What better to do on a cold December’s evening than go for a ride around London to look at all the Christmas lights and end up back at the Bike Shed for a fabulous dinner (I had the sausage and mash and she had the steak)?
So we took off the panniers to allow for some city filtering, fired up the RT, and switched on our heated vests (and gloves and seats and grips, etc.) and Alison did the honours with the GoPro on the back.
Anyway, here are some highlights from the footage:
Oh and the BMW Connected was shockingly poor and failed to connect for more than a few seconds at a time (if at all).
We had another fortnight’s holiday in Corralejo, Fuerteventura, so I again hired a Specialized Allez Elite from Easy Riders Bike Centre and went for a morning ride each day from the villas at Bahiazul along the FV-1 to Tamaragua and/or the FV-104 between the shore and the famous dunes.
In total, I managed 300km whilst we were there (plus some walking/hiking).
I continued doing my little selfie videos to annoy friends on Facebook, so here’s a collection from November 2025, all shot on my Apple iPhone 17 Pro.
When you’ve got a few days holiday in Corralejo, Fuerteventura, why wouldn’t you hire a Specialized Allez Elite from Easy Riders Bike Centre and go for a morning ride each day from your villa at Bahiazul along the FV-104 between the shore and the famous dunes?
In total, I managed 324km whilst we were there (plus some walking/hiking). See my March 2025 Stats post for details.
I started doing little selfie videos to annoy friends on Facebook, so here’s a collection from March 2025:
BMW have finally announced the new 2026 R1300RT, following on from their usual release process of R1300GS, then R1300GSA, then R1300RT.
They announced it this afternoon and released a video on YouTube:
At first glance it’s very angular, and I’m in two minds as to whether I like it. It also comes with Automated Shift Assistant, i.e. automatic control of the clutch and gears, with a ‘manual’ or ‘dynamic’ mode, which will no doubt be an option as it is on the R1300GS/GSA.
I’m also certain that Alison will love the option of the heated backrest and grips…
I’ve just spent a few minutes on the configurator to spec one up to similar spec to my R1250RT and it comes in at £24,461.
We were meant to be staying in Grenoble after a long trip along the Route Napoleon. Sadly, neither happened:
Firstly, the hotel emailed us before we left saying that there had been a lot of motorcycle thefts from their car park, so they were no longer accepting bookings from travellers with motorbikes…
Secondly, as there was an oil leak from the right hand side cylinder head rocker cover, we weren’t sure if the RT would make it, so we wanted to stay on the major roads in case we needed to pull over and get collected.
and a lovely glass of wine (plus some flavoured water at reception).
The battered and bruised RT made it with no real issues as well, which was a bonus.
Fabulous dinner (and wine) at the hotel.
The next day was planned to be a longer day heading to Luxembourg via Switzerland so a two stop strategy ws in place to refuel us and to top up the RT’s oil.
A relatively short day was planned and that turned out to be a very hot 275km and one crash: a road sweeper doing a left and taking us out.
There was some damage to the RT: both cylinder heads as it hit the sweeper on one side and the floor on the other. I couldn’t avoid the sweeper as there was too much high road furniture on the left. so down we went. And with all the luggage it took four of us to haul it back up onto two wheels.
I was completely unscathed as I pretty much just stepped off, but Alison got her ankle pressed a bit by the rear footpeg (pushing on her boots). She’s obviously not used to this crashing malarkey! But at least we apparently achieved a lean angle of 66º on that side…
It was then that the SOS button might have been useful, but of course that hasn’t worked since very early on with the ownership and BMW were taking way too long to release a fix for it.
So we continued on to Cannes and after more 38ºC temperatures and crawling traffic all the way along the seafront, we stopped at our booked hotel, the JW Marriott Cannes where just one night cost us over €1,150! . When I booked it, I had included instructions that we would be arriving on a motorcycle and to ask them to make sure we had a reserved parking space in the car park underneath the hotel. When we arrived and parked up outside the front next to a Ferrari and a Bugatti, I asked how to get to their car park and was told I wasn’t allowed to. No motorcycles allowed there, apparently! They instead said I should use a public car park a kilometre or so away or take my chance parking on the road nearby. And then they made us wait over an hour for our room to be made available.
The original plan was to have a long day in the saddle, heading up to the Milau Bridge and the Gorges du Tarn, but herself was beginning to flag a bit, so I instead set a course along some nice-ish roads from Banyuls-sur-Mer to Castillon-du-Gard in Provence, where we were due to stay at the delightful La Vieux Castillon.
Le Vieux Castillon
This was the hotel that Channel 4’s First Dates show had used for their summer holidays the first few series of First Dates Hotel before they moved to one in Italy, I think?
Anyway after a very hot day – 38°C – we reached 1,175km and were ready for a rest day the following day.
By the time we reached the hotel, it was still 32°C at the pool. They let me leave the RT outside Reception which was a weight off my mind. And yes, it’s a fabulous hotel, every bit as good as we had hoped.
We had booked their gastronomic package, but sadly the restaurant was closed the two night we were actually booked in for, having shifted the dates. So for our first night we enjoyed a lighter meal from the bar menu.
The next day was a rest day, so we spent it mainly by the pool, although we did go for a wander around the streets of Castillon-du-Gard.
Dinner was at Joio Restaurant nearby which is managed by the chef at the hotel and opens when he’s not working at Le Vieux Castillon. We ate their signature starter and main and a couple of cheeky glasses of wine. Very reasonably priced too as well as delicious.
Out of Spain into France. So that was the Atlantic Ocean over to the Mediterranean Sea then. And goodbye Spain, hello France. 910km so far, riding the BMW R1250RT along the N-260 (and others) from La Seu d’Urgell in the Spanish Pyrenees to Banyuls-sur-Mer on the French coast. We also diverted up to ride the infamous Gorges de Galamus.
Once we got to our hotel and parked up – after the BMW Connected app decided we should approach it from a footpath above – we checked in to our room.
Côté Thalasso Banyuls-sur-Mer
I have no idea what that clicking is in the video, and no, I didn’t mean the old biddy walking down the corridor…
Food at the Côté Thalasso Banyuls-sur-Mer exceeded expectations; the tasting menu was superb with the beef and dauphinois potatoes a high point before this dessert. A lovely local red wine too.
So Banyuls-sur-Mer was better than expected and they were kind enough to let us keep the RT parked outside reception where they could keep an eye on it. We decided to pin it to win it to get to our next stay, but first we explored the harbour.
With the RT collected after its initial ‘running-in’ service and with the suspension replaced under warranty, it was time for a ride to check everything out with a bonus test of the super-trick “adaptive headlights” which apparently move from side to side when cornering (like they do on my Abarth 124 Spider).
And yes, they’re good and bright and work well:
Then my wife headed off for a family baby shower, leaving me unsupervised for a weekend, so I headed off to the Cotswolds to do some filming:
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