Hi everyone,
So exactly 6 months today I'll have started my journey to the Arctic and, all going well, I'll be sitting by my tent in Dover chomping down on some food having ridden the 360 miles from my hometown Whitley Bay.
It is all starting to get very real that I'm going to Nordkapp and the Arctic Circle. I know in no time at all I'll be on my bike, all packed, zooming down the motorway towards the continent. I've still got a lot of details to plan and work to do before I set off. I'm trying to remind myself that even though my trip has some very serious aims, I have to make sure I enjoy the ride.
I've already written a blog about my details of first day (click here to view) but there are still even more details to plan. The first is how I'm going to link up with all my biker buddies along the route from Newcastle to Dover. If you are interested for joining me for any part of the ride please drop a comment at the bottom of this post and let me know where you are located. The second challenge of my first day is figuring out the best way to film it. To be honest this is one of the biggest challenges I'm going to have a full stop on the trip. I'm certainly no film maker but I realize that helmet cam shots and 'selfies' are going to get pretty boring and that I need a variety of shots to keep the documentary film interesting.
On all my days I'm going to be looking for willing volunteer cameramen to help do some filming. If you are located in along my route and want to help out (or know someone else who would) please get in touch!
Places I'm still looking for filming help in:
Another item I need to plan is the packing of my bike. Even though I have my touring side boxes and top box I'm still very limited on space compared to a usual camping trip you would go on in the car. I've been taking advice from my buddy Andrew Pain who is the author of motorbiking books such as Going Small - A Guide to Lightweight Motorcycle Touring, and Going Small 2.0: Lightweight Motorcycling all over again.
One thing I need to get right is my tent. I need it to be big enough to house me and my gear while I'm camping but small enough to fit in my top box and light enough not to have to much impact on the handling of my bike.
So I've decided I'm going to go with the Vango Soul 200. Its small enough to not take to much room up when packed on the bike, big enough to fit me and my stuff in when camping, and its comes in Arctic Ride blue :) win win win. Lets just hope blue doesn't attract reindeer who will come and eat my food, haha.
That is all for this weeks folk. Thanks to everyone for all their support of my trip. Whether its reading my blog, liking my updates on facebook, sharing my links on twitter, or donating money to Cerebra via my giving page. I thank you all.
Special thanks this week go out to my motovlog buddy Andi from Switzerland who donated an amazing £250 to Cerebra. That means I'm 25% towards my total already! What a guy. Thanks very much Andi!
Ride safe everyone.
Gordon
So exactly 6 months today I'll have started my journey to the Arctic and, all going well, I'll be sitting by my tent in Dover chomping down on some food having ridden the 360 miles from my hometown Whitley Bay.
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| St Mary's Lighthouse, Whitley Bay |
It is all starting to get very real that I'm going to Nordkapp and the Arctic Circle. I know in no time at all I'll be on my bike, all packed, zooming down the motorway towards the continent. I've still got a lot of details to plan and work to do before I set off. I'm trying to remind myself that even though my trip has some very serious aims, I have to make sure I enjoy the ride.
I've already written a blog about my details of first day (click here to view) but there are still even more details to plan. The first is how I'm going to link up with all my biker buddies along the route from Newcastle to Dover. If you are interested for joining me for any part of the ride please drop a comment at the bottom of this post and let me know where you are located. The second challenge of my first day is figuring out the best way to film it. To be honest this is one of the biggest challenges I'm going to have a full stop on the trip. I'm certainly no film maker but I realize that helmet cam shots and 'selfies' are going to get pretty boring and that I need a variety of shots to keep the documentary film interesting.
On all my days I'm going to be looking for willing volunteer cameramen to help do some filming. If you are located in along my route and want to help out (or know someone else who would) please get in touch!
Places I'm still looking for filming help in:
- Dover, England
- Calais, France
- Brussels, Belgium
- Ottersberg (Bremen), Germany
- Nyborg (Odense), Denmark
- Copenhagen, Denmark
- Landskrona (Malmo), Sweden
- Lillehammer, Norway
- Trondhiem, Norway
- Mo i Rana, Norway
- Alta, Norway
Another item I need to plan is the packing of my bike. Even though I have my touring side boxes and top box I'm still very limited on space compared to a usual camping trip you would go on in the car. I've been taking advice from my buddy Andrew Pain who is the author of motorbiking books such as Going Small - A Guide to Lightweight Motorcycle Touring, and Going Small 2.0: Lightweight Motorcycling all over again.
One thing I need to get right is my tent. I need it to be big enough to house me and my gear while I'm camping but small enough to fit in my top box and light enough not to have to much impact on the handling of my bike.
 |
| Vango Soul 200 |
That is all for this weeks folk. Thanks to everyone for all their support of my trip. Whether its reading my blog, liking my updates on facebook, sharing my links on twitter, or donating money to Cerebra via my giving page. I thank you all.
Special thanks this week go out to my motovlog buddy Andi from Switzerland who donated an amazing £250 to Cerebra. That means I'm 25% towards my total already! What a guy. Thanks very much Andi!
Ride safe everyone.
Gordon
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