The outside of a motorbike engine seen up close near the exhaust

Home Travel StoriesShrewsbury 2014

Going Home From Shrewsbury

By Ren Withnell

Being in bed so early means I ought to be up early. The gf thinks 0700 is far too early but as far as I'm concerned it's the middle of the day already. Leaving her to the bed I walk over to the Sainsburys on the retail park to get something for breakfast. The gf is addicted to Belgian sticky buns at the moment so I get her a twin pack.

It's another cold morning but thankfully the frost is light and there seems little risk of ice on the roads. The weatherman is telling me however it is going to rain. I have considered going back via a different route, today it seems prudent to stick with what we know if the weather is to deteriorate. The gf's confidence has taken a knock recently so I don't want to push things. We pack and as I leave the room I make a mental note to ensure we've not forgotten anything and we load up the bikes.

The Travelodge has been the perfect place to stop for us. Whilst it is indeed just a brick and concrete tent with a heater and a real bed, this is exactly what we needed for our trip. We wave our goodbyes to the young lady on reception and set off into the Tuesday traffic. It's 1000 and while the rush hour has passed negotiating the roundabout from the services requires patience and timing.

Our ride home starts well but sure enough the rain comes. It's not heavy or hard but the liquid saps away warmth like a vampire drains the blood. I'm so well wrapped up and hardened to it I feel it but don't suffer it. I keep an eye on the gf in my mirrors. She's being harassed by a massive lorry, impatient to reach 55 mph as we cruise at 53 mph. It's maddening and scary. The visibility is poor through our visors, the road is greasy and wet and all this truckie can think if is getting to his drop 45 seconds earlier. It's hard to fight 38 tonnes on a motorcycle.

Eventually he passes on a short dual carriageway, only to hold us both up as the road narrows and he struggles through the corners. Such is life and if these things were to really bother us we'd have a daily heart attack. Actually it's good to ease back, take it easy and blame the truck for our relaxed pace. Of course the guy in the massive 4x4 pickup thinks otherwise and sees to it he passes in the worst place. I can't believe my eyes when our impatiently slow truckie overtakes another truck on a single carriageway. We both drop right back, expecting carnage.

At some lights the gf pipes up "I'm cold!" The lights change and we carry on, I need to think where she can be warmed and have a rest. Aha! We're not far from J&S, a massive motorcycle store and they have a cafe. It's another 5 or 6 miles and I feel for her, imagining her shivering in her bike gear. The miles pass and while I know where we're going I wonder if she's cursing me and the cold. I imagine her little face lightens up as we turn into the J&S car park too and she spots the cafe.

Inside is hot tea and that makes life bearable, even pleasurable again.After a visit to the loo and half an hour's talk whilst thawing out we carry on. The rest of our journey is on roads all too familiar to me and it all passes without incident. If you recall I made a mental note to ensure we'd collected everything? Nope. There's a message on my mobile when I get home from the chirpy grey haired gentleman on reception informing me there's a camera in a bum bag sat in his office. DAMN AND BLAST! What an idiot, what a buffoon, what a prize blinking knob! 

narrow lane and overhanging timber buildings in shrewsbury
Damn! I need my camera to show you this!

I truly thought this weekend would be a little dull. As such I had low expectations. However, no matter how much the Travelodge lacked character it was still a warm, comfortable, friendly and welcoming place to stay. I was right about Shrewsbury being just another town, mostly. It has just enough "extra" to make it worth a visit, and we didn't get to see everything. I could not spend a week there looking around but I'd be more than happy to return for another day. The Shropshire area whilst not filled with vast mountains or endless corners to grind deserves a little more looking at too. 

Finally no matter where you are it's what you make of it. The gf and I enjoyed a simple few days away. If you get the attitude right it doesn't matter where you are, what you see or what you do, just laugh at everything and have fun. I had to force myself to adopt the same attitude when I made the 160 mile round trip to collect my camera one evening after work. The ride there was dry and splendid. The return trip was wet, cold, miserable and the hail came down so hard it became icy on the side roads. What a muppet I am! Chin up boy.

Why And The Ride To Shrewsbury Ren explains why he's taking Sharon to Shrewsbury. Well, he tries but he doesn't really know to be honest.
A Look Around Shrewsbury Sharon and Ren take a look around the town of Shrewsbury. Ren achieves the dizzy heights of being "mildly impressed"
Going Home From Shrewsbury The return leg from Shrewsbury involved rain, silly truck drivers and something left behind.

Reader's Comments

john de ville said :-
Dippy told me about the camera..........you twonk........mind you it is easy to do............I would have ask them to post it back and covered postage cost to be honest, im sue they would have done.
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
John...yeah they said if I sent a pre-paid box to them they'd post it back. I just thought I'd have a nice ride out one Thursday evening. It was lovely riding down there in the setting sun...the ride home was awful! Doh.
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC
Arthur Uden said :-
For goodness sake give the gf a name. Surely she deserves better than to be referred to as ' the gf ' Otherwise, love the stories.
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
Arthur Uden - HA!

The gf does have a name. I use the term gf for 2 reasons, firstly I am lazy and it's easier to type and secondly to protect her dignity and honour. I mean, what sort of self respecting lady would want to be associated with ME!

If you read the blog often enough you should be able to work out "the gf" is in fact Sharon Parker who regularly contributes to the site. She's also entirely the master of "Sharon's Biking Blog" on here and the comprehensive events page on our Facebook page.

Glad you're enjoying the stories, it's heart warming to know they actually get read.
01/01/2000 00:00:00 UTC

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