I got my first motorbike when I was fifteen: a battered 50cc moped that was more rust than red paint. After a year of stacking shelves at the Co-op I was able to afford a proper bike – a tired but mechanically sound green Honda CD175, and with a group of friends we tore around the back lanes of south Manchester. They all had bigger, faster machines – RD250s, RG250s – and I was quietly jealous, but good things come to those who wait…
Several Hondas followed, then a leap into the unknown: a Triumph T140 Bonneville. It was a short and painful relationship. Parts fell off, oil leaked constantly, and it spent more time with my spanners than on the road. I replaced alternators, bearings, gaskets, two head skims, countless bolts, and always wondered what would fail next. After enough misery, I went back to what I trusted: a Honda, then a BMW, then more Honda’s.
After a break from two-wheels, I ended up with a Suzuki V-Strom DL1000. It was versatile, unstoppable, and pulled like a Ukrainian tractor. And I loved it. But after nearly 80,000 miles and many countries, “Big Red” earned its retirement early in 2025.
In April 2025, I took delivery of a new Honda Transalp XL750 – my new freedom machine. After adding the essentials for travel, we set off in May, returning 18 weeks later after riding around Europe. I still miss the V-Strom, but I wanted something more fuel-frugal, lighter and easier to live with. And it certainly delivers: the Honda Transalp is reliable, effortless and quietly confident, earning a place alongside the Suzuki in my affections.
How I Became a Traveller
When I was seventeen I was sat in a dingy office surrounded by clouds of cigarette smoke – as everyone smoked back then – and besides thinking about the weekend, Ziggy Stardust, Top of the Pops and the girls in the next office, I would listen to the older guys moaning about how bad things were. I knew then that there was more to life than this, so I either had to stay where I was and suffocate – or get out there and see new things.
I joined the Royal Navy, and then a few months after joining I was at sea on one of Her Majesty’s war canoes, heading for the Australia and the Far East. Ten months later, and with a deep mistrust of solid ground, I was hooked. And that’s how I caught the travelling bug.
And Now…?
Over the years I’ve been married and helped to raise four wonderful children. I’ve lived across the UK and Europe, travelling widely through my work, and for the past 22 years lived north of Glasgow, near Loch Lomond. I’m now at an age where I know I should be settling down and taking life much easier, but the pull of travel has steadily strengthened and taken over, and now I’m lucky enough to give travelling the time it deserves.
Any old Iron…?
Over the years I have had a few bikes and had a couple of big gaps in-between. I’ve managed to find a few pictures of the old iron, but unfortunately not many.
