Guzzista_Joe

Yaaaahoooo...we were there too, and our pal Dave has just posted his write up on our site:- http://guzzista.wetpaint.com/page/Features ...don't ask me to re-post it here, I got back from Muse at Wembley in the early hours and I'm sooooo hung over!

Love the Can-am spyder, fantastic piece of kit... but what a naff website...what is it with all the arty farty image fades...just show the goddamn thing ! ...and KTM really rock these days...I think they are definitely going for world domination, but then, I like unusual things and both KTM and Guzzi tick that box perfectly. There's no way I'd own a jap bike again and I wouldn't not own a Guzzi, but them KTMs look sweeeet!

sure...sure...but for $41000 I'd also be able to buy a large plate glass vitrine to put it in and to pay for the environmental disposal of some of my belongings so I could sit there in my front room and look at it for the rest of my days...maybe once in a while I may even touch it...with gloves

Dude that was amazing! D'you mind if I feature this one too? We got a dude registered on our forum from Alghero, in Sardinia...he'd do his nuts to see this! He owns a lovely V11 out there with a really unique exhaust system...I bet he would have loved to have met you on the road! Terrific report once again! Where are you going next?

Yeah I know about them...there's a dealer near me...where are you based? They were originally based on the BMW R71 from the 40s...legend has it that the general manager of the BMW motorcycle plant was ordered to torch it as the Russians advanced towards it. He apparently couldn't bring himself to do it and it fell into enemy hands. The Russians, so the story goes, lifted the entire production line and relocated it beyond the Ural Mountains...hence the Ural company name. They continued making solid, reliable, cheap as chips bikes ever since. They were originally 650cc engines but in later years they were enlarged to 750cc and had modern technological improvements added such as electronic ignition and...er...indicators. You either love 'em or hate 'em...the sidecar combis are fantasctic off road as they have a driven side car wheel too...easy to work on and repair...hell you can fix them with a hammer and chisel! I happen to love 'em... Those that don't point to the fact that they are crude...they are supposed to be...how long would a jap bike survive the Russian steppes in winter? Bikes don't get more rugged than this! Check out this site: http://www.candcmc.co.uk/ural.php these dudes have been selling them for a while and are based near Maidstone in Kent....ENJOY!

Some dude's posted some remarkable photos of an MGS-01 Corsa on our forum ( http://www.guzzistaforum.eu/forum/portal.php ) ...unfortunately it's in the members area so you'd have to reggie but, while you're doing that...anyone got $41000 they can lend me? Phew!

Hi there...thinkin on putting it on as one of the features on here: http://guzzista.wetpaint.com/page/Features ...if that's ok with you! Thanks again! J

I have a '01 Jackal and am looking for some pannier rails and boxes...if you look here: http://guzzista.wetpaint.com/page/Guzzisti+and+their+Guzzis (mine is the silver one at top right) it'll give you some idea of the backrest/rack I currently have in place so if anyone knows of some rails and boxes that would fit please let me know by e-mailing joeguzzista.com. Thank you

Hey there, my pal Gary is looking for a 750cc motor for a Nevada restoration project. He has a '94 350cc but wants to change the motor for a 750 version. Anyone knows of one, please e-mail me on joeguzzista.com Ta!

If the answer is "cock-robin" what's the question? "What's that in my mouth Batman?"

In terms of imfluential albums, Master of Puppets by Metallica has to count as one of THE most influential albums from any period...I got it up there with my own small list of albums that exemplified the period they were from...are you experienced, dark side of the moon, never mind the bollox, back inblack, paralell lines, love (The Cult- the zenith of Goth), am I evil (diamond head), brothers in arms, la woman, appetite for destruction, sandinista, the who live at leeds, abraxas...to name but a few... The thing about Metallica's master of puppets is that when it came out, not only did it blow everyone away from the very first bars on "battery" but it defined what metal was gonna be about for years...much more influential than never mind in my opinion...it was a turning point, out with the old in with the new. I remember never mind the bollocks doing the same thing!

some interesting sounds guys, i'll be checking some of that out...in the last day or so I've discovered Funeral for a Friend...excellent band...

Like a bit of Rock music while you work on your V11? Each month we feature a different band on our site: http://guzzista.wetpaint.com/page/Guzzista+Rock+n'+Roll ...and now with video too...

I met George Martin some years ago and had the joy of a good ol' chin wag with him...one of the nicest people you can meet, amazingly knowlegeable, and if you saw the recording equipment they were using at the time for that album you'd forgive the overproduction. Just to able to piece it all together with what amounted to a clunky tape recorder and something akin to a cross between a toaster and a Brevill sandwich maker...genius! I agree about Sandinista though...and here's another from roughly the same time...Abraxas by Santana...magic!

...does that mean he's pulling his shaft instead?

In the UK the only things you find by the side of the road are old fizzy drink bottles full of piss and the odd greasy spoon trailer...haven't yet decided which is the least appetizing...how much are flights to RI?

Baldini and Ballabio Bertie, two voices of reason...I take my hat off to ya and to your comments the fact is, the guys I was specifically referring to really were as described. It was not my intention to generalise but, having reviewed what I've written, I see whatya mean...message to self...don't write reports after long night shift It would be incredibly hypocritical of me to have a pop at Jap bikes as I admire them greatly and own a mean bugger of an X11...I admire them but I don't love them...know what I mean? not like Guzzis...and I can't stand Ducatis... Now that I've finished my night shift and the weather in Blighty is cack, meaning I've no chance to be out on the Cali, I shall amend the article to make it altogether more accurate...

Thanks for the welcome guys...I look forward to chewing the cud... Joe Purveyor of all things bleedin' obvious

hehehe fantastic! 'magine it with a 1100 Guzzi lump...yaaaahoooo!

That's a fair comment...the idea was to try to gather as many Guzzisti as possible to show in some small way that there are alternatives to the masses of plastic Yamahonsusakis...I dunno it was gonna be our first ride out and I thought it should be somewhere known to generate the initial interest, and I figured that a bunch of Guzzis thumping past would be an impressive looking and sounding spectacle. It would also have been a nice way to have drawn attention to our group from other Guzzisti that may have been there independently to then start building a base for future, Guzzi only, runs etc. The initial response to the advert on our website had been encouraging too as I had had between 40-50 expressions of interest in the lead up to the day. Unfortunately, as it turned out, as is so often the case in the UK the weather played the deciding hand. I was impressed by the hardy souls that turned up but so many must have been deterred...it was a good idea but then again, so was the Titanic! Never mind, hopefully for our second ride out at the end of the summer we'll have more clement conditions and a better turn out. I still think it'll be cool to have a mass of Guzzis riding down the road!

...well, we went, rode, arrived, ate kebbas with chips and went home! read some here: http://guzzista.wetpaint.com/page/The+Day+of+the+Eagle

hey Staedtler so you'er going for a run in my land huh? Excellent idea, I agree with the previous post to avoid the South, full of tourists and overdeveloped. I would start in Galicia in the North West corner of Spain, then riding the northen roads through Asturias, Oviedo is a lovely town, follow the northern coast of Spain through Picos de Europa, Cantabria, the Basque country, you could take in Pamplona for the running of the bulls on 7 July, take in the Pyrenees, beautiful, unspoilt, and great roads, as far west as you can go. Then head south along the Mediterranean coast to Barcelona. Then head back following the Ebro river, taking in Zaragoza, Burgos, Soria, Salamanca, Leon, a totally different Spain to the Northern coasts but also full of history and medieval towns. From Leon back into Galicia via Ourense, then Lugo this town has the most complete set of preserved Roman walls and they circle the town...then back to the Galician coast...fabulous! Should keep you busy and your hot pillion hot! For info about these places from the horse's mouth, and details of bike hire, where to stay etc, why don't you reggie on this forum? http://miarroba.com/foros/ver.php?id=652460 This is a forum of Spanish Guzzisti, they are very friendly, a lot of 'em speak English, and they'll be happy to help...tell 'em I sent ya!

Hey Orson what a fantastic trip! I sooooo envy you! I was born in Galicia, in fact, looking at your map, it seems you may have passed through or near my home town, Vilagarcia de Arousa, on the shore of the stunning Ria de Arousa. If anyone else is thinking on embarking on a trip around Galicia, let me know, I can give you heaps of info on the region. My uncle and aunt also own the best restaurant specialising in the traditional food of Galicia you will not regret it. Orson, do you mind if we feature your trip on our website? Not many people from abroad visit Galicia. It has generally been the preserve of Spanish tourists from other parts of the country...if you've ever wondered where the Spanish go on their hols...this is why the region has stayed relatively unspoilt. It is still possible to drive and come accross solitary unpopulated beaches, amazing. The people there are unique in Spain. They are Celts in origin with Roman threads. Gallego, the local language is closer to Lain than Spanish as the Romans settled the area but the Moorish invaders of the 8th Century AD that took over the rest of the Iberian peninsula didn't settle there. Finisterre is the name given to that area by the Romans. It is permanently shrouded in fog and it used to scare the crap out of them as they were a very superstitious people...did you hear the fog horn while you were there? It can apparenbtly be heard 30 miles at sea warning of the treachorous coastline...I've gone on too far...blah blah...I envy you!

Down in Kent we have no one...far as I'm aware...I ususlly get my parts delivered from Motomecca and fit them myself, unless it's summat a little more involved and those nice chaps at Chambers in Maidstone have always been happy to help even though they're a Honda dealership. There's quite a few Guzzis in the local area, I might try and convince Chambers to go for the Guzzi franchise if they're not tied into a sole agency contract with Honda...they always comment on what a nice bike my Cali is! There was one dude in Folkestone...DHR motorcycles or summat like that...I phoned them up once, he had a Griso in and that was about the sum of his stock!

Quite right! Like me and Ebbsfleet United FC in the Nationwide Conference...GO ON THE FLEET!!! ( http://www.ebbsfleetunited.co.uk/ )