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Me and me Mate, Martin went to the Mugello MotoGP in 2009. I have an Uncle who lives in Germany and we arranged to ride there on our bikes with our better halves, spend a couple of days there then we would leave the ladies in Germany while Martin and I would go for a lads road trip over 4-days & ride over the Alps to Mugello and back

We called in at 'The Ring' on our way to my Uncles and saw this funny looking Porsche heading out onto the track, little did we know it was the 'Big Maxi' to be released the following year





















We left Germany on the Friday and would stop in Lichtenstein that night if things went to plan.















We got to the Border of Liechtenstein and had the worst experience we've ever had crossing from one country to another in all the years we've toured in Europe, since 1996 to present day. As we pulled up to the parking bay outside the border glass cabin we had barely got of our bikes when two aggressive and unfriendly 'tin pot' border guards were in our fans with hands on holsters "Passports, Vehicle Documents, Insurance, Road Permit (MOT)" were requested in no uncertain manner and when we gave them the required paperwork - "Wait here" they ordered and off they went to see their gaffer in the hut. 10 minutes they spent looking at us and their computer screen and eventually came out, gave us our papers back and walked off back to their cabin. Oh, right, thanks then I said in my head and off we set. The very next experience we had was the hotel we picked and it couldn't have been more friendly. No one spoke a word of English but with some broken German we managed to book a twin room with bathroom and they very kindly let us park our bikes in their delivery area round the back









The room was lovely and clean and well appointed and the evening food and wine were very nice thank you very much.

The next day, Saturday, we headed out of Liechtenstein, through Switzerland









Following the Sat Nav and enjoying the fabulous scenery & empty roads I was suddenly aware the Sat Nav was saying 'Take Ferry' ? WTF, we're in the middle of a large landmass with mountains all around and my Garmin is telling me to take the ferry, Oh God, the Sat Nav is playing up, when around the next corner all is revealed, it was intact a train through the mountain A quick chat and looking at the time we had to get as near to Scarperia as possible that night we decided this will possibly be the only chance we'll ever get to take our bikes onto a train through a mountain so went for it







The lack of any straps at all and the laid back nature of the train guys when we asked about straps - "We never use them, it's OK" was a bit worrying and when the train got a move on and the bikes were rolling about on their side stands, it took some time before we could both relax and trust they would be fine, they of course were



Out the other side in about 30mins or so from memory and into more stunning scenery




























tbc

Fook Photobucket and its watermark

Nice John, I’ve always found Germany to be very hospitable even with my very very limited vocabulary, looking forward to the next instalment

Thanks for posting , face masks were in vogue in 2009 also

@popsky > I've had nothing but very good experiences with the Germans in their own country, some going out of their way intact to help, no problems whatsoever. My Uncle who has lived their for over 40 years however still calls them worse than Shite

nab 301 > We were ahead of our time Well spotted that man

On the train

Mugello 09 0240 by John Taylor, on Flickr



We headed South in the gorgeous warm sunshine enjoying the lovely tarmac and beautiful scenery around every mountain bend
a light lunch & coffee stop in this mountain village was a must with views of the ski runs used in winter



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Onward - up and over, down & through the fantastic landscape, all our senses alert to every ripple and stone in the road, the Buzzards swooping down for their next meal, the waterfalls gracefully painting the rock faces and any sign of a positive camber, continuous radius corner to sweep round, just magic. Next stop was for petrol and some 98 octane good stuff for the girls. When we had paid we had a few minutes outside and the two guys working behind the counter came out for a fag, in the petrol station unbelievable



Mugello 09 0102 by John Taylor, on Flickr



Mugello 09 0103 by John Taylor, on Flickr



We made our way down out of the mountains and onto a motorway to make headway with a little bit to go before evening and with a hotel yet to find Next thing we know all the traffic slowed and we were in a traffic jam on the motorway. We filtered gently along the white line when I was suddenly aware, something kept flashing by on my right on the hard shoulder. After two or three shot past and I got a glance inbetween the trucks, it became apparent they were motorbikes and let me tell you, they were not fookin hangin about. Well, it didn't take long before I gestured to Martin behind me that we were joining the hard shoulder and the nutters. I didn't wait for his reply, made my way gingerly through a gap inbetween two trucks and stuck my neck out as far as possible with every inch gained and with a gap appearing out I went. Checking my mirrors Martin followed me out and we were soon traveling at a decent lick along the hard shoulder with three lanes of standing traffic to our left, felt so wrong bit so brilliant at the same time
The traffic jam went on for a few miles and checking the Sat Nav, we were less than an hour from Mugello so I decided to get us off the madness of the hard shoulder and find a hotel for the night. Selecting the nearest hotel on the Garmin we left the motorway at the next junction and down a very nice little side road we pulled into a one horse town with the front of the hotel looking just like a western saloon.



https://goo.gl/maps/4mu6zRkoCTuw8aYr8



A very short conversation, broken Italian with a little Spanish and English thrown in and a viewing of the room followed by a shower and a dry with a bath towel sized tea towel material cloth, we were in the bar sampling their local cider. Now a fantastic, exciting long day in the saddle in a foreign country does put you in a certain mood and the cider soon flowed, very easily and swiftly and before we were too pissed, the proprietor made us aware it would be worth us bringing the bikes up onto the front veranda because there was a storm coming. God knows how she got that across to us but she did and we were so glad she did because as the night progressed, the weather deteriorated beyond belief and it was quite a storm that ensued but the bikes were perfectly safe huddled in the corner of the raised veranda and we couldn't have cared less as we had progressed onto the local food and especially the locally produced red wine, straight from the barrel by the carafe, of which we had one each it was that good BED

The next morning wasn't so clever we were both 'ruff as arseholes', funnily enough and after a slice of pizza or cake for breakfast, the only offering and some very, very strong espresso, we had a walk round the village to clear our heads and then off we set, about 12:30 south again to Mugello



Mugello 09 0105 by John Taylor, on Flickr





tbc

BoxerCup R wrote:@popsky > I've had nothing but very good experiences with the Germans in their own country, some going out of their way intact to help, no problems whatsoever. My Uncle who has lived their for over 40 years however still calls them worse than Shite

nab 301 > We were ahead of our time Well spotted that man

I still love Germany and often wonder why I came back here. Love the mountains and still think about going back skiing but I don't think the old bones could hack it these days and the older I get the better skier I was!!

I looked at the Map and picked a lovely route to Scarperia near the circuit and off we set, steady away We took the SP61 from Pian del Voglio heading South and the road climbed up out of the village and was sooo good we soon forgot our poorly heads and were straight into bend after bend after bend, switching this way and that without any surprises and it was quiet too. We soon picked up the SP59 and our body state, the road and life just got better. The countryside opened out in front of us and with the sun getting some heat into the tarmac we sped along making great progress and any traffic we encountered - read virtually nothing - was dispatched with knife like sharpness and was a distant memory by the time we hit the next apex on the next bend, life would struggle to get better than this with the qualifying and racing still to look forward to A short but excellent SR65 was a sublime bit of road filled with switchbacks and brought us into Santa Lucia. The SP39 was next, onto Galliano we galloped and then the final stretch of the route on the SP37 when, as we got nearer Scarperia things started to get a little busier but it was still Saturday so it wasn't unmanageable

We arrived at Mugello and were like two school boys as you can imagine, eyes wide open, trying to take a still photo in our minds eyes of everything we see and with massive grins under our helmets We were here. They told us we could ride our bikes into the circuit so that's exactly what we did and rode around the perimeter road until finding a place to park up



Mugello 09 0125 by John Taylor, on Flickr



Food and a cool drink was the first order of the day



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and then a walk round the circuit to find a suitable place to watch from tomorrow



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The helmet ticket turnstiles were absolutely brilliant. You put your ticket into the chin bar and it flicked it back out of the turnstile

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and this was an absolutely pristine Honda 750four which the guy had rode from Switzerland

Mugello 09 0112 by John Taylor, on Flickr



The weather stayed sunny & hot and the qualifying kinda came and went because of everything else we were taking in around the circuit. We stayed on a little, mainly because the fun and games started in amongst those that were camping inside the circuit, you know, people riding round with no helmets or gloves and in shorts and t-shirts, the revving of engines, two strokes and four strokes, attacked our ears and the smell of two stroke oil, hot engines and bbq's all mixed together was excellent
The evening was getting on and we had digs to find. We left the circuit and rode back along the way we came in because it was familiar. Out in the middle of know where there was a sign for B&B. It was at a set of closed wrought iron gates so I pressed the intercom and when I spoke the reply in broken English was to come in. The gates opened, we smiled at each other. happy we had found such a place only a few short miles from the circuit and very secure. At the top of the 1/2 mile long drive we approached the house and a guy directed us to the open garage to park up, this just got better After dismounting, removing our helmets and laughing to each other like giggly school girls I said "We just want the one night please if you have a twin room ?" It was at this point, the guy looked puzzled and then the realisation and horror on his face said it all, he was waiting for two English people to turn up who had already booked and when he heard my accent just assumed we were them, BOLLOX Ah well. He apologised profusely but hey, these things happen so that beer will have to wait and off we set down the drive and out onto the road. We rode for a few more miles and the light was starting to fade although it wasn't dark and we were actually enjoying being back on the bikes because the roads and weather were so good but as we turned a corner at the top of a hill a hotel appeared. We shot past it and so doubled back, went in, got a room and the owner was lovely and accommodating - happy days.



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First job after dumping our gear in the room was a beer obviously and so we settled into the restaurant and had a quiet evening with only a small amount of alcohol, compared to the previous night anyway so that we were fit for tomorrow - race day.

tbc

A good nights sleep was had and we were excited again, initially for the fact we had no hangovers secondly, for the ride, albeit only 23km, into Mugello and thirdly for the races. A small breakfast was served and gladly tucked away, bags packed and loaded onto the bikes and off we set



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Mugello 09 0134 by John Taylor, on Flickr



The ride in was dry and warm but no sun and the forecast said a chance of rain for the afternoon, hey ho, it is what it is. First stop was at a supermarket for some food to take into the circuit, 2 reasons, one for cost after eating at the circuit yesterday and two, there was going to be a bumper crowd and it would save queuing to pay through the nose for standard race circuit fayre. I was stood outside the nearest supermarket to the famous Mugello and was suddenly aware that the picture on the fag machine outside was in actual fact an action shot of a BSB race at Donnington, we were over the moon and could not believe that



Mugello 09 0141 by John Taylor, on Flickr



Mugello 09 0140 by John Taylor, on Flickr



We made our way to the circuit which was obviously a lot busier than the day before but amazingly we could still ride our bikes into the circuit We made our way around to the rear of the circuit and parked up where we could get pretty much lol and went and found a spot on the banking looking over the back of the pits with a large screen we could see and settled down for a long day.



Mugello 09 0146 by John Taylor, on Flickr



The banking got fuller as the crowd got bigger and the atmosphere was rising, all good natured and filled with excitement with horns blaring, when all of a sudden a two stroke engine fired up and was getting its neck rung to death. We were trying to see where and what it was but didn't expect to eventually see the guy with a chainsaw, bereft of its chain thank god, being lifted high up above is head and rev'd to high heaven, brilliant stuff and the crowd were well impressed

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And so we came to the first race of the day, the 125's, which we were very interested in because our very own Bradley Smith had only got pole We sat through 40 mins of tense racing to be greeted with a British win, fan-bloody-tactic and we stood and sang the national anthem when it was played over the loud tannoy system as the Union Jack was raised above the winners podium for everyone to see. What a very proud moment it was for us, never did we expect to be abroad and sing the national anthem at a MotoGP meeting, but we bloody did



250's were next and then the riders in the main event were formed on the grid............and they were off


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Mugello 09 0242 by John Taylor, on Flickr


the rain had arrived but it wasn't too bad to be honest and we never got wet and by midway in the race the rain had gone on its merry way and the race was finished in the dry. The race was a goodun' but to be honest it came second best to the weekend we were having and to Bradley's win. The sun came out as Stoner, Lorenzo and Rossi finished in that order and we were soon making our way to our bikes and out of the circuit gates with what seems like a million other people, as it always does when leaving a well attended event. Now my bike had been fine with no bother at all but I kept switching the engine off as we very slowly made our way in one crowd, towards the way out form the external of the circuit, with another crowd coming in the opposite direction and as with a lot of these events, there seems to be no organisation to get people away. So, with the sun now well and truly out again and the heat rising as we made our way up a slight hill at the side of the circuit I was start, stop, start, stop with my engine so my oil and air cooled engine didn't expire. We just got onto the flat part when the next time I thumbed the starter...........notihng, zilch, zero, nowt happened - FOOK. Luckily I could paddle my way, each time we could move, praying for there to be a set every twenty paces and thank god there was. We got past the last entrance and the road turns down a slight hill away from the track and this was my opportunity to bump start my girl.........she fired, I kept her going and we were soon away form the crowd and out onto the open road, heading north to get as far as possible that night before jumping into a hotel for the night. Well, it is safe to say, it was like a road race, for miles and miles, back road and motorway, it didn't matter, god I love the Italians We stopped at a motorway service station atleast 110 miles from Mugello, for a quick snack out of Martins box which was left over from our 'pack out' lunch and some fuel and the place was rammed. The evening light was still good and so we pressed on. The traffic started to get lighter and we piled the miles on when before we knew it we had crossed the open border into Switzerland and with a quick look behind me and nod of the head we pulled off and followed the Sat Nav to the nearest hotel. It was a beaut, expensive, but hey, it was right there when we needed it and we pretty much had the underground parking to ourselves



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The twin room was lovely with dressing gowns, slippers and we even watched a bit of that days WSBK before we hit the bar and a well needed meal



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That was our last night away from the girls, for next day we would head north again and be back at my Uncles in Dolgesheim for late afternoon.

We had a lovely breakfast and headed off in the bright hot sunshine on our faithful steads. We would be all motorway until the last few miles and so settled into a rhythm and a decent speed while keeping our eyes peeled for 'rozzers'. We stopped at one service station with probably the most beautiful mountains scenery you could ever get from a service area



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and had a brief chat to two German women, both on R1's, who had been away for a week touring in italy



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We got back on the motorway and were going past an absolutely beautiful scene, of which there were many on our trip but I just had to stop on the hard shoulder and take this before we got past it



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I remember Martin asking "What's up, has something broke" ? "No", said I, "I wanted to take a photo", his face even through his helmet opening was a picture and soon as we were stopped, we were off again. One more petrol stop



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this time in Germany and then it was throttle to the stop on the unrestricted Autobahn, past Hockenheim and into Dolgesheim.

It was a fantastic trip and one that I will never forget along with My Mate Martin.

That hit all the right notes there John, really enjoyed reading, and looking at your piccies and bringing back some fantastic euro trips of our own. Cheers

popsky wrote:That hit all the right notes there John, really enjoyed reading, and looking at your piccies and bringing back some fantastic euro trips of our own. Cheers

Glad you enjoyed it Phil and thanks for the post, its great to get feedback rather than just see the views increase and not knowing if the readers are enjoying it or not.That's always been the point of my write ups since I wrote my first in 2005, so people can read about my experiences and it will hopefully encourage them to go out and have their own and possibly write about them too. It will hopefully bring some light hearted relief during this lockdown too and take peoples minds off the situation.

Cheers

Thanks for that , interesting read .I'm curious what the tank range of the bikes was like especially when thrashed, A friend of mine had a similar Yamaha but found it thirsty ...

I get 120 miles to reserve, reserve whats that I hear you ask and you have to find the tap under the left hand side of the tank, remember doing that and 160 miles till I really need to fill up and thats ridden pretty hard on my own or two up with luggage, I never potter to be honest. If I've been on a run and the run is steady I can easily get more. She only has 5 gears

Thanks John, great report. It brings back memories of various fantastic foreign tours, some with assorted Boxertrixers.

Hope things will eventually get back to a normal that allows us to do it all again, I even have a Brittany Ferries voucher from the trip we should be on now!

All the best

Ian