The Arctic Rider

Hi everyone, Thanks for tuning in! I've been very bad and not blogged for a month or so, but I've been a busy lad so hopefully you'll let me off. Its been nearly 2 months since I announced that I am taking on the Iron Butt Challenge in 2016 and the Dalton Highway in Alaska before 2020. The Iron Butt challenge will see me ride the length of the UK from Land's End in the South to John O'Groats in the North in LESS THAN 24 HOURS - The map below shows you my route : Now not only do I have to ride the 875 in less than 24 hours (300 of which is through the Scottish Highlands), I've also got to get myself to Lands End from my home of Newcastle upon Tyne the day before and back from John O'Groats the day after... its a good job I like riding my bike!!! I've had a few people ask me if I'm mad... I think the answer is yes. A few people have asked if its possible, which of course it is... but not many have officially completed it which is why I s...

Hello, Thanks for tuning in to my blog! I'm currently planing my next charity motorbike challenge, which will raise money for the charity Tiny Lives who supported my little girl Islay when she was born. Islay turned 1 this week which means this time last year was being cared for on the Special Care Baby Unit at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle. What a difference a year makes... In my last blog I detailed the different options for my next ride which I asked you, my lovely readers, to help me decide. I also spent a bit too much time on Paint making them into 'Top Trumps'. Thanks to all those who voted and let me know their thoughts. All of the options will be a challenge and its my goal to complete all of them, some day, but your votes and my thoughts will take me through the next few years. So... THE RESULTS ARE IN! In 4th place is Arctic Ride: Trans Siberian Highway -  The 9,000 mile ultra long distance ride didn't appeal to those who v...

Hi everyone, As I said in my last blog, I'm currently planning my next charity motorbike trip to raise money for the charity Tiny Lives who supported my baby girl Islay when she was first born. Ever since I returned from Arctic Norway I've been looking at the map to decide where I'm going to head in the future on my trusty steed. I've narrowed it down to 4 options (at the moment). Arctic Ride: Adventure Alaska (Dalton Highway) Summary - Ride from the city of Anchorage is Southern Alaska to Prudhoe Bay, the most northerly town in Alaska, deep inside the Arctic Circle. The route is via the deadly Dalton Highway, one of the worlds most dangerous road. Total mileage - 2,000 Difficulty rating - Very High - Due to the treacherous nature of the Dalton Highway and the potential climate of Arctic Alaska. Off road riding required. What the experts say - " Every year motorcyclists are killed on the Dalton Highway. Almost half of the highway is paved or chip...

Hello! Thanks for visiting my blog! Now its not easy being a charity motorbike adventurer sometimes. Like most on the internet these days, it seems to attract trolls who want to try and spoil what you are doing. Only this week I had a social media commenter who 'didn't understand the bit about raising money'... which I found pretty odd. From my point of view if someone can do an activity that's a bit out there, or different, or challenging, and they can raise some money for a charity along the way, then its all good. Whether you are a runner, a cyclist, jumping out of a plane, or riding your motorbike to very cold places... it shouldn't matter. In fact it should be something to be proud of, not only those who do the activities, but those who support and donate. The world is a greedy enough place without people bashing charity fundraisers. On a personal level, one thing that really inspires me when I hear about charity fundraisers are those who raise money ...

Greetings, Welcome to the Arctic Rider blog, and thanks for reading. First of all, since my last blog I finally got around to closing my giving page after all post-ride donations and DVD sales had been collected. The final total including gift aid that will go to brain injury charity Cerebra is £5,001.58 ... DOUBLE my target. THANK YOU so much to everyone who donated and supported me, it wouldn't have happened without you. Final total of £5,001.58 raised for Cerebra from my ride the Arctic This certainly isn't the last from me and my charity motorbike causes, I'll be announcing my next adventure for 2016 very soon. Sticking with Arctic Ride 2014, the DVD is still available (in very limited quantities) to buy and is available on eBay (click here) Now I've mentioned many (many) times on this blog how amazed I was by Norway and it's roads. If I'd known they were going to be such great biking roads, I'd have been there a lot sooner. Even if...

Hello there, And welcome to another edition of the Arctic Ride blog! My trip might be a distant memory (last year in fact) but there is still plenty to come from me both for Arctic Ride 2014 post trip (like this blog) and future adventures. I'm pleased to announce that earlier this week my blog reached 45,000 views which I am both pleased and humbled about. So with this blog I wanted to share my thoughts on the bike I rode on my ride to the Arctic this year, the Suzuki GSX650F. I've had many people ask me to review the bike and, well, here it is. My GSX 650F and I at the Arctic Circle in Norway As a background in my 9 years of riding I've ridden a smallish cross section of bikes, but I feel it has been enough for me to put some context behind my views on the GSX650F. An example of some of the bikes I have ridden include my first bike, Suzuki Marauder 125, a Yamaha Virago 535, Kawasaki ER5, SV650S, BMW LT 1200, Harley Davidson Street Glide 1800, and a Kawasaki ...

Hi all, With 2014 coming to a close I wanted to thank you for reading my blog and supporting my efforts for Cerebra this year. Its been a wonderful year and I never thought that I would do so many new and interesting things! So, in the spirit of the internet's addiction to lists, I've created the Top 5 Arctic Rider moments 2014. Enjoy! 5 - NEMCRC Croft race meet VIP The North East Motor Cycle Racing Club (NEMCRC) were sponsors of my Arctic Ride 2014 and as part of that they got me very exposed to club events to drum up more support. In April I was lucky enough to be invited to the club's Croft Race meet where I was a VIP guest for the day. This meant that I had exclusive access to areas of the track that are usually only for officials. I was able to sit a top the Race office with the Clark of the course to get a great view of the circuit and the starting line, and given access to the recording team. I was also interviewed by the race commentator about my ride and gi...