Last Monday the JTR team huddled at our now infamous HQ at Borough Market. Small talk was made and sausages in a bap ordered as we politely sipped our tea and ignored the rather obvious reason for us being there.

As readers of this blog will know, we’ve all had some nasty offs over the last month or so, Patrick in particular is still in a pretty bad state – as he puts it;

“Thinking back to the accident one of the first things that hit me, other than the bike, was the notion that a September departure for Russia was slipping away from me.”

A truth that we’ve simply had to accept. Whilst JTR may have started out as one persons dream, it has never been about any one of us. JTR would not exist and does not exist without us being a team, unless all three of us can make this journey then it’s not Journey To Russia.

With that in mind we’ve decided to postpone our departure. We’ll now leave the UK July next year, with a fit team and bikes that are not in several parts in several garages.

This is a huge blow to us as a team, not least because it means losing a lot of momentum that we’d built up, and a lot of the work that has already gone in is now going to have to be re-done – but it’s the right decision – it’s the sensible decision.

We pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and head for Russia in 2008!

Went to the hospital for another check-up and the cast is off. I am officially ‘partially weight bearing’ with the target of full weight bearing in 6 weeks. I’m in a leg support but it’s a million miles away from a fibre glass cast.

Foot looked pretty grim when it came out of plaster. A bath and a rub with a towel removed some of the horror but the shreds of skin still take a bit of getting used to but it will be fine in no time I’m sure.

I’ve already seen my physio and have some exercises to do. I do feel like a new born lamb though – it’s quite tender to walk on so I need to do the exercises and be positive. Doctors are being cagey about the likihood of making the trip date – I still have along way to go.

It’s been a few weeks since my accident so I thought it would be nice to give a little update of how I’m healing. I’m still in plaster and my next appointment is 28th June and until then I’m non-weight bearing. It seems a long time but I suppose they are keen for the plate and screws to bed in as best they can and for the ligaments to begin healing on my ankle.

The garage is a hive of activity (photos to follow) I have a little fold up chair to sit on and I’m removing bits off the bike. It’s a slow process as I’m keen to keep everything together so I don’t lose any bolts. The front is quite badly beaten up – still gives me the shivers looking at how twisted it all is.

Removing the front fairing spar is proving difficult – the multitude of wires to the instruments and trip computer doesn’t help – but I’m marking these as a I go so hopefully it will be a breeze when it comes to putting it back together again (famous last words…).

There is a pile of broken parts on one side of the garage and in time this will include the forks, the afore mentioned spar, instruments, fairing panels, front mudguard and a mirror. In addition and depending upon whether I can bend things back into shape it may also include the headlights, footpeg, pillion footpegs and pannier racks and possibly the yokes. The fuel tank is a bit bent out of shape too and looking at it in detail was very nearly holed by the brush guards being forced into it when I crashed.

It’s not all doom and gloom though as I have been very fortunate in being able to secure some parts. Previous ebay adventures mean I have most of the fairings I need and 2 (yes I know…) fuel tanks so those pointless just in case purchases were in fact a great buy in the end and don’t tell me you’ve never done it!

A very good friend of mine on www.XRV.org.uk let me have a set of fork legs for nothing and I sourced a spare set of Yokes just in case. I had to buy the faring spar but used a discount supplier and saved about £40 off the Honda price.

The front wheel has gone off to be put back into shape so fingers crossed it can be done with the existing components. If it needs a rebuild I’m not sure I could resist the temptation to have both hubs and rims annodised and rebuilt with stainless steel spokes – at times the lure of fitting cheap or gawdy tat to my bike worries me. Colour coded bolts on a say a gixxer makes me sick but it seems anything goes when it comes to my AT.

So fingers crossed.