Is anyone interested in a quick blast to Baden Baden from Calais, stay overnight, do the B500 South through the black Forrest and back to Baden Baden via the Rhine valley road to overnight again and then back to Calais on Monday morning.
Is that being optimistic ?
Doesn’t sound like a relaxed weekend, but I’d say it’s about doable if everyone involved is up for not stopping for a twenty-minute piss every twenty minutes.
I’ve never ridden the B500; is it worth twelve hours of motorway?
Agreed, not a relaxing weekend but doable.
Big Red, abso-bloody-lutely, amazing road, amazing views, just incredible
I drove to Stuttgart for the 2006 World Cup. 13hrs non stop in a Ford Galaxy, it was a killer!! Not sure i would fancy that on a Bike in one stint! but do agree, some of the roads are stunning
Would love to if I wasn’t on L plates.
Take them off on the ferry, no one will know :Whistling:
Yeah, me_groovy on here has got the sort of obsession over a few roads around Givet that’s lead to his suggesting a few-hour motorway detour to get to them before. But he tops out at 80mph and has to stop for a piss every hour because of something about having the world’s best sports tourer.
I’m plotting a two-or-three day trip to some nice roads in Europe near England (which I’m intending to drag me_groovy along on) - I might add this to that just to make it even less likely that I’ll actually get around to it… Are you fishing for company or just checking it’s not a mental idea?
Tehe. In all seriousness not even sure what you need to be able to ride in mainland Europe. DAS?
i’d imagine that it’s a full licence as you would if you were doing it in a car. You need to be a qualified driver in your own country to drive abroad as a Holiday, if you plan on living there perminantely you have to take their test too
I was fishing and checking really. It’s a bit boring on your own. I’ve ridden to Berlin before in one hit. Driven further in a car, but that’s cushier. I just need to get out on the bike to get rid of some cobwebs and like Germany. The B500 is supposed to be brilliant
Any form of full license - there’s no EU-wide sharing of learner-status, which is why you can’t go to France and be a learner there. But there is sharing of full-license status, so any full UK-license is a full EU license.
Forgive my lack of knowledge but does an A2 count as a full license?
Yeah, anything that turns the card pink and gets rid of the L-plates, basically. Wikipedia goes into a bit more boring detail: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_driving_licence
I’d generally be up for this sort of thing, but I’m booked out until October at the moment, so realistically I’ll likely not actually be joining you. Maybe try picking a weekend and posting it up as a ride out and seeing if anyone signs up?
The B500 is ok but not worth the slog down there just to ride it. There are much better roads a lot nearer to home. I’ve never seen the fascination of the B500 and yes I have rode the whole length of it several times in both direction. 
Any suggestions for something a little nearer then?
I agree with TDJ … the B500 is nice, though most of a day riding on boring French/Belgian motorway to get there isn’t much fun.
A couple of years ago I rode from Waldshut-Tiengen, did the B500 to Baden-Baden, then to London in 1-day on my Tiger 800XC.
Going all that way, with fuel, tyres etc … its a shame not to stay longer and do some Swiss passes etc.
Closer to home … we just had a great time following Jetstream around the Lakes, Peaks and Dales. My first time properly around there on a bike, and I was pleasantly surprised how nice it was. Other alternatives are to get into Wales, whether Monmouthshire/Brecon or deeper into Snowdonia for some great roads. Stretches of the A40 or A44 are almost as enjoyable as the B500
Or, just join the Jetstreams on their Sunday run and you’ll almost certainly see some fun roads and places
You can’t really go wrong in the Peaks (though it’s really easy to bump into industrial towns), Brecon/Black Mountains, or most of North Wales (though that involves going fairly close to Birmingham). I also always love Dartmoor and Exmoor. Depends what you want, though - I tend to seek out singletrack roads in dire need of resurfacing…
done this twice in the last couple of years, the fastest i got back from south black forest was 5.5 hours on my naked. harsh times. i Love a last minute blast like this but seriously, you need a week to enjoy. and make sure you have a week of hot sunny weather otherwise it will be your worst nightmare.
Anywhere in Wales If you go in on the A44 then take any road north to Snowdonia you wont be disappointed. and it’s only 3 hours from London without using any Motorways.
