforced.
So I came back in pitch black in the hoofing rain along the Loch Lomond road on an unscrubbed tyre, not a fun journey, still - better that the alternative!
BIG UP FOR STODDARTS OF OBAN - John you
ARE the man!
