Get out and ride - Bike Astur

It goes without saying that while the actual motorcycle is the main ingredient in the world of motorcycling, it is the people that inhabit it that make it so fascinating and enjoyable.

Motorcycles seem to attract a particular breed of person that in many ways seem to keep fostering the ‘British Bulldog’ pioneering spirit.

Phil Butler is one such man, somebody you could not dislike if you tried, a man so full of enthusiasm and passion for bikes and the roads of Northern Spain.

As a successful gas fitter he was doing all right, earning enough to pay for his motorcycling and not unhappy with his working day, things were good until redundancy came along. Add to this his partner Jackie then getting the chance to buy a business in Llanes, Northern Spain; he had some tough decisions to make.

Seeing it as an opportunity to change direction, the pair sold up and headed for warmer climes. While Jackie had her days mapped out, he had to occupy his time.

Bike Astur was founded four years ago as a motorcycle holiday firm, Phil guiding riders on their own bikes around the stunning Picos Mountains and along the Asturian coastline.

After two years he began to realise that some clients were not getting the best out of their trips, hauling some heavy tourers along narrow country and mountain roads. Likewise the sports bike rider was uncomfortable at the lower speeds needed to stay safe on the tighter gravel-strewn roads.

So, enter a fleet of six Royal Enfields, complete with electric starts, available to hire. Two benefits of this introduction were that now he could offer fly-ride holidays, so that people could take advantage of the cheap flights into Santander and also that there was a bike available for those who still chose to ride down and then have a more manageable mount when they got there!

“It definitely seems to be working,” said Phil as he gave me the quick rundown on the bikes. “People seem to take to them, even when they have ridden down on a sports bike. They are good for a genuine 50mph cruise which, to be honest, is more than enough down here!”

Despite having ridden down on an FJR 1300 Yamaha, via of course the useful and comfortable Brittany ferry into Santander, I found myself quickly agreeing with him.

Sitting in a cafe for lunch, after the first morning’s ride, it was clear that the bike’s maximum speed was totally irrelevant; it was fast enough to be exciting on the roads we were traversing.

Several days later, back on the Yamaha, I found that I needed three figures on the speedo to get the same buzz out of a road that I had thoroughly enjoyed at a modest 50mph on the Enfield. Which, of course just proves that, if you pick the right roads you can have some real fun and enjoy a challenge without having to risk your licence!

Phil of course is now almost totally integrated into the local community and the Enfields are a familiar sight on the ‘right’ roads. His language fluency also helps, as many of the villages are not geared up to tourism like those on the Mediterranean coast.

“The idea of everybody using each others services and business is still very much alive here in Spain and it works very well. I get a lot of locals come out for a ride at weekends,” he said, as we tucked into some local fare.

“Hence I use the same three star hotel all the time, so he lets me keep the bikes garaged there as well,” he continued.

“I don’t hire bikes out, I run guided tours, but these are tailored to the clients’ needs. Therefore, I can vary things according to the weather and any particular requests!”

This is not just talk, because over four days Phil could not have been more helpful in taking me to the best places for photographs, or to get an idea on the local history, something he is very knowledgeable about.

Standing admiring the Roman Bridge in Congas de Onis, Phil happily rattled off many facts and figures explaining many of the local customs, adding that all important extra into the day’s riding.

On the subject of riding, you can only enthuse about the roads that climb and dip having carved their way through the various rock formations. Normally at the top of every climb there is a view that is as spectacular as any Alpine vista, although during his main season of April to October, is unlikely to be covered in snow.

Like many of his contemporaries, he has an effortless easy riding style, helped of course by intimate knowledge of the roads he is leading you down. Thanks of course to that, he is able to vary the route at will and keep things flowing in a relaxed easy going manner.

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