Beautiful and twisty, the Corniche de l’Esterel is the road round the rugged red rocks the Riviera riders race round to show off, also the swanky sports car drivers and maybe the occasional film star in a cabriolet. The road weaves alongside and over the railway to Cannes and Nice, which runs in a cutting and tunnels.

Tonight the local bike hooligans were racing a train, or at least using it as a pace-setter, I wasn’t quite sure. Seemingly futile... the train has the straight line and no worries about traffic. No-one was hurt and it looked fun.

Rocher de Roquebrune (373 m.)

Riding up from the Riviera to the head of the Grand Canyon of the Verdon at Castellane in the Préalpes of Haut-Provence. I’ve been waiting for the best weather day for a ride inland and I think I just bagged it; this was a fantastic day out, roads quiet, including almost no cyclists or motorcaravans; bright, warm enough and no wind so great views and great riding.

More photos: Col du Bel Homme (915 m.) - Parc naturel des Préalpes d'Azur

Always a treat to ride to St. Tropez, the charming little port on the Côte d’Azur. Blue sky and strong sunshine were today moderated by a chilly wind from the northeast. I met with my long-standing friend Denis who lives in St. Tropez, also of the French bike club AMA; we haven't met since just before the first lockdown, more than two years ago.

More photos: St. Tropez

Why read when you can ride? Put simply, I read for motivation and inspiration - they ride so much better than we do. You can see what they do on the bikes on TV but not why they do it, and what it takes behind the scenes. Not that any of these books are fully frank, the riders are public sportsmen so their image is carefully cultivated by their representatives and for the benefit of their sponsors.
The book about Valentino Rossi is written by a journalist so is in the third person in the style of a long article in Motorcycle News; Boorman’s and Rutter’s are written by the rider with an associate writer, ie ghost writer, and are the better for the professional writer’s input. Charley Boorman’s style is at once intimate, biker to biker, but with the polish (and thus detachment) of a TV documentary voice-over. It’s easy to imagine Michael Rutter telling his tales over a few pints in a Manx pub, tidying them up for publication and making a nice book with it all in for his grandchildren and fans.

Read more: Racers