Apologies For My Absence.

Discussion in 'Lounge' started by learningtofly, Mar 3, 2023.

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  1. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    #101 learningtofly, May 8, 2023
    Last edited: May 9, 2023
    Well, annoyingly Triumph have made a bit of a cock-up with regard to my new bike, which should have been with my dealership in Watford last week. Rather than the Jet Black as ordered, they seem to have allocated the upgraded paint colour (sapphire black/matt sapphire black); I can have that if I want it at no extra charge (it carries a £350 premium), but it just so happens that it's the one finish in recent years that I don't like. I've therefore rejected it, as I've been offered an alternative solution.

    My guy in Watford is instead swapping a bike they have in stock - a Tiger 900 - with a Jet Black T120 that's due to be delivered to another dealership (run by someone with a connection to the Watford team) on 24th May. I've been assured that I'll be able to collect it from Watford, fully spec'd up, ten days later. However, that means it'll have zero miles on it by the time I set off for Wales for my 9-11 June long weekend. I'll therefore be running the bike in during the trip (and likely scrubbing in the tyres as I set off), which in reality isn't much of a problem given the nature of the roads in Snowdonia, the overt police presence in the area and the carefully enforced speed limits. In fact, the official running in requirements are unlikely to limit me at all, and I'll just need to be sure to mix it up a bit on the journey out there.

    What it does mean, of course, is that I'll be doing te DGR on the Harley. It'll fit in well, of course, but will likely be more of a handful stop/starting for 3 hours amongst 350 other bikes!
     
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  2. Dawsy

    Dawsy Cumbrian half-wit
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    Bit of a bummer. Hope you get some nice extras for the delay!
     
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  3. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Afraid not, unless I'm offered something I'm not expecting when I pick up the bike. The head of sales at Watford (who I know well) did offer to take the bike offered, spec it up for me, and then (having done the deal with Destination Triumph to swap the Tiger for the correct T120) swap the tanks over. However, for the sake of a couple of weeks that didn't feel right to me at all.
     
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  4. Wessa

    Wessa Cruising

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    That’s a real shame. I get what you are saying about the Matt finish, which is also not my choice of paint finish.
     
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  5. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    I also don't like the way that the gloss element fails to reach the pinstripe separating the two finishes. it looks off to my mind.
     
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  6. RevPaul

    RevPaul Senior Member

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    That’s a real shame. I agree with your feelings about Triumph’s colour scheme it looks like it’s trying too hard to be clever. If you’re going to make “modern classics” then the paint scheme needs to be classic.

    I don’t need to tell you this but just relax as best you can into the DGR and for the Welsh trip, the running in will just give you more time to enjoy the views and get to know that lovely new T120.:)
     
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  7. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Thanks Paul, and that's the plan. I'm pretty comfortable with the running-in issue - I guess I'd have liked to have been on a lighter bike for the DGR, though, so will just have to be a bit more careful.

    The real challenge is my health, as my recovery is a bit up and down right now and my next consultation isn't until 2nd June.
     
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  8. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Well, new bike day is now scheduled for next Friday. Ironically, the dealership is directly opposite Watford General Hospital and I'm going straight from a consultation there to the bike collection. (I'll probably need cheering up!)

    I've gone entirely crazy with options and extras on the basis that this is probably going to be the last bike that I buy; certainly, it's a long term keeper. So, just as a warning, this is what can happen if you fail to keep track of what you're actually spending and just let your heart rule your head instead o_O

    [​IMG]
     
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  9. RevPaul

    RevPaul Senior Member

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    Hmmm. Same thing happened to me when I bought my SC in 2019. I thought I was under control when I added some Triumph accessories:- the black intake covers, Fox shox, dresser bars, sump plate, engine protectors, fork gaiters, U-Lock + carrier.

    But over the next couple of years almost all the accessories catalogue ended up on the bike, along with a few T100 parts to replace some SC parts (all from eBay and never more than 75% of Triumph's list price)o_O. I blame lockdown and a variant of C19 that infiltrates the brain fog with "wouldn't the bike look good if ...".

    That said I think my SC is extra fabulous and (from what you've specced) so will your T120, just think of the grin that will be on your face every time you open the garage door:cool: and anticipate the next great ride.

    I realy hope and pray the consultation before collection will be as positive as possible if not better.

    Enjoy new T120 day:).
     
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  10. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    #110 learningtofly, May 27, 2023
    Last edited: May 27, 2023
    Thanks, Rev - appreciate the effort to make me feel relatively normal (and your SC must be a peach).

    Sadly, the consultation is due to some problems with my treatment in that the infusions seem to have stopped working and I'm in a flare up again. There is another drug they want me to take (that's on the agenda for discussion) and I'm also going to see if I can get the time between infusions reduced; I actually had to have another colonoscopy a week or so ago and the consultant who performed the procedure said he was going to recommend that to the IBD team himself).

    Aside from the general impact, it's now looking tlike my trip to hook up with half a dozen biking mates in North Wales - scheduled for 9-11 June - is now very much in doubt as well. We've been planning it for weeks, in not months, so that will feel like the final straw if it's cancelled :(
     
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  11. RevPaul

    RevPaul Senior Member

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    Well that's frustrating. Just know there are people here rooting for you:).
     
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  12. Sandi T

    Sandi T It's ride o'clock somewhere!
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    Well, I did respond with the WTF emoji, @learningtofly, but then who am I to talk about buying parts with my heart. :joy: Hmmm, that could be an advertising slogan. ;) And we could be the poster children for it. :D

    I've been absent from the forum for a few weeks. How did the DGR go on the Harley? And wow, not only are you getting a different paint color but a different bike altogether? The things that happen in ones absence...sheesh. :rolleyes:

    P.S. I agree about a paint scheme which mixes gloss and matte paint. Doesn't look right to my eye either... plus it's a bear to clean since you can't (or shouldn't) use the same polishes/cleaners on the two.
     
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  13. Sandi T

    Sandi T It's ride o'clock somewhere!
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    Oh my, I am so sorry to read the latest report on your health problems and treatment, @learningtofly. :( I'm sure you are feeling extremely disappointed and frustrated about potentially missing your much-anticipated trip but also anxious about your treatment and your condition. I hope that your medical team can figure out how best to proceed and that it begins--and continues--to work.

    I also hope that you don't feel it's "the final straw" if you trip is cancelled. Related to that, Mr. Sandi and I have a dear friend and riding buddy who had to turn back the first day of last year's summer tour. He has been battling serious renal/kidney problems and a return of Valley Fever into his spine ever since. Although he was scheduled to go on this year's summer tour (which begins this Saturday), he still is unable to go. But I share this with you because he and his medical team have continued to move forward with plans that are working--albeit slowly. And he's on a new medication which is working better with fewer nasty side effects. So now he is doing much better and is planning to go to Sturgis with us at the end of July/early August. I will continue to send positive thoughts across the pond and will pray for you each day, my forum friend.:kissing_heart::heart:
     
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  14. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Thank you for your kind and thoughtful words, Sandi (and for recounting your friend's trials and tribulations with regard to his health). Of course, it wouldn't be the final straw, it just feels like it right now.

    So, this coming Friday I have my consultation in the early afternoon and then pick up the new bike immediately thereafter (as I've mentioned before, the hospital and my Triumph dealership are on opposite sides of a dual carriageway!). I've already heard from the IBD team that my infusions are reverting to a 4-weekly pattern for a while, so that will hopefully overcome this breakthrough infection. However, I need to cancel my relatively expensive accommodation in Wales by next Tuesday if I'm going to benefit from the refund window that I have. This means that I'de have to be "allowed" another infusion immediately if I'm going to have any chance of symptoms subsiding sufficiently (Wales is scheduled for the following Friday to Sunday).

    I can ask, but I'm doubtful I'll get away with it given that the infusions cost £2k a pop and under the new temporary regime my next one wouldn't be due for another 2 weeks. :worried:
     
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  15. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Ah, the DGR. Well, as you now know I wasn't well enough to participate in the end, although I did manage to raise a few hundred pounds for some causes close to my heart. Maybe for the best, as how i feel right now the Harley stopping and starting the whole way amongst 400 other bikes would no doubt have been testing, to say the least.

    As for those parts... well, I'm just turned 63 and I know the T120 is the style of bike that I want going forward. I can't see myself buying another for a long, long time (if ever) so I wanted to make it my own :blush:
     
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  16. Sandi T

    Sandi T It's ride o'clock somewhere!
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    I'm sure that it does sometimes feel like the final straw, @learningtofly, but glad to know that it's not really. I know you love bikes and riding and that's in your heart and soul. :heart:

    I pray that your consultation goes well and that the infusion schedule works to your advantage for both your trip and for your health.

    It's great that you follow up your consultation with getting your NEW BIKE! Vegetables first, then dessert. ;):joy: I can't wait to see some photos of it. As I always say, "nothing makes one feel like a little kid again like getting a new bike". :D
     
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  17. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    Thanks for your always kind wishes, @Sandi T. I'm not holding out too much hope for the trip, as I now have my next infusion booked for two weeks time, i.e. four weeks from my last one. That means there's unlikely to be any improvement prior to the dates for Wales, sadly :worried:

    Anyway, if I have to cancel I'll make sure that we rearrange everything (including riding the Mach Loop) for later in the summer. I've also made myself feel just a little better by buying one of my grail jackets - the Belstaff Turner in Burnt Cuero - albeit that I picked it up pre-loved with the perfect amount of patina (it was owned by a very well known YouTuber whose channel is all about him and his T120... beautifully cinematic footage, though).

    Right... better get myself sorted as I have a busy afternoon!
     
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  18. learningtofly

    learningtofly He’s not the Messiah, he’s a very naughty boy!
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    #118 learningtofly, Mar 12, 2024
    Last edited: Mar 12, 2024
    Well, I should probably bring this thread up to date, considering that everything has been going tits up in the background...

    Essentially, no treatment available to me was alleviating my symptoms (I was on my third biologic, with one more potential option to try). However, I was surviving on about two hours sleep per night, and was losing weight and strength on an ongoing basis. My colitis symptoms were also getting progressively unmanageable. Then, without warning, all of my symptoms became worse and I lost a rapid half a stone in the space of a week. I was almost too weak to get out of bed, and said to my wife that I could actually feel that I was dying, day by day.

    Long story short, and I had emergency surgery two weeks ago (an ileostomy and full colectomy... in other words, my entire colon was removed and I now have a stoma installed in my abdomen). A couple of days post-op I spoke to my surgeon, who estimated I had about two weeks of life left at the point at which he operated. I'm now in recovery, my bike is currently in secure indoor storage and I need to build myself up again in order that I can resume a normal life sooner rather than later.

    Aside from adapting to my "new normal" I seem to have sustained some nerve damage that has restricted movement in my left foot. As things stand, I'm unable to point my foot or toes upwards/towards my body, which would mean that - on the bike - I'd not be able to change gear upwards. I'm due for some scans to determine what's what. though, and it seems that a course of physio can normally resolve this, albeit anything but overnight. It can take quite a while, in fact.
     
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  19. Wessa

    Wessa Cruising

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    So sorry to hear your latest health problems, but encouraged that your surgery has been successful. My mum had a storma in her 70’s and she had no problems getting on with life. Good luck with your recovery.
     
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  20. Dawsy

    Dawsy Cumbrian half-wit
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    Sorry to hear you have been through the mill :confused: but glad you are on the mend.
    Our good friend had a bag fitted last year, she called it Winnie :grinning:, and she has been so positive about all her treatment which is inspiring. I am sure you too will bounce back fully. Sending positive thoughts your way :)
     
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