I’ve done quite a few motorcycle trips before, but must admit I’m the calmest ahead of this trip than any of the others in the past. Although it’s going to be twice as long as any of my previous trips and the ride will be with a much larger group of riders, I feel more prepared; I have space in my luggage (instead of it being packed to bursting point) and I am mentally ready for the ride.

. A quick calculation shows approx 25 people riding out from Deus Ex Machina tomorrow morning! In the words of some of my other riding buddies…”chaos will ensue’. However, I believe a good riders’ briefing chat tomorrow morning will help everyone understand what’s expected in such a large group (we also have some group riding rules on the site for people to read before the ride).

It’s been mentioned that I will be a ‘wise father figure’ on this trip, and whilst I do have a penchant for ensuring all goes well, people know where they’re going and looking out for the best wishes of others, I do need to consider my own needs. One of the key areas to manage on multi-day motorcycle touring is managing fatigue. Managing your state of mind after a number of hours on the bike is crucial – it becomes a mental game, especially in the late afternoon. Riding a motorcycle is not like driving a car; your brain is far more active, you have to consider more dangers and need to be at one with the motorcycle. Managing fatigue will be my biggest challenge on this trip

I am in great shape physically and believe I am in great shape mentally, but both the physical and mental aspects need to work in unison to ensure fatigue does not become an issue on this trip. I’ll certainly be relying on Raz & Robbie to help keep me focused and out of trouble. And this in itself is one of the underlying messages we’re sharing on this trip – reach out and talk to someone if you find you need help in some way! Whether it’s fatigue, depression, illness, or if something’s bothering you – reach out to your family, friends of GP – support is vitally important.

I believe this trip will be an awesome success and am very proud of what we’ve achieved as Riding4aCause so far! See you on the road…