Page 31... The return of a biker!

Wow, it's been absolutely ages since I've been on my blog! It's been a VERY quiet winter (blog-wise), unfortunately, but lots has changed in my situation, I have been feeling guilty about not sharing it with the world! Well, here goes...!

Firstly, I am four months into my new job, working in a factory on Auckland's North Shore, working at the tail end of a printing press, packing envelopes into boxes for delivery around the country and Australia. It's not exactly glamorous work, but it pays the bills... which is pretty good to be honest, it was a fair while in between jobs before I found this one. Huge thanks to the good friend that helped me get the position, you're a real legend mate! Without making excuses, the workload is part of the reason I haven't been online much at all lately, I'm doing 12 hour days, 4 days a week, and the weekends have been pretty busy lately too...

Two weeks into the job, I asked a pretty young lady (that I work with) out on a date, we've since moved in together, things are going exceptionally well and I couldn't be happier! I won't babble on about the subject, but we 'click' really really well, we've bought a car together, been off on road-trips for a few weekends... she's been instrumental in my getting back on my feet again. I feel so lucky to have found her!

On the 'bike' front, I recently decided that I want to turn it into a track-bike, which is the current project underway. A couple of weeks ago I started stripping the whole thing back to bare frame, and have been ordering parts left, right, and centre, to get everything back to 100% perfect. New race fairings, tires, fork service kit, electrics, etc etc the list goes on and on! We're getting the frame powder-coated this weekend, then reassembly will begin! I can't wait to get back to the track, I've been waiting for so long for summer to arrive again! The bike's been off the road for a little while now, the battery died shortly after I started my new job, and I discovered the left fork has developed a small leak, but luckily it was decided that a car would help out with things a lot so that was the route we (my girlfriend and I) took. It's actually made things a lot easier to be honest, going away for trips and still feeling like a part of the 'biker group' that have become my family in recent times.

I still can't believe how quickly the last four months have flown by, and the next few months before Christmas are guaranteed to go even faster! My calendar is quickly being filled with 'garage time', then track-days (when the bike is finished), weekend trips away, holiday plans with my family (Lol my real 'family', that is!) and all sorts of other things that are bound to come up between now and then...! All I can say is, bring it on!!! :-)

Till next time, hopefully it doesn't take me as long to write again as it did this time!

Keep smiling! :-)

Page 30...

Hi again everyone, how are we all after a beautiful long weekend (here in Kiwiland at least!)? I've been out and about heaps as usual, decided to get away from it all for a night while I could. More on that later!

The biggest news I have to share tonight is, I found a new flat to move into! I've been keeping my eye on 'flatmate wanted' ads on an NZ trade website, and found a couple that were both really close to work that I thought I'd inquire about. Gladly, one of them (the cheaper one!) replied quite quickly saying I could go and have a look, which I did on Saturday afternoon. Within a couple of hours, the advertiser texted me back saying I could move in next weekend! I'm completely stoked to have one more piece of my jigsaw puzzle in place now! It's a really cool place, the current residents are a lady in her 30's and her 5 year old son. I didn't meet the little guy, but she's a really cool chick, studying to be a nanny as well as running her own beauty type business. The house is nice, leather lounge suite, new appliances, newly refurb'd bathroom etc etc. I'm really looking forward to moving in! Firstly, it's literally two minutes from work, which is going to make things heaps easier, and secondly, I miss having my own space to chill out in without feeling like I'm intruding upon other people's area. And it'll be really really nice to sleep in my own bed again! :-)

Anyways, the rest of my weekend was pretty laid back apart from that, I decided to go for a night up at a camping ground at a beach up north, it was so quiet and calming! One night away from the busyness of normal life was definitely good for the soul, and I'll definitely be doing it again in the near future! I spent a day at the hot pools, watching movies on a big screen from one of the pools, soaked in a 40 degree spa pool, caught up on my suntan (a little bit), and generally just had the most relaxing day I've had in years! Then the following day I sat on the beach for about an hour, before coming back to the city. After that I spent the rest of the day at a friend's place watching DVD's. In all honesty, I feel hugely refreshed, it's been so long since I've been able to just get away on my own and do absolutely nothing! And, seeing that the motorcycle season is pretty much finished for the year, I plan on doing it lots more...

Apart from that, there isn't much more to share this time. Work is going great, the bike seems to be running even better than it has done in over a year, I've started getting my finances back in order again now that I have an income again... All in all, things couldn't be much better! So many people deserve my most heartfelt thanks, helping me get back on my feet again, putting me up, helping me with the bike, and getting me back into work... I feel like I owe everyone around me more than I could ever repay. I can't wait to be able to give something back to each and every single one of them in some way that will mean as much to them as what they've given me. With things on the up and up for me like they are at the moment, it won't be long before I can do just that! :-)

I have been so lucky lately, having such good friends around me... I know I have been guilty of taking my friends for granted in the past, but if the last three months have taught me anything, it's to put real value in the lasting relationships. I don't know if anyone else can understand how much it means to me that my friends have all been 'good' friends, not giving up on me, not trying to push me into things before I was ready on my own... I don't exactly know how to put it into words, other than to say that I hope each and every single one of you out there reading this can appreciate your good friends as much as they appreciate you!

Take care out there!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 29

Wow, time has literally flown by since my last blog post, I've been so busy with work and weekends filled with taking the bike out on the track! Everyone has been nudging me to keep the posts going, so I'll do my best to fill in the last three weeks worth without boring you all to tears!

Work is going really well, I've been moved up into the 'front room', where the printing machines are a little bit more complicated, a little bit faster, and a little bit more technical. Packing is still roughly the same, and I've been doing well so far to keep up with the pace of the printing machines (up to 1000 envelopes per minute!) so I'm really happy with everything on the job front. I get along really well with everyone at work, they're a cool bunch of people! One of the ladies celebrated her 15th year in the company last week, which I thought was absolutely amazing! She's not the only long-server either, some of the others have been there even longer! From what I see, the company really looks after it's staff, if they didn't I doubt the staff would stay so long. I'm still feeling really good about being back in the workforce again, being a productive member of society. I'm pretty quickly getting used to the 12 hour shifts, I think working all hours of the day and night when I was with the V8's helped me somewhat with that. Other than that, I'm still learning how everything runs, how the different envelopes are made, and how the rest of the company works outside of the manufacturing floor. I find it really interesting to see how the whole company operates.

Outside of work, I've been concentrating on getting my bike 'sorted' again, thanks mainly to my new flow in income. So far, I've fixed a couple of issues with the cooling cycle, as the bike was tending to overheat on longer rides, and give the motor a good all round servicing in general. Today, I went to a track day, with a couple of good friends, and only had one small issue where the bike started smoking quite a bit after I started using the top end of the rev range... Long story short, I inadvertently over-filled the oil when I did the oil and filter change, and it over-pressurized into the cylinders down the back straight. My friends quickly realized what had happened, and we dropped the excess oil from the sump. I was worried it might have done internal damage, but they said it 'should be fine', so I went out in the next session and let the remaining oil (in the cylinders) burn off by itself. After that, the bike was running better than ever! I was putting in some really good laps, reaching a really good top speed down the back straight, and getting more and more confident with my cornering. My best run was just before the rain set in, and as everyone else was packing up to go home, I decided to stay out for one more session to concentrate on my 'line' at slower speed before I called it a day as well. It was good too, on my last session I had the track all to myself! The flagmen were cheering me on from the start-finish line, which was really cool too. And, the other positive thing was that the bike didn't overheat once all day, so I'm really stoked that the day turned out so good in the end. Initially, when I saw all the blue smoke coming out of the exhaust, I thought I'd done major damage - maybe blown a piston ring, or a head gasket, or something expensive, so when it turned out to be a minor, I was so relieved!

While I'm on the subject, I'd like to say a big Thank You to the event organizers from today, it really was a great day, and I greatly appreciated the officials coming over to make sure I was okay after they saw my bike smoking so much! For anyone riding in the Auckland region, I highly recommend coming to the next event (in September I think), check this out for info: Pro Rider Website. If you do come, you'll definitely see me there!

Anyways, I'm buzzing that everything is still going really well in all aspects of my life, next up is to find a place to move into... The arrangement I have with the absolutely awesome people that are letting me stay here isn't permanent, I'm saving for a bond and looking at 'flatmates wanted' adverts online and in the papers. My only two requirements are: the house has to have a garage for my bike, and that it's relatively close to work. Hopefully that criteria wont be too hard to fulfill! Once I've got a fraction more money saved, I'll be ready. So everyone has to cross their fingers for me again, just this once last time! (Unless you want to keep them crossed for me to win lotto next weekend...? Lol)

Well, that's about all from me, next weekend is going to be a quiet one (at this stage), some of the guys I ride with are going for an annual meetup down south, but I've decided not to go so I can just relax (and save more of course!)

I do hope that everyone out there is doing as well as I am at the moment!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 28!

Wow, what a week it's been! First off, I have the best excuse for not posting anything in the last few days - I have a brand new job! Yay! As well as that, I've moved all my stuff up from Hamilton, which makes life a lot easier, having more than three changes of clothes is nice! All in all, it's been a really good week, and now I've got the whole weekend off to celebrate! :-)

On the job front, I started on Tuesday, went through induction and found out what I'm going to be doing. The factory mass produce envelopes, which doesn't sound very exciting, but it's good work! They have a couple of dozen printing machines, operating 24 hours a day, and I've been rostered to day shift, 12 hours from Monday to Thursday. Fridays are optional overtime, and paid at time and a half too! My specific job on the factory floor is quality control, checking the product for defects, as well as packing envelopes, basically just keeping the flow of the machines up to what they're supposed to be. Yesterday I was working on a machine that was making over 750 envelopes a minute, which was pretty quick! It's pretty full-on, hectic paced work, but it keeps the time going, 12 hour days seem to be going pretty quickly in fact. I can honestly say I quite enjoy it! The other workers are really cool, everyone has been really nice and welcoming, and making me feel right at home. My friend who initially told me about the position has been keeping tabs on me too, he works in management, but has come down to the floor a few times to make sure I'm doing okay. I cannot say how grateful I am to him for helping me find work again!

I realized yesterday that I've been out of full-time paid contract work for over a year now! Since I was working at the pools, every job I've had has been 'on demand', or 'as needed', or only part-time or commission based. It's going to be SO nice to have a regular paycheck coming in again! As well as that, it feels so good to be back at work, where I feel useful, I can see how much work I've actually done at the end of the day, I feel like I'm finally being a productive part of society again. It's strange how that works, I didn't remember how good it felt for the time that I was out of work. But now I can say I go to work with a smile, and I finish work with a smile! Sure, we have laughs at work, I've found out pretty quickly who the more serious people are, and who aren't as much so, but everyone there is hard-working, and on the same page. I can see that it'd be quite good in a way, being that the work is so full-on and the day is so long, it would sort out the hard workers from the ones that can't hack it pretty quickly! I can see myself staying for quite a while though, I really enjoy the physical side of the work as well as the people and the environment. All in all, it's a really cool place to work. :-)

Last weekend I finally got around to moving all my things up from my old house in Hamilton, with the help of a few friends loaning me a vehicle and trailer and a hand packing and unpacking the bigger stuff. It was a fairly easy move to be honest, all my things easily fit on the back of the ute and trailer, and is now safely stacked away ready for when I find a more permanent living arrangement, hopefully close to my new job. I've already looked at rentals online, as well as 'flatmates wanted', and there are quite a few options not too far from the factory, which is good. Meanwhile, I can start saving for a bond, which should only take a few weeks. It'll be nice to have my own place, but I'll have to see how my budget works out once I've been working for a few weeks. Or, alternatively, a shared flat situation would be good too for the social interaction. In any case, I'll make a decision on that in a few weeks.

Other than that, there's not much else to report really! Oh, I was hoping to get to the next track day with my bike, in a couple of weeks, but it looks like that's not going to happen - I missed out on registration due to a lack of funds, and now it looks like all the groups are full. Never mind, the weather hasn't been the nicest lately, so guaranteed it'll turn to custard on the day (although I still hope it won't, a couple of my friends are going to be riding!) so I'm not too worried about missing out. I think I'm better off concentrating on work anyways, I'm hoping to pick up a few Fridays in the next few weeks so I can save extra for moving...

Anyways, now it's officially my weekend, so I'm going to go find some lunch, and have a relaxing three days off! It's amazing how much stress I've let go of in the last few days, I can finally relax properly now!


Until next time!

:-)

Page 27

Hey again, how's everyone's day been? Just a quick update tonight, maybe with a few extra thoughts thrown in at the end for good measure... Read on...!

Well, as you may have read earlier, I had a job interview this morning, at a Printing Factory, for a job as a Packer on the factory floor. The interview went really well, the guys seem really cool, easy going, we talked about a whole bunch of stuff from my past experiences to my future goals and what plans I have for my career... I went down to the floor with one of the Supervisors and had a look around, the place is freaking huge! They must have at least a dozen printing machines, plus a massive warehouse area for stock and bulk packages to be sent out. My job (hopefully!) will be working on a printing machine, packing envelopes into boxes, at a rate of about 700 per minute. That kinda tells you the magnitude of the operation! It's a pretty simple position, but I'm really looking forward to the opportunity to get back into work. Fingers crossed for the call back in the next couple of days! :-)

On a different note, I have been thinking lately about some stuff that I thought it would be okay to share... I'm at a stage in life - I'm not 'young' anymore, at 31 now (Lol I can hear some of you laughing at that from all the way over here!) and I think it's about time I finally look at settling down. I've seen pretty much the whole of New Zealand over the last 10 or so years, including some places not available to the normal civilian populace, thanks to my time in the 'services... I've loved being able to travel around so much, but now I'm finally back where I really do feel like I belong. Someone once said "It's the people that make a place", which I've found to be very true. And the thing I've realised is, the people here are completely awesome!!! They don't realise it themselves, but I have a lot of respect and gratitude for the people that have taken me in, looked after me, helped me get back on my feet, and pushed me in the right direction. Whether or not they read this, I'm gonna put it out there for the universe to receive it, they deserve a huge big thank you! And not just from me either, I think. The point I'm trying to make in a roundabout kinda way is, I'm gonna make an almighty effort to make the rest of this year (and of course the years to come!) the best yet - in some ways I can't wait for a certain someone to come home, but also I know I've got lots to do before she does, to get myself to a point where I'm ready for her to become more of a fixture in my life. Lol does that even make sense? Hehe... I know she'll understand, she always does! :-)

To look even further down the track, I have never previously seen much of a future for myself, having been such a 'lone wolf' up until fairly recently, wandering around so much as I have done... But for the first time in my life I can honestly say I do have an picture I'd like to see brought to life for my future self, even though it might sound corny......

I don't know how to put it other than this: I'd love to be have a family of my own, married, kids, the whole nine yards... Leaving for work in the morning with a kiss from the wife, helping the kids with their homework each night, mowing the lawns on the weekend, teaching my kids about cars (if that's what they're interested in?)... Does that sound corny? Me, the rough-neck, the boy-racer, the lone wolf, settling down? My mother wouldn't believe it even if she saw it with her own eyes! To be honest, I don't know if I would either, if I was looking at myself from a different perspective... Well, I guess we'll all just have to wait and see what the future may bring, but I think one step at a time is a good starting point. It might happen, it might not, you never know, right? :-)

One thing I do know for sure, I'll never give up being a 'biker'...!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 26

I've just finished watching a movie called "Beastly"... Admittedly, it is kinda a chick flick, but I enjoyed it!

Here's the trailer, from YouTube:

It got me thinking, what would you do for love? Sometimes I feel like the 'beast', the guy no-one wants to be near, the guy that hides in the shadows out of fear of the 'normal' world... But to have someone truly appreciate me for who I am inside, someone that doesn't care about the things I've done in the past, but only sees the guy that I'm trying to be... Sure, I know it was only a movie, and things like that don't happen, but why can't it? Why can't we be hopeful for a miracle every now and then...?

The truth is, if I may be so bold, I do feel like there is someone out there that does understand me, she always seems to know exactly what's going on in my mind before I even say anything, and I wonder if she feels anything similar to the way I feel... Lol, just saying that might scare her off, knowing my luck! I hope not though, she really is an amazing woman, she deserves the very best in life, and she should know that there are more people than just myself that think so. Most of all I hope she is smiling lots! :-)

Anyways, it was something I was pondering over, and felt like writing about... Hope everyone out there in cyberspace is doing well, and I do appreciate the comments that people have been placing on my posts... It seems like I must be doing something right, because my reader counter thingee keeps going up!


Until next time...

:-)

Chapter 3, Page 25

So it's been a while, but I've decided to change things up a bit after a long think about things. I've been through some shit lately, mostly of my own doing, but I seem to have landed on my feet - well, kinda, with the support and help of a few really really good friends!

Last time I posted was the video's from the rider training day, which was a really cool day out, I wish I had been able to ride it, but finances are still short so that's bottom of the list of priorities at the moment... Instead, the weekend rides that I've been going on lately with a cool group of people will suffice for now. The bike needs some money spent on it pretty soon to keep it roadworthy in any case, new battery, new tires, etc etc...

So, onto the new pace of things. I found that I was focusing on the bad stuff too much and not spending enough time on the better things in life! There are some pretty cool things out there to enjoy, even on a minimal budget like that which I'm on currently... Take for example, just getting outside and exploring, finding new treasures pretty much on your doorstep that you hadn't taken the time to see previously... I went for a short ride the other day (it's my only transport so any excursion out of the house is a ride - how cool is that though!?!) to visit a friend that moved up the country a while before I did, first time I'd seen him in a few years which was pretty cool in itself! On the way home I decided to go a different route, up the coastline, finding cool spots that would be really cool to take 'someone special' to at some stage in the future... I also stopped at a spot that I used to visit on occasion years ago when I lived up these ways last, a small park with a view over the city, which brought back some memories... It's nice to remember back to times gone past once in a while...

Things do have a tendency to change over time, as we grow up (or just older) we see things in a different light, and the world changes around us - sometimes in ways we like, sometimes in ways we might not so - but we are bound by life to change with the world. I might not agree with the way the world is changing at the moment, but there's little in reality that I can do about that, on my own anyways. All we can aspire to do what we can for the short period of time we are capable of, to influence the people around us in a positive way, and treat the world in a way that our kids would be proud of. For me, I've decided to make more of an effort in this regard, after thinking about some things the other night...

The 10th of each month does have a somewhat sobering effect on me, for reasons I won't go into great detail of, but it is a number that has changed my life a few times. It's really easy to focus on the negative all the time, but the flip side of that coin is this: where things have been tough, they've also been great! How hard is it really to recognize the achievements of others around us and say a quick "Well done!".. .? I do tend to be the kind of guy that responds best to compliments and praise, so for me something like that means heaps. But what about your workmates? Your spouse? Or your kids? Or even yourself...? We are a social race, we (mostly) strive for the appreciation of our peers, yet we forget to give out kindness even when we seek it from others so much. The decision I made was to compliment those around me more, to focus on their achievements, and not to worry about their errors so much. I dare you to do the same with your friends and family! That, and smile more! :-)

So, my plan for the new month, being May and almost half way through the year already, is fairly simple...
1. Continue to be positive about finding a new job,
2. Get my bike back up to spec once my finances are back on track,
3. Spend more time with my friends and show my gratitude for them,
4. Listen to more music, because it always cheers me up!
and
5. Continue my writing, because it cheers me up too.

As well as that, I'm going to decide by the end of this month if I want to go back to school and back my writing up with a Journalism degree...


So, until next time...

:-)

Page 24

Some pics and clips from my day at the racetrack again, just a training day but heaps of fun!

A full write-up of the days action will be forthcoming soon!


Until then...

:-)

Page 23

Patience is a funny thing... Like my current situation, waiting for the call to say I've got the job... Waiting makes the day seem so much longer! Trying to fill the hours in the day isn't exactly hard, I've been doing okay in keeping myself busy, but I just wish the phone would ring! I do hope it comes in the next couple of days, it'd be nice to know that I've either got the job or not...!

On other matters, how's everyone else out there doing? I've been so thankful to my good friends here for taking me in and looking after me in this 'not-so-nice' time in my life, I thought I should put my issues aside and use my spare time proactively! Being the kind of guy that I am, if anyone out there (in my region, obviously) has any jobs on hand that I might be able to help out with, please feel free to let me know! I'm fairly handy, around the house and stuff, but my specialty is of course mechanical stuff... So, this is me officially putting myself out there as a 'hired hand' as such... I'm sure someone will put me to work! :-)

I know my posts have been short and sparse as of lately, which stems from the lack of things going on here for me lately, and I do hope to be able to turn that around soon enough...! I don't want to be posting up stuff that won't be of any interest to anyone reading, but I do still want to keep this blog going. I thought I'd ask if anyone out there in the Interweb has anything they'd like my perspective on, kind of like a 'Letters to the Editor' type of arrangement... I know there's a few of you out there, my counter says I've accumulated almost 700 'reads' in under 2 months! So start commenting, and give me something to discuss here while things are stalling in my world!


I must admit a little bit of selfishness with this blog, not so much 'ulterior motives' per say, but there's been a thought playing in the back of my mind as of late... I've always wondered about furthering my studies, along the lines of a Journalism qualification. I have been using my blog as a kind of 'practice', figuring out how to put my thoughts into words that actually make some sense to anyone out there. I've always thought that it would be pretty cool to write reviews and articles for a magazine such as 'Top Gear' or 'Autocar' or even a Motorcycle magazine (once I build up my riding skills of course). Everyone that I've talked to that has been following this blog has said I'm a very good writer, and that I should do something along the lines of writing in my career... Personally, I know it'd be a pretty huge decision to go 'back to school' again, however I am looking into extramural courses, so I can study and work at the same time...

Gees I just wish the phone would ring already! Lol!



Until next time...

:-)

Page 22

So, sorry again, it's been a pretty slow last few days... Not much to report on really, I'm still waiting for a phone call from the job interview I attended last week.

Well, actually, I did talk to the Service Manager again, briefly - I rang him to enquire whether or not they'd filled the position yet, and he told me he still had a couple of people to interview, and that he'd probably be making a decision next week. However, within about two minutes of that call, a lady from H.R. called me back, to ask about my referees, and to confirm what my expectations would be if I got the job... She gave me the feeling I'm the top candidate so far! So I'm still rather optimistic about it, hoping to get a phone call back tomorrow, as I know the Service Manager is off to Europe on Tuesday, so hopefully they'll fill the position before he goes...!

Oh, and while I'm here, I should let you all know that I've found another place to stay until I get back on my feet again, some of my biker mates kindly took me in. So for now, I'm doing okay. :-)

So hopefully, there'll be some good news tomorrow! Everyone knows I'll be completely stoked if I do get the position, so keep your fingers and toes crossed for me!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 21

One of the guys that I went riding with last weekend asked me if I'd seen his website, specifically the 'Survival Skills' section, to which I said I hadn't, so when I got home I searched for it.

Now, having read through a good portion of it, and getting further into his 'book' by the day, I highly recommend it to any 'biker out there! (I've added the link to the bottom of my Blog site...)

First off, the author is a very knowledgable character, having been instructing motorcyclists for quite a while, both on the road and the track, for over 20 years. He's completed Police advanced rider training in two different countries, and has been riding for over 37 years, on four different continents.

And, in person, he's a really nice guy! Personally, I'd enjoy riding with him (or watching him disappear into the distance) anytime I get the opportunity. I hope you all out there have a good read of his writings - you never know, you might just learn something that'll change your whole riding philosophy!


On another note, I applied for a job two days ago off a job website, as a vehicle detailer/groomer for a fairly prestigious dealership in town, not really expecting much from it. When I say 'fairly prestigious', their least expensive vehicle would still be well over one hundred thousand dollars...! To my surprise, the service department manager called me up yesterday, asking if I could come in for an interview!

So, off I went, having tidied and dressed up for the part, and as soon as I pulled into their yard I'm awestruck with the number of top-shelf cars all around me! The interview itself took about 20 minutes, of which we chatted about all sorts of stuff, and I met the Sales Department Manager as well. Basically, the business normally has two Detailers, one for sales and one for service. But currently they only have one guy doing all the work on his own, and they really need to fill the second spot as soon as possible! I'm quietly optimistic, I think the interview went really well, and I'm really hoping to get a phone call back before the weekend to say I've got the job! Honestly, I'd be in heaven if I got it!

Apart from that, I discovered last night that I'm in need of another place to stay fairly soon now, my friend's landlady mentioned to him last night that she thought I wouldn't be here for as long as I have been... And I don't want to make things awkward between him and her in that way. They've been really cool about me staying here while I look for suitable work, and of course I had hoped to be back at work already, but now it's feeling a bit stressed here... I'm not quite sure what's going to happen in the next few days, but I do hope that the Detailing job calls me back really soon so I can get a little bit of 'normality' back in my life!


All in all, I feel like I'm on a bit of a precipice here, waiting for a phone call, still keeping my eyes out for other jobs just in case the one I want doesn't come through, wondering where I'm gonna be putting my head down at night next week... It's not exactly a nice feeling, but I've just been reminded by a text message from a good friend that I was the one that said "it's the hard times that show us what we're really made of"...


So, until next time, hopefully with some good news...


:-)

Page 20

Stories like this never cease to amaze me... Going from collecting rubbish, to producing a hit song - 'Young Homie' is taking off in the States now! It all starts with a dream... :-)


This is another one... Aaron Fotheringham, born with Spina Bifida, his whole life in a wheelchair, but still he is at the top of his game, riding alongside Travis Pastrana and the Nitro Circus crew. Incredible!

Page 19

Had a great day today! I went for a ride with a small group of other guys, much more capable and a lot faster than I am, but I still had a blast! They were all on bikes a lot bigger than my little old 250, and kinda left me in their dust, but I was more than happy just cruising along at my own speed. They were even nice enough to wait for me at specific points along the trip!

The road we took up was one that I've only been on once before, over 2 years ago, heading north, then we turned onto a road called "Woodcocks" that took us over a decent sized hill with lots of twisty turns on both sides. I got used to the uphill and downhill turns, some being pretty tight, with advisory speeds as low as 25 km/h, but I took my time and didn't have any scares. I know my bike is a lot more capable than I give it credit for, but I also know my back tire especially is getting a bit low, and will need replacing pretty soon. So I wasn't going to push too hard, even though it still probably would have taken a fair bit more than I gave it. The way I figure, I'd rather take it easy, particularly on unknown stretches of road, and reach the end-point, rather than go too hard and end up in a hospital bed!

Anyways, we reached our first stop, a cafe in Warkworth, about 60 km from our start point, and the guys asked how I felt about the ride. They gave me a few pointers on how I could improve my riding, which I thought was pretty cool. I'm not a complete 'noob', but I know I'm nowhere near as good as they are! So I'm grateful to them for giving me the advice, next time I go out I'll be using it for sure.

We continued on after a bite and a drink, taking the main road back to one of their houses, wanting to get back by lunchtime to meet a few others and watch the MotoGP that had been recorded from last night. I knew the road we took back, and found it very enjoyable, even though traffic held us up a fair bit on the way.

The MotoGP was cool, I back the Repsol bikes of course, and it was a fight all the way to the finish line! Yamaha ended up winning, with the two Repsol Honda's coming in second and third, which was awesome to see! It was great to see Repsol sponsored bikes winning Moto1 and Moto2 as well - that's just another reason I love my bike so much! I can't wait to have it finished, all powder coated up and looking mint with the new fairings on! One of my friends asked me today what I'd get next, as a step-up from my 250 - I already know it'll be a CBR600RR in the Repsol scheme as well. If I could afford the one I went and looked at down at the Honda shop a couple of weeks ago, I'd have it today! Luckily though, my bike does everything I need it to do already, so I'm happy with the "Baby-Blade".

All in all, it's been a really enjoyable long Easter weekend, being able to spend time with some good friends, taking the bike out for a ride, and just relaxing in general. It took my mind off everything else that hasn't really been going to plan. Now, I really do hope I'll hear back from one of the jobs I've applied for in the next week! That'd top things off nicely, to be able to get back to work. And to have an income, and some money in my bank account! I'm starting to feel a little bit useless, not being active with my days... I do like the feeling you get after a good hard days work, feeling like you've accomplished something with your efforts. It'd be nice to get that back again...

Did anyone read my last blog and maybe think about putting it into effect? I wonder, I haven't had any replies from it just yet... Maybe it hasn't happened because of the long holiday weekend, or maybe you all just think I'm a bit weird for going on about it...! I was thinking about it a little more today, and I realized something - it's not what you do for others that matters, it's just that you are there. There for them if they need you. Being a friend isn't always about the good times, sometimes it's about the bad times, the ones that show you who your good friends really are. Oh, and trust me, I do know who my good friends really are, they're reading this right now! Hehe...!

Well, if this weekend has taught me anything, it's that my good friends are out there, they care about how I am feeling, they would put their lives on hold for me, take me out and let me clear my head for a day or two, and listen to my harping on about how I wish things were going better. They are truly cool people. So I'll just take this opportunity to say to them "Thank you".


Until next time...

:-)

Page 18

Hi again guys, I'm back once more... Sorry that I haven't been posting much lately, there hasn't been that much going on here, all I've been doing for the last week now is looking for a job! I'm still hopeful that something will turn up really soon, I have this uncanny feeling that next week is going to be a really good one! So, fingers crossed for me, everyone, thanks!

I spent the night at a friends place last night, had a few drinks, took some time out from things here to relax, and it was SO worth it! Was really cool just blobbing on the couch watching TV all day today with my mates! I've just read online that we're going out for a ride tomorrow too, so that'll be nice - you all know how much I love going out for rides to clear my head! I'll be sure to post up after the ride, it'll do me some good to get back in a regular habit of posting again!

It's not until life throws you a curve-ball that you find out what you're made of, as I've discovered and re-discovered a few times over now. When things are going fine, and everything seems to be 'on track', we can cruise through life, content. But is that enough? Sometimes, when things get tough, we really do become who we are meant to be. We need to keep pushing ourselves, stretching our boundaries every day to develop as people. Well, maybe not 'every' day, but enough to not fall into the cruise mode. I want you guys to think about that, in all seriousness, is there anything in your life that you are 'cruising' in? Could you afford to do something a little differently? To push yourself outside your comfort zone? I know some of you already are - in fact one of my readers in particular especially is, all the way over in Canada! (Hehe, she'll be stoked she got another mention on here!) I actually like to get outside my comfort zone, to keep pushing myself to find new boundaries... sometimes in ways I never even thought of before that moment. You never know what tomorrow will bring, how the smallest thing you do can change your whole day up, and how the simplest thing to you could be the hugest thing to someone else. Yeah, I know, you've probably heard it all before, but I just felt like mentioning it again... There's a movie called "Pay It Forward" that really strikes home with that whole theory, puts it into practice in a visual way, and explores just what can be accomplished with minimal input. If you haven't seen it, I definitely recommend it!

I've actually thought about this a fair bit lately, I think I may have even posted a little bit about this before... It's kind of a hobby of mine, part of my personality even. Everyone has their own view of their own 'situation', their way of life, paying their bills and keeping their families happy, but to me it extends more than that. My 'family' is so wide and extended, as you know, I have my real family, my Mum, my Dad, their families (as they're not together anymore and both have remarried), as well as my 'biker family, my close friends who aren't biker's but still remain close enough to be considered family, and then even the friends that I'm not hugely close with anymore, the people I grew up with, maybe lost contact with and have only recently gotten back in touch again... Everyone out there that I have met, influenced, helped, or just had random encounters with that had created lasting memories, to me the word 'family' includes so many different walks of life that it's hard to imagine! But the point I was trying to make is this: I would happily do pretty much anything to help out any of my extended 'family' members. When someone asks if I wouldn't mind helping them clear their garden, even though I might joke about my 'hourly rate', I'm more than happy to go round there in my spare time to do some hard work for their benefit! I don't expect anything in return, I don't expect them to treat me any differently just because I like to help, but I hope they do as I do, and "Pay It Forward"...






Well, anyways, enough dribbling on from me, I'm off to figure out how I can help someone else in this world from the small existence that I lead. I hope some of you will try to as well!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 17, only a short one today...

Not much happening in my world at the moment, my bank account has ground down to single digits so I'm pretty much stuck until I get paid from my last week at the V8's, and I've spent the day looking for jobs. I did find a couple of positions that I think I'm quite suited to, and have sent off applications online, so I'll just have to wait and see if anything turns out for me.

So unfortunately, not much to report here at the moment, but who knows what the future will hold.

Thanks again to everyone who sent me messages today offering support, that means a lot of course!


Until next time...

:-)

Page 16

First of all, I should apologise for letting days pass without posting any updates on here, I've been pretty busy and I'm also trying to get my body clock re-synced with the new Daylight Savings hours...

Things are slowly on track (ish) with the new beginnings up here in the big city, I have hit a little bit of a speed bump job wise, but hopefully it'll be sorted out before too long. I discovered the job that I have applied for is very strict with their employee's histories, and I mentioned that I haven't always been the perfect little citizen that I am today. So now, unfortunately, they're a little nervous to take me on board, even though I've explained the situation was completely innocent and it was only miscommunication between two 'managers' that led to my name being somewhat tarnished... That, and the fact that I took the blame for said situation so that my fellow employees (tourists on working visa's) didn't get deported because of the event that occurred. If anyone wants to know more information, feel free to ask, in a more private fashion - most of my readers have access to other of my accounts for this purpose. In any case, I'm hoping I can get it sorted via a simple email from my old boss, who agreed with me at the time that the actions of our employer was beyond reasonable. Hopefully...

Apart from that, I've been catching up with heaps of friends, I've been (unofficially) invited out to dinner this Sunday night with some of my very good friends (outside the biker world) that I haven't seen for a long while. That should be heaps of fun! Their kids have gotten so big! It's bewildering to think that I've only been away for a little over a year, but so much has changed, it's really cool to see. I went and saw my old boss and good friend at the pools where I used to work (just around the corner from where I'm staying, as luck would have it!) and he said things there have changed profusely since the new Supercity council took over, which is a bit of a shame, all the effort we put in back when I was working there... They've had to downsize the staff numbers almost half, as well as a whole heap of other budget cutting methods... It's a pity really, it was a really cool place to work when I was there!

I know I still feel like this city wants me to call it home, and I'm not prepared to give up, but finances are being drained exceedingly quickly, so I'm just hoping the job thing works out quickly otherwise I might be a little more stressed than usual... I do still have a couple of options to follow up on - one of which involves a lot of travelling for what is most likely only part time hours. Another is more of a last ditch resort, going back to what I was doing at the V8 track but obviously for a (different) contractor up here. I dunno that I'm too keen on that one, to be honest. After being burnt down in Hamilton, I've kinda got a bad mental image of that company... Also, it's a long way to travel for work each day...

We've got a long weekend coming up in a couple of days, and for once I have no plans! My bank account can't be stretched too much further, so I don't think I'll be going anywhere. In fact, it might be nice to just chill out at home... Is anyone else getting up to anything special? I've got a few movies that I think I'll be catching up on, as well as giving my bike a little bit of a service - the new chain could probably do with an adjustment now that it's getting pretty well bedded in... However it pans out, if anyone out there has plans that I could possibly join in on, send me a message or post a comment below!

So yeah, things keep progressing, slowly admittedly, but I'm doing my best to keep a positive attitude throughout. Like I usually say, you never know what might be just around the corner! Fingers crossed that my run of good luck hasn't completely dried up just yet...


Until next time... (hopefully not more than another day or so, unlike this post!)

:-)

Chapter 2, Page 15

Today officially starts a new era in the life of Scott, being that I'm now in the big Apple that is Auckland, as well as a new month and a new financial year! Lots of positives can be seen on my horizons, with the next couple of weeks going to be bedlam (not that the last few days haven't been fairly chaotic already!) as well as a couple of cool opportunities to get my networking skills back up to spec... Should be loads of fun though!

Oh, I just realised I've got to head out for dinner now, so will post more when I get back in a little bit.

Until then!

:-)

Page 14

Things have been pretty hectic here the last couple of days, so this'll only be a short one tonight I think. Don't worry though, I've still got lots to say (Oh dear God, I hear you thinking!) but I'm shattered and it's already almost 11pm, added to the fact I've set my alarm for 5am tomorrow morning... Oh wait, that's right, daylight savings kicks in again tonight, doesn't it... Okay, so technically I don't have to get up till 6am, which will be the new 5am, won't it? Oh bugger, now I'm getting confused...

Anyways, I've spent the last couple of days finalizing things here in the mighty 'Tron, cleaned up the mess that was my workshop area in the garage, boxed up all my spare bit's and pieces for the bike that were stashed pretty much everywhere I could find a spot, and made a decent 'start' on packing up my room... Wow but I've collected a lot of crap just since I've been in this house!

I must say, I've really enjoyed living in this place, it's definitely been the most homely of anywhere I've lived so far in my 31 odd years! My flatmates have been completely awesome, and I'm gonna miss them and this place like crazy once the move is completed. It's kinda funny really, I haven't even been here a year, yet I feel so attached to this place it's hard to imagine life anywhere else. Still, onwards and upwards, quite literally in fact - I'll be on the road in about 8 hours to my next adventure up north in Auckland!

To take a few minutes and reflect on the last year, since I've been back in Hamilton, it's been a bit of a roller-coaster ride if I dare say so! It's definitely had it's ups and downs, loop de loops, corkscrews, and of course lots of fun in between! Lots of memories, lots of things I'd rather forget completely, but that's just how life goes isn't it. The best parts of my year have absolutely outweighed the worst, and of course the majority of those best parts has been when I've been with my 'adopted family', out touring this beautiful country of ours on the bikes! The cool thing is, there'll be plenty more trips, events, and excursions to be had in the future, especially with my being only a stone's throw away from the rest of our 'group' as of tomorrow...!

So, to some it all up, my emotions are a bit of a mix right now: lets say about 80% buzzing out, 10% nervous about the new job, and 10% sad to be saying goodbye to my house here... Tomorrow it'll probably be a different story, but for now I better get some sleep!

(I can't believe tomorrow has come around so quickly!!!)


Until next time...!

:-)

Page 13, but not unlucky...

Well, it's Friday, and this being Page 13, I don't think I need to be worried, by the way today is shaping up!

I've just got back from the local Honda shop, where they rectified my chain situation without hassle, and for only a very small fee too. Had 4 or 5 guys look at how the new chain was sitting on my bike, and the fact that it was so far back on the adjusters to tighten it up - "weird" was the word of the day! Anyways, long story short, the mechanic quickly and easily took a link out, fitted the chain back on (after losing the retainer clip, LOL!) then took it off the hoist to adjust the chain to the correct tension again. Really nice guys, probably about an hour's worth of labour, and told me that my little 250 was one of the nicest they'd seen in a long time! So I'm very happy with their service, and will write up a really good customer feedback report on Kiwi Biker for them too.

Also this morning, I had a phone call from a good friend (up north), he had been talking to his boss about whether or not they might need another employee for their couriering business, he rang me to give me his bosses phone number and tell me to get in contact with him quick smart. So of course, I did, had a really good talk with the guy about all the details of how they operate, he said he'd be keen to start me as soon as I could get up there! After that phone conversation, I thought best to call the horse trainer back that had said I could work for him and apologise for having a much better offer, to which he was more than okay with, he said "you've gotta take work where you can get it". I hate disappointing people like that, but sometimes it's gotta happen. But, the cool thing is, starting as early as Tuesday next week, I'm going to be back in proper full time employment, close to my good friends again, where I belong. If you can't tell, I'm pretty stoked right now! Finally, it seems like my life is back on the right track again, if you know what I mean...! Now all I have to worry about is moving all my stuff back up to Auckland if it all pans out the way I hope!

Here's a couple of pics of the bike at Honda today...

Until next time...!

:-)

Page 12

So today's blog entry is probably going to be a long one, just warning you guys in advance! Lol
(I did say there were going to be some big changes in my life fairly soon, didn't I...?)

I've been a fairly busy chap lately, in the last couple of days I've changed my bike's chain (which still isn't finished by the way, more on that down the page), changed the oil and filter, given my bike a really good clean again (damn roadworks!), taken a good hard look at a 2009 CBR600RR (with ABS it turns out! Yummy!!!), given up my job at the V8's, found a new job (sorta), and been offered the opportunity for more work up north...!

So, to start at the top... My bike's chain has been pretty close to it's final days for a little while now, so I finally decided to go about replacing it. So plans are formulated, after a bit of hunting around for a good deal, I decide to rock on down to the local Honda dealer, and kill a whole bunch of birds with one stone. First off, we talk oil and filters, I say I like Motul oil, the sales guy says I should upgrade to Castrol Power1 oil, I say I can't really afford $170 for four litres, blah blah blah, we settle on my buying a new filter from him and I say I'll get back to him on the oil. Ah huh... Then we start talking about chains. He gives me a rough price range that I could spend on cheap versus amazing quality chains, I decide on a fairly good quality RK O-ring chain, it has to be ordered in but that's all good by me. So, $27 for the oil filter, $110 for the chain. Thanks mate!

After lots of talking about bikes and stuff, I head up to the showroom to check out the CBR600RR they've got, having seen it online (pics in my last post), just to see if it'd 'fit' me. The sales guy comes out of his office, asks me if he can help... Hehe... I ask if I can sit on it, no problem he says. It's only slightly more of a stretch to the 'bars than my CBR250RR, but it's a fair amount taller, I can just touch the floor flat-footed on both sides at the same time, although my legs are pretty straight out. On my little 250 I can flat-foot both sides easily with knees slightly bent. At this stage I'm really tempted to take it out for a test ride, but good sense prevails and I dismount after a few minutes. We discuss the intricate ABS system, how it handles, the upgrades, etc etc. It has a little over 100 horsepower at the back tread, reportedly does wheel stands in first, second, and third gear, weighs in at just under 200kgs (wet)... I could go on with all the technical stuff, but I figure most readers would be falling asleep by that stage so I'll carry on.

In the looks department, I must say it's pretty stunning close up. It has a bevy of carbon fibre add-ons, and the black frame and swing-arm look particularly cool. The half black, half red fairing scheme isn't entirely my cup of tea, I'd change it out for a Repsol fairing kit pretty quickly I think. As well as that, I'd give it a tail-tidy, and powdercoat the front and pillion footpegs. The only other part I wasn't too keen on was the huge mirrors, but I already have idea's with what I'd swap them out for: trick little teardrop carbon fibre jobbies the same as on my 250. Throw in a dark tinted windscreen and that'd about do it I think!

There was talk of Honda fitting an aftermarket exhaust slip-on, I'd have to hear a few comparisons before I decided on anything particular in this case. Factory, it sounded okay, maybe a little tinny, but not annoyingly so. The kind of tune that wouldn't bother me, but would gladly be rid of if I decided to get some more power from the motor.

Now, you're probably wondering why I'd choose a 600 over a 1000, my reasoning is split into two main areas: 1, I don't feel like I'd need the extra power of a 1000cc bike, or the weight for that matter, and 2, I don't feel like giving the government any more of my hard earned money for registering the thing! And currently, my funds are being squirreled away for my trip later this year, rather than for another bike, which is why I didn't want to go for a test ride. Because I know if I'd ridden it, even just down the street and back, I would've wanted it there and then! Let's just say, a trap I've fallen into a few times before...

So, begrudgingly, I opted to continue on my way, stopping only briefly to check out the selection of gloves in the showroom (I've found a really nice pair online but wanted to check sizing before clicking on a bid), then headed off. On my way home I passed another bike shop, one that sells Motul oil, so I decided to stop in and have a quick peek at lubricants... And HA! (without naming names, I don't believe in putting shops against each other, only finding the best deal for myself,) I've picked up a four litre of Motul 300v, for a considerable amount less than the Castrol oil that Honda wanted me to buy. Thank you! (Wow, they had some really nice bikes in there too!)

Off home now to do the oil change, pretty simple process: drain, let drain some more, go watch TV while the last few drops are draining, drop the old filter out, continue to let drain, flush, drain, drain some more, blah blah blah, soak new filter, install new filter, then refill (note to self: don't use a good kitchen measuring cup...) with the good stuff. Easy. Lol I should write manuals for this stuff! Hehe. Just in time to get ready for work for another night shift...

Hmmm work... the bane of my existence... :-(

Well, the story goes, as you might have read, the boss and I have been having a few personality clashes lately, and to put it simply, it all came to a head last night about 4 hours into the shift. Basically, I couldn't hear what he was saying because he was about 100 metres down the road from me, so I told him so, to which he replies "Open your ******* ears you useless ******* ******...!" Now, I'm not one to back down from confrontation, as some of you may already know, nor am I scared of voicing my own opinion when someone challenges me like that. So I let him have it. Both barrels, full buck-shot, if you wanna piss me off you better be well prepared to deal with the consequences. I make a very clear point of the fact that I've been working my ass off for him for the last two and a half months, that I've worked countless hours overtime to get tasks done on schedule, that he wouldn't be anywhere near his targets without my input, that he clearly has no idea what the hell he is doing, and that he is clearly out of his depth. And yes, I swore. Lots. Hell, if he has the gall to swear at me, I'll return the favour. So anyways, he says I may as well go home, I reply "gladly", he says "Leave your uniform in the truck" (our temporary office), I've had my fill by now and just walk off.

Now, you might say I was a little rash, or that how I handled that was wrong, or what have you, but in my defense, if I hadn't gotten out it would surely have driven me up the wall. I mean, I was at the stage where I literally hated going to work, the only reason I did it was out of some morbid sense of loyalty, or morals, or something in me that says 'even when things are completely shit, you don't give up'... Well, I guess that's not entirely true either, because what I did kinda was giving up... But looking back now, now that I've calmed down, I don't regret what I did, or how I handled things last night. Not a single one.

So, you may be asking, what's the plan now, Scott? Well, I'll tell you! I've already secured another job trial, through a friend, as a track rider for thoroughbred race horses, starting in two days time, and I've called my old boss at Traffic Management (the job I was at prior to the V8's) and been told they have plenty of work that I'd be more than welcome to go back to. And, as they have an office up north, there's work for me up there if and when I do decide to move back up. Also, this afternoon I received a phone call from the big boss man of the fencing company (the V8's contractor), and he asked my version of the events that happened, to which (after I explained) he replied "That seems to be a fairly common occurrence..." with my now ex-boss. It seems the last two guys in his employ both left after very similar situations. Hmmm surprise surprise... But, to cut a long story short, the big boss man has said that he'd be more than happy to take me on as a contractor up north (where he is based) if and or when I decide to move back up there! So it seems there are more than a few doors open for me to explore in the future. Which makes me feel a lot better about things right now. :-)

On a lighter note, today I've been back to the Honda shop, to pick up my new bike chain, come home again to fit it and discover that to tighten it I've had to pull the adjuster all the way out from the swingarm... That can't be right, can it? Check the box again, yep, correct number of links on the sticker, weird. Call Honda back, explain what the story is, the guy says "bring it in and we'll have a look, might have to take a link out of the chain"... Okay, cool, does that mean I bring the whole bike in or just the chain? Stuff it, I'll bring the whole bike in so you can see exactly what I mean. Cool. Gees, I'm gonna be real popular if they've got it wrong and have to pull the chain off after I've just spent an hour fitting it! (I hate those little clip things on the connector link! They just don't seem to wanna fit properly!) But, if they see the problem and correct it free of charge, I'll be well stoked and write them up a nice 'happy customer' report for everyone to read! The joys of freedom of speech, crossed with the powers of the Internet! Hehe...

All in all, I think that's a pretty good couple of days effort, so now that it's all out in black and white for everyone to condemn (or appraise), I'm gonna go have a beer and relax in the evening dusk. :-)



Until next time!

:-)

Page 11

Without letting the cat out of the bag, it looks like there are going to be some big changes in my life pretty soon... I won't say any more until I know for certain, but I am a little excited / nervous for the coming month!

Lately I've been making a bit of a fuss about some things that have been going on at work, but on the flip side of the coin, I have to give it up once again to everyone that has reached out and given me support (without even having to ask for it!) in the last few months or so. Even despite how hard I've been trying to make things work down here, it's really cool to know that there are people out there that really do care about my state of being. I've been feeling a little run down lately, and it only took one text from a friend to pick me up again! Even if things aren't going entirely how we want, just having good friends out there that care makes the uphill battle a little easier. So to you guys, thanks. :-)

Apart from that, I've been slogging out the hours as usual, and from tomorrow I'll be going onto night shift for a few days (or maybe even the rest of the week, I dunno yet...) so I've decided to treat myself - I need to go into the local Honda shop to get the right size for some gloves I've found online (and pricing on a new chain for my bike), and while I'm there I'm going to take a look at a 2009 CBR600RR they've got in stock...

The sales pitch reads: "This bike has travelled less than 700kms. It is the ABS model. It has also got original Honda Seat Cowl, Cabon Fibre Front Guard, Carbon Fibre Rear Hugger, HRC Tank Protector, HRC Fuel Cap Cover, HRC Triple Clamp Cover..." I think it's right on the button of what I'm going to be looking for in my next bike! I'll be posting my perspective in the next couple of days, in any case...

Something that came to mind the other day, which makes a good thing out of a bad: currently the big roundabout intersection just down the road from me is being torn up, making my daily commute a bit of a pain in the ass instead of the usual fun start to my day. However, I've started going the other way out of my driveway, taking the much longer route to work, but I arrive a lot more invigorated and happy! I don't know why I didn't think of this earlier, to be honest! We all know by now that I love to ride, in fact I'll be out riding pretty much any opportunity I can get purely for the feeling of freedom, but the days I ride to work it's not the same at all. I used to enjoy going to work, now it's just another thing that just has to be done... Like mowing the lawns, or cleaning the bathroom... How many people actually enjoy those chores? Lol if you just said "I do!" you're mad in my mind... but each to their own I guess...!

The point I was trying to make is this: sometimes we fall into the trap of doing things the same way day in and day out, purely because that's what we're used to. Either it might be the way you were taught, or the way that used to be (or perhaps still is) easiest, or just the most obvious way that makes sense... It might even just be the way everyone else does it. But why do we have to conform? I would have thought that, especially as bikers, it becomes less and less important how other people view us, on our loud machines, looking like racers (or gang members!) standing out from the crowd is pretty much a given for us, right? But the question I ask is this: how far do you have to stand out to be 'seen'...? Wanting to be 'seen' is almost written into us as part of human nature I think, everyone wants to be seen in some way or another.

I personally take great fulfillment out of being seen as a biker, I feel like it's a good way to stand out from the crowd. It shows that I'm not afraid to be outside 'the norm'. Being that a large percentage of license holders in New Zealand (and the world) only operate vehicles with four (or more) wheels, I'd say I'm pretty safe in saying that bikers are the minority, or 'unpopular'. Me, I'm fine with being unpopular. But in saying that, the number of views my little scribbles on these pages is generating, I'd say I'm getting to be pretty popular too! And there's nothing wrong with that either.



Until next time...

:-)

Page 10

Well, today was another one for the books! I spent the whole day up at the racetrack again, and it's a given that I'm hooked on it...!

Today was a 'playday' for cars and bikes, a nice relaxed day where drivers and riders got to experience one of NZ's leading tracks, in a social environment. Everything from top of the line Ferrari's and Porsche's to old school Datsun's and more than a couple Japanese makes made up the array of cars, with a pretty strong field of three separate classes giving the spectators much to enjoy. And more along the lines of what I went to see, the bikes, had fully fledged racers and lesser tuned street bikes out singing their harmonic tune. A good friend of mine told me about the event a few days ago, and I'm glad I went! The weather wasn't looking too promising on the trip up, but by lunchtime it had cleared and the sun was shining nicely.

The cars had their turn pretty quickly, then the bikes went out for their run. Management was being extra nice, allowing the riders to stay out for half an hour instead of the 15 minutes that was originally planned. After a couple of warm up laps, some of the bikes were flying past the pits down the straight at incredible speeds, and later on in the day I was asked to hold a speed gun to see how much pace they actually were getting down the straight. The fastest I saw (later in the day) was 229 kmh, by a cool green Kawasaki. Amazing! With only a couple of minor incidents (from the bikers), the day went exceptionally well, and time seemed to fly past.

Before long it was getting late in the day, and my friend and I decided to pack up and head home, having had a very good day. I've had my urge to get out on the track invigorated even more, if that's possible to believe!

I took a whole bunch of photo's with my phone, so take a look at what I got to feast my eyes on throughout the day...

Page 9

Strangely, nothing springs to mind for my blog tonight! I've had a good day at work today, spent a little bit on a beach packing up some fence from a site that's all completed now, was pretty cool. My boss lives out those ways, so I got to ride my bike to his place (about an hour and a half) to meet him. It was pissing down rain most of the way there, but I still enjoyed the ride!

The ride home afterwards was nice and sunny, gave me a bit of opportunity to practice my 'leaning' around corners. I think I'm finally getting the hang of it! Some of the twisties on the way back were nice and long sweepers, so it felt good to get the bike 'locked in' around the corner, hanging half off the seat with my knee out (but not down just yet!) I felt really comfortable, the bike held it's line easily, I found that continuing to 'roll on' the throttle kept the balance in check really well. I'm not a professional just yet, but I've been wondering about the whole 'lean' thing for a while now, so it feels good to be putting everyone's advice into practice!

One thing I did notice, as per what I've been told in the past by a few friends, is that rolling off the throttle mid bend definitely made the bike stand up and want to go straight! I had one moment of 'target fixation' where I had to actually tell myself to 'look where I wanted to go', and as soon as I did, the bike seemed to naturally respond. The only real issue I found was when I was going downhill into bends, I have a tendency to enter the corners a little too hot, which is what triggered my panic reflex briefly. But, I know, with more practice, I'll get a lot better! I feel like I'm on the right track now, it's making me want to get onto a proper racetrack soon!

I found out last weekend that one of the clubs hosts a bevy of 'rider training' days, and I'm keen to get along to them! I know I would hugely benefit from attending such courses, but I've discovered I need to get a couple more items of gear before I can get on the track. I've never had a back protector, but I've seen them out there, a lot of my biker friends have them and wear them everywhere. I've been doing a bit of research on their purpose, and have decided that I definitely need to get one, not only for the track but also for my road riding! Spinal injuries seem to be a pretty common thing when bikers go down. Luckily, I've recently had a little bit of a financial gain, so I'm now in the market for a good back protector. Does anyone out there in biker world know of any good brands / retailers? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I'm also in the market for a set of proper racing gloves, where the wrist cuff is armoured, and is meant to be worn outside the sleeve of the jacket. Currently, my leather gloves are short cuff, they're really good for wearing on short trips and around town, but if I'm to hit the track, I want the best gear I can get! Again, if anyone has any suggestions, feel free to post up a comment! (P.S. I'm a medium / size 10!)

The National series of motorcycle racing continues this weekend, and I'm really tempted to go, but I haven't had a nice relaxing weekend at home for over a month now, so I'm undecided as of yet whether or not I'll attend. It'd be cool to see old friends again, but it's a long hike down for me (and home again) and I think I kinda need a break from rushing around everywhere all the time! Plus, on the other side of the coin, if I stay at home, I can spend some time on Skype and catch up with friends in different time zones around the world. And that'd definitely be worth it...! As well as getting my 'body clock' back to normal again... :-)

So, the weekend remains unplanned as of yet, but stay tuned to find out where my travels may take me!


Until then...

:-)

Page 8

I know it's bad form to start a post with a rant, but the whole purpose of this blog is to get shit outta my head... See, it's starting to feel like this year is posed to be one that tests me. Even though it seemed to start out on a high note, I've now realised that no matter how well you plan things, life has a tendency to throw shit your way every now and then regardless. The 'shit' that I'm talking about this time is the fact that my boss is being a mega inconsiderate prick. Have you ever had a job that you loathe going to each and every day just because of one tiny little annoying thing about it? I can say that this is the case for me now. I used to love going into the V8 yard, figuring out what fence to put up for the day, looking at all the plans and seeing where we are up to, and slowly but surely getting closer to our target of being finished a good week out from the event. But what should be a fairly simple process is thrown into chaos because my boss is a lazy, meandering, control-freak, second guessing, hypocrite. And he's pretty much ruined any sense of time it is for me, along with my 'body-clock', by changing me from day shift to night shift back to day shift then back to night shift over and over again. He spiels off about how the last guy that worked for him full-time used to just sit in the forklift while the rest of the crew did all the hard work, now he's following suit to a tee. It frustrates the hell out of me...! As I type this, I've literally just finished a 4 hour shift (yeah, I know it's a short shift, I'll explain) out in the absolute pouring rain, in the middle of the night, on a section of road that we could do at anytime of the day. It was the kind of section we could have done pretty much anytime, day or night, but to me it would have made more sense to put this particular section of fence up when it wasn't pouring with rain and windy as hell, due to the fact that the panels were coated with big sheets of plastic 'hoarding' that makes them three times as heavy and a pain in the ass to handle in the best of conditions... I was under the impression that we would be focusing on the areas of the track that were difficult to get to during the day (because of traffic - cars and pedestrians) but he insists on changing the plan every five minutes it seems to accommodate his sense of 'organisation'. Which plainly just baffles me. I've pretty much stopped caring about the job at this stage, I used to be really finicky about keeping long sections of fence nice and straight and tidy, keeping all the advertising signs on one side of the mesh, but now I just put the panels of fence up and walk away. If he moans about something I've found it's easiest not to say a single word in reply, and continue going about what I was doing. It's like he thinks I'm a complete idiot, telling me how to do things I've done a thousand times before, trying to show me 'his' way, even though I've worked out how to do it easier with exactly the same result, even making tasks faster by doing things my own way. I know it's not very professional, but I've pretty much given up on any idea that there is a future in the fencing company for me, even though he wants me to be the 'area manager' once the V8's are finished. I'm not 100% decided yet, but he's making it difficult to find a reason to stay on after the race...

Anyways, that's my rant for today, apart from that things are going well, I spent a little bit of time playing with my bike today, just doing odd bits and pieces on it, cleaning the chain, polishing the chrome, cleaning all the brake dust off the wheels, that sort of thing. I do enjoy just sitting in the garage working on my bike almost as much as I enjoy riding it, because I'm just that kind of guy. I'm getting closer to stripping it down to a bare frame again now, I've found a 'good', reputable powder-coating business, referred to me by an engineer that I deal with pretty much daily through work, he says they do a really good job and will give me a good discount for mentioning he referred me. So, all that's left now is to save up a little bit more money, then I can pull everything off the bike once more and all the silver metalwork blacked out the way I want. After that, the motor will be serviced again to ensure everything is perfect, then piece by piece it'll all go back together to be finished (or as close to finished as any 'project' ever seems to be!)

On a note somewhat relevant to the top paragraph, I have been toying with the idea of moving back up north, to be closer to my biker friends up there, and to be back where things felt like 'home' as well. I guess we'll have to wait and see how the next couple of months goes at work, before I make a solid decision on that one. It'd be cool to be closer to everyone that I ride with in our group, but I wouldn't make the move unless a few things had been worked out first. I've had a couple of job offers from up north, so I know that side of things would be okay, but I'd need to make sure my home situation was okay too... One thing I do appreciate about where I am at the moment is that my home situation here is as close to perfect as it could possibly be! That would probably be my only reservation about moving away. Anyways, I'll have to weigh up the pro's and con's of staying versus moving in time regardless.

To finish on a better note, the weekend just been (at the racetrack) has opened up my mind to the idea of getting back into motorsport, as I previously alluded to, to the point where I am now keeping my eyes open for a fairly cheap but reliable (and easy to work on!) track-bike, with a few options already presenting themselves to me via the web and a couple of friends in the know... I have kinda figured that if I do get a track-bike, my finances are going to take a fair whack, so I was planning on waiting till I have finished my 'mystery trip'... (By the way, no-one has worked out where I want to go for the 'trip' yet!) I plan on being a regular at the events coming up, I really enjoyed being part of it all so much that I've made it known I want to be doing more! I'm hoping I don't have to work this weekend so I can go see more Superbike action, but have to wait and see whether or not I can make it. It's the final round of the New Zealand National series, so it's bound to be a great weekend's worth of racing, hope the weather plays nicely for it!!!

Until next time...

:-)