Gosling One health report...

Following my ill-fated attempts to "clean" Gosling One's carburettor, a process which rapidly descended into damage limitation territory and a frantic attempt not to break anything else, she remains laid up in bed awaiting parts.

Nil by carburettor

Doesn't she look sad? She looks sad to me, show some sympathy.

The reason she's STILL awaiting parts is because it takes a while to get things shipped from America to Australia, even though both countries appear close together in alphabetical terms. I'm a big fan of supporting local businesses, but here's why I'm dead set against it in this case.

Those two bits above, or at least something like them are important in a carburettor so I'm told. They do something regarding the flux-capacitor-black magic interface or something like that, either way she won't go without them.

Local Yamaha dealer in Western Australia, the total quote came to...wait for it and you best take a seat... AU$ 163.90 and a lead time of four weeks. After stifling my urge to tell them to ram said nozzle where it might logically be expected to go, I resorted to the ever handy internet. Including the shipping from the USA and a delivery time of about two weeks, AU$34.

Western Australian business are forever bemoaning the fact that nobody shops locally, there's a reason right there. Support local business, unless they're trying to steal your soul!

i = mischief maker...

So I happened to be in Perth the other weekend where there just happens to be a forward command post for the Apple world domination force, more usually referred to as an Apple Store. You may be sensing I'm not a fan of Apple which isn't strictly true at all, I love their pies.

Beware the pickers in blue!

Anyway, because the launch issue of Forever 2 Wheels is now available on iTunes and I just happened to be around quite a lot of iPads and other Apple branded shiny things, it only seemed right to set as many of them to the F2W app on iTunes as possible. Easier said than done mind you, those eagle eyed orchard workers in blue were dogging my every step, anxious to "help". Clearly just poorly masked code for "stop me plugging my writing in their store".

How long my domination of the Perth branch [ahahah] of the Apple tree lasted I don't know, but there were at least five minutes over the weekend when my face graced the majority of the devices in store.

You're welcome Perth!

iPad, iMag, iRide, iCrash...

The launch issue of Forever 2 Wheels digital magazine for the iPad is now available on iTunes. Two reasons why you should be looking at it right now rather than reading this post:

One: It's free. Free!

Two: This is the more important of the two obviously, it features my article on riding [crashing] around Tasmania and a whole host of other images from the expedition.

I don't have an iPad, but then I've already read the article so it's no great shakes for me. If you're like me though and have yet to succumb to the all alternative destroying corporate mega-fruit that is Apple, then there's a handy preview of the mag here: http://f2w.appclarity.co.uk/usa-by-ural/usabyural.html

The preview article isn't by me obviously as I'm neither Louis Pryce or Austin Vince, at least not last time I checked, but it's a bloody good read!