So I booked into the Yamaha off-road school for this week. Well, actually, I got a text message from the missus telling me that she had booked me on. This was the only slot that they had for nearly 3 months, and it was already taken, but the missus was just quicker on the draw with the deposit.

That smacks of somebody watching over me. I think I'm going to need lot of that over the next 579 days.

There's a couple of ways of looking at this. Either (glass-half-full) she's being really encouraging, and has decided that I am going to do this thing anyway, so I might as well be well trained for it. Or (glass-half-empty) he's hoping that I get so bruised and battered that I swear never to get on a dirt bike again.

It was still lovely though, getting a text message that says:

• "I have made a decision. You are going to Yamaha School on Friday"

I should marry this girl. Hold on, I already did. I can see why too :)

This will be my first time out on an off-road bike in over 20 years. Got to start somewhere though. Pretty neat - they provide all of the gear, the bikes and the training. All I need to provide is the willpower and - apparently - a packed lunch.

It's local - just 10 minutes up the road - although its Motocross (as opposed to the Enduro-style stuff that I will be doing at BMW in Wales). Still, motocross will be fine for a starter - I need to make sure that I can get totally comfortable with the wheels spinning underneath me, without being in complete contact with the ground. This is so much different from being on the road, where the rubber contact is so important.

I also got a test ride of the BMW 650 GS booked for the weekend. It's possibly not the bike that I will use for the Dakar, but its the right shape, style and size for getting the serious offroad seat time in.

I'm also currently looking for a 'disposable' offroad bike that I can practice on. The reason why I say 'disposable' is because I am expecting a fair few spills and knocks - which probably is not a good idea on a new (and expensive) bike. A bike that is big enough to be real, but small enough that I can work on my techniques properly - the bike will tell me when I've outgrown her and am ready to move up.

Bikes are a lot like women in that respect - always happy to tell you when you need to grow up :)

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