Tuesday 27 July 2010

Borrowed Blogging

Good morning ladies and gents!  It's time for me to blog about a trip that I haven't (yet) gone on myself.  My Aunt J sent me a newspaper clipping in the mail from the Times Colonist featuring an article entitled "An easy ride on the Emerald Isle."  As the name suggests, the travel article is about motorcycling in Ireland.

By the fourth sentence I was sold:  "Narrow roads, infrequent highway signs, hairpin curves, nightmarish traffic circles - we loved every minute of it, every breakthtaking view, every dangerous bend."

Yeah, you'd better love that if you want to call yourself a motorcyclist!

It all sounds pretty incredible to me.  This isn't something I've done on any large scale either, whether it be in a car or on a bike; I've never visited a country and toured around in my own vehicle.  We did it briefly in Japan on two separate occasions, renting a car and going where the wind would take us.  I have to say, that those were some pretty epic adventures too.  The winding, hilly roads to Mt. Osore were almost more than our little rented Nissan Cube could handle, but they put a huge smile on my face!

Touring the country in a rented vehicle is a popular activity when visiting Iceland as well, but not one that I decided to partake in.  It seems to me that I'm over-due for an exotic road trip!

One of the particularly interesting things in this newspaper article is a discussion on cost.  Apparently they ran into another motorcycle tourist while on the road and he told them that he spent $2000 to ship his bike over from the U.S. and another $2000 to get it insured for the duration of his stay.  Meanwhile, the guys writing the article had rented theirs (http://www.motorental.ie/) for 100 euros ($133.82 CAD at this very moment) per day.  At that rate you could go for a LONG time before you hit the $4000 that the other fellow had spent.

I had a quick look at the page for Motorcycle Rentals of Ireland Ltd. and a few nice things caught my eye: they are offering almost exclusively the lean, agile style of touring bike that I've always wanted to try; the price includes unlimited mileage; and all of their bikes come with saddlebags.  All in all I'd say that it sounds like a good deal.  Especially since most of their bikes are BMWs, and I've always wanted to get on a Beemer bike!

They mentioned that it took awhile to adapt to riding on the opposite side of the road from what we're used to.  When driving in Japan I didn't really find that to be a huge issue, but I really think that being in a car helped.  Yes, it's the "wrong" side of the road, but it also means that you're sitting on the "wrong" side of the car!  That really keeps the different situation firmly in mind at all times.  On the bike you wouldn't really have that constant reminder of your situation, and I can see drifting into the more familiar lane out of habit.  Of course, nothing serves as a better reminder than oncoming traffic...

They also mention that while riding gear is available for rent they saved a lot of money by bringing their own.  That said, having good gear will be a must for anyone considering this trip.. wet weather gear to be specific.  The weather on Ireland is legendary, and running into a bit of rain is a inevitable.  That said, as long as you're dressed for it there should be nothing wrong with riding in the raid.

The rest of the article goes on to list specific sights that the guys checked out on their trip around the island.  I won't get into that right now.  They did mention a travel tip that bears repeating.  They were travelling across the entire country, both North and South, and that requires the carrying of both the Euro and the British Pound.  Something to keep in mind.  They also mentioned that they ran into some troubles with the locals in Northern Ireland, once when a member of their party was seen with the flag of the Republic of Ireland sewn onto his jacket, and once when someone quipped about being back in Britain.  The lesson here?  Try not to be a bloody moron while visiting someone else's country.  Do ANY research into travelling in Ireland and you will hit warnings about the tension that still exists between the North and the South.  Do try not to upset people when you're visiting their country please.

So, the moral of today's story is this: all my friends that don't ride motorcycles need to find a place in Ireland where they can rent a nimble car that can handle the winding back roads.  It's time for a road trip!

2 comments:

Jabbles said...

Yeah I think a MINI would be rather expensive to ship to Europe, and specifically for the UK the steering wheel would be on the wrong side.
Since you mentioned this you should look into the Isle of Man, I know there is quite the bike race there every year, but if Jeremy Clarkson is to be believed many roads are unrestricted speed wise. No need to max it out or anything, but a low speed limit can make a great road dull, and speeding tickets on rented equipment in a foreign land is not always fun.
I think one thing to keep in mind is find out what is needed to legally drive in another country. We took out an international driver license for the Japan trip, all it really is, is a standard booklet written in many languages that confirms you have a valid license in your country, if going to an English speaking country is it really needed? I would strongly advise checking with your host country before leaving, a local travel agents word means nothing to officer O'Connor.

Aunt J. said...

G&G and I have driven in the UK and no international driving license was required. Suggest buying good insurance because driving on the "wrong" side of the road can be a bit daunting. Depending on the driver, it really doesn't take long to making the adjustment as your traffic signs/signals are also on that side.