Mclaren 750S into Europe, the usual nonsense!
Discussion
So I brought some new things for the trip.
This beauty.
(Guitar talk, sorry)
That's a Les Paul something, 60's I think?
I actually bought that a year ago, I was messing about on my studio after a few beers and I thought, I don't own a decent rock guitar, and went online and bought it.
It arrived a couple of weeks later and I was ashamed of myself, I've got loads of guitars, I didn't need it, so I left it in the box. But I got it out for this trip and it's just lovely. The action is super low and it's so playable I really regret not opening it before.
But I forgot to bring a strap and it's quite a lump. So those 3 days doing bugger all at Chamonix (I did go boarding early Saturday morning and I did have a nice meal and wine on Saturday evening but other than that) I got uncomfortable sitting down to play it as it doesn't really sit right, I tried to buy a strap in town, no dice.
I couldn't think of anyway round it until I spotted the robes!
There were two in the room for using in the spa so I started experimenting with the belts. I couldn't make a hole in them so thought just screw the strap things on the guitar through them. But I couldn't undo them, so I went down to the reception and borrowed these.
I felt terrible about this by the way, I had to lie about what I wanted the screwdrivers for. It bloody worked though.
And I got this.
So then I could walk around the room playing, result.
When I checked out I came clean, said I'd lost it somewhere and I'd like to pay for it.
The girl just laughed and said don't worry about it.
I bought a new drone.
It's an Air 3, it's bloody rapid! Takes off like a bat out of hell, way quicker than my Mavic 2.
Longer battery life, waypoints, all sorts.
I'm going to try to get some car blatting footage but I say that every year and I always find it too complicated.
And I bought these.
If you're thinking of getting them frankly don't bother. They are too quiet.
They do all sorts of clever things but they are really expensive and you spend your whole time trying to turn them up.
I also bought a year's old, 25 quid pair of normal bluetooth headphones and I'm using them for music.
Waste of money.
This beauty.
(Guitar talk, sorry)
That's a Les Paul something, 60's I think?
I actually bought that a year ago, I was messing about on my studio after a few beers and I thought, I don't own a decent rock guitar, and went online and bought it.
It arrived a couple of weeks later and I was ashamed of myself, I've got loads of guitars, I didn't need it, so I left it in the box. But I got it out for this trip and it's just lovely. The action is super low and it's so playable I really regret not opening it before.
But I forgot to bring a strap and it's quite a lump. So those 3 days doing bugger all at Chamonix (I did go boarding early Saturday morning and I did have a nice meal and wine on Saturday evening but other than that) I got uncomfortable sitting down to play it as it doesn't really sit right, I tried to buy a strap in town, no dice.
I couldn't think of anyway round it until I spotted the robes!
There were two in the room for using in the spa so I started experimenting with the belts. I couldn't make a hole in them so thought just screw the strap things on the guitar through them. But I couldn't undo them, so I went down to the reception and borrowed these.
I felt terrible about this by the way, I had to lie about what I wanted the screwdrivers for. It bloody worked though.
And I got this.
So then I could walk around the room playing, result.
When I checked out I came clean, said I'd lost it somewhere and I'd like to pay for it.
The girl just laughed and said don't worry about it.
I bought a new drone.
It's an Air 3, it's bloody rapid! Takes off like a bat out of hell, way quicker than my Mavic 2.
Longer battery life, waypoints, all sorts.
I'm going to try to get some car blatting footage but I say that every year and I always find it too complicated.
And I bought these.
If you're thinking of getting them frankly don't bother. They are too quiet.
They do all sorts of clever things but they are really expensive and you spend your whole time trying to turn them up.
I also bought a year's old, 25 quid pair of normal bluetooth headphones and I'm using them for music.
Waste of money.
littleredrooster said:
Following as usual. Wish I had the literary flair to put something together like you.
We’re halfway through our third trip of the year - this one is Caen-Verdun-Memmingen-Cortina d’Ampezzo-Lago d’Orta (currently)-Clairvaux les Lacs-Hotel de France (near Le Mans)-Caen. Back in Blighty early July sometime.
No room for my guitar in the MX-5, and I didn’t get my EU drone licence before we set off so the best I will have is dashcam or iPhone piccies, so you have me beaten on both counts.
Good luck, I look forward to the stories (and, of course, remember the background to them).
That sounds wonderful mate, Caen is lovely isn't it, have to get back to that area soon. The MX-5 is a lovely car to do it in too, hope you have a great timeWe’re halfway through our third trip of the year - this one is Caen-Verdun-Memmingen-Cortina d’Ampezzo-Lago d’Orta (currently)-Clairvaux les Lacs-Hotel de France (near Le Mans)-Caen. Back in Blighty early July sometime.
No room for my guitar in the MX-5, and I didn’t get my EU drone licence before we set off so the best I will have is dashcam or iPhone piccies, so you have me beaten on both counts.
Good luck, I look forward to the stories (and, of course, remember the background to them).
There's an EU drone licence?
After Chamonix a dive through the Mont Blanc tunnel and head for Milan.
I think 54 euros for one way is expensive but what are you going to do?
Those 100 miles or so after the tunnel are fantastic driving, your in a valley flanked by towering, snow peaked mountains with medieval castles dotted along the route and huge rivers gushing down the rocks from melting snow.
This is what the Alps is all about for me. I was enjoying the views so much I was the slowest thing on the road, getting regularly over taken by petrol tankers.
Putting your foot down is always fun but sometimes it's just nice to pootle and take in the sights.
I then f
ked up the toll after the really long drive down to Milan, went into the Telepass one by mistake and then the barrier wouldn't open! There were loads of cars behind me in an instant and I was fked! The Italian guys behind me were cursing out of their windows so I got out and started doing that quintessentialy British thing of holding my hands up and going "What? What do you want me to do?"
Which was very ahole of me because it was completely my fault and I'd have been just as pissed off if I was stuck behind some idiot who doesn't know what lane he's supposed to be in!
Luckily one of the shouty guys said "Help, the button, help" so I found that, pushed it and after another tirade of Italian from the speaker the barrier opened.
But I'm going to get a fine for that.
I went down to Uboldo which is where my friends Francesco and Tanya live, they put me up for a couple of days. They are lovely people, he's Italian with perfect English and she is Russian with perfect Italian and English.
I've mentioned before that he's a songwriter and record producer, he's absolutely flying, he's had 10 platinums on the Italian charts this year and top 50's on the Spotify charts. He works with all the big Italian singers, mostly chart stuff but even the big opera singers.
He has a big studio in Milan but he's also converted the top floor of his house into another studio. I sat with him for an hour while he literally wrote a hit.
An Italian female vocalist with lots of chart hits had a new song but she wasn't happy with the arrangement which the studio had done for her, so francesco's production company had sent him the stems and said "can you do better?"
He deleted all the music, loaded up just the vocal tracks and set to work. Incredible to watch. The guy is a brilliant musician but more than that he's an intuitive producer, he just started layering all these drum samples then he wrote a superb funky bass line in about 20 minutes. Then he layered pads and a few samples from Splice, sidechained a couple of things, EQ'd everything, compressed everything and finished with some reversed samples for the drop and tidied it all up.
In a little over an hour.
When he played the finished thing it was amazing!
The bloke earns fortunes and he's worth every penny.
He's 40 now but wants to get out of the music business soon and start opening restaurants!
They took me to Milan and I got some pics.
On the second evening me and francesco went to a super posh restaurant in Milan. I don't know what it was called but it was a Michelin starred vegetarian place. I told him he didn't have to go there for me but he said it's really good anyway.
It was brilliant, best food I've ever ate. Beautiful wine, champagne the whole thing.
Back in my council estate days I would have no doubt thought this sort of place 'poncy' but mate it was wonderful. 8 courses. I took a few of pics.
Wonderful people.
One of the days they were both working so I drove up to lake Verase and boarded around it, it was lovely weather and I stopped at a little diner and had a slice of pizza, perfect!
He had an underground garage with a steep up ramp, each time I used it I made sure the lift on the car was engaged. As I drove away and said goodbye to them I pressed the button but it didn't take!
The bottom of the car ground hideously and it left a nasty dig under it.
I'll get a picture tomorrow.
I think 54 euros for one way is expensive but what are you going to do?
Those 100 miles or so after the tunnel are fantastic driving, your in a valley flanked by towering, snow peaked mountains with medieval castles dotted along the route and huge rivers gushing down the rocks from melting snow.
This is what the Alps is all about for me. I was enjoying the views so much I was the slowest thing on the road, getting regularly over taken by petrol tankers.
Putting your foot down is always fun but sometimes it's just nice to pootle and take in the sights.
I then f
ked up the toll after the really long drive down to Milan, went into the Telepass one by mistake and then the barrier wouldn't open! There were loads of cars behind me in an instant and I was fked! The Italian guys behind me were cursing out of their windows so I got out and started doing that quintessentialy British thing of holding my hands up and going "What? What do you want me to do?" Which was very a
hole of me because it was completely my fault and I'd have been just as pissed off if I was stuck behind some idiot who doesn't know what lane he's supposed to be in! Luckily one of the shouty guys said "Help, the button, help" so I found that, pushed it and after another tirade of Italian from the speaker the barrier opened.
But I'm going to get a fine for that.
I went down to Uboldo which is where my friends Francesco and Tanya live, they put me up for a couple of days. They are lovely people, he's Italian with perfect English and she is Russian with perfect Italian and English.
I've mentioned before that he's a songwriter and record producer, he's absolutely flying, he's had 10 platinums on the Italian charts this year and top 50's on the Spotify charts. He works with all the big Italian singers, mostly chart stuff but even the big opera singers.
He has a big studio in Milan but he's also converted the top floor of his house into another studio. I sat with him for an hour while he literally wrote a hit.
An Italian female vocalist with lots of chart hits had a new song but she wasn't happy with the arrangement which the studio had done for her, so francesco's production company had sent him the stems and said "can you do better?"
He deleted all the music, loaded up just the vocal tracks and set to work. Incredible to watch. The guy is a brilliant musician but more than that he's an intuitive producer, he just started layering all these drum samples then he wrote a superb funky bass line in about 20 minutes. Then he layered pads and a few samples from Splice, sidechained a couple of things, EQ'd everything, compressed everything and finished with some reversed samples for the drop and tidied it all up.
In a little over an hour.
When he played the finished thing it was amazing!
The bloke earns fortunes and he's worth every penny.
He's 40 now but wants to get out of the music business soon and start opening restaurants!
They took me to Milan and I got some pics.
On the second evening me and francesco went to a super posh restaurant in Milan. I don't know what it was called but it was a Michelin starred vegetarian place. I told him he didn't have to go there for me but he said it's really good anyway.
It was brilliant, best food I've ever ate. Beautiful wine, champagne the whole thing.
Back in my council estate days I would have no doubt thought this sort of place 'poncy' but mate it was wonderful. 8 courses. I took a few of pics.
Wonderful people.
One of the days they were both working so I drove up to lake Verase and boarded around it, it was lovely weather and I stopped at a little diner and had a slice of pizza, perfect!
He had an underground garage with a steep up ramp, each time I used it I made sure the lift on the car was engaged. As I drove away and said goodbye to them I pressed the button but it didn't take!
The bottom of the car ground hideously and it left a nasty dig under it.
I'll get a picture tomorrow.
Edited by br d on Thursday 27th June 15:35
Edited by br d on Thursday 27th June 15:36
Honestly I can just imagine my dad writing these things. Not the car or the driving, but the health scares, buying stuff he doesn't really need and just generally getting himself into a pickle. He's the type who will tell a story that starts something like, "well it all started off on the wrong foot when..." and everyone rolls their eyes and by the end is telling him that he needs to chill out and be careful lol
Have fun out there! Sounds like it's already been pretty good
Have fun out there! Sounds like it's already been pretty good
Sorry for this wall of posts, catching up now.
Left Francesco and Tanya yesterday morning, long drive to the next place.
As I got near to it I was really low on fuel and started getting a bit nervous. Pulled over and checked for petrol stations and there was one 300 years ahead.
They had 100 Ron too, result.
After filling up I reversed back into one of their car wash bays. Then tons of bikers came in, parked all over the place and then proceeded to stand around smoking and pissing behind the car wash.
So tough st if anybody else wants fuel then.
Ignorant fkers stayed there the whole time I washed my car.
Waze said 4 more kilometres, followed it up and it was wrong, it wasn't the hotel, probably my fault. I put it in Google maps instead and it was still 42 minutes away!
I was knackered by now. Followed the route and the last 10 kilometres was up a very tight, switchback road. That sounds great but it was all under construction, they've scoured it, dug it up, they're re-laying it, everything.
There are huge potholes, sudden drops, lorries everywhere throwing stones all over the place it's a fking nightmare.
When I got up to the hotel the car was a mess. It has a double skin door and when I opened it loads of tarmac and stones fell out. It needs a proper going over now.
The hotel is lovely, it has everything, restaurants and bars and pools and spas and all that but I messed up.
Whenever I take these trips I avoid school holidays. Don't misunderstand me, I don't dislike kids, I don't have any personally but my friends and my sisters kids are very important to me, I love them. But when I travel I don't really want to be surrounded by them. Sorry to the parents out there, I'm not being a miserable bd I just prefer a bit of calm!
So I fked this up, it's school holidays here and the place is rammed with families. That's fine, none of my business but all the trails and lanes are mobbed with families hiking and biking and walking endless dogs. I certainly can't board here, I wouldn't because it would be dangerous to the people walking (by walking I mean running about unpredictably!) and that terrible road up? It's the only way in and out. So I ain't driving down that again for pleasure and the countryside is too crowded to enjoy so it's a couple of days of sitting about.
When I arrived here about 5 yesterday I realised I hadn't eaten or drunk anything, I just got up at francescos and left, drove the whole way and never stopped for anything. I used to do a lot of fasting so I just had some water and went to bed, lasted till 1 today when the restaurant opened so that was a 41 hour fast (left the restaurant in Milan at 10pm), which got a bit of weight off. I normally get some weight off in prep for these trips but I couldn't do any exercise in the run up to this year because of my unmentionaballs.
Here's the view from the balcony which is gorgeous.
https://youtu.be/jJtUd8ENj0I?si=tuUEUlh1xpE58CM5
Left Francesco and Tanya yesterday morning, long drive to the next place.
As I got near to it I was really low on fuel and started getting a bit nervous. Pulled over and checked for petrol stations and there was one 300 years ahead.
They had 100 Ron too, result.
After filling up I reversed back into one of their car wash bays. Then tons of bikers came in, parked all over the place and then proceeded to stand around smoking and pissing behind the car wash.
So tough s
t if anybody else wants fuel then.Ignorant f
kers stayed there the whole time I washed my car.Waze said 4 more kilometres, followed it up and it was wrong, it wasn't the hotel, probably my fault. I put it in Google maps instead and it was still 42 minutes away!
I was knackered by now. Followed the route and the last 10 kilometres was up a very tight, switchback road. That sounds great but it was all under construction, they've scoured it, dug it up, they're re-laying it, everything.
There are huge potholes, sudden drops, lorries everywhere throwing stones all over the place it's a f
king nightmare.When I got up to the hotel the car was a mess. It has a double skin door and when I opened it loads of tarmac and stones fell out. It needs a proper going over now.
The hotel is lovely, it has everything, restaurants and bars and pools and spas and all that but I messed up.
Whenever I take these trips I avoid school holidays. Don't misunderstand me, I don't dislike kids, I don't have any personally but my friends and my sisters kids are very important to me, I love them. But when I travel I don't really want to be surrounded by them. Sorry to the parents out there, I'm not being a miserable b
d I just prefer a bit of calm!So I f
ked this up, it's school holidays here and the place is rammed with families. That's fine, none of my business but all the trails and lanes are mobbed with families hiking and biking and walking endless dogs. I certainly can't board here, I wouldn't because it would be dangerous to the people walking (by walking I mean running about unpredictably!) and that terrible road up? It's the only way in and out. So I ain't driving down that again for pleasure and the countryside is too crowded to enjoy so it's a couple of days of sitting about.When I arrived here about 5 yesterday I realised I hadn't eaten or drunk anything, I just got up at francescos and left, drove the whole way and never stopped for anything. I used to do a lot of fasting so I just had some water and went to bed, lasted till 1 today when the restaurant opened so that was a 41 hour fast (left the restaurant in Milan at 10pm), which got a bit of weight off. I normally get some weight off in prep for these trips but I couldn't do any exercise in the run up to this year because of my unmentionaballs.
Here's the view from the balcony which is gorgeous.
https://youtu.be/jJtUd8ENj0I?si=tuUEUlh1xpE58CM5
Edited by br d on Thursday 27th June 16:16
M11rph said:
Oi! You said you wouldn't. 
I was just about to have a Ferrero Rocher.
I was just about to have a Ferrero Rocher.
Sorry!
https://youtu.be/hMlP_Moo0bE?si=eOcDmTbwjq_Unvtj
Lovely looking car Br d.
We’ve been checking the weather for our trip a week on Sunday (Metz, Aix-Les-Bains, Epernay via Netherlands, Luxembourg) - it hasn’t exactly been settled.
We’ll hop across into Germany (Moselle valley) & Italy (Little St Bernard Pass) whilst we’re tootling around.
Just as well the McLaren doesn’t have full harness belts - your bks would be trussed like a turkey!
Safe travels and thoroughly enjoy your irreverent shenanigans.
We’ve been checking the weather for our trip a week on Sunday (Metz, Aix-Les-Bains, Epernay via Netherlands, Luxembourg) - it hasn’t exactly been settled.
We’ll hop across into Germany (Moselle valley) & Italy (Little St Bernard Pass) whilst we’re tootling around.
Just as well the McLaren doesn’t have full harness belts - your b
ks would be trussed like a turkey!Safe travels and thoroughly enjoy your irreverent shenanigans.
br d said:
br d said:
57Ford said:
br d said:
What does that mean Ford?
Only that his previous pictures further up the thread showed a bandaged leg. It appears your most recent dressings would be slightly higher. Glad to hear it wasn’t the other thing anyway, must have been quite a worrying time.
I didn't put them pictures up, someone else did, I have no idea what they are except pics of a bloke on a balcony!
I was on completely the wrong track!
Not even drunk yet!
Loving the thread, as usual.
Loving the motor what do McLaren charge for Volcano Red these days ?! It’s one of their best hues of course…much of a step up on the 720s overall?
Those bikers sounded like a lovely bunch a certain scene from A Bronx Tale springs to mind!
Those bikers sounded like a lovely bunch a certain scene from A Bronx Tale springs to mind!
Edited by RSbandit on Thursday 27th June 20:35
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