I couldn't sleep so chilled with a coffee and read this RR.
Surprised by the chain cut incident in Andelucia.
I noticed you were on knobblys the way, how was that on the Europe section.
Also No motocross boots for the difficult off road stuff, easy enough to crack an ankle on that stuff.
I tried some sandy tracks 2 up on a 1200gs near Huelva, the bike sank and went over i had my foot trapped under it but just managed to get it out in time with my skinny ankle intact but hobbling for the rest of the holiday.
I like how you won the Top Gear challenge, it was a no brainier, I would rather sitting on a bike than on a ferry.
A great read thanks for posting.