Stuff not going the way you planned is the path to the dark side.

Man, I can't sleep I've been up since 4am and I still don't feel right. I originally went off work on the 3rd February, that's like over 2 months ago. Just when I thought my immunity was back to normal, whatever normal is "Boom!" I get hit with what appeared to be mild cold symptoms, which then led to getting yet another chest infection and being completely floored.

Mind you although this sounds like me having a bit of a whinge I am so grateful and feel very fortunate that I have not contracted something much worse. As we all know this is an unprecedented time and really quite frightening, seeing and hearing all this sad news about the coronavirus and COVID-19 and all the people that are having their lives cut short. So no I am not complaining.

Although I have been out of fettle like I said, when I did feel well enough to venture outside it allowed me to tinker on with Myrtle my classic 65 Bug in our back yard. It's safe out there as we have a large fence surrounding our yard, so I am still socially isolating, and I feel being out in the fresh air is much better than being in a stuffy house all day, plus doing odd jobs on the car has been keeping my mind occupied. I hate it when I am at a loss for anything to do. When I have too much time on my hands this is when I start to overthink things and it can lead to the dark side. I much prefer to be more proactive.

Anyhoo this leads me on to Myrtle and some of the fun and games both my dad and I have had. I would like to say in recent months, however having now owned Myrtle coming up a year, from day one she has been let's say a challenge.
 

Myrtle

Where to start...

A good few months ago upon getting my car back from LVH Engine and Resto where Paul and Rob had carried out some more work that I had requested. I soon discovered that my Air Lift 3P App was not working. This meant I had to use the controller in my car to use my air ride, rather than being able to use the app on my phone. After many failed attempts I thought my Samsung Galaxy S9 was broken, "it must be the Bluetooth on my phone". I did a factory reset and then had to reinstall everything from scratch, losing a good bit of stuff from my phone as I did so. Still no joy so I contacted Samsung and some days later a courier came to collect my phone for a repair. A few days later I got my old phone back and set about reinstalling all my apps. Guess what? still no joy with the Airlift App...gutted. Upon doing a spot of research I discovered that Airlift has been having some issues with their app when using Samsung devices that have been updated to Android 10, and to this point, there is still no fix.

Stoopid Android 10

Also after getting my car back, I decided to book her in to get her alignment done down at BTG Performance. I have had my new shape Beetle GSR down there a few times getting various stuff done and the work has always been first class, so thought getting my old bug set up on a hunter alignment system would sort any issues with tracking or whatnot.
  
 

It soon became apparent when getting Myrtle up on the lift that something just didn't look right mechanically with her alignment. She just wasn't sitting square. The front driver's side shock appeared to be 2 1/2 inches higher and when coming to the rear driver's side bag, it was leaning over at a peculiar angle. Alex one of the mechanics was spot on saying "look I can still carry out the alignment, but I don't think it will help as something just doesn't look right, and I don't really want to take your money". I decided to take Myrtle home and my dad and I had a think over what to do next.

   

Shock relocators welded to extended arms in position 3

Shock relocators welded to extended arms in position 3

The difference in shocker heights

 

Driver's side bag very wonky

 

Myrtle Leaning

The following day we jacked Myrtle up, both front and rear and then started at the front and began to investigate what was going on. My car has had extended trailing arms fitted. I bought the arms from the US, getting them specially made up from Cage66 Fabrications. Paul then welded shock relocators which I got from Limebug, they came in my air ride package. When we first measured between the front drivers and passengers side shock locators there looked to be a 1/4 inch difference in there position. Also, Paul had fitted the shockers in position 3 on the relocators, which was fine, however, I really wanted them in position two as this meant the shockers were sitting more upright, which would help put less load on them when the car was air'd up or down. There was a problem with relocating them in position two that we discovered. When the car was air'd out the very bottom of the shockers were catching the original shock mounts on the trailing arms. It was minimal and with a little light grinding of the original shock mount, they are now sitting good in position two. Another problem we encountered was in that when the steering was turned from lock to lock, one of the tack rods would hit the driver's side shocker. My da fixed this by making a steering stop. Quite ingenious, he used a couple of exhaust clamps and a piece of 1/2 inch angle. The clamps fixing to the front beam and now the steering stops before the track rod hits the shocker.

Only had one pair of axle stands had to improvise

Track Rod end Catching

Whilst working on the car yesterday I noticed with no load on the front suspension the wheels removed, that the driver's side front suspension was sitting a lot higher than the passenger side. Now, this was the original problem we encountered whilst down at BTG Performance. On closer inspection and after removing the shock absorbers it soon became clear that the trailing arms were a lot stiffer on the driver's side than on the passenger side. So we re-greased the front beam and worked the suspension/trailing arms up and down with the shockers still removed. I am hoping that over time and with the added grease that the arms/suspension will become freer and stop the driver's side from sticking. Bonus as we also spotted that when the driver's side and passenger side wheels were pulled down whilst up on stands and the shockers fitted in position two, that there was less of a discrepancy in the shock relocators.

Now to the rear...

Investigation of the rear of Myrtle and carrying out some measuring and using a straight edge, it soon became clear that the drivers side lower bag mount was either bent or twisted. I got in touch with Leanne over at Limebug and she immediately suggested returning both mounts and that they would sort them out if indeed this was the problem. I would have had the bag mounts back within a week, however, DPD kindly lost my package. Upon contacting Limebug they kindly sent out a new pair and we have since fitted them, being careful to put in the 4 washers required between the lower shocker eye and lower mounts and not to over tighten the nuts and bolts. The driver's side rear bag now sits far better.

As this is my first car ever using Air Ride I have been slightly perplexed as to it's set up. Again Leanne sent me a link to a video that Craig from Limebug had done to explain how to set up your air ride in a Bug. This has been most useful and when applied I am hoping with the additional fixes my car will not lean to one side as much as it did.

I am not finished yet of course. This little car is a bit of a tinker. We just seem to be getting somewhere with one job which then leads into something that has a bigger issue. Whilst investigating all the other bits and pieces concerning the suspension I noticed that Myrtle wasn't sitting on any body rubbers on the rear shock towers. Chris the guy I had bought the car off had provided me with a CD- Rom of Myrtle, going from pre-resto to restoration, including body off. I went inside and popped the CD on and checked the images to see if any body pads had been put in place when she was restored. It appeared as if none had been put on to her. Now, this could create some problems as I was to learn.

  
So when a Bug body is removed and replaced upon a chassis, the body can move and as such the doors can go way out of alignment, making it very difficult to get them to line up and shut correctly. This is our next task and one I am dreading. I am awaiting a full set of body pads, both front and rear, along with bushes. Hopefully, fingers crossed the job will go smoothly and she will sit square on her new pads, plus the doors will fit. I have already had issues with her doors when going to fit new door seals so it's a job I am not looking forward to at all. At the moment the driver's door is quite good and that is with the body released somewhat on the pan and on the front and rear shock mounts and beam. However, the passenger door has always been a bit out of whack. Time will tell.

Oh and yesterday as I was coming around the back of my car, as I say she is up quite high on axle stands and her rear valance has been removed, it allowed me to glance at her rear wheels. This is when my OCD kicked in... The rear wheels appeared different, by this I mean as in their camber angles. We removed the wheels, my dad had not long ago purchased a magnetic protractor and he attached this firstly to the passenger side wheel drum and we took a measurement. Then we went to the driver's side. The passenger side with no weight on the axle measure 3 degrees of positive camber, whilst the driver's side was bang on 0 degrees. This now has me a little stressed. As far as I am aware there is no way to adjust camber between axles on a swing axle car. So does this mean my car is bent? More problems...and the return of the Dark Side.

Drivers side

Passenger side

 Whilst carrying out all this work, we had to remove the petrol tank, this allowed me to give it a bit of a freshen up and touch in some areas. My dad bought a neat trim for the edge of the tank and this will also help elevate the tank a little so as the track rod and new steering damper don't foul the underside of the tank when going up or down on the air ride. Whilst we were under the bonnet we also decided to remove the air tank, manifold and compressors, which is a very easy job as they are all attached to an alloy mount, so come out as one piece. My dad wanted to have a look at the wiring, as there appears to be a lot of extra wires and a lot of these are not specifically colour coded, they are just black. After some discussion between us, we have decided to order up a new wiring harness and tidy up her wiring. This will also benefit the guys at Bewick Mobility when I eventually go to get her semi-auto clutch fitted.

Air Ride set up on mount

It's funny how things come about as when we were talking about the wiring and looking on the CD-Rom and work carried out by one of Myrtle's previous owners I received a rather unexpected email. It started

"Hi Glenn

Darryl in Macclesfield, Cheshire here, I decided to search for mol old 65 Beetle again after selling it to a chap from Scotland, around 2102 and low and behold your Myrtle appeared!".

It was great to hear from Darryl who went on to tell me Myrtle was actually called "Duchess" when he owned her. Darryl went on to give me a little history about the car, which was absolutely fantastic. A lot can happen in 55 years and it's magical hearing about other peoples memories involving their cars, where it took them, adventures they were involved in.

Darryl let me know he actually did the wiring on Myrtle, so I hope he isn't too offended that we have decided to give the old girl a revamp.

There are a lot more jobs to be done, Myrtle is definitely a work in progress and a real labour of love. It has to be love because as an investment I have way past that point. My dad and I spent a whole afternoon the other week documenting how much I or I should say We have spent on Myrtle, as to be fair my dad has been buying bits and bobs to help with jobs. Not including the price of her I am at the £15K mark.

A huge thank you to everyone who has helped so far.

Small Vintage Positivity Suitcase

After rather enjoying our first attempt at making a Vintage Suitcase Boombox we decided to have another go, however, this time going on to design and make a case a lot lighter than our previous attempt. Lessons learnt you see although the first suitcase turned out canny, it was pretty heavy...well to be fair there is nothing pretty about the weight, it's dammed heavy.

Smaller, Lighter and improved sound

First Vinatge Suitcase, a bit heavy

This is the second Vintage suitcase, it is a lot smaller and also a lot lighter, however still gives off a really good sound.

 Here is a little demonstration of the case working and how it sounds.
 


Using the Dayton Audio equipment really helped as everything is pretty much plug and play. We used a Dayton Audio KAB-250v3 2x50W Class D Audio Amplifier Board with Bluetooth 4.0 alongside a Dayton Audio KAB- Battery Extension board.  I got my hands on some DS18 50Watt speakers.

Learnt a little bit about matching speakers to the Amp, a mistake I made with my last case. I think the smaller case actually sounds a little better than my big one.

Wee Vintage Case

I decided to decorate my case in some things I enjoy learning and reading about, plus some people I really admire. You will be able to spot Nikola Tesla, William Blake, Einstein and Edgar Allan Poe to name a few.

Bluetooth connectivity as well as an Aux jack and a seperate power connector so you can plug in a nd charge the 18650  batteries.

A small retro toggle switch to power on and off

I stuck in a few pics, then coated them in a PVA solution to protect them.

Love this little case

Just a few minor jobs to do. Tidy up the wiring and mount the volume switch

A huge thankyou to my dad, as usual as he did the majority of the work. I was more like the supervisor/designer and chief decorator Lol.

Road Trip "What are you grateful for?"

For those that know me, well you will know I am a bit of a dreamer. I have always been like this for as long as I can remember. Of late it has become something a little more. In fact, although I still enjoy a good dream I have been focusing more on using my visualisation and thoughts to try and help my wellbeing. Now I know many people will scoff, however, I am the type of person that if someone tells me they are doing something and it is not hurting themselves or anyone else, and it makes them feel good then where is the harm. I would say "Fair play" to them and that they should keep on doing it.

Me and my little buddy, Baxter

It's amazing how the Universe can send you little impromptu messages...

My first post of 2020, it's not that I haven't been doing anything in fact, quite the opposite, today is actually day 81 of riding my bike or should I say bikes. The majority of my riding being indoors upon my road bike, set up on a turbo trainer, and then a little more out on my mountain bike.

Oh and today is day 34 of me being Vegan. Now when I say Vegan I am trying my best and can pretty much maintain it whilst at home, however, there are bound to be some people who point their finger and say "you are not a proper Vegan", generally as they tuck into there BigMac with Cheese or their extra greasy KFC family bucket for one. So let's just say I have most definitely been a Vegetarian and a practising Vegan. It's a personal choice after watching a documentary on Netflix, called The Game Changers.

Netflix actually gets me in some way onto why I am writing this blog. Usually exercise and Netflix you wouldn't associate with working out and trying to get in shape. Well, when I am on the turbo as I don't get to see, smell and hear the beautiful outdoors I have taken to popping something on and watching it as I spin away.

So let us start from a bit earlier this morning. I have been on annual leave, and as such really enjoying my lie inns. At about 11:00am Ern and I headed out into wor back yard and uncovered Myrtle my 65 Bug. She has been under a cover for some time now awaiting heading back to LVH Engine and Resto for some follow-up fettling. Ern got into Myrtle and I have to say I was very impressed when she practically started 1st time. Once she had ticked over for a little bit, Ern reversed her out, drove her a little way down the street and then reversed her back into our yard, now ready to just drive out tomorrow when she goes to LVH. Whilst we were on with Myrtle I had a little fiddle with the settings on her Air Ride, just to get her sitting even. Part of the job required is to fit new extended control arms, as at the moment poor Myrtle is listing to one side. Ok enough about Myrtle.

Whilst I was out in the cold I could see poor Tango my Smart car was feeling a bit left out. She was filthy so I decided to give her a wash. Not exactly the best day to wash a car as it was Baltic. Nevermind I grabbed Tango's keys and proceeded to jump in her. After getting her started as I put her into gear and went to pull away, she just wouldn't move. I then tried her in reverse and exactly the same thing. She was in gear with the engine running and just no drive. Just the other week I had experienced the same problem and had had the car down to Darlington. I was informed it could be a number of things, all of which are very expensive...well of course they are. I turned her off waited for a little while then tried her again. This time she popped into gear and I drove her off the grass and over to the opposite kerb outside our house, where both Ern and I gave her a lovely wash. Anyhoo after her wash, I went to move Tango and again she just would not drive whilst in gear. This is one of those "Fuck, Fuck, Fuck moments. I have waited for ages to get Myrtle sorted and been saving like mad, then the very day before she is due to go in, Tango decides to pack in. The bill is going to be close to £1000 to get her sorted. That is for labour, a new clutch and an actuator, oh plus I now have to rent a trailer to get her moved to the garage Lol, so that is another £50.
 
Something else I have been doing since 26/11/2019 is writing a scripting journal. I have discovered by doing this it has calmed my mind and it allows me to be much more reflective and see things for what they really are. When looking at a car, for instance, it is a piece of mechanical technology, that can have parts replaced and therefore fixed...So no big deal...
 
Now then moving along to this afternoon and going back to Netflix. For some reason as I searched for something to watch I recognised an actor who used to be in Spartacus, his name, Andy Whitfield. The title of the documentary was called "Be Here Now... The Andy Whitfield Story". It was on like an hour and 49 minutes so I began watching it downstairs on the TV, then decided it would be something worthwhile to watch as I worked out.

The first thing that made me go "Omg" was when I discovered that the documentary was actually about Andy fighting against cancer. I mean I had just put this show on and didn't have a clue what it was about. I just liked the guy in his role as Spartacus. I then discovered Andy was fighting Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. This is the same cancer I had or have I mean I am in remission, however as far as I am aware the kind I have is incurable. Obviously, there are different forms High grade and low grade and various stages from 1 to 4.

Man it is a heartfelt documentary, very sad. I could really relate to some of the things Andy and his wife spoke about. In hindsight probably not the best thing to watch when you are trying to lift weights and you are crying.

You are probably wondering where my title comes from "It's amazing how the Universe can send you little impromptu messages". Well, I give thanks to the Universe each day. For me coming across this film, whether by chance or design. It just made me think of all the things I have to be grateful for. I have been one of the lucky people to receive treatment and get to spend more time each day with family, friends and in doing my job trying to fix people. So the whole car thing now just pales. No matter the odds, having a positive mindset sure beats a "why does this always happen to me" one

Sometimes we get so caught up in the everyday, mundane, take it for granted shit, looking way off to how things used to be, or imaging how things might be, that we just lose all sense of the here and now.

I suggest if you have taken the time to read this and it has made you think a little, go and find someone you are close to and tell them how much you love them, give them a cuddle. I'm off to tell my dad how much I love him right now, he is 80 years old this year, and there he was on a freezing cold day, whilst it was starting to rain lying under my car trying to sort it out for me.

Thank you Dad xXx

Clarty or what?

Hey it's me I am still around.


So what has been happening? well not a lot really, though that depends on how you look at things I guess. Let's just say I haven't written much on here as there hasn't been anything all that exciting going on.

A canny bit of clarts about today like

I have started a new health kick, after feeling decidedly unfit and a little podgy around the middle. Today is actually Day 47 on me continuously riding. By that, what I mean is I have been going on my De Rosa Road bike each day which is hooked up to my turbo trainer. I have not been following any set plan, or specific challenge, nope just been riding for me, doing between 20 to 70 minutes at a go and ranging my cadence, mileage and time upon the bike.

Today, Day 47 was actually a bit of a change as I decided to head out on my Specialised Turbo Levo. Yeah, go on say it "Oh that's cheating, coz it's an electric bike". And my retort "Go get your leg lopped off then come back and tell me how easy it is to ride every day". Plus I am getting on you know.

As soon as I went to set off on the bike today I noticed the huge difference in the new G3 Tendons I had got from Brian Bartlett. The new tendons are a tad longer, however heavier and you can really tell this at the top of the flexion upon the knee. After a few pedal strokes just down the front lane, I had to stop and release some of the air out of the Rockshox shocker. If I hadn't I would have been beasting myself the whole way around as the more pressure in the shock the more work you have to do in order to bend the knee.

Anyhoo getting back to this health kick. I watched a documentary the other day and it blew me away so much so that I have decided to try and eat healthier and in fact practice eating a plant-based diet. Oh the documentary for anyone interested was on Netflix and it is called The Game Changers, it is well worth a watch, even if you don't want to change your diet ... What do they say "Knowledge is power". I am a big believer in that you cannot criticise something until you have actually experienced it.

Ern has been a complete star too, as he has gone out and done some shopping especially for me, buying lots of vegan ingredients and some ready-made meals, plus he also got me some special treats for afters, including some cookies, trail mix crackers and my particular favourite some Belgian Chocolate.

As I started my indoor riding and exercise regime 47 days ago I have pretty much-eaten salad every day in some form or another, this at the time had chicken or bacon with pasta. I have only been on the veggie stuff properly for 2 days. Yesterday I experimented with vegan fish fingers and 5 beans which were actually really tasty. Oh, and I have swapped over to Soya milk, this kind of takes some getting used to as it tastes weird in a cup of tea, but not so bad in my porridge Lol.

Very clarty

No cameraman to help me

I have to say today's ride was such an enjoyable one I think I only saw 4 people all day whilst on the trail. As I rode around Chapman's Well deciding to complete the Bath Tub Loop 6 times which is roughly 1.9 miles each loop, the sun was starting to go down and as I rode back up the hill towards the farmer's house the sky and surrounding landscape just looked so beautiful. Mind you by the time I had decided to venture home I was absolutely filthy, the trails are just so clarty.

The glow of the sun as it went down was soooo pretty

Bike was a bit caked like

I am almost sure I was on Eco mode the whole way around

Duck seemed to enjoy his ride out too

I should also mention I have been completing a scripting journal. Now, this is not like an everyday journal or like some sort of a diary. No, it is more like writing a screenplay for your future. You create your journal with intentions. It’s like a magical manifesto that supports your wishes. It is intended to help your ideas and desires to come to fruition. You practice writing, reading and manifesting the life of your dreams. It helps to assert positivity into your life and take responsibility for your life and your actions, your emotionality, your wellbeing and your stories. I think it is helping me to reflect and maintain a much more positive attitude. The most powerful words in the world are "I AM".

New Tendons

Bit mucky

Getting old

Ok I AM off to try some asparagus along with some vegan cottage pie.

Picking up Bits and Pieces

Following on from getting Myrtle back from LVH Engine and Restos and being contacted by Leanne from Limebug as she saw some of the pictures I had posted up on social media. It soon became apparent that something was not quite right with my little bug.

Washed, dried then put under a cover

I sent a few pictures of the underneath of Myrtle to Leanne and she reliably informed me that the "relocators" I had not only had to be bolted in place but also welded to the arms. Apparently, there are some new Limebug versions that just bolt in place. Leanne also went on to say fitting the "relocators" it was an easy mistake to fit them around the wrong way. I'm no mechanic and as far as I am aware there were no instructions so I couldn't say if this was the case when I looked

I immediately contacted Paul over at LVH and he informed me not to worry he would sort it. In fact, now that the new trailing arms have arrived from Cage66 fabrications I know once they are fitted to Myrtle she will be sitting pretty, and I will not require the other damper relocators.

Extended Arms from Cage66fabriactions, all painted gloss black

So after getting Mrytle back all I have done is wash her, dried her off and put her under a cover, awaiting a time Paul can fit her in to get some more work done on her. The short break gives me a little time to save up some more cash, man this is proving to be quite an expensive hobby. I have just spent yet another £800 or so quid on various bits and bobs for her this last week.

This includes a new Powerlite 75 amp alternator. The old dynamo just couldn't cut it when coming to power the dual compressors for the Air Ride system. I kept getting a low voltage warning on my mobile when activating the ride height. I have also had to buy a new fan shroud to take the alternator. Whilst I was on I thought I may as well "Bling" Myrtle up a little in the engine bay so purchased an MST Black billet Serpentine pulley, "Dizzy" stand and fuel pump block off, all from Limebug. Also after getting some good advice from Max Edwards over at Eva Resto, I opted for a Facet electric fuel pump and a Filter King. I got a complete setup, including fittings and line from Machine7. Max had informed me that the pump was best fitted under the tank and upon visiting his website I discovered he had a ready-made bracket, that looks spot on, so I invested in one of those, powder-coated of course.

A few bits and bobs

Facet Fuel Pump and Filter King Ooh and a grab handle and sun visors

Powerlite 75 amp alternator and some MST Billet Kit

Since purchasing Mrytle I have had an idea of how I would like her to be, she will be by no means a "purists" car, however, she will remain classic looking. I think her Mango Green colour adds to this. Slowly I have been buying the odd bits and bobs, quite a bit of it for when she is in the final stages of completion. So things like replica Porsche 456 headlight guards, or the Limebug parcel rail. Stuff for the car is quite expensive for instance £38 just for genuine interior light and as yet I still have to find a hole to put it in without wrecking my headlining, saying which long term I will probably have all of the interior done. I already have ideas and a plan in my mind for this, so have been thinking of colours. Somewhere it will involve red, so I have purchased a full set of seatbelts, 3 points for the front where Paul welded the extra mounts in my lower B-pillars and 2 points in the rear, not very often I have people in the back anyhoo.

Red belts and the Eva Resto Fuel Pump Bracket + a rather expensive interior light

The DWP has been in touch just yesterday asking me to provide quotes and a driving assessment report. I have tried explaining I cannot go for an assessment as there are no vehicles currently in the UK employing this type of semi-auto Syncro clutch. I do have one quote and I am awaiting another, so fingers crossed when it comes and they take a look at it they will be willing to offer help support me with my Access to Work application. I will let you know how I get on with that.

I love my little Myrtle

What an exciting morning, the day had come to be reunited with my little 65 Bug Myrtle. The guys over at LVH Engine and Resto, Paul and Rob have been hard at work fettling a few things for me. The biggest of which was Myrtle's suspension.

Myrtle

As mentioned in a previous blog entry I had purchased a full Limebug Deluxe Swing Axle kit, which included a 4" narrowed beam and 3p Airlift management. Other jobs included putting in extra seat belt mounts at the bottom of the B pillars, popping in a new passenger-side door seal, sorting an engine oil leak Oh and fitting a very nice looking and sounding Vintage Speed Sports Muffler, alongside a few other bits n bobs.

Vintage Speed Sports Muffler

Vintage Speed Exhaust sounds Sweet

The new Air Ride system works a lot better than the old set up, however, does need a bit of fine-tuning. Once I get to grips with the new-fangled Bluetooth set-up and what pressures to run, Myrtle should ride pretty sweet. 

How to get her lower?

Whilst I can tinker on with cars I am by no means a mechanic, so not sure of the exact set-up of Myrtle. I was expecting her to actually sit further on the floor as she has dropped spindles and Atom rear spring plates.

Twin Viair compressors

I am now awaiting a complete set of torsion arms arriving from the US from Cage66 Fabrication. These arms should help the front wheels clear the inner headlight buckets and also help with positioning the front wheels centrally when Myrtle is dropped.

Lengthened Arms

I have chucked a small fortune at Myrtle so far and as yet she is way off even being half done. Now time to save up some more cash and maybe get a few little jobs done before next year. She is definitely a work in progress.

Ern still driving Myrtle as I can't

  Oh almost forgot upon our drive back from LVH, Ern and I called into Bewick Mobility. They have a very friendly team and it was good to eventually meet up with Matthew Burns who I had been chatting to and emailing back and forth about the required clutch conversion to Myrtle. One of Bewicks technicians checked Myrtle over whilst she was up on the ramp and we discussed various options for to have a semi-auto clutch fitted. 

Heading up on-ramp

   Just hope I get some assistance from the DWP and the Access to Work scheme, as the cost of the job will be around £4k. Being disabled sure does come with more penalties than just the disability itself. Never mind when you have a passion, there is always away, and it always feels good to bring something to fruition with your hard-earned.

Oooh! Wonder if I can Polish it Out

After watching a part of the second series of Fastest Car on Netlflix this morning I thought I would take Grandma out for a spin. I aimed to head to Waskerley Reservoir, no big deal I thought, I mean just bang the postcode, or thereabouts in my sat nav and follow the directions.

Sitting up on the Fell

Firstly I had to put some juice in my car, so I headed down to Lanchester filling station, as it was on the way and I had noticed the other week the petrol was a few pence cheaper... well it was the other day, but not today £126.9 a litre. I put £50 odd quid in Grandma filling her up. Whilst I was sat at the garage I attempted to get the postcode for Waskerley Reservoir. I mean I know where it is, when going on my bike, however getting there by road is totally different.


Damit my stupid phone wouldn't connect to the internet, so I tried Google Maps instead. I then set off in the general direction. Google Maps did take me in a roundabout way towards my destination, however, as I got up on the top of the fells, nearer to Smiddy Shaw that Waskerley I soon came to understand that Google Maps was a bit off in its calculations. As I drove onwards up past Smiddy Shaw all the way up the hill and turned left I could see Waskerley Reservoir down below me on my left. I ended up doing a complete loop coming through Stanhope and then through Wolsingham and up Wolsingham bank. Google Maps had directed me in a big loop, however,r, I did not find an access road to lead me to Waskerley Reservoir.

Grandma

Love my Bug

Miltek Cat-Back Pipes

  Anyhoo I decided to continue on the loop and head back up towards Smiddy Shaw, and go to the top of the hill on the fell and possibly get a few snaps. I stopped at the side of the road and it was a lot windier than I thought. This made the sun keep pop in and out of the clouds. I took a 30 second Timelapse with my Go Pro, however upon viewing it at home, saw that the wind had been moving my camera which I had resting on a large stone, so the footage was all shaky, so that has been binned.

I got a few snaps with the GoPro of my car. I then thought "Oh I'll take a couple of pics of me" I am not very photogenic, but hey I love memories and pictures serve as a great reminder. My eyes are shocking without my glasses on now, but I didn't fancy pics looking like speccy McSpec Face so took them off to grab a few snaps. I then went to stand up and inadvertently stood on my glasses with my gimpy foot. Oh dear I don't think these scratches will polish out and what is worse is I have buggered my frames too.

Just afore my gimpy foot trod on my gigs

Hate wearing glasses, as I keep losing them or standing on them LoL

So upon arriving home I have just booked an appointment a Speccy Savers. Think I need to go anyhoo. The lady said I am not due for an eye review until May of next year, but I have been getting a lot of migraines in my left eye. This getting old Malarky is not good.

I don't think that will polish out

Never mind quite enjoyed the tootle out, listening to Absolute '80s and setting my car away now and again on the country roads listening to the induction roar and chatter of her Turbo. It really is quite addictive and always brings a smile to my face.


Reet I now need to save up for some new gigs LoL