MOTORCYCLES AND REST DAYS

The day after Foynes and Bunratty, I was in bad need of a rest day. A cold was trying to catch me (I fended it off) and the pace of our activities was catching up to me.  Knowing that I was to pick up my motorcycle on Monday, June 10th, it seemed wise to take a rest day.  Caught up on laundry, slept a lot, and went for a walk into the village of Croom where we are staying.  As with many of these small villages, there are picturesque sites everywhere and we did our share of photo-taking. Stopped at the local grocery for a couple of things for supper and then stopped at the pub for a pint. The Old Mill pub, which must be named for what appear to be two out-of-use mills across the river, is a low-ceilinged building that looks the size of a hole in the wall when you enter. Until you round a corner inside and realize it extends way to the back and can handle all the people it needs to when there’s a hurling match on!  Chatting with the locals, we also learned that there is an excellent Elvis performer coming at the end of the month that we might be able to catch.  
 
I also gathered my gear to be ready for the next morning when Peter would drop me off to Retroventures where I would pick up the Royal Enfield Himalayan that I had rented for a couple of weeks.  Retroventures has a wide variety of bikes and other modes of transportation for rent and have been amazing!  They set me up with the bike, which I quickly realized was not going to be a walk in the park.  To my surprise, I could barely get it off the side stand and upright with the high, front-end heavy weight. Still, I resolved to give it a whirl and took it for a spin and back to the house.  It's a really fun, peppy bike and I had a good time testing it out on the back roads back, but wasn’t getting used to pushing it up after stopping and getting off, feeling a pull in my shoulder every time.

Peter took his time with the car, finding a different route back and found the Killmallock Domincan Friary ruins to explore. This was founded in 1291 and used until 1591. The detail in this Friary was remarkable and some has survived to this date. 
 
That afternoon, we were headed for the Skelligs tour, which had been planned on short notice and so I left the bike and off we went – you’ve already heard that story.  Having the day to think about the Himalayan, I knew I would be uncomfortable every time I wanted to go somewhere. I badly wanted to “get used to it” – such a cool bike – but knew the best thing would be to switch it out if I could. I often joke about being a "delicate garden flower" and it was with some chagrin that I had to admit in this case, it was true!
 
I contacted Retroventures and asked if I could change it out to be picked up on Wednesday. They were wonderfully responsive and soon had me sorted with a new bike – a Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650, which I picked up on Wednesday morning.  Though of similar weight and fuel capacity as the Himalayan, it is 2” lower, freeing me to use the big muscles of my legs to set it upright.  I took it for a 3-hour spin and found it to be a game-changer with no discomfort at all. The weather was amazing and I extended my ride, stopping for a latte and chocolate cake break.  😊  Knowing I had to be back to run a training session later in the day, I headed back to the house feeling like I had done the right thing.  
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During my bike-swapping nonsense, Peter went for a hike in the Ballyhoura Mountains close to the place we are staying. He had a great hike on a gorgeous day, enjoying the peace of the Irish landscape and the flora and birdsong of the area, topping it off with a sunset thrusting our round tower across the back pasture into stark silhouette. 

Making the last-minute decision to head north for me to attend a rider’s meetup, we did some hasty packing and preparation to head out the next morning to explore more northern areas. What a life we are leading!