Trips
Sidecar Adventures (Part 2)
Jun
Sidecar Adventures (Part 2)
What happened from that marvelous visit to Kaunas, in western Lithuania until my arrival in Spain, has been an endless number of adventures, breakdowns and the fight against time, the elements and Russian steel that I will tell you about right now.
1a. Fault
On Monday they took the bike to a local workshop, Motogama, in Vilnius and after several checks, we resolved that the problem was with the battery and regulator, so the Motogama team got us a new electronic regulator and a used battery by Tuesday but that did the trick for us. With this, on Tuesday we were able to start the return trip to Spain, but as soon as we arrived in Poland, at the first stop, the bike stopped with no intention of starting up again. After drawing unsubstantiated conclusions again due to the lack of tools, we decided that the motorcycle failed to adjust the valves and had a depressed valve, since when the motorcycle cooled down a bit, it would go well again for a while. After a rest, we started our journey again and gradually reached a city called Augustów where it stopped again and after pushing 1,5 km from it, we found a house where for €21 they gave us accommodation and a good ration of food. mosquito bites. Due to the time we arrived and the lack of transportation, there was no dinner that night.
Let's repair it….again!!!
The next day, the motorcycle started as if nothing had happened to it and after talking with the people of the area who once again surprised us with their kindness, they recommended a workshop where they played this type of motorcycle, so we went there. The owner of the workshop, very friendly and with a prior budget, told us what he would do to us, adjusting the valves and installing the new regulator that they had given us in the previous workshop. Since it was necessary for the engine to cool down to be able to adjust the valves, we went to visit the city of Augustów. It is certainly a very beautiful and well-kept city, with its lake, its parks, a large cathedral and a great atmosphere.
When we returned to the workshop in the afternoon, in addition to the problems the motorcycle had, bad spark plugs had been added and an oil change was also performed. With all this and at a calm pace, the mechanic told us that we could go home and certainly the bike was great during that day until the afternoon arrived and again we noticed that when it was hot it stopped and didn't start again until it cooled down. If you add to this that after having the oil level checked in the workshop, the bike asked for more oil, we realized that probably the main problem was that the engine itself was in its last state and required making rings and seats. valves. We also realized that the bike was a little better at night than during the day, since it got less hot, so we decided to do a long night ride until the bike couldn't take it anymore and we were able to camp in a green area that we found between the road. and the train tracks. We don't know if free camping was allowed in Poland but... "If you don't want to get a bad answer, don't ask a bad question."
Let's get up early!!!
That night we had "the great idea" of getting up very early to explore as much as possible, well, we woke up at 10:00 and at 11:00 we still hadn't left. Setting up a camp costs!!
Finally we left and less than 30 kms. the bike began to work extremely badly, a sixth sense told me that it could be a carburettor issue and we began to tinker with it, getting it to be something better.
The ñapas begin…
Suddenly, as if by magic, arriving at a lost town in central Poland, the throttle control said "enough." A piece that prevented giving gas was unsoldered, so we made a ñapa with a ring-shaped wire. You can't imagine how much fun it is to turn a sidecar to the left with your left hand while in the air you pull a cable on the right side towards you, taking strength away from your left arm. We were lucky not to crash into anything or anyone. We found a bike workshop that in Polish explained to us where to find a motorcycle workshop, but when he saw the "calico", he didn't have the balls to repair it.
Friends, when you have a problem with your car or motorcycle, when no one else dares with it, try to find a Renault workshop. They can always fix it. If they can repair their own cars, they are capable of repairing everything else!! And so we did, the Renault mechanic dared to get his hands on the Dnepr and make it great again and on top of that he didn't want to charge us. It seemed that we could continue with our sidecar adventures!!! We were able to do another 80 km until it stopped again. I have to say that between breakdowns and major breakdowns, the Dnepr was giving us small surprises during the trip, such as the loss of screws due to vibrations that caused the rear light, license plate, battery support, odometer and I don't know how many other things to be left on one side as we were losing screws. The bike was pretty much wearing a whole pack of Chinese zip ties throughout the entire length of the bike. Once again we made a great run, until we reached Warsaw and had dinner there in a pizzeria where those who passed by greeted us and when we told them about our feat they invited us to their homes to have coffee and rest. Thinking about it coldly, we must have felt very sorry for them. After dinner we continued forward with the idea of taking advantage of the night, which was when the motorcycle was best to ride and ride and… at 01:00 we found a path away from the road where we pitched a tent again and got up late the next day. It was Friday, we packed up everything and set out again ready to meet our challenge of getting to Barcelona on the move. We leave Poland behind and enter the Czech Republic. The bike asked for oil more and more often and used almost the same amount of oil as gasoline, so after a short reflection, I decided that it was better to end the trip to protect the rest of the bike. We arrived at a gas station and there we asked for the assistance of the Racc. I have to admit that I was very calm at all times because although my idea was to get home running, I knew that if I didn't make it, the racc He would "rescue" me and repatriate the motorcycle. Well, what was my surprise that when speaking with them and reading the clauses of their conditions, it turns out that if the vehicle has a temporary or foreign license plate, they are not responsible for the repatriation, only for the people. So I had no other alternative but to abandon the motorcycle at a tow truck base until I decided how to bring it home and they organized an express return home for us.
The adventure does not end here!
At 18:30 a car came to pick us up and take us to the Brno train station, there we had to catch a train at 01:00 in the morning bound for Prague and arrival time at 04:00. Since we still had several hours to catch that train, we went to visit the city of Brno and had dinner at a good brewery to "celebrate" the end of the trip. The old town is beautiful, it is worth walking through it and getting lost at night in its bars with a very festival atmosphere. It is not difficult to see people in some bars dancing to folkloric music or to start a conversation with them. While we were having dinner at the brewery, several people approached us to ask us about our trip and what we were doing there. It seems that our language caught their attention. It's not difficult to fall asleep on a train at 04:00 in the morning either... It took us seconds to miss the station but luckily we got off on time. There a taxi was waiting for us that would take us to the Prague airport where at 07:00 in the morning we had to catch a flight to...Brussels!!
What a mess, we arrived there at 08:30 and we had free time until 13:00 p.m. when the next plane left for Barcelona, this time. I am neither conformist nor patient so I was not going to spend almost 5 hours waiting at the airport for the next plane, so we looked for a way to go to the city center and visit it.
Brussels??….Yes, but no
Those who like the EEC buildings will have a lot of fun there, but for the rest, you can almost save the visit. No one on the street, no bars and shops, much less open on a Saturday at mid-morning. Anyway, except for a little lake, a park and some cute old houses, I didn't like the rest at all.
We went back to the airport and there we took the flight back home. After so many adventures, you can't imagine how nice it is when your wife and daughter come looking for you by surprise. That sure gives joy!!
Reflection
I feel lucky to have been able to do these sidecar adventures that, although it seems that everything has been unpleasant surprises, in reality it was all to be expected and part of the plan. Between breakdown and breakdown we have been able to meet beautiful places and better people. It's important not to get overwhelmed when a problem arises because if you do, you get stuck and have a harder time finding the solution. My partner and I usually work helping people who have the same problems as us when they arrive in our city, so we are terrified, but it is not easy for some people to be stranded in a country where nobody understands you and you have no knowledge. what happens to your vehicle. I assure you that many of you could have a very bad time if this happened to you because I see it in other people every day. That is why it is greatly appreciated when the people there see you with a problem and, without knowing your language or knowing English, they try to help you as much as possible to find a workshop, a store or find someone from the area with whom you can understand yourself better. Therefore, I invite you to reflect on this and understand that it is not pleasant to be a foreigner and have problems. So, when you see someone in trouble, whether from here or there, if instead of turning your face to the other side, pretending to be clueless, you decide to invest a little of your time in helping those in need, even if you don't know their language, if you try to help, you will be rewarded. Not only with his thanks, his smile, a shake of hands or a friend from now on in another country, but with the self-satisfaction of knowing that you have done your best, you have helped and that will comfort you inside, it will Self-esteem will rise and you will feel like a better person.
Until the next adventure!!!
very good report, good adventure. Is there such a difference between buying the motorcycle with a side from there to here?
Very good!