First longish trip on our TTSE

[Triplenut]

Just arrived home from two weeks in France on the TTSE. Here it is posing in Saint Martin de Re
Trip statistics:
2,700km
Average fuel consumption 5.5 litres/100km or 51 MPG (UK) helped by the low speed limits in France.
Arriving at home, the luggage weighed 52kg(!)
Weather ranged from torrential rain at 14C to bright & sunny at 24C. We never got cold enough to need the heated sets or grips.

It never missed a beat, performed and handled very well even fully laden.
Importantly, Her Ladyship likes it much more than it's predecessor (BMW K1600GT), prefers the sound and the seat. I guess that means I will keep it for a long time..

Now to wait and see how many speeding tickets I collected - France is infested with speed cameras nowadays.

Steve

[peejayess]

Nice one Steve - hoping to make a similar sort of trip next year, what did you do for overnights? Camping? Do they still have those unmanned motels where you turn up and just plug in your credit card?

[Wilko]

Nice one,
The wife and I did a Tour de France last month, not on the Trophy, but on the old bike, a HondaCBF 1000 just traded it in for a 2013 TTSE, like yourselves, the weather for two days was horrendous, but once we hit the south of France it was mental, beautiful sun.

It was the first time abroad for me with a pillion, and the first time away on the bike for the wife, we both enjoyed it so much, were already planning on touring Spain next year, but that will be on the fantastic TTSE.

[Triplenut]

We have camped all over France in the past; there are a lot of good, cheap camp sites.

However, October is a bit late in the season for camping, so we used reasonably priced hotels - around €80 per night thru Booking.com
The French are generally very biker-friendly, and were happy to find us secure parking for the bike, sometimes in their private garages.

Remember you need reflective stickers on helmets, carry yellow jackets in case you stop the bike next to the road, a green card and a bulb kit.
Having said that, in the last 30 years I have never been stopped in France....they are very tolerant.

Watch out for the speed cameras, though!

Steve

[Verdun95]

Originally Posted by Triplenut

Now to wait and see how many speeding tickets I collected - France is infested with speed cameras nowadays. Steve

Even trickier: unmarked vehicles with cameras hidden behind the licence plates (front and rear) catching you either side of the road! and they are now experiencing a new set up in which those vehicles (Renault Mégane, Peugeot 308, Citroen Berlingo) are driven by employees of a private company, official reason is to free the policemen so that they can attend other duties....

Originally Posted by peejayess

  Do they still have those unmanned motels where you turn up and just plug in your credit card?

The answer is "Yes" ; they are now called HotelF1.

[peejayess]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. Just clearing the garage to make space to get in the Trophy so I can then buy it ready for the trip!!

[Phil]

God, I love France and I love the bike.  What a great combination.   The wife and I did north France last year, hotels and posh restaurants,  and I'm planning a another trip next year to Périgueux for the Trophy Rally.  This time I'm solo so will be camping and doing cafes.     

Phil

[Bludy L]

Sounds like a great trip!