‘Chocolate will make you feel better...’
David Ayres, 59 rides a KTM 1090. Started riding in the 70s, averages around 12,000 miles a year, touring and as an IAM Observer.
Carry a spare clutch and brake lever and a bar of chocolate. Even a silly drop of the bike in a car park can ruin your day if you don’t have a front brake... The chocolate is to make you feel better afterwards.
Don’t go touring with untested kit. I changed my helmet before a quick whizz around France once. Three days of rain, having to stop every ten miles and clean my glasses or ride with my visor partially open. Not fun.
If it all goes to cock, roll with it. On one trip, we started passing snow ploughs going the other way. Snow ploughs — Spain — April? Dropping into the next valley, we found two inches of snow. We carried on — stupid. I fluffed a down-change, locked the rear wheel and low-sided my Versys. Moral? There are lots of cheap hotels in Spain — cheaper than replacing scratched engine covers when you get home.