Heading up the A1 from London back to Peterborough I could feel the temperature dropping and the colour of the sky getting gloomier, stopping at the Baldock services for a comfort break was a bad move.
Despite wearing the best winter biking togs that I owned the battle against the elements wasn’t going my way, with another 50 miles or so of arrow straight A1 ahead of me I jumped back on my Honda CBR600FP and headed for home.
My fingers were totally numb by the time I reached the Black Cat roundabout, the temptation to have another pit stop in the petrol garage just beyond the roundabout was outweighed by the sight of traffic travelling south being covered in snow.
I dodged the snowfall until I got to Alconbury, it was like I’d crossed a vortex of wet and drizzly weather, and entered a full on blizzard, clenching my bum cheeks together I had no other choice than to plough on.
I went from the outside lane to the hard shoulder, with practically zero visibility and several inches of snow I did my best to keep pushing forward, meanwhile cars charged by adding to my need to get off the A1M for my own safety.
Leaving the motorway at the Sawtry exit I was mentally exhausted having used all my reserves of concentration to avoid ending up looking like cat food under the wheels of cars and trucks.
This wasn’t the end of the adventure, it was more like the start!
Within ten minutes I had been joined by three other riders who’d been beaten by Mother Nature.
In my excitement at being alive I had forgotten to switch my CBR off, the result was it had overheated and dumped its coolant over the ground, it looked like a Hulk dog had relieved itself in the crisp and even snow.
It was time to phone a friend!
Fully expecting him to tell me to go forth and multiply he only said yes he’d come and collect me in his van.
By the time he arrived I’d made a new friend, a bloke who lived near me, so when matey arrived he had my CBR600 and another bike to ferry home!
