Two Weeks… Shakedown…

Two weeks out and we’re tying the loose ends and getting into the details of what we’re taking or not and how much little shit weighs and I kinda just want to be on the trip already…

Sunday was a final proper ride and problem shoot for the bikes… Mine is a fortress, I knew it would be. But Rosie hasn’t really spent much time on hers as it’s a loaner so a solid roll with some ups and down was needed to suss it all out…

 

Beautiful Sunday out along the Old Pacifi Highway to Pie In The Sky and back… I prefer this ride on a weekday when there are less motorcycles and classic cars to listen for, but it’s beautiful none the less…

Gotta tweak Rosie’s setup a little bit – cut the bars some more and maybe run a very slightly longer stem, but otherwise she’s sorted… My bike just needs something to stop the panniers rubbing the rack quite as much as they currently are (I don’t fancy snapping a rack in rural Hokkaido) and it’s good to go…

Now for the packing…

 

That’s just about everything on board for me… It’s sitting at 30.5kg right now, but we’ll be buying cookware, cutlery and crockery in Tokyo as well as MAYBE some tiny little folding camp stools, and a mate in Chichibu has a tarp at his place with my name on it so I’d say the rolling total will be closer to 35 maybe a little more… There’s also no food on this bike, but that’s going on Rosie’s… Now to get in into a box.

Pretty excited – WE GOT TICKETS TO THE SUMO WRESTLING at Ryogoku Kokugikan… It wasn’t something that I had originally thought of trying to get to see, but when Rosie suggested it, and it turned out that one of the few tournaments of the year was on right when we landed, it didn’t take me very long to be convinced we really should do it…

I think that’s going to be one of the great things about having Rosie rolling around with me… Aside from the great company and hilarious one-liners there’s definitely a lot of stuff that she’ll get excited about and convince me to do that I otherwise may not have done and i think my experience of Japan will be broader and better for it…

Can’t wait…