It was hard to bid farewell, especially knowing that there would be a good ol' knees-up happening without me as I made my way down the A3 to Portsmouth. But when I arrived at the ferry port I was greeted with my second send-off of the day, from the unlikely combination of my trusty in-laws from Bournemouth and the cheery faces of the Solent Advanced Motorcyclists, who have long supported my various ridiculous endeavours.

So it was with a warm heart that I boarded the boat and set sail to St. Malo....