MONDAY was a bad day for Richard Wise - someone stole his pride and joy, a classic GPZ Kawasaki 900R motorcycle.

Richard, aged 37, said: "I just cannot believe it. I suffered a really lousy day at work and instead of going home and having an argument with my girlfriend I took myself out to ride the bike for an hour.

"Coming towards Weyhill from Ludgershall I ran out of petrol opposite the Perham Down turning and just managed to coast into a side lane and parked the bike.

"I contacted my girlfriend on my mobile and she came out to pick me up. I locked the bike up, set the alarm and went home. I didn't go straight back; instead, I had a cup of tea and a shower and returned at 9pm with fuel and it was gone. It's big and bright red. One of the first production bikes guaranteed to do 150mph. It's a classic. It's immaculate. I was always polishing it. It's a cracking bike, absolutely gorgeous."

His only consolation was that he was able to roll out his Yamaha Wild Star 1600cc model to go on a two-hour patrol, searching for his dream machine. He is offering a reward for information on the whereabouts of the GPZ 900R and can be contacted on 01264 365280.