Annoyingly I had to skip the last issue of MSL, as the T7 spent some time sitting at my local Yamaha dealership in Trowbridge awaiting some necessary maintenance, having had my first 'spot of bother' (other than a puncture, of course) in some 3500 miles of riding.
The problem came when a trip to Donington Park was on the cards. Having departed at 6am, by 6:30am I was limping home wondering what the hell I had done as the bike had started jolting in and out of power. Finally I pulled over and had to try several times to keep the engine running, having dropped into gear with the side-stand up. Writing with hindsight, it is obvious now that the side-stand switch was at fault, not a common trait of this model more than any other, just a component that had failed.
Having coincided with two potentially problematic events the previous day, I was wondering if I was at fault, though. Firstly, I had filled the bike via a jerry can; not a crime in itself but one that could lead to aliens getting into the tank and causing blockages. Secondly, I had tested Muc-Off's jet wash, a taboo in some circles whom I was preparing myself for battle with as it's a great bit of kit... breaking down straight after may have lessened my case somewhat. But neither had anything to do with it. The switch had just failed and as ever the guys at Phoenix Yamaha came to the rescue... they should be wearing capes.
My key concern was to be back on the road for the Adventure Bike Riding festival at Ragley Hall, Warwickshire. Despite this not being one of our' shows, I am happy to wax lyrical about just how good this event is and a must in the motorcycling events calendar. I have been twice before, sleeping semi-rough in the back of my van, but this time was going to be different, as I, too, would be on an adventure bike for the first time!
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