New Haven Neil

Windaz weshed, van polished, car washed, garden tidied (garden railway visitor days Mon and Tues) and I'm off out! Still lovely and sunny. Oh, our school motto was something like 'Labor Omnia Vincit' - Work Conquers All. Ish. I didn't take Latin, not being destined for the medical profession, and only getting involved in some aspects of (the right side of the) law 35 years later, which was not a planned happening. Life's twists and turns can quite take one by surprise.

Still 21c but the sun has his hat on and it feels most pleasant. Domestic tasks still to the fore unfortunately.

Other than I'm not in the UK, I'm with you! If it hasn't got engines in it, I'm not interested.

MOrning, a warm 21c but overcast here, dry day predicted. We had intended a bike ride with our new neighbours but they haven't yet responded to messages - lazy beggars. Not sure what will happen now, I'm really tired as my brain wouldn't turn off last night after perhaps eating too late, plus hayfever (but not to poor Rick's levels) was bothering me. Mrs NHN is casting glances towards windows that need cleaning, but raising the energy will be an issue at the moment. Although we live in a modern (18 years) estate, the roads that lead in have pavements, but the cul-de-sac we live on which is a circle, has no pavements. Never understood why. Maybe the developers missed them off and the planners missed the fact they were missing. Or the brown envelope was nicely full, thus costing less than laying the pavements....

No Douglas, he lives in Cumbria now and runs John Fowler Engineering, in Bouth, he's a pal from my Groudle Glen days. Does a lot of work for the Ravenglass and Eskdale and has recently bought and restored a standard gauge industrial saddletank for himself. He served his time as an apprentice on the IoM steam railway, and then became a fitter and was largely responsible for Caledonia's overhaul.

Today, we have been mostly.....

Mad busy day, Mrs NHN on a staycation frenzy. As it involved two train rides I shouldn't complain, but I knackered now. We rode the steam railway to Castletown, had lunch and a wander about the castle that put the, er, ass in to Castletown, managed to get up to the ramparts, foot and hip complaining loudly but it was worth it for the view around the old town.

I'm not disagreeing with that, but charging someone with an offence under Rule 443 or whatever of the Highway Code isn't going to get you far in Court, but Section XX of the Road Traffic Act 1985 (IoM version - don't know the UK act date) will. Yes it refers to the law, but the Act is the law.

The Highway Code is not law. It may refer to the law, but the actual law is the relevant parts of the Road Traffic Act etc. It is perhaps best described as a guide to the law.

A'noon. No earlies for a while, Mrs NHN off work 'staycationing' for a fortnight. So off to ride the steam railway tomorrow - not so she can check on her charges (fleet management!) but for lunch in Castletown. All that way south....we may get lost. I'm not big on road traffic stuff as we only really dealt with speeders and no insurance type things in youth justice (you can drive at 16 here) they didn't seem to get done for parking offences, but our Highway Code is much the same as the UK version, so the quotes from our Compounded friend apply equally - but the Highway Code isn't law, just (strong) advice. Noted it was difficult to get between two cars to drive out of our estate this morning, due to two cars, both partially on the pavement, double parked. Next door to a Police Superintendent's house. C'mon Dave, get out there and sort them! A van wouldn't have got through, never mind a fire engine.

Morning, from a mizzly drizzly rock, a mere 16c currently. Supposed to fair up later. Sorry to hear about Kelly's mobility issues , having three months in a wheelchair or pottering around on one leg and a Zimmer frame a few years ago myself brought home just how hard it can be when you are less mobile. You may think you understand, I thought I did as an ex-NHS outpatients manager, but I was wrong. Nice to see Bob too. Hi mate. My day is my own, so maybe a bit more fiddling on with the bike, it still does not go quite as well as it should, although it is much improved upon previous performance - and does not now pee oil everywhere. Many things have been checked, and no obvious issues found, we're down to the more tricky stuff now. Having found so many bodges with it over the years (I didn't initially restore it) it wouldn't surprise me to find yet more!

That little switcher (SW1200? or NW2?) is not going to keep time with that passenger consist! I got paid to go to college as an officer cadet, so had no choice where I went to. I lived 500 yards form a respected Marine College - so got sent 140 miles to Liverpool!

Tidy? What is that word??

The now moribund American 'Model Railroad Forum' had a coach that indeed travelled the world, it came to Fraggle Rock about 15years ago, I sent it on to another UK member but it was then off to Japan IIRC!

Morning - rainin'....pah! Happy Annie to Baz and Mrs Baz. iD, well two strokes are noisy smelly things, but the main reason is the way they make power - we both prefer a more torquey engine with good mid-range power delivery, relative to whatever size bike it is. As for Harleys, well Fraggle Rock is home to all kinds of bikes, predominated by the 'Power Ranger' types on their sports bikes, but there is also a huge classic movement, and everything in between, including Harleys, but not the 'Patch Club' heavy type. This is a VERY low crime environment, their behaviour simply would not be tolerated. There is a sort of 'Patch Club', Mhoddey Dhoo (black dog - not that one....a local legend) but they are a benign bike club not a bunch of outlaws. Mrs H's dislike of Harleys is the weight and vibration - the allegedly smooth modern ones (we do have two friends with them) are anything but, in real terms, just crude and numb things. Oh neither owner is a dentist, one is a Pilates instructor, the other a gardener! Just enthusiasts who aim their funds at what they love. As for those temperatures - imagine yourself in a steel box right next to a huge engine producing thousands of horsepower (with commensurate heat radiation) and that 40c is the INTAKE temperature. That's ships enginerooms for you, I saw a 50c scale thermometer go off the top of the scale more than once. Happy never to experience that again!

No mate, the locals are all bikers too! It's not quite right yet, but it is going better than it ever has, but doesn't rev out properly. Suspect something not right with the ignition advance as it is good low down, or it also been suggested it is too rich but the carb settings are standard. Always assuming the monkeys that owned it in the past didn't drill the main jet out of course! It came to my hands with a completely and utterly straight through pipe, which was.....'somewhat' anti social. First thing in the bin. I don't mind a bit of a bark, but I don't believe in stupidly loud pipes. Gets us a bad name.

Well, 65 miles later, no oil leaks, reluctant to doom it by saying any more!

Walk had, chores chored, and I can't put the test ride off any longer! Weather appything shows 15c, it's 22 currently in the back garden. I wonder where it gets its information from? Now, where to risk going for a brew...hmmm.

Mornid. Hay fever turned up to 11. Andy, although the old XL did spend some of its life with high mudguards and knobbly tyres, it was very much only a green-laner, using it in a trial would result in it going through rather than over a section, bulldozer stylee! It's a heavy old beast, note knee-sized dent in the tank...... Surprisingly for a Jap it has a lot of flywheel effect, its no revver despite its 4 valve head, so wasn't bad at all on muddy trails, it went everywhere a pal on a serious DR350 went. Today will see it ridden around the village then further afield if nothing falls off or leaks out. After domestic duties of course, there is a list.

Ah, I need to bring Puppers up to speed with the arrangements chez NHN/MrsNHN regarding motorbikes. The one in the photo is mi ne, the other 4 are hers, although I have sort of adopted the BMW currently. We met through bikes, almost 40 years ago, Debs worked in a Suzuki and then a Honda dealer for years when a young 'un, so any new bikes in the fleet are OK....there are only two rules: no 2 strokes, no Harleys. And as for posing value - my next door but one neighbour has an MV and a Paton. Now that's cool. Life on Fraggle Rock is very pro-bikey, that and the lifestyle are why we live here.

Evening orl. Sunny now on Fraggle Rock. I can't recommend travel to Heysham from stations to the south of the UK via Douglas - rather expensive and time consuming! Also the pronunciation of Heysham causes issues - even amongst Hesyhamites..... Hay-sham or He-sham? I had a pal that lived there, and the locals use both. The Big News is I have finally mastered that bl**dy bike engine, at the third time of rebuilding. The firm that did the rebore simply made a dogs of it, now I have it apart and measured up. I eventually managed to find used but good parts to rebuild it again, with new but genuine piston rings, and all is now well, the smokescreen is banished.

Morning, I have sole control of my life today. A miserable 15c and overcast, really not an inspiring day. At least it is dry. Not sure yet what to do, but that bike engine is looking at me with a glint in its evil eye. I'll beat it yet....

Its not open yet - it is the most stupid thing I have ever seen. Road markings not in compliance to the highway code. They did another thing like this last year, a crossing where a cycle lane crosses a road, marked it in pink and white celtic symbols - a cyclist took it as a zebra crossing and was killed as a car didn't stop - they didn't have to, it's not a crossing just a marking.....no offence committed.

Just......yeah. Ramsey.

It would go right through him.....