Silverstone
Thursday 6th October 3pm
Did I mention how much I hate Silverstone? As it was, the paperwork said we would be allowed into the paddock at 7pm but on our arrival we were told we wouldn't be let in until 8pm. The circuit and paddock were not in use that day and at any other circuit we'd have been allowed to drift in and set up. We didn't even care if we couldn't go in the garage until Friday morning. They were just being bastards. It got dark and there were no car park lights on and no lights in the toilets. There were only a dozen of us when we arrived but the car park soon filled up as the hours passed. The exodus from the car park at 8pm would cause mayhem. The temperature dropped and it rained a lot and we all wished we'd arrived Friday. It was a total waste of a day off work.
8pm finally came and everyone surged towards the exit. Typically the last to arrive got out first. Amidst much horn-honking and shouting, Chris managed to force his way through, but it would be a long time before the car park was empty. It was too late to do anything but set up camp in the garage and get the supper on. We would stay in there all weekend. No gazebo to take down on Sunday would make packing up a lot swifter.
Friday 7th October
Raining. It sure was slippery out there. After only seven laps into Chris' first session on the North the riders started to come back in. Martin commented on the session being very short, and where was Chris! Chris had high-sided and broken his wrist. We waited for the bike to be returned before I trudged off to the medical centre. It felt like a long way on foot. Then I walked back to the garage to get Chris' clothes and Martin drove me back in his pick-up. He would take Chris to Northampton hospital. I walked back to the garage again and Brendon popped round to borrow some bits off Chris' bike as he wasn't going to use it again that weekend and, in return, he took off off the petrol tank and emptied it as it had a hole in the right-hand side and the petrol was coming out of the bottom of the fairing.
The garage was huge. Having put a crate under the leaking tap below the basin, the floor became less flooded. There was no light working in the toilet, although Martin did have a go at sorting it, and the boys tended to pee with the door open. I worked out what we were having for lunch and then settled down to wait for Martin's return. The triple garage only had us in it and I was over-joyed when Richard and Sandra Peckett arrived and moved in along-side.
Chris, having had his wrist realigned under a local anaesthetic and gas and air, had his arm put in plaster and was ready to be picked up by 5pm. Kevan Major very kindly gave me a lift to the hospital, in rush-hour, our progress aided by Sarah's mobile's sat-nav. We got there okay but had more than a slight detour on the way back to the circuit due to me not concentrating. It was during the evening I began to realise my life was going to change somewhat as a result of Chris' injury. Little things to start with like having to re-button his jeans after he'd visited the toilet. After being home a few days I began to appreciate the shock which must be suffered by those women you hear of, who have a baby when they didn't know they were pregnant and thought they were merely suffering from fat and trapped wind. Being launched for the first time into motherhood with no warning is vile. I have to cut up Chris' food, wash his back, transport him everywhere, tie his shoe laces, squirt antiperspirant under his right arm-pit and generally keep an eye on him so he doesn't do anything stupid and hurt himself more. Every day brings a new challenge. Getting him out of the bath was an absolute riot and we were SO grateful when Lou's 'arm condom', from when she broke her wrist, arrived in the post so he could use the shower. It's a wonderful thing. (Lou had to describe the item in her parcel to the person behind the counter at the post office with a bunch of sniggering students queuing behind her).
Anyway. We decided to spend the weekend at the circuit. My younger brother Richard and his partner Michelle were arriving Saturday morning for the weekend and Derek and Shirley also. My niece Laura, her boy friend Hal and their friend Tim were arriving early Sunday and they would help finish off the food.
Saturday 8th October
Another very damp day. Loads of fallers on the track. Derek phoned to say they were fifteen minutes from the circuit so I walked to the gate with tickets. It takes a long time, bearing in mind it takes four minutes in a car! I got a lift back to the garage in their car and was immediately phoned by Richard who reckoned he and Michelle were three miles away. Shirley gave me a lift in her car and Richard didn't arrive for ages. I was getting to know the guy on the gate by this time but he wouldn't let me leave tickets at the gate for Laura and co for Sunday. Everyone had a leisurely day and Spike caught up with us at lunch. Brendan's brother Keiran joined us after supper and said it was his birthday. Chris broke out the sloe gin and Keiran shared his whisky around. Cormac and George dropped in and sampled the gin. Cormac REALLY liked it! Richard and Lou played guitar and sang for us, in their very different styles and Keiran made me guess how old he was. Eventually only Richard, Martin, Chris and myself were left. We didn't want to abandon Keiran on his birthday so we stayed up with him until 2.40am.
Sunday 9th October
My phone rang at 8.45am. Laura! 'We nearly there' she laughed. I felt like I'd had barely an hour's sleep but I had to get dressed and take the tickets to the gate. Once back at the garage I lit the barbecue and cooked, in one go, all the bacon we had while Laura buttered bread. Laura and Hal's friend Tim bears a remarkable resemblance to our friend Neil Simpson - AKA Baldrick - only Tim is half Neil's age. (A love child perchance?) We have photos of Tim, and when I remember to take some of Neil we will show Tim what he's going to look like when he's thirty years older.
After a sunny morning it rained again after lunch. More riders crashed at this meeting than at any other we've been to. Nigel Hall-Smith dislocated his shoulder on Saturday and, because the anaesthetists at the hospital had finished for the day, he was not fixed until Sunday. He did drive his truck home though. We stayed till the end of the meeting to watch Cormac and the remaining riders brave the crap track in the races of the year. It was all very tense. I had packed the van, and packed Chris' tool boxes numerous times as there was a lot of 'borrowing' going on. The final time I packed I locked the van and held onto the keys. It would cost the next person a tenner before I released the stuff. We spent a while saying goodbye to everyone in Brendan's garage. Many of his family were there supporting Cormac. Chris mentioned to Brendan how nice it was that Keiran was able to celebrate his birthday there and was told it was months before Keiran's next birthday!
Derek and Shirley came home with us and helped unpack the van before heading back to Bristol. The van was being picked up for body-work repairs early the next day. We are very grateful for all the help and support they gave us over the weekend, especially during the Saturday evening frozen supper (again) fiasco. (In my defence I did have it in the fridge since Thursday midday but the fridge was turned up too high)
Chris was disappointed not to have been able to do the two races of the year he'd entered but he would have crashed eventually anyway so it was good to get it out of the way. He finished the season as 1300 Multis champion and successfully defended his title in the UK Classic. Well done Chris.
Thank you everyone for your support through the year. Our final meeting was a jolly one, all things considered, but not half as jolly as it would have been had our friend and team member (Marshal) Neil been able to be with us. (our kettle is always boiling if you find yourself down south, Neil)
For those who are going to the Dinner Dance on 3rd December, we'll see you there. For those who can't make it, we'll catch you next year.
We'll keep you updated on Chris' recovery which hasn't even started yet as he has to be plated and it's nearly two weeks since he broke it and he's been to the hospital two mondays running and he still hasn't got an operation date as they're so full and they're all a load of useless time-wasting bastards.
Have a merry Chr... I can't say it yet. It's too damned early.
LSW
Beezumph 25 - 2016
Friday 9th September.
Having packed on Thursday evening the few things we needed to take with us we got away at 4.30am. The M25 went down to one lane and the M40 was closed from the M25 up to junction 8a. We did M4 to junction 13 and up the A34 to rejoin the M40. At that time of the morning it was really empty.
9am Lou texted me 'How goes it? Are you there yet? I said we had to pick up a 'buyer collects' item from eBay which happened to be in Conwy. I told her Chris could use it if the RPS went wrong. 'Now we're guessing' Lou said. Gav guessed bicycle, lady-pleaser or Valium. Lou, body armour or heel buffer. (topic of conversation at the mo between the Kidwells and me, which they won't leave alone) I said 'It's two words. D & T'. Lou guessed Dremel Tool for heel buffing, and Gav, Dirty Thong or Disability Tricycle. Actually I'd bought a Vintage galvanized Dolly Tub to turn into a water butt, but I thought Chris could boil his head in it or pop the RPS in it and set fire to it if the need arose.
We arrived at the circuit to find Graham and Kevan had enough space for us all. Graham had arranged a double garage for us to use until Sunday morning and, as the weather deteriorated during Friday afternoon, we were immensely grateful for it. None of our gazebos were going up this weekend. We had enough to do making sure Martin still had his tent when he went to bed that night. The caravans and motor-homes were rocking from side to side and a growing pile of damaged tents was happening next to the bins by the showers. I texted my niece Laura for weather forecast. She said the rain would stop during the evening and the gale would die down between 10 and 11pm. It was spot-on. We walked outside the garage and it was like the eye of the hurricane. Eerily quiet. It was a relief that we'd get a peaceful night.
Saturday 10th September
The weather was lovely.
I was in my pyjamas talking to Hilary outside her caravan when Lou was off for a run. 'I won't be long' said Lou spritely, as she bounced off. (I wonder what her lap time is.) I wearily went back to my caravan and took my book to bed for another hour. The riders were at the briefing where, I assume, Chris was doing the usual silliness with Graham's flags. Seeing Janet head over to the garage I dressed quickly and joined her on the pit wall. We watched the first groups being taken round on their sighting laps, Chris and other rolling marshals taking up the 'God, this is SO slow for my ability' riding manner - one hand on the throttle, the other hand on the thigh, thumb outermost. I wanted to finish my book so I went back to read until lunch time.
In one of his sessions Chris was black-flagged because the RPS was smoky. Derek and Chris had spent a long time searching for an oil leak after finding oil in the fairing. Gav found it in the end. A pin hole in an old weld on the timing cover. Guy Martin visited in the morning and Graham made him a cup of tea. He'd hoped to save the DNA but Janet washed the cup.
Everyone had a great time out on the track and the barbecue in the evening was top class. Thanks to Graham we were all able to have a gathering in the garage. Graham was awarded the Top Wanca Annual Trophy Saturday evening as he'll not be at Silverstone when we'd planned to do the ceremony. He must have been choked as he managed to say only a few words. Well done Graham and thank you for all your help over the years. It's much appreciated. Congratulations also to Janet. She became a Grandmother and although she won't be able to hold her Grandson until her cold is better she can make up for the disappointment with masses of baby-sitting in due course. (Take note of the old saying, Janet - I thought I had my life organised and then I became a Grandmother.)
Sunday 11th September
Thank you to everyone who rescued our stuff from the garage before we'd even got out of bed. Very kind of you all.
Thank you Lou for the lovely Flap-Jacks.
Thank you Gav for giving up the T.W.A.T sooner than he should have had to, for packing it so beautifully and for washing it out first.
Silverstone is the final meeting next month with the Race of the Year, which is always an exciting event.
LSW
Having packed on Thursday evening the few things we needed to take with us we got away at 4.30am. The M25 went down to one lane and the M40 was closed from the M25 up to junction 8a. We did M4 to junction 13 and up the A34 to rejoin the M40. At that time of the morning it was really empty.
9am Lou texted me 'How goes it? Are you there yet? I said we had to pick up a 'buyer collects' item from eBay which happened to be in Conwy. I told her Chris could use it if the RPS went wrong. 'Now we're guessing' Lou said. Gav guessed bicycle, lady-pleaser or Valium. Lou, body armour or heel buffer. (topic of conversation at the mo between the Kidwells and me, which they won't leave alone) I said 'It's two words. D & T'. Lou guessed Dremel Tool for heel buffing, and Gav, Dirty Thong or Disability Tricycle. Actually I'd bought a Vintage galvanized Dolly Tub to turn into a water butt, but I thought Chris could boil his head in it or pop the RPS in it and set fire to it if the need arose.
We arrived at the circuit to find Graham and Kevan had enough space for us all. Graham had arranged a double garage for us to use until Sunday morning and, as the weather deteriorated during Friday afternoon, we were immensely grateful for it. None of our gazebos were going up this weekend. We had enough to do making sure Martin still had his tent when he went to bed that night. The caravans and motor-homes were rocking from side to side and a growing pile of damaged tents was happening next to the bins by the showers. I texted my niece Laura for weather forecast. She said the rain would stop during the evening and the gale would die down between 10 and 11pm. It was spot-on. We walked outside the garage and it was like the eye of the hurricane. Eerily quiet. It was a relief that we'd get a peaceful night.
Saturday 10th September
The weather was lovely.
I was in my pyjamas talking to Hilary outside her caravan when Lou was off for a run. 'I won't be long' said Lou spritely, as she bounced off. (I wonder what her lap time is.) I wearily went back to my caravan and took my book to bed for another hour. The riders were at the briefing where, I assume, Chris was doing the usual silliness with Graham's flags. Seeing Janet head over to the garage I dressed quickly and joined her on the pit wall. We watched the first groups being taken round on their sighting laps, Chris and other rolling marshals taking up the 'God, this is SO slow for my ability' riding manner - one hand on the throttle, the other hand on the thigh, thumb outermost. I wanted to finish my book so I went back to read until lunch time.
In one of his sessions Chris was black-flagged because the RPS was smoky. Derek and Chris had spent a long time searching for an oil leak after finding oil in the fairing. Gav found it in the end. A pin hole in an old weld on the timing cover. Guy Martin visited in the morning and Graham made him a cup of tea. He'd hoped to save the DNA but Janet washed the cup.
Everyone had a great time out on the track and the barbecue in the evening was top class. Thanks to Graham we were all able to have a gathering in the garage. Graham was awarded the Top Wanca Annual Trophy Saturday evening as he'll not be at Silverstone when we'd planned to do the ceremony. He must have been choked as he managed to say only a few words. Well done Graham and thank you for all your help over the years. It's much appreciated. Congratulations also to Janet. She became a Grandmother and although she won't be able to hold her Grandson until her cold is better she can make up for the disappointment with masses of baby-sitting in due course. (Take note of the old saying, Janet - I thought I had my life organised and then I became a Grandmother.)
Sunday 11th September
Thank you to everyone who rescued our stuff from the garage before we'd even got out of bed. Very kind of you all.
Thank you Lou for the lovely Flap-Jacks.
Thank you Gav for giving up the T.W.A.T sooner than he should have had to, for packing it so beautifully and for washing it out first.
Silverstone is the final meeting next month with the Race of the Year, which is always an exciting event.
LSW
Snetterton 2016
Friday 26th August
A very, very long journey to Snetterton. Over five hours. (We came home in two). Bloody Bank Holiday traffic and an eight mile queue to the Dartford Tunnel. We’d have gone clockwise but there was a fifteen mile queue from J9.
Having a garage is great but it does mean hanging around a lot. We did a load of moving our caravans backwards and forwards to suit our neighbours and Graham did the Maths and got the positioning just right for getting the gazebo in with ample space around it.
Derek was meant to be joining us that evening but phoned to say he’d had trouble with his bike in London and was going to be Recovered to Leatherhead for Baldrick to have a look at it. He was very disappointed at having to miss the meeting.
Martin was not expected until Saturday morning and Chris wanted to get both bikes scrutineered, so I had to wait to put the gazebo fully up. Once again, it took an age to totally set up camp. The love-hate relationship I have with garages - Love using only the 3 x 3m gazebo. Hate having to wait until 6-6.30pm to even get near the garage when a track-day has been on.
The evening meal of the weekend was the only one which was not manic. That’s because there were only three of us. I love there being only three of us. It’s so easy. These meetings are Chris’ and my holidays. Yet I was up for seventeen hours on Saturday and I barely sat down all day.
After we’d had our dinner and Marshal Neil had headed for his tent I decided I could not go to bed until I’d had a shower. I got my stuff together in my bag and headed up to the block. It was 12.30am so there was no-one in there. Through the door into a small lobby there was a chair, a basin, a paper hand-towel dispenser and two cubicles. I chose the right shower cubicle because the floor was less wet, though the shower tray was a bit grim. I tip-toed through the muddy puddles in my flip-flops and gave the tray a wipe with paper towels and hung my bag on the back of the door on a metal hook which immediately fell off the door dumping my bag onto the wet floor. Thirty seconds of Tourettes after this I attempted to take my trousers off without getting the hems wet in the puddles. I was very tired and my balance was not as good as it should have been so I exited the cubicle and undressed in the lobby, leaving my clothes on the chair.
Once in the cubicle I wiped my finger across the top of the door before hanging my towel over it and put my wash-bag, which is designed to unroll and hang on anything there is, on the lock. I gingerly stepped out of my flip-flops into the shower tray and stood back while I pressed the button ( I’ve been caught like that before - freezing water suddenly hitting me, making me gasp for breath ) At first I didn’t think it was working so I did it again and a small amount of water ran down the tiles behind the shower head. I got the idea in the end. Press and wait five seconds and then the water starts to flow in a miserable trickle two inches from the wall and that’s all there is. I’d got this far and I was determined to get clean before bed so I offered a bit of me at a time under the dribble until I was sort of wet all over, applied the shower gel and then went through the rigmarole of getting it rinsed off again. With the water turning off after every ten seconds and having to be pressed again and then take five seconds to get going this took an extraordinary long time, bearing in mind the fact that that most of the water from the shower head, which was ef-all, was running down the wall and not over me.
The water was a good temperature and I was certainly feeling refreshed, albeit very slowly. I was just going through the final procedure of getting my underarms rinsed (where one resembles an angle-poise lamp) when I realised my feet were ankle deep in water. When I think of how little water I’d used thus far and how much was in the shower tray I reckon non of it can have gone down the drain at all. It was completely blocked and although nothing was going down it, stuff was definitely coming up the through the plug hole. I gritted my teeth and tried to close my mind to it as best I could as I finished rinsing my back. The water coming up was filthy and I could feel other users’ hair getting caught on my feet and I have a phobia about hair in the plug hole and other peoples hair in general after seeing an Australian black and white film called Kitchen Sink – you will only watch it once. It’s only fifteen minutes long and you can Google it. I stepped gratefully out of the shower tray into the muddy puddle and straight to the basin. After covering a small part of the floor with paper towels I stuck one foot in the basin and scrubbed it with the anti-bac hand-wash in the dispenser, stamped it dry on the paper towels and repeated the procedure with the other foot. I slumped in the chair for a second before getting dressed. I was really very tired indeed and my jaw ached from clenching my teeth for so long. I gathered my stuff and was just going down the steps to the paddock and there was Chris with a torch. He had been waiting ages. Apparently the men’s showers also had no water pressure but at least their drain didn’t vomit over their feet.
Saturday 27th August
The North went out for practice and went well. We had breakfast and then Chris went off on the RPS with fingers crossed. It went onto two cylinders in the holding area but Chris went out thinking it would chime in. After one lap he came back and Richard Peckett had a look. Rocker boxes off. Checked valves working. Checked timing. Nothing. Then he replaced the spark-plugs and it fired on three. So a spark-plug failure was the reason. Jonathon Leicester had said to Chris at the beginning ‘checked the spark-plugs?’. Chris said they were new and Jonathon said ‘replace them again anyway’ and he was correct.
While this was going on Chris got a 2nd in class in the 1300 multis with Cormac getting 1st.
Alan Major won his first race of the weekend and Gav came fourth.
Chris got a 3rd in class on the RPS in the F750 which was an excellent result even though the points don’t get him anywhere in this championship. The RPS was running beautifully.
Martin, Patrick and the children arrived and we had lunch. Chris’ mum, Thelma, bro Richard and his daughter Rebecca arrived in time for the next 1300 multis. Same results as the first and finishing the day with another 3rd in class in the F750.
He did amazingly well in the F750s considering the competition. Another reason why this was such an achievement is that Chris realised that the RPS was grossly over-geared and it was peaking at the end of the straight in fifth gear rather than sixth. So Graham added two teeth to the rear sprocket before he had his supper.
The evening meal was a fiasco. I’m leaving it at that because it was so stressful and I don’t want to re-live it.
Later on Marshal Neil gave Thelma a lift to her hotel which was so lovely of him (but he IS a very lovely man and that’s why we love him very much) (though he wasn't back for three hours and the hotel was only a mile away?).
Steve came round for a catch up as he wasn’t sharing a garage with us this time and it was a very pleasant end to the day.
There were thunderstorms on three sides of us earlier but we still had escaped the rain. It was almost uncanny. Everyone else’s rain had certainly cooled the air down a lot. I would rather have stood under the cold tap on the garage wall than enter those showers again.
Martin headed off to the ‘Madam Rouge’ for the night. He had walked into the caravan’s tow-bar earlier and really hurt his leg. I’d brought a pillow with me for him which he had to get from the side of the van and he bashed his leg again in the same place when he leaned in. So it hurts even more now. Poor Martin. Maybe it was something to do with the box of Cote du Rhone.
Sunday 28th August
After changing his mind several times Chris decided to go and qualify for the Race of Aces. (I thought this was called Race of Aged till I saw it written down) He did four laps on the RPS to test it and got 11th on the grid.
He came in early as his next race was immediately after and it was the UK Classic. Cormac 1st, Chris 2nd again and he got a 5th in class in the F750, a 1st in class to Cormac’s 2nd in the 1300 multis.
Chris’ nephew, Tom, arrived with his wife Carolyn and their son Alfie. Tom Wright will be riding at Brands Hatch on 25th September and Chris is hoping to be off work so he can go and watch.
The last race of the day was the Race of Aces. Graham thought it would be nice if Chris wore the new red and white version of his leathers. It was all getting a bit close to the final call and they couldn’t get Chris into the new ones as he was so sweaty and they are not yet worn-in. Abandoning them Chris found he couldn’t get back into the original leathers for the same sweaty reason. A passing CRMC official took charge and gave them a helping hand and Chris just made it in time.
At Donington Derek gave Chris a Cool-vest which is quilted and you soak it in cold water and wear it under your leathers. It’s really effective and Chris was particularly glad of it after all the ‘getting changed’ he’d had to do.
Hearing Graham the commentator say that the front three, which had now dropped out, had been so far ahead Chris wouldn’t realise that he could get a podium place. I decided to stop packing and watch the final laps of the race from the pit wall. Chris passed the final lap flag in 3rd place with Carl Adams closing fast. Graham Redrup was waving furiously at Chris to get a move on. As they got to the end of the start/finish straight Chris was passed by Carl and we waited for them to come round again. Carl stayed in front and got 3rd with Chris in 4th. Chris did win £75 though.
Another very good weekend of racing for Chris. Valuable points gained and a good try-out for the RPS which ran beautifully. Patrick and the children helped take down the gazebo and as we moved it under the back door of the van, finally, the heavens opened. A river flowed between me and the garage so I put my feet up and sat it out on the back shelf of the van.
We had a quick journey home and Derek was there to meet us and unload the RPS.
Graham and Janet will be returning the North Monday.
Thank you Derek for cleaning the paintwork in the hallway in my house while we were away. Wow! You must’ve been depressed.. My house gets covered in oily hand marks and dirty bike jacket scuffing and no-one else gives a damn.
Thank you Graham and Janet for transporting the North and for, again, providing Martin with a bed for the night.
A big thank you to Brett Randall for delivering Chris’ last year’s prize for the UK Classic – a new pair of racing boots, badly needed.
Gav, who got a close look at the terra firma in his second to last race, all of us hope your bruises don’t hurt too much or for too long. Your leathers look like Chris’ now and we know how much you want to be like him.
Beezumph next in two weeks at Anglesey. Then the final meeting at Silverstone – another ghastly place. Give us Brands next year, please!!
LSW
A very, very long journey to Snetterton. Over five hours. (We came home in two). Bloody Bank Holiday traffic and an eight mile queue to the Dartford Tunnel. We’d have gone clockwise but there was a fifteen mile queue from J9.
Having a garage is great but it does mean hanging around a lot. We did a load of moving our caravans backwards and forwards to suit our neighbours and Graham did the Maths and got the positioning just right for getting the gazebo in with ample space around it.
Derek was meant to be joining us that evening but phoned to say he’d had trouble with his bike in London and was going to be Recovered to Leatherhead for Baldrick to have a look at it. He was very disappointed at having to miss the meeting.
Martin was not expected until Saturday morning and Chris wanted to get both bikes scrutineered, so I had to wait to put the gazebo fully up. Once again, it took an age to totally set up camp. The love-hate relationship I have with garages - Love using only the 3 x 3m gazebo. Hate having to wait until 6-6.30pm to even get near the garage when a track-day has been on.
The evening meal of the weekend was the only one which was not manic. That’s because there were only three of us. I love there being only three of us. It’s so easy. These meetings are Chris’ and my holidays. Yet I was up for seventeen hours on Saturday and I barely sat down all day.
After we’d had our dinner and Marshal Neil had headed for his tent I decided I could not go to bed until I’d had a shower. I got my stuff together in my bag and headed up to the block. It was 12.30am so there was no-one in there. Through the door into a small lobby there was a chair, a basin, a paper hand-towel dispenser and two cubicles. I chose the right shower cubicle because the floor was less wet, though the shower tray was a bit grim. I tip-toed through the muddy puddles in my flip-flops and gave the tray a wipe with paper towels and hung my bag on the back of the door on a metal hook which immediately fell off the door dumping my bag onto the wet floor. Thirty seconds of Tourettes after this I attempted to take my trousers off without getting the hems wet in the puddles. I was very tired and my balance was not as good as it should have been so I exited the cubicle and undressed in the lobby, leaving my clothes on the chair.
Once in the cubicle I wiped my finger across the top of the door before hanging my towel over it and put my wash-bag, which is designed to unroll and hang on anything there is, on the lock. I gingerly stepped out of my flip-flops into the shower tray and stood back while I pressed the button ( I’ve been caught like that before - freezing water suddenly hitting me, making me gasp for breath ) At first I didn’t think it was working so I did it again and a small amount of water ran down the tiles behind the shower head. I got the idea in the end. Press and wait five seconds and then the water starts to flow in a miserable trickle two inches from the wall and that’s all there is. I’d got this far and I was determined to get clean before bed so I offered a bit of me at a time under the dribble until I was sort of wet all over, applied the shower gel and then went through the rigmarole of getting it rinsed off again. With the water turning off after every ten seconds and having to be pressed again and then take five seconds to get going this took an extraordinary long time, bearing in mind the fact that that most of the water from the shower head, which was ef-all, was running down the wall and not over me.
The water was a good temperature and I was certainly feeling refreshed, albeit very slowly. I was just going through the final procedure of getting my underarms rinsed (where one resembles an angle-poise lamp) when I realised my feet were ankle deep in water. When I think of how little water I’d used thus far and how much was in the shower tray I reckon non of it can have gone down the drain at all. It was completely blocked and although nothing was going down it, stuff was definitely coming up the through the plug hole. I gritted my teeth and tried to close my mind to it as best I could as I finished rinsing my back. The water coming up was filthy and I could feel other users’ hair getting caught on my feet and I have a phobia about hair in the plug hole and other peoples hair in general after seeing an Australian black and white film called Kitchen Sink – you will only watch it once. It’s only fifteen minutes long and you can Google it. I stepped gratefully out of the shower tray into the muddy puddle and straight to the basin. After covering a small part of the floor with paper towels I stuck one foot in the basin and scrubbed it with the anti-bac hand-wash in the dispenser, stamped it dry on the paper towels and repeated the procedure with the other foot. I slumped in the chair for a second before getting dressed. I was really very tired indeed and my jaw ached from clenching my teeth for so long. I gathered my stuff and was just going down the steps to the paddock and there was Chris with a torch. He had been waiting ages. Apparently the men’s showers also had no water pressure but at least their drain didn’t vomit over their feet.
Saturday 27th August
The North went out for practice and went well. We had breakfast and then Chris went off on the RPS with fingers crossed. It went onto two cylinders in the holding area but Chris went out thinking it would chime in. After one lap he came back and Richard Peckett had a look. Rocker boxes off. Checked valves working. Checked timing. Nothing. Then he replaced the spark-plugs and it fired on three. So a spark-plug failure was the reason. Jonathon Leicester had said to Chris at the beginning ‘checked the spark-plugs?’. Chris said they were new and Jonathon said ‘replace them again anyway’ and he was correct.
While this was going on Chris got a 2nd in class in the 1300 multis with Cormac getting 1st.
Alan Major won his first race of the weekend and Gav came fourth.
Chris got a 3rd in class on the RPS in the F750 which was an excellent result even though the points don’t get him anywhere in this championship. The RPS was running beautifully.
Martin, Patrick and the children arrived and we had lunch. Chris’ mum, Thelma, bro Richard and his daughter Rebecca arrived in time for the next 1300 multis. Same results as the first and finishing the day with another 3rd in class in the F750.
He did amazingly well in the F750s considering the competition. Another reason why this was such an achievement is that Chris realised that the RPS was grossly over-geared and it was peaking at the end of the straight in fifth gear rather than sixth. So Graham added two teeth to the rear sprocket before he had his supper.
The evening meal was a fiasco. I’m leaving it at that because it was so stressful and I don’t want to re-live it.
Later on Marshal Neil gave Thelma a lift to her hotel which was so lovely of him (but he IS a very lovely man and that’s why we love him very much) (though he wasn't back for three hours and the hotel was only a mile away?).
Steve came round for a catch up as he wasn’t sharing a garage with us this time and it was a very pleasant end to the day.
There were thunderstorms on three sides of us earlier but we still had escaped the rain. It was almost uncanny. Everyone else’s rain had certainly cooled the air down a lot. I would rather have stood under the cold tap on the garage wall than enter those showers again.
Martin headed off to the ‘Madam Rouge’ for the night. He had walked into the caravan’s tow-bar earlier and really hurt his leg. I’d brought a pillow with me for him which he had to get from the side of the van and he bashed his leg again in the same place when he leaned in. So it hurts even more now. Poor Martin. Maybe it was something to do with the box of Cote du Rhone.
Sunday 28th August
After changing his mind several times Chris decided to go and qualify for the Race of Aces. (I thought this was called Race of Aged till I saw it written down) He did four laps on the RPS to test it and got 11th on the grid.
He came in early as his next race was immediately after and it was the UK Classic. Cormac 1st, Chris 2nd again and he got a 5th in class in the F750, a 1st in class to Cormac’s 2nd in the 1300 multis.
Chris’ nephew, Tom, arrived with his wife Carolyn and their son Alfie. Tom Wright will be riding at Brands Hatch on 25th September and Chris is hoping to be off work so he can go and watch.
The last race of the day was the Race of Aces. Graham thought it would be nice if Chris wore the new red and white version of his leathers. It was all getting a bit close to the final call and they couldn’t get Chris into the new ones as he was so sweaty and they are not yet worn-in. Abandoning them Chris found he couldn’t get back into the original leathers for the same sweaty reason. A passing CRMC official took charge and gave them a helping hand and Chris just made it in time.
At Donington Derek gave Chris a Cool-vest which is quilted and you soak it in cold water and wear it under your leathers. It’s really effective and Chris was particularly glad of it after all the ‘getting changed’ he’d had to do.
Hearing Graham the commentator say that the front three, which had now dropped out, had been so far ahead Chris wouldn’t realise that he could get a podium place. I decided to stop packing and watch the final laps of the race from the pit wall. Chris passed the final lap flag in 3rd place with Carl Adams closing fast. Graham Redrup was waving furiously at Chris to get a move on. As they got to the end of the start/finish straight Chris was passed by Carl and we waited for them to come round again. Carl stayed in front and got 3rd with Chris in 4th. Chris did win £75 though.
Another very good weekend of racing for Chris. Valuable points gained and a good try-out for the RPS which ran beautifully. Patrick and the children helped take down the gazebo and as we moved it under the back door of the van, finally, the heavens opened. A river flowed between me and the garage so I put my feet up and sat it out on the back shelf of the van.
We had a quick journey home and Derek was there to meet us and unload the RPS.
Graham and Janet will be returning the North Monday.
Thank you Derek for cleaning the paintwork in the hallway in my house while we were away. Wow! You must’ve been depressed.. My house gets covered in oily hand marks and dirty bike jacket scuffing and no-one else gives a damn.
Thank you Graham and Janet for transporting the North and for, again, providing Martin with a bed for the night.
A big thank you to Brett Randall for delivering Chris’ last year’s prize for the UK Classic – a new pair of racing boots, badly needed.
Gav, who got a close look at the terra firma in his second to last race, all of us hope your bruises don’t hurt too much or for too long. Your leathers look like Chris’ now and we know how much you want to be like him.
Beezumph next in two weeks at Anglesey. Then the final meeting at Silverstone – another ghastly place. Give us Brands next year, please!!
LSW
Donington Park 2016
Thursday 4th August
We had a surprisingly quick journey to Donington considering the hold-ups we encountered. We had a garage in paddock one but only had a pass for paddocks two and three. That had to be sorted straight away.
We were parked at the Melbourne Loop and Chris got the Hanka out and cycled off to find Jono Yardley. He had been gone no more than ten minutes when the heavens opened and his rain jacket was behind my seat. I expected he’d hole-up at Paul Potter’s for tea and not be back for a while so I put my feet up on the seat and settled down for a sleep. I’d barely finished my pre-snooze ‘empty my mind from racing’ exercise when Martin rang to say he couldn't get in without a vehicle pass. We’d not experienced this dilemma before now and Chris had left his mobile in the van (typical of him) so we couldn't tell him.
Luckily the couple on the gate recognised Martin as a W.A.N.C.A and let him in. So Martin walked up to the Melbourne Loop and sat out the rain in the van and had a pork pie and a drink while we waited for Chris’ return.
Graham and Janet arrived, also with only a paddock two/ three pass, and decided to find a spot in paddock two before it filled up too much. The distance between them and garage 5 was still going to be vast wherever they parked as garage 5 was as far away as you could get.
Chris came back and Martin returned to his bike and was able to bring it in. The track day was over at 5pm and by 6pm we were allowed into paddock one. We had Steve, with only a van, in the garage next to us which left an enormous amount of space for Graham’s van and caravan. Graham struck camp and parked up next to us and was immediately a much happier chap.
After all the bollocks with Martin’s bike, no-one had asked to see any paperwork from any of us at the entrance to paddock one. It’s been like a prison gate in previous years – Last year Graham managed to trick them into letting him bring the North to Chris in his van, saying he’d be straight back, but didn't leave the paddock again until Sunday evening.
Due to the lack of camping areas inside Donington, Martin was offered a bed in the Transvestite Hotel - the converted Ford Transit which is owned and managed by the Madam Greme Rouge-Roup.
Friday 5th August
After a very sociable evening, with a much later than planned bed-time, we were relieved to have had an undisturbed night from planes due to Gav’s brilliant chain-saw earplugs. Lou said she was impressed at how well they worked but didn't know whether to take it personally that Gav was still wearing his ear defenders while they were having breakfast – don’t give Chris any ideas or he’ll be wearing them every day till I die.
Gav was out first thing and stalled the MT. Martin had to push him the length of the pit lane to get him restarted. Very hot today.
Only one race for Chris, although it’s quite an exhausting one as he’s in the programme to be on the North and the RPS at the same time.
Parked by the holding area is the noisiest place in the paddock. There are some extremely loud bikes which need to be publicly burned but they did cover up the ‘biker life-style’ music. The choice of music was not so bad but it sounded like it was being played through tin cans.
Practice went well for both bikes.
Chris’ first race 1300 multis, Cormac and Chris finishing 1st and 2nd in class respectively. Really close for four laps then Cormac pulled away and there was no catching him.
Formula 750s – What’s that! Chris decided to have race entries for all the F750s to test the bike out and have a bit more to do over the weekend. After a couple of laps the RPS started pinking. At over 100 mph Chris immediately pulled over onto the grass. He came to a halt and the marshals were shouting ‘push it over here’ so Chris pushed it over there and ended in the gravel-trap. He couldn't go any further so he let go of the bike and it just stayed upright in the gravel. Once again the marshals were shouting ‘push it over here’ and, as the bike was now really stuck Chris shouted back ‘if you want it over there YOU effing push it’ and walked off to a safer place to sit out the race.
Meanwhile, back at the garage we were all waiting for Chris who, as far as we were concerned had vanished. We couldn't hear the commentator from the pit wall. After an age Chris and Martin appeared pushing the bike back to the garage. Richard Peckett had a look at the RPS while I got the wheelie bin ready. The same thing as Croft had happened again and there was nothing anyone could do about it here.
This is the part of the diary where I lost track of the days as I sunk into depression at the thought of another month of Chris being totally unavailable to do anything to help with real life because he’s stripping down and rebuilding the RPS like he’s done all the other months since before Christmas.
Stuff happened, we had supper and, in case it got breezy, I put two tie-down straps onto the gazebo before going to bed.
Saturday 6th August
In fact the RPS thing might have been Saturday too but I can’t remember.
The breeze was more boisterous today so I added a couple more tie-downs to the gazebo - which appeared to be doubling up as Graham’s washing line. I had culinary duties to attend to after making breakfast. We were having a barbeque that evening and I was making a coleslaw and a potato salad. When it came to preparing the carrots I looked for the grater Chris had proudly produced last summer. He’d got it from a camping store somewhere. It measured 4’’x 2’’ and was as blunt as arseholes so I despatched it straight away and phoned Lou to see if she’d lend me hers. She lent me her pride and joy and I cut my thumb immediately and rolling cigarettes was really difficult for the rest of the weekend.
Lou asked if I fancied a walk and I said I’d love to as soon as I’d stopped bleeding. I met up with her later and, having checked her grater was free of thumb-skin, I returned it to her. Gav had given money for ice cream and we chose from the van before setting off on the path round the outside of the track and eventually stopped opposite marshal station 11. ‘Neil’s over there in that chair’ Lou said and we waved to get his attention but there was nothing. It was very hot and Lou said he might be dead so I thought we could check if I showed him my bra. Lou thought this was a good idea and as I pulled up my t-shirt she said ‘I think he’s at station 12’. Moving on and opposite station 12 we realised that there indeed was Neil, in his hat, casually leaning on the railing with an air which expressed years of marshalling experience.
We waved but the bikes were approaching and we noticed, with awe, that his gaze did not once stray from the passing motorcycles no-matter what we did to distract him. Impressed, we continued on our walk. I asked Lou how camping on the cinders in paddock 3 was going. She said it was so dusty and dirty. Also the toilets were towed-in trailers and were very tight for space inside each cubical. You open the door and it is an inch away from the front of the seat. The girls discussed various ways of dealing with this problem. One solution was to push the door open as far as you could and walk in, face the door and entirely straddle the toilet, reach for the door and close it and un-straddle the toilet again by doing a series of little bunny hops so you didn't touch your legs to the pan. If you are busting for a pee, forget it. All this could have been avoided if the man who designed it had the door hung so it OPENED OUTWARDS.
One of Chris’ races today, he stalled on the grid for warm-up and had to start the race from the back. It’s a shame as he could've got a 1st in class as Cormac broke down, but Chris had too much ground to make up. Chris got 3rd in class though and said he’d check he wasn't in a false neutral next time.
Another of the Multis Cormac’s throttle cable broke but after he pulled over the race was red-flagged. The race was re-run after lunch and Cormac won.
In the last multis of the weekend Cormac had a problem again and Chris got the 1st in class. This is all very vague and I've had to guess most of the race info but sometimes I really can’t be bothered to keep diving out of the caravan at the end of a race to write it all down. Maybe another member of the team can scribble a few lines in the book re the races and mechanical stuff over the weekend. Or Chris should do it. After all, he was there!
We had a barbeque that evening and we were joined by Derek and Shirley who were up for the weekend. Shirley was happy to be brolly dolly for Chris in the Wheatcroft Trophy pre-race line-up Sunday. Lucky she was there or it would've had to be Graham in his leotard.
Gav lost fourth gear in one of his races and still managed to finish 6th. He put a whole new engine in his bike that afternoon.
Sunday 7th August
Windier than ever today. More tie-downs on the gazebo. More washing on the tie-downs. Chris only had the Trophy race today after lunch. It isn't worth talking about as he’ll never get anywhere in it.
I packed as much as I could and we got away reasonably quickly after racing finished. A good weekend for most riders over-all. Various hold-ups due to weight of traffic put, in total, an hour on our journey home.
Thank you to Bro Pat for driving over to spend the day with us Saturday
to Derek and Shirley for helping with the packing and we’d like to congratulate Shirley on her amazing control over the brolly in the wind pre wheatcroft Trophy race. Biceps like iron.
to Paul Potter for entertaining us Friday evening. We love him to bits.
to Graham Redrup for collecting, taking and delivering back the North
and it was lovely to have Spike Livingstone join us for lunch Saturday. Always great to see him.
So that was the dreaded Donington. It’s good to get that one out of the way.
Next is Snetterton. I like it there and there’s lots of room for Martin’s tent.
However, a lot of Chris’ family are coming so we are going to be at capacity. I will already have quite enough to do and I’m exhausted. And we will only have 3 x 3m gazebo, and we normally fill that.
It would be nice to have a quieter meeting at Silverstone, here's hoping !!
Thank you.
LSW
We had a surprisingly quick journey to Donington considering the hold-ups we encountered. We had a garage in paddock one but only had a pass for paddocks two and three. That had to be sorted straight away.
We were parked at the Melbourne Loop and Chris got the Hanka out and cycled off to find Jono Yardley. He had been gone no more than ten minutes when the heavens opened and his rain jacket was behind my seat. I expected he’d hole-up at Paul Potter’s for tea and not be back for a while so I put my feet up on the seat and settled down for a sleep. I’d barely finished my pre-snooze ‘empty my mind from racing’ exercise when Martin rang to say he couldn't get in without a vehicle pass. We’d not experienced this dilemma before now and Chris had left his mobile in the van (typical of him) so we couldn't tell him.
Luckily the couple on the gate recognised Martin as a W.A.N.C.A and let him in. So Martin walked up to the Melbourne Loop and sat out the rain in the van and had a pork pie and a drink while we waited for Chris’ return.
Graham and Janet arrived, also with only a paddock two/ three pass, and decided to find a spot in paddock two before it filled up too much. The distance between them and garage 5 was still going to be vast wherever they parked as garage 5 was as far away as you could get.
Chris came back and Martin returned to his bike and was able to bring it in. The track day was over at 5pm and by 6pm we were allowed into paddock one. We had Steve, with only a van, in the garage next to us which left an enormous amount of space for Graham’s van and caravan. Graham struck camp and parked up next to us and was immediately a much happier chap.
After all the bollocks with Martin’s bike, no-one had asked to see any paperwork from any of us at the entrance to paddock one. It’s been like a prison gate in previous years – Last year Graham managed to trick them into letting him bring the North to Chris in his van, saying he’d be straight back, but didn't leave the paddock again until Sunday evening.
Due to the lack of camping areas inside Donington, Martin was offered a bed in the Transvestite Hotel - the converted Ford Transit which is owned and managed by the Madam Greme Rouge-Roup.
Friday 5th August
After a very sociable evening, with a much later than planned bed-time, we were relieved to have had an undisturbed night from planes due to Gav’s brilliant chain-saw earplugs. Lou said she was impressed at how well they worked but didn't know whether to take it personally that Gav was still wearing his ear defenders while they were having breakfast – don’t give Chris any ideas or he’ll be wearing them every day till I die.
Gav was out first thing and stalled the MT. Martin had to push him the length of the pit lane to get him restarted. Very hot today.
Only one race for Chris, although it’s quite an exhausting one as he’s in the programme to be on the North and the RPS at the same time.
Parked by the holding area is the noisiest place in the paddock. There are some extremely loud bikes which need to be publicly burned but they did cover up the ‘biker life-style’ music. The choice of music was not so bad but it sounded like it was being played through tin cans.
Practice went well for both bikes.
Chris’ first race 1300 multis, Cormac and Chris finishing 1st and 2nd in class respectively. Really close for four laps then Cormac pulled away and there was no catching him.
Formula 750s – What’s that! Chris decided to have race entries for all the F750s to test the bike out and have a bit more to do over the weekend. After a couple of laps the RPS started pinking. At over 100 mph Chris immediately pulled over onto the grass. He came to a halt and the marshals were shouting ‘push it over here’ so Chris pushed it over there and ended in the gravel-trap. He couldn't go any further so he let go of the bike and it just stayed upright in the gravel. Once again the marshals were shouting ‘push it over here’ and, as the bike was now really stuck Chris shouted back ‘if you want it over there YOU effing push it’ and walked off to a safer place to sit out the race.
Meanwhile, back at the garage we were all waiting for Chris who, as far as we were concerned had vanished. We couldn't hear the commentator from the pit wall. After an age Chris and Martin appeared pushing the bike back to the garage. Richard Peckett had a look at the RPS while I got the wheelie bin ready. The same thing as Croft had happened again and there was nothing anyone could do about it here.
This is the part of the diary where I lost track of the days as I sunk into depression at the thought of another month of Chris being totally unavailable to do anything to help with real life because he’s stripping down and rebuilding the RPS like he’s done all the other months since before Christmas.
Stuff happened, we had supper and, in case it got breezy, I put two tie-down straps onto the gazebo before going to bed.
Saturday 6th August
In fact the RPS thing might have been Saturday too but I can’t remember.
The breeze was more boisterous today so I added a couple more tie-downs to the gazebo - which appeared to be doubling up as Graham’s washing line. I had culinary duties to attend to after making breakfast. We were having a barbeque that evening and I was making a coleslaw and a potato salad. When it came to preparing the carrots I looked for the grater Chris had proudly produced last summer. He’d got it from a camping store somewhere. It measured 4’’x 2’’ and was as blunt as arseholes so I despatched it straight away and phoned Lou to see if she’d lend me hers. She lent me her pride and joy and I cut my thumb immediately and rolling cigarettes was really difficult for the rest of the weekend.
Lou asked if I fancied a walk and I said I’d love to as soon as I’d stopped bleeding. I met up with her later and, having checked her grater was free of thumb-skin, I returned it to her. Gav had given money for ice cream and we chose from the van before setting off on the path round the outside of the track and eventually stopped opposite marshal station 11. ‘Neil’s over there in that chair’ Lou said and we waved to get his attention but there was nothing. It was very hot and Lou said he might be dead so I thought we could check if I showed him my bra. Lou thought this was a good idea and as I pulled up my t-shirt she said ‘I think he’s at station 12’. Moving on and opposite station 12 we realised that there indeed was Neil, in his hat, casually leaning on the railing with an air which expressed years of marshalling experience.
We waved but the bikes were approaching and we noticed, with awe, that his gaze did not once stray from the passing motorcycles no-matter what we did to distract him. Impressed, we continued on our walk. I asked Lou how camping on the cinders in paddock 3 was going. She said it was so dusty and dirty. Also the toilets were towed-in trailers and were very tight for space inside each cubical. You open the door and it is an inch away from the front of the seat. The girls discussed various ways of dealing with this problem. One solution was to push the door open as far as you could and walk in, face the door and entirely straddle the toilet, reach for the door and close it and un-straddle the toilet again by doing a series of little bunny hops so you didn't touch your legs to the pan. If you are busting for a pee, forget it. All this could have been avoided if the man who designed it had the door hung so it OPENED OUTWARDS.
One of Chris’ races today, he stalled on the grid for warm-up and had to start the race from the back. It’s a shame as he could've got a 1st in class as Cormac broke down, but Chris had too much ground to make up. Chris got 3rd in class though and said he’d check he wasn't in a false neutral next time.
Another of the Multis Cormac’s throttle cable broke but after he pulled over the race was red-flagged. The race was re-run after lunch and Cormac won.
In the last multis of the weekend Cormac had a problem again and Chris got the 1st in class. This is all very vague and I've had to guess most of the race info but sometimes I really can’t be bothered to keep diving out of the caravan at the end of a race to write it all down. Maybe another member of the team can scribble a few lines in the book re the races and mechanical stuff over the weekend. Or Chris should do it. After all, he was there!
We had a barbeque that evening and we were joined by Derek and Shirley who were up for the weekend. Shirley was happy to be brolly dolly for Chris in the Wheatcroft Trophy pre-race line-up Sunday. Lucky she was there or it would've had to be Graham in his leotard.
Gav lost fourth gear in one of his races and still managed to finish 6th. He put a whole new engine in his bike that afternoon.
Sunday 7th August
Windier than ever today. More tie-downs on the gazebo. More washing on the tie-downs. Chris only had the Trophy race today after lunch. It isn't worth talking about as he’ll never get anywhere in it.
I packed as much as I could and we got away reasonably quickly after racing finished. A good weekend for most riders over-all. Various hold-ups due to weight of traffic put, in total, an hour on our journey home.
Thank you to Bro Pat for driving over to spend the day with us Saturday
to Derek and Shirley for helping with the packing and we’d like to congratulate Shirley on her amazing control over the brolly in the wind pre wheatcroft Trophy race. Biceps like iron.
to Paul Potter for entertaining us Friday evening. We love him to bits.
to Graham Redrup for collecting, taking and delivering back the North
and it was lovely to have Spike Livingstone join us for lunch Saturday. Always great to see him.
So that was the dreaded Donington. It’s good to get that one out of the way.
Next is Snetterton. I like it there and there’s lots of room for Martin’s tent.
However, a lot of Chris’ family are coming so we are going to be at capacity. I will already have quite enough to do and I’m exhausted. And we will only have 3 x 3m gazebo, and we normally fill that.
It would be nice to have a quieter meeting at Silverstone, here's hoping !!
Thank you.
LSW
Anglesey 2016
Thursday 7th July
Chris got out of bed and pulled a muscle in his back which was a really good start to the day. The subsequent massage I had to give him, so he could get off the bed again, somewhat upset my packing progress.
I only found out the seriousness of the interruption later in the day. I began to think about the chicken enchiladas and sour cream for supper as we approached the A55 and realised I’d left them in the fridge at home which left a pot of sour cream between us for our evening meal.
Once we’d reached the circuit and unloaded the van into the garage Chris set off to Holyhead to buy more Mexican from Tesco leaving me to set up the caravan.
Having discovered I’d left my wash-bag at home I rang Chris to ask him to buy me a toothbrush. He’d left his mobile in the van and I had to keep ringing him in case he he didn’t look at the phone before he drove off. After Oh So Many attempts, I finally caught him. Then my mobile’s battery started to show red and there was nothing I could do because I’d forgotten the charger. I am very aware that we have been doing this racing malarkey for ten years yet I don’t seem to get any better at it.
Chris was gone some time and track day riders were arriving. I’d already moved the caravan once and had to stand between it and our garage so no-one nicked the space for Chris’ van. It was very very windy and very very cold. We didn’t put up the gazebo as it wouldn’t have been there in the morning and Gav and Alan would share the garage with us for the weekend. The caravan shook in the gale that night and stuff started moving about the paddock. With no gazebo to worry about I rammed in my ear-plugs and slipped into oblivion till morning.
Test day - Friday 8th July
Lovely sunshine to start the day but the strong wind kept the temperature down. Honorary W.A.N.C.A, Marshal Neil Boorman, joined us for a day’s work experience fagging for Chris. Training complete, we can announce that Neil is now a complete W.A.N.C.A and equal to all the other complete W.A.N.C.As in our team.
The North went very well in practice. Chris spent his final session running in a new pair of tyres and, having split the test day with Alan Major, spent the rest of the day with our lovely friend Nick Reich who’d come from New York specially to attend a race meeting and get the full Chapman racing experience. Also we were expecting a mutual friend, Taff Robinson, Saturday, to complete the reunion.
Chris helped Nick put up our Khyam One-touch tent. Nick chose a stony piece of ground at the edge of the paddock. The pegs wouldn’t go in far and Chris wasn’t sure it was secure but Nick said it would be fine. We’d had a very sociable evening all of us in the garage together. The weather was wet and wild that night but Nick made it through the night unscathed.
Saturday 9th July
The bad weather continued. Waterproofs were the order of the day and Gav slipped into his black patent number. I returned from the caravan in various shades of green raincoat and trousers and met Lou in the garage dressed similarly in black. Today was not a occasion for vanity. ‘- always try to look our best’ she said.
Alan was finding his one-piece nylon over-suit a little hot. We agreed he needed one with vents.
After practice the weather worsened. A few races in, bikes were being blown off the track. Racing was suspended for an hour.
Nick went to check the tent and found it upside down. Only a guy rope which had hooked itself under a piece of wheel rim on a neighbouring van had stopped the tent from being a kite. I went to the caravan to read and promptly fell asleep and woke at 4pm to find everywhere quiet and that racing had never resumed.
Taff had arrived and the four of us went to save the tent. We moved it to proper grass on higher ground where there was some shelter provided by a parked four by four. I went back to the van and returned with all the spare guy ropes which we attached higher up the poles in an exotic cats-cradle fashion. I decided to do the same for Marshal Neil’s tent which was looking rather flat and already had a fractured pole. Neil added two of our 3 x 6 gazebo straps to the front of the tent and it was solid as a rock.
Chris took Nick and Taff to Holyhead to buy a new kettle as ours had a leak. Neil kindly bought one from Tesco Friday evening but once unpacked it was found to have had the spout smashed off. Neil was quite upset about it and wanted to return it immediately but we told him it was out of the question and that he should relax, enjoy the evening and not worry about the fact he, so miserably, failed in his duties.
Sunday 10th July
After a frightening night of terrible weather everyone got up and assessed their equipment for any damage. A call went out for stand-in marshals as many had lost their tents and had gone home and there were fewer competitors. The races were reduced to five laps each and each class would drop a race in order to finish by the noise cut-off time, 5pm. The strong wind claimed many riders – one of the fallers being Alan Major who slid away gracefully in front of his family who were on the pit wall. His waterproof over-suit now had vents in it.
Alan’s bike was returned to the garage and it was all hands on deck. Thank you Gristwoods for the loan of their oxyacetylene, and the Majors for having the faith in Chris’ ability to use it properly on Alan’s exhaust system – Chris + fire/hot & sharp things, generally = A&E and a nasty mess in the garage.
Chris had no ‘moments’ in his three races and, in one of them, had a good battle with the chap on the Norton. George H-R was flying as usual and Cormac also – he was rushing to catch a ferry so Chris lost his sparring partner for the afternoon.
Rob Whittey, leading the Post-Classic Unlimited, was, as always, thrilling to watch.
Gav got a third in class and two sixths – he’s no-longer ‘up and coming’. He’s arrived!
Chris got a 3rd, 2nd and 1st in class and Alan got two 2nds. Gav and Alan are both sitting 4th in their respective championships after this weekend. The sun came out for the majority of Sunday’s racing but the wind became more and more ferocious. It was, at times, hard to walk along. The wind-speed was right on the border line for running races. The CRMC did a great job with their rescheduling - the last bike crossing the line fifty seconds before the noise cut-off time.
Taff set off on the five hour trek back to Cardiff. Many of us had decided to stay the night and had a gathering in the garage. Nick set off at 9pm for Northampton and didn’t arrive at his hotel until 2.30am! He should have taken the A55 instead of the A5. Our caravan did not like being sideways to the wind and Chris parked the van next to it to shelter it a little. The garage was cleared before we went to bed and there was only the North to load in the morning. Graham kindly put the North in his van for the Sunday night.
Graham got a puncture in a tyre on the van fifteen miles from the circuit. We pulled in to help and Chris and Graham took it in turns with Chris’ bike pump to get the spare tyre to 60psi. I was thinking ‘never mind the breakdown truck, call an ambulance’. 60psi reached and the valve, which was buggered, let all the air out again. Graham called the AA and they sorted it out.
It was good to see Richard and Sandra Peckett who were having a whirl-wind break from the work-shop – Sandra, as usual, looking after Team W.A.N.C.As blood-sugar levels with a generous supply of biscuits and cookies.
It was really special that we were all together for the weekend and also to have lovely Rod with us and to have opened the garage door so many times for him. Thanks for the Amarula, Rod!
Next meeting. Donington. Nuff said about that.
LSW
Chris got out of bed and pulled a muscle in his back which was a really good start to the day. The subsequent massage I had to give him, so he could get off the bed again, somewhat upset my packing progress.
I only found out the seriousness of the interruption later in the day. I began to think about the chicken enchiladas and sour cream for supper as we approached the A55 and realised I’d left them in the fridge at home which left a pot of sour cream between us for our evening meal.
Once we’d reached the circuit and unloaded the van into the garage Chris set off to Holyhead to buy more Mexican from Tesco leaving me to set up the caravan.
Having discovered I’d left my wash-bag at home I rang Chris to ask him to buy me a toothbrush. He’d left his mobile in the van and I had to keep ringing him in case he he didn’t look at the phone before he drove off. After Oh So Many attempts, I finally caught him. Then my mobile’s battery started to show red and there was nothing I could do because I’d forgotten the charger. I am very aware that we have been doing this racing malarkey for ten years yet I don’t seem to get any better at it.
Chris was gone some time and track day riders were arriving. I’d already moved the caravan once and had to stand between it and our garage so no-one nicked the space for Chris’ van. It was very very windy and very very cold. We didn’t put up the gazebo as it wouldn’t have been there in the morning and Gav and Alan would share the garage with us for the weekend. The caravan shook in the gale that night and stuff started moving about the paddock. With no gazebo to worry about I rammed in my ear-plugs and slipped into oblivion till morning.
Test day - Friday 8th July
Lovely sunshine to start the day but the strong wind kept the temperature down. Honorary W.A.N.C.A, Marshal Neil Boorman, joined us for a day’s work experience fagging for Chris. Training complete, we can announce that Neil is now a complete W.A.N.C.A and equal to all the other complete W.A.N.C.As in our team.
The North went very well in practice. Chris spent his final session running in a new pair of tyres and, having split the test day with Alan Major, spent the rest of the day with our lovely friend Nick Reich who’d come from New York specially to attend a race meeting and get the full Chapman racing experience. Also we were expecting a mutual friend, Taff Robinson, Saturday, to complete the reunion.
Chris helped Nick put up our Khyam One-touch tent. Nick chose a stony piece of ground at the edge of the paddock. The pegs wouldn’t go in far and Chris wasn’t sure it was secure but Nick said it would be fine. We’d had a very sociable evening all of us in the garage together. The weather was wet and wild that night but Nick made it through the night unscathed.
Saturday 9th July
The bad weather continued. Waterproofs were the order of the day and Gav slipped into his black patent number. I returned from the caravan in various shades of green raincoat and trousers and met Lou in the garage dressed similarly in black. Today was not a occasion for vanity. ‘- always try to look our best’ she said.
Alan was finding his one-piece nylon over-suit a little hot. We agreed he needed one with vents.
After practice the weather worsened. A few races in, bikes were being blown off the track. Racing was suspended for an hour.
Nick went to check the tent and found it upside down. Only a guy rope which had hooked itself under a piece of wheel rim on a neighbouring van had stopped the tent from being a kite. I went to the caravan to read and promptly fell asleep and woke at 4pm to find everywhere quiet and that racing had never resumed.
Taff had arrived and the four of us went to save the tent. We moved it to proper grass on higher ground where there was some shelter provided by a parked four by four. I went back to the van and returned with all the spare guy ropes which we attached higher up the poles in an exotic cats-cradle fashion. I decided to do the same for Marshal Neil’s tent which was looking rather flat and already had a fractured pole. Neil added two of our 3 x 6 gazebo straps to the front of the tent and it was solid as a rock.
Chris took Nick and Taff to Holyhead to buy a new kettle as ours had a leak. Neil kindly bought one from Tesco Friday evening but once unpacked it was found to have had the spout smashed off. Neil was quite upset about it and wanted to return it immediately but we told him it was out of the question and that he should relax, enjoy the evening and not worry about the fact he, so miserably, failed in his duties.
Sunday 10th July
After a frightening night of terrible weather everyone got up and assessed their equipment for any damage. A call went out for stand-in marshals as many had lost their tents and had gone home and there were fewer competitors. The races were reduced to five laps each and each class would drop a race in order to finish by the noise cut-off time, 5pm. The strong wind claimed many riders – one of the fallers being Alan Major who slid away gracefully in front of his family who were on the pit wall. His waterproof over-suit now had vents in it.
Alan’s bike was returned to the garage and it was all hands on deck. Thank you Gristwoods for the loan of their oxyacetylene, and the Majors for having the faith in Chris’ ability to use it properly on Alan’s exhaust system – Chris + fire/hot & sharp things, generally = A&E and a nasty mess in the garage.
Chris had no ‘moments’ in his three races and, in one of them, had a good battle with the chap on the Norton. George H-R was flying as usual and Cormac also – he was rushing to catch a ferry so Chris lost his sparring partner for the afternoon.
Rob Whittey, leading the Post-Classic Unlimited, was, as always, thrilling to watch.
Gav got a third in class and two sixths – he’s no-longer ‘up and coming’. He’s arrived!
Chris got a 3rd, 2nd and 1st in class and Alan got two 2nds. Gav and Alan are both sitting 4th in their respective championships after this weekend. The sun came out for the majority of Sunday’s racing but the wind became more and more ferocious. It was, at times, hard to walk along. The wind-speed was right on the border line for running races. The CRMC did a great job with their rescheduling - the last bike crossing the line fifty seconds before the noise cut-off time.
Taff set off on the five hour trek back to Cardiff. Many of us had decided to stay the night and had a gathering in the garage. Nick set off at 9pm for Northampton and didn’t arrive at his hotel until 2.30am! He should have taken the A55 instead of the A5. Our caravan did not like being sideways to the wind and Chris parked the van next to it to shelter it a little. The garage was cleared before we went to bed and there was only the North to load in the morning. Graham kindly put the North in his van for the Sunday night.
Graham got a puncture in a tyre on the van fifteen miles from the circuit. We pulled in to help and Chris and Graham took it in turns with Chris’ bike pump to get the spare tyre to 60psi. I was thinking ‘never mind the breakdown truck, call an ambulance’. 60psi reached and the valve, which was buggered, let all the air out again. Graham called the AA and they sorted it out.
It was good to see Richard and Sandra Peckett who were having a whirl-wind break from the work-shop – Sandra, as usual, looking after Team W.A.N.C.As blood-sugar levels with a generous supply of biscuits and cookies.
It was really special that we were all together for the weekend and also to have lovely Rod with us and to have opened the garage door so many times for him. Thanks for the Amarula, Rod!
Next meeting. Donington. Nuff said about that.
LSW
Cadwell Park 2016
Thursday
Having worked every day but two since Croft, Chris having his step-father’s funeral to go to Tuesday and my parents and my workshop moving Wednesday, there was not a lot of time to organise ourselves for Cadwell. I was coming home later and later since Sunday with two nights when we didn't get to bed until 1.30am.
I had to leave Chris to empty the van and reload it with the racing rubbish after work on Wednesday and I finally joined him at 10pm.
We abandoned loading the North until the following morning and I left Chris slumped in front of the telly while I tidied the place up a bit before falling into bed early Thursday morning.
We set off for the M25 at 10.45am, drove back again to pick up Chris’ card wallet, arriving at the circuit at 5pm. We were expecting to be held outside until 5.30 but we were surprised to find everyone already in and the paddocks very full. We found a patch of grass which was being used as a car park and waited for them to leave. Huge areas were taped off. I know we have been guilty of having space saved for us on a couple of occasions but all our team use just the one 6 x 3 gazebo – some of the spaces taped off were vast. Chris really does need to think about the number of days he needs to add before a meeting now so people don’t have to save space for us, even if it means buying holiday because he’s run out.
The grass rectangle above us should have take two lines of pitches back to back. Instead, four plonked themselves down the centre of it. They got most sniffy when the Majors, Gav and Lou and Alan’s little van sprinkled themselves round the edges of the grass. One pathetic person in the caravan Alan parked in front of stuck two fingers up at Alan and Jade while they were sitting in the van. It’s a shame, but clubs are like the u-bend on my kitchen sink, it’s mostly lovely but there’s always a bit of scum.
A cute young rabbit spent the weekend where we were camping and it was not at phased by us or the bikes.
Graham arrived with Janet. It was her birthday. She was a little the worse for wear having fallen while entertaining someone’s dog. The weather was Mediterranean in Surrey but Siberian at Cadwell. The caravan fire packed up and we needed an expert, so Kevin Major got a busman’s holiday.
Friday
Marshall Neil arrived and went straight to his station. We squeezed his tent next to out caravan’s bathroom and hoped he wouldn't be made desperate in the night hearing Chris pee four feet away.
Chris only had one race and got a 1st in class on the North and the bike was running well.
Another cold evening but with the promise of warmer temperatures to come. Kevin Major brought with him a lovely awning for our caravan. Trying to get him to take money for it was like pulling teeth but at a risk of offending him we eventually managed to put it towards Alan’s race fund. (well, I think we did. It changed hands a few times).
It was lovely to go to a warm caravan that night. Neil had to squeeze into his tent which was stuffed with the huge animal print fleece blanket.
Saturday
A foggy start delayed racing until 10am. Chris didn't like it at all but regardless of the damp and the concrete dust he managed another 1st in class and a 2nd in class for the National – 1st in class went to Pete Weston on a Norton. Chris didn't realise it was the National or he’d have tried harder.
We had a hot and sunny afternoon with a visit from Spike who is banned from racing at present because he speaks the truth.
Neil, Lionel and I nipped to Louth for some shopping, and we nipped back again! (unlike a previous occasion when our homeward journey took twenty miles).
Marshal Ron spent the evening with us which was lovely and Derek (Cripps) just managed a quick catch up with us before we put the gazebo lights out.
Sunday
Hot weather again today. Bro Pat and son Aidan joined us and Dave from P&M.
The Colin Breeze Trophy race made Chris quite tired and he over-filled the North’s oil tank again so it was a big rush to get it syphoned before his final race after Dave saw oil on the rear tyre. Chris made it though and got a 1st in class. He’s now going to make a dip-stick instead of being a dip-stick.
I had been packing furiously during the afternoon and finished early enough to sort of ‘help’ Gav finish strike camp. He had a brilliant weekend and got a third in class for his efforts. His highest! (Your Highness!)
A swift journey home with a quick stop for a lovely takeaway Mexican. We got home at 10pm.
Next is Anglesey. We are expecting our good friend Nick who is coming especially to watch Chris race, all the way from Riverdale NY.
If we have two bikes Chris will do the F750s, even though he can’t get anywhere in that championship now, it will give him more track time and be a valuable spare bike should the North have a problem.
Graham and Janet will be in their caravan!! No more freezing to death for Janet - though we might nobble their gas fire so it’s not too luxurious straight away.
A very big thank you to Kevin for all his involvement with our team’s caravan issues. We really do appreciate all the time you give us.
See you at Anglesey.
LSW
Having worked every day but two since Croft, Chris having his step-father’s funeral to go to Tuesday and my parents and my workshop moving Wednesday, there was not a lot of time to organise ourselves for Cadwell. I was coming home later and later since Sunday with two nights when we didn't get to bed until 1.30am.
I had to leave Chris to empty the van and reload it with the racing rubbish after work on Wednesday and I finally joined him at 10pm.
We abandoned loading the North until the following morning and I left Chris slumped in front of the telly while I tidied the place up a bit before falling into bed early Thursday morning.
We set off for the M25 at 10.45am, drove back again to pick up Chris’ card wallet, arriving at the circuit at 5pm. We were expecting to be held outside until 5.30 but we were surprised to find everyone already in and the paddocks very full. We found a patch of grass which was being used as a car park and waited for them to leave. Huge areas were taped off. I know we have been guilty of having space saved for us on a couple of occasions but all our team use just the one 6 x 3 gazebo – some of the spaces taped off were vast. Chris really does need to think about the number of days he needs to add before a meeting now so people don’t have to save space for us, even if it means buying holiday because he’s run out.
The grass rectangle above us should have take two lines of pitches back to back. Instead, four plonked themselves down the centre of it. They got most sniffy when the Majors, Gav and Lou and Alan’s little van sprinkled themselves round the edges of the grass. One pathetic person in the caravan Alan parked in front of stuck two fingers up at Alan and Jade while they were sitting in the van. It’s a shame, but clubs are like the u-bend on my kitchen sink, it’s mostly lovely but there’s always a bit of scum.
A cute young rabbit spent the weekend where we were camping and it was not at phased by us or the bikes.
Graham arrived with Janet. It was her birthday. She was a little the worse for wear having fallen while entertaining someone’s dog. The weather was Mediterranean in Surrey but Siberian at Cadwell. The caravan fire packed up and we needed an expert, so Kevin Major got a busman’s holiday.
Friday
Marshall Neil arrived and went straight to his station. We squeezed his tent next to out caravan’s bathroom and hoped he wouldn't be made desperate in the night hearing Chris pee four feet away.
Chris only had one race and got a 1st in class on the North and the bike was running well.
Another cold evening but with the promise of warmer temperatures to come. Kevin Major brought with him a lovely awning for our caravan. Trying to get him to take money for it was like pulling teeth but at a risk of offending him we eventually managed to put it towards Alan’s race fund. (well, I think we did. It changed hands a few times).
It was lovely to go to a warm caravan that night. Neil had to squeeze into his tent which was stuffed with the huge animal print fleece blanket.
Saturday
A foggy start delayed racing until 10am. Chris didn't like it at all but regardless of the damp and the concrete dust he managed another 1st in class and a 2nd in class for the National – 1st in class went to Pete Weston on a Norton. Chris didn't realise it was the National or he’d have tried harder.
We had a hot and sunny afternoon with a visit from Spike who is banned from racing at present because he speaks the truth.
Neil, Lionel and I nipped to Louth for some shopping, and we nipped back again! (unlike a previous occasion when our homeward journey took twenty miles).
Marshal Ron spent the evening with us which was lovely and Derek (Cripps) just managed a quick catch up with us before we put the gazebo lights out.
Sunday
Hot weather again today. Bro Pat and son Aidan joined us and Dave from P&M.
The Colin Breeze Trophy race made Chris quite tired and he over-filled the North’s oil tank again so it was a big rush to get it syphoned before his final race after Dave saw oil on the rear tyre. Chris made it though and got a 1st in class. He’s now going to make a dip-stick instead of being a dip-stick.
I had been packing furiously during the afternoon and finished early enough to sort of ‘help’ Gav finish strike camp. He had a brilliant weekend and got a third in class for his efforts. His highest! (Your Highness!)
A swift journey home with a quick stop for a lovely takeaway Mexican. We got home at 10pm.
Next is Anglesey. We are expecting our good friend Nick who is coming especially to watch Chris race, all the way from Riverdale NY.
If we have two bikes Chris will do the F750s, even though he can’t get anywhere in that championship now, it will give him more track time and be a valuable spare bike should the North have a problem.
Graham and Janet will be in their caravan!! No more freezing to death for Janet - though we might nobble their gas fire so it’s not too luxurious straight away.
A very big thank you to Kevin for all his involvement with our team’s caravan issues. We really do appreciate all the time you give us.
See you at Anglesey.
LSW
Croft 2016
The lead-up to Croft, as far as the bikes are concerned, will have to be covered by Chris in a separate article. I am unable to tell you about the nightmare the last five weeks have been as I stopped listening early April.
All I can say is that it was a big rush, like Pembrey, and while Chris wasted more of his life on the RPS I had to do everything else, like for Pembrey. At least the bike would be running this time eh!
Thursday 5th we tried to leave at 9am but Chris wanted a hair cut. By the time I’d done that and he’d had to detach the caravan from the van to get it round a crappily parked car we were on the M25 at 10am.
Graham had picked up the North earlier in the week and was ahead of us by an hour. After a five and a half hour journey, some of it through numerous 50mph road works, most of them with nothing going on, we reached the circuit at 3.30pm. We, and most of the competitors it seems, missed the brown circuit sign which was in the hedge, and shot straight past.
Chris parked up and we had a look round. We had a garage but wanted the gazebo, caravan and tents on the grass. The first area we chose was for the marquee. The second area an official said he’d rather we didn’t. We finally ended up on the next closest grassed area to the garages. It was a bit of a hike and we hadn’t brought the bicycle. Chris wouldn’t pay £5 a day for power so that I could have a proper kettle and everything I needed in the gazebo so the big fridge was in the garage. I decided I would have to be very organised around meal times or I’d be walking up and down there all day.
Chris finished the RPS last night at 10pm so I’d done the van packing and had yet to discover what I’d forgotten to put in. In hindsight we’d have been better off with the big gazebo and no garage and Chris might have forked out for electricity. My poor little legs would be worn out by the end of the weekend. Is there a name for the surgical procedure that removes Chris’ wallet from his back pocket?
By the time the paddock was full we realised though how lucky we were. Gavin and the Majors were a short drive away and the ONE water tap – ONE WATER TAP – was by the entrance gate. One of the days was going to be really hot. By the end of the weekend there’d be a pile of the elderly and the weak shrivelled up 20 yards from the tap where they didn’t quite make it.
Jim Pipe arrived and parked up on the edge of the grass so he could use the van over the weekend for trips to the tap etc. The fridge being so far away meant I didn’t check the frozenness of the supper and we ate very late that evening. It was a lovely still evening though but a bit cold.
Fri 6th. Test Day.
Sound test first thing. The boys started the first bike at 8.30am which was the time clearly stated in the circuit paperwork. They were told in no uncertain terms to turn it off again as the start time was meant to be 9am.
The RPS was given the morning sessions and the North those after lunch. I think the RPS went well but I forgot to ask.
Rod called by the gazebo and asked where Chris’ bikes were. We told him they were in the garage. Rod said he’d been several times and couldn’t find Chris, Graham or Martin either. ‘It’s garage 9’ we told him. That explained it. Chris had told him garage 5. We don’t think Chris meant anything by it Rod. I found I forgot to bring the camera so we’re relying on Martin to fill the gallery.
Chris didn’t find the circuit easy to learn and wanted to put in as many laps as he could. The North stopped on the session after lunch and was delivered to the garage in the breakdown van. Martin said it was down to Chris’ dodgy wiring as well as all the connectors being loose. Chris got only a couple more laps in before the end of the day. Having been sound tested for the test day everyone now had to be sound tested for the CRMC meeting. Graham and Chris took the bikes and summoned Martin to bring the starter. Martin, who’s meant to be on light duties as he still a little raspberried-up, pushed the starter to scrutineering which, from our gazebo, looked like a garden shed it was so far away. He found they’d gone and had to push the starter all the way back to the garage, uphill!
Marshall Neil and I hit Morrisons and got there and back in record time as we didn’t get lost – Neil regularly keeping the satnav in line by telling her to ‘F-off you stupid bitch’.
There was a singer in the marquee that evening with disco during his rest breaks. A man in a suit accompanied by his music machine belted out his repertoire which covered everything from tea-dance to rock and roll.
The weather had been warm and hazy but it got very cold later. Neil went to bed clutching the hot water bottle having courageously given the fleecy blanket to Martin. I have a leopard-print one at home which I must remember to put in the caravan. Neil won’t mind the leopard-print one as he’s a thespian.
Sat 7th.
Someone said we’d be having good weather this weekend but today it definitely passed Croft by. It was very damp with a very cold breeze. The boys were having the morning’s obligatory pee discussion – who got up when in the night and whether they got back to sleep again.
Dave Whitfield joined us and a family member, Tony, was expected that afternoon from Barnard Castle.
Chris and the North had a close look at the tarmac in practice and Graham and Martin started the tidy-up as the North was out again in race 4 and Chris and it would have to go to scrutineering before then. Chris leapt into the medical centre. When asked ‘what hurts’ Chris said ‘Only my pride’.
He cheered himself up with a 1st in class in the 1300s - the North behaving beautifully – must have been the kicking I threatened it with last week.
The RPS, having done well on the test day, was in disgrace again. Chris came in early in the first F750 with the rear of the bike dripping oil. It would not be going out again this meeting or Cadwell.
Alan Major won his first race of the weekend. He’s a little way to go until he’s fully recovered from the injury at Pembrey but he’s not letting that stop him. He’s a tough little soldier.
Chris finished the day with another 1st in class in the 1300s and was less downcast.
I texted the results and news to Ashley. He asked how Chris slid off when there was a heat wave. I told him he might be having one down there but up here it was between 3 and 5 degrees in the wind. He was on a train going home and said it was so hot, people’s sweat was dripping on the floor.
We went to the marquee for pie, peas and chips supper. £3.50. It was lovely. No washing-up to do either. There was prize-giving after and Chris got a gold medal for his day’s achievement. It was only when he got it home and examined it he saw it has 2015 on it! Must be still working their way through last years’ job lot.
There was entertainment again and it went on until 11pm. Strangely Croft has a ruling – no generators after 9pm! Pretty unfair when you take into account that the noise from the drunks and the music was so loud no-one would have heard a hundred generators above it.
Sun 8th.
After a hazy start we got our heat wave today. Due to noise restrictions at Croft racing would start at noon today. With no RPS, and only the National and a Trophy race to do, Chris was in for a quiet day. Sod’s Law the National was the last race of the day. Last year they mixed it up a bit and had the higher CCs finish earlier at some meetings. One of them we were ready to leave at 5pm!
Martin Rawlinson and Jim Smith came to Croft for the day.
Having had quite a busy and late lunch time my packing schedule was thrown into disarray. I worked non-stop the rest of the afternoon with Jim helping with the two-person jobs. Jim even rescued the hook-up cable Chris had plugged in on Thursday before he’d decided £5/day was too much for him and hadn’t bothered to bring back in. I was going to leave it in the bushes for someone else to have.
Chris got a 2nd in class in the National. He was beaten by Cormac who started from the back of the grid!
Then we all went home.
Thank you to Tony for helping pack up the garage stuff.
To Graham for taking the North and delivering the RPS back to P&M.
To Jim Pipe for taking Gav’s birthday present in his car and helping me strike camp.
Next up – Cadwell. One bike! Hope it’s in a good mood.
See you then.
LSW
All I can say is that it was a big rush, like Pembrey, and while Chris wasted more of his life on the RPS I had to do everything else, like for Pembrey. At least the bike would be running this time eh!
Thursday 5th we tried to leave at 9am but Chris wanted a hair cut. By the time I’d done that and he’d had to detach the caravan from the van to get it round a crappily parked car we were on the M25 at 10am.
Graham had picked up the North earlier in the week and was ahead of us by an hour. After a five and a half hour journey, some of it through numerous 50mph road works, most of them with nothing going on, we reached the circuit at 3.30pm. We, and most of the competitors it seems, missed the brown circuit sign which was in the hedge, and shot straight past.
Chris parked up and we had a look round. We had a garage but wanted the gazebo, caravan and tents on the grass. The first area we chose was for the marquee. The second area an official said he’d rather we didn’t. We finally ended up on the next closest grassed area to the garages. It was a bit of a hike and we hadn’t brought the bicycle. Chris wouldn’t pay £5 a day for power so that I could have a proper kettle and everything I needed in the gazebo so the big fridge was in the garage. I decided I would have to be very organised around meal times or I’d be walking up and down there all day.
Chris finished the RPS last night at 10pm so I’d done the van packing and had yet to discover what I’d forgotten to put in. In hindsight we’d have been better off with the big gazebo and no garage and Chris might have forked out for electricity. My poor little legs would be worn out by the end of the weekend. Is there a name for the surgical procedure that removes Chris’ wallet from his back pocket?
By the time the paddock was full we realised though how lucky we were. Gavin and the Majors were a short drive away and the ONE water tap – ONE WATER TAP – was by the entrance gate. One of the days was going to be really hot. By the end of the weekend there’d be a pile of the elderly and the weak shrivelled up 20 yards from the tap where they didn’t quite make it.
Jim Pipe arrived and parked up on the edge of the grass so he could use the van over the weekend for trips to the tap etc. The fridge being so far away meant I didn’t check the frozenness of the supper and we ate very late that evening. It was a lovely still evening though but a bit cold.
Fri 6th. Test Day.
Sound test first thing. The boys started the first bike at 8.30am which was the time clearly stated in the circuit paperwork. They were told in no uncertain terms to turn it off again as the start time was meant to be 9am.
The RPS was given the morning sessions and the North those after lunch. I think the RPS went well but I forgot to ask.
Rod called by the gazebo and asked where Chris’ bikes were. We told him they were in the garage. Rod said he’d been several times and couldn’t find Chris, Graham or Martin either. ‘It’s garage 9’ we told him. That explained it. Chris had told him garage 5. We don’t think Chris meant anything by it Rod. I found I forgot to bring the camera so we’re relying on Martin to fill the gallery.
Chris didn’t find the circuit easy to learn and wanted to put in as many laps as he could. The North stopped on the session after lunch and was delivered to the garage in the breakdown van. Martin said it was down to Chris’ dodgy wiring as well as all the connectors being loose. Chris got only a couple more laps in before the end of the day. Having been sound tested for the test day everyone now had to be sound tested for the CRMC meeting. Graham and Chris took the bikes and summoned Martin to bring the starter. Martin, who’s meant to be on light duties as he still a little raspberried-up, pushed the starter to scrutineering which, from our gazebo, looked like a garden shed it was so far away. He found they’d gone and had to push the starter all the way back to the garage, uphill!
Marshall Neil and I hit Morrisons and got there and back in record time as we didn’t get lost – Neil regularly keeping the satnav in line by telling her to ‘F-off you stupid bitch’.
There was a singer in the marquee that evening with disco during his rest breaks. A man in a suit accompanied by his music machine belted out his repertoire which covered everything from tea-dance to rock and roll.
The weather had been warm and hazy but it got very cold later. Neil went to bed clutching the hot water bottle having courageously given the fleecy blanket to Martin. I have a leopard-print one at home which I must remember to put in the caravan. Neil won’t mind the leopard-print one as he’s a thespian.
Sat 7th.
Someone said we’d be having good weather this weekend but today it definitely passed Croft by. It was very damp with a very cold breeze. The boys were having the morning’s obligatory pee discussion – who got up when in the night and whether they got back to sleep again.
Dave Whitfield joined us and a family member, Tony, was expected that afternoon from Barnard Castle.
Chris and the North had a close look at the tarmac in practice and Graham and Martin started the tidy-up as the North was out again in race 4 and Chris and it would have to go to scrutineering before then. Chris leapt into the medical centre. When asked ‘what hurts’ Chris said ‘Only my pride’.
He cheered himself up with a 1st in class in the 1300s - the North behaving beautifully – must have been the kicking I threatened it with last week.
The RPS, having done well on the test day, was in disgrace again. Chris came in early in the first F750 with the rear of the bike dripping oil. It would not be going out again this meeting or Cadwell.
Alan Major won his first race of the weekend. He’s a little way to go until he’s fully recovered from the injury at Pembrey but he’s not letting that stop him. He’s a tough little soldier.
Chris finished the day with another 1st in class in the 1300s and was less downcast.
I texted the results and news to Ashley. He asked how Chris slid off when there was a heat wave. I told him he might be having one down there but up here it was between 3 and 5 degrees in the wind. He was on a train going home and said it was so hot, people’s sweat was dripping on the floor.
We went to the marquee for pie, peas and chips supper. £3.50. It was lovely. No washing-up to do either. There was prize-giving after and Chris got a gold medal for his day’s achievement. It was only when he got it home and examined it he saw it has 2015 on it! Must be still working their way through last years’ job lot.
There was entertainment again and it went on until 11pm. Strangely Croft has a ruling – no generators after 9pm! Pretty unfair when you take into account that the noise from the drunks and the music was so loud no-one would have heard a hundred generators above it.
Sun 8th.
After a hazy start we got our heat wave today. Due to noise restrictions at Croft racing would start at noon today. With no RPS, and only the National and a Trophy race to do, Chris was in for a quiet day. Sod’s Law the National was the last race of the day. Last year they mixed it up a bit and had the higher CCs finish earlier at some meetings. One of them we were ready to leave at 5pm!
Martin Rawlinson and Jim Smith came to Croft for the day.
Having had quite a busy and late lunch time my packing schedule was thrown into disarray. I worked non-stop the rest of the afternoon with Jim helping with the two-person jobs. Jim even rescued the hook-up cable Chris had plugged in on Thursday before he’d decided £5/day was too much for him and hadn’t bothered to bring back in. I was going to leave it in the bushes for someone else to have.
Chris got a 2nd in class in the National. He was beaten by Cormac who started from the back of the grid!
Then we all went home.
Thank you to Tony for helping pack up the garage stuff.
To Graham for taking the North and delivering the RPS back to P&M.
To Jim Pipe for taking Gav’s birthday present in his car and helping me strike camp.
Next up – Cadwell. One bike! Hope it’s in a good mood.
See you then.
LSW
Pembrey 2016
Friday 25 March 2016
There is something about having a race meeting in March that tempts the weather to be really bad. The memories of that March meeting at Malory Park will be with me for ever, as much of the paddock paddled around in its own piss and more after an enormous amount of rain flooded the sewers.
After a terrible start to the week with the RPS and and the troll driving into the back of Chris it was nice to see Richard Akers’ smiling confident face Wednesday afternoon when he came over to try to straighten the trailer. He did enough to make it useable and gave Chris new bolts for the ramp. We’re very grateful to him.
We left at noon Thursday but I got the leaving time totally wrong and the journey took seven and a half hours. It took only four and a half on the way back which included a three-quarters of an hour break. Although leaving at 9am would probably have not shortened the time it took to get to the circuit due to holiday traffic, at least we’d have arrived in daylight. We had to set everything up in the rain and the dark. Thank goodness Derek was there or Chris and I would have throttled each other. Having had more than my fair share of the preparations to deal with as well as go to work while Chris was messing with the RPS and P&Ms dyno, I didn’t have time to check through certain camping bags and to remember things I needed for me. I forgot my wellies and the stove lighter. Stove lighter, not so urgent as so many of us smoke, although I did have to keep taking the stove apart to stop burning my knuckles, but the wellies! My leather boots were saturated hours before we’d finished setting up and my feet were very wet. Luckily for me when Gav rang to ask the usual question ‘Have you forgotten anything?’ they had not left home and he was able to ask Lou to put her wellies in for me. He’s so tactful. Still asking ‘Have you forgotten anything’ and not ‘What have you forgotten’.
The weather improved as midnight approached. Gav and Lou, having spent three hours on the M25, arrived at 11.40pm - Lou had rung me at 10pm saying ‘We’re on the bridge.’ Thinking she meant the bridge in the lane to the circuit I said I’d put the kettle on but she meant the Severn Bridge. Anyway. They parked opposite us and we decided we’d might as well share our gazebo as there was so little space for another. It got really cold by the time we all turned in. Derek was in our Khyam tent and was probably wishing he’d not allowed himself to be persuaded to not sleep in his car where the heater was. Sorry Derek.
Friday was lovely and hot and sunny for the track day. Chris wanted to take out the RPS first but it did not want to play. The area was engulfed in thick white smoke and Chris asked Brendan Ryan to take a look. After a couple of experiments and much head-scratching the RPS was parked for the weekend. So no points in the 750s for Chris. After all the work Chris did on it, which gave me so much more to do, I shared in his despair. The North was a bit smoky and pinking but even so Chris had a good track day on it. We all went to bed at 10pm. The wind was getting up and it started to rain.
Saturday 26 March 2016
It was very blustery overnight. I was up early and went to the gazebo to find the door had unzipped itself and was madly thrashing about. Brendan said he’d shut it twice during the night. We’d have to peg it down. Nigel gave us a weather report and said we were in for a windy and sometimes wet day. That was an understatement. The rain started as Gav came in from practice. The ridge seams in the gazebo started to leak and the grass inside and out of the gazebo turned to mud. Gav and Lou fetched their rubber floor tiles and put them down and I moved into Lou’s wellies. It was time for Gav’s black patent rain jacket to get an airing outside of the bedroom. Before that though Chris put Gav’s contact lenses in for him. This was a fairly long process during which both Lou and I wanted to take a photo but didn’t want to exasperate the situation by making one them jump. Gav could’ve lost an eye.
Chris put his waterproof on and changed to a clear visor and set off for his first 1300s race. I couldn’t bear to watch it but Gav and Lou and the Majors faithfully went to get soaked at the fence. Derek, with the starter, got his fair share of walking to the holding area and back. Chris didn’t get off the line as quickly as he’d have liked. Tenth into the first corner and then had to pick off the riders one by one. He couldn’t catch Cormac, who was chasing George, but came in 3rd on the road and 3rd in class.
Gav came in during his first race as he was not happy with the bike and spent a while tinkering with it.
A soaked-through Marshal Neil arrived at lunch time. We stripped him off while he sat there in a bemused state as he was felt all over to find the wet bits and kitted him out with as much of Derek’s and Chris’ wet-weather gear as he could get under his crap, not-waterproof-at-all marshal’s coat. He headed for the gents while temporarily wearing my rain coat but I missed him coming back for his crap orange jacket and he’d just put it on, straight over mine, and gone off to his post. He’d also forgotten to take his thick leather gloves. So I had no rain coat, or phone or keys, as they were in the pocket. I borrowed another of Derek’s seemingly endless supply of coats and headed off to look for Neil while Derek tried ringing my phone which was set on max volume and vibrate. I came across Jono Yardley in the recovery van and he said he’d deliver the gloves and get my coat. When I put my coat on, the hood didn’t fit properly. I reached inside to find Neil’s hat! I chased after Jono but missed him and had to walk to Neil’s post to give it to him. ‘Racing suspended until the storm has passed’ came over the PA while I rushed back to the paddock. I was soaked through to the skin.
Our caravan looked like a laundry with everyone’s clothes drying. I added my own to the remaining cupboard knobs and had to wear my pyjama bottoms under my waterproof trousers until my jeans dried. We used a bottle of gas by that evening.
There seemed to be only five wheelie bins for the entire circuit. I saw one in the distance when we arrived but it had vanished by morning as the paddock filled up. A rare and shy species apparently.
The 125s were again called to the holding area by the powers that be. They seemed to think the weather was better but honestly I couldn’t see any difference. So they all headed out because they want the points and I thought ‘those poor sods’. Gav was in with this lot and the MT behaved and made it to the end of the race. Alan Major won all his races. He’s in serious competition with Stephanie Waddelow who has very sharp elbows.
By the time Chris was called the rain had eased a lot but it was incredibly windy. Chris finished 5th on the road and 3rd in class. He won the silver medal for coming 2nd on aggregate.
Derek’s tent’s floor was in danger of being submerged as a small pond started to appear behind the gazebo. We dragged the tent to minutely higher ground and Derek took out all his stuff. He was meeting with a friend that evening and was staying the night in a local hotel.
After a dry evening everyone turned in for the night. Chris pegged down the gazebo door as the rain started and we didn’t realise what a stormy night we were in for.
Sunday 27 March 2016
The weather was awesome during the night. I could hear the gale through my ear-plugs. Many people lost their gazebos and awnings. After some worryingly wet forecasts Sunday turned into a lovely day.
In the National and on a damp-in-places track Chris came in 2nd on the road, 2nd in class.
In the final 125s of the meeting there was a tangling of machines at Hatchetts. Gav, taking advantage of the confusion, whisked round the outside and was 2nd in class behind Jerry Lodge when the MT’s radiator split and he lost power. Gav hung on and got a third in class. What a great result when you remember he might have returned home on Thursday and missed it all.
Alan had earlier broken the 125 lap record but parted company with his steed in the final race allowing Stephanie to break the record again. Alan suffered a sprained ankle and Team W.A.N.C.A wish him a speedy recovery.
Chris got 3rd in class in his final race of the weekend. He will be having a good look at the RPS and the North and hope to get their problems sorted out in the long gap before Croft.
Thank you Gav and Lou for all your help this meeting. It was lovely being neighbours again after so long.
And thank you Derek for towing the North and being the gopher.
Monday 28 March 2016
Stormy Barney was a doddle after what we had at Pembrey. We awoke to find our neighbour’s trampoline in his neighbours’ garden with some of the fence. Looking at a site on Google regarding the storm damage, trampolines all over the country have ended up in the most peculiar places.
We unpacked the van and Chris has been washing the mats and the North this afternoon. The Coke van still has to be repacked but we’ve just had a visit from Tony Sawyer (sidecars) and Chris is having a chat. It will be dark by the time he finishes and we’ll be fumbling about in the lock-up for ages, sorting out his work stuff.
Chris will be visiting P&M with both bikes at some time and I am off to Shropshire to see the couple of hundreds lambs at the farm where my friend Sarah lives. Mint sauce!
Sorry there are so few photos. I’ll get more next time.
Long Suffering Wife
There is something about having a race meeting in March that tempts the weather to be really bad. The memories of that March meeting at Malory Park will be with me for ever, as much of the paddock paddled around in its own piss and more after an enormous amount of rain flooded the sewers.
After a terrible start to the week with the RPS and and the troll driving into the back of Chris it was nice to see Richard Akers’ smiling confident face Wednesday afternoon when he came over to try to straighten the trailer. He did enough to make it useable and gave Chris new bolts for the ramp. We’re very grateful to him.
We left at noon Thursday but I got the leaving time totally wrong and the journey took seven and a half hours. It took only four and a half on the way back which included a three-quarters of an hour break. Although leaving at 9am would probably have not shortened the time it took to get to the circuit due to holiday traffic, at least we’d have arrived in daylight. We had to set everything up in the rain and the dark. Thank goodness Derek was there or Chris and I would have throttled each other. Having had more than my fair share of the preparations to deal with as well as go to work while Chris was messing with the RPS and P&Ms dyno, I didn’t have time to check through certain camping bags and to remember things I needed for me. I forgot my wellies and the stove lighter. Stove lighter, not so urgent as so many of us smoke, although I did have to keep taking the stove apart to stop burning my knuckles, but the wellies! My leather boots were saturated hours before we’d finished setting up and my feet were very wet. Luckily for me when Gav rang to ask the usual question ‘Have you forgotten anything?’ they had not left home and he was able to ask Lou to put her wellies in for me. He’s so tactful. Still asking ‘Have you forgotten anything’ and not ‘What have you forgotten’.
The weather improved as midnight approached. Gav and Lou, having spent three hours on the M25, arrived at 11.40pm - Lou had rung me at 10pm saying ‘We’re on the bridge.’ Thinking she meant the bridge in the lane to the circuit I said I’d put the kettle on but she meant the Severn Bridge. Anyway. They parked opposite us and we decided we’d might as well share our gazebo as there was so little space for another. It got really cold by the time we all turned in. Derek was in our Khyam tent and was probably wishing he’d not allowed himself to be persuaded to not sleep in his car where the heater was. Sorry Derek.
Friday was lovely and hot and sunny for the track day. Chris wanted to take out the RPS first but it did not want to play. The area was engulfed in thick white smoke and Chris asked Brendan Ryan to take a look. After a couple of experiments and much head-scratching the RPS was parked for the weekend. So no points in the 750s for Chris. After all the work Chris did on it, which gave me so much more to do, I shared in his despair. The North was a bit smoky and pinking but even so Chris had a good track day on it. We all went to bed at 10pm. The wind was getting up and it started to rain.
Saturday 26 March 2016
It was very blustery overnight. I was up early and went to the gazebo to find the door had unzipped itself and was madly thrashing about. Brendan said he’d shut it twice during the night. We’d have to peg it down. Nigel gave us a weather report and said we were in for a windy and sometimes wet day. That was an understatement. The rain started as Gav came in from practice. The ridge seams in the gazebo started to leak and the grass inside and out of the gazebo turned to mud. Gav and Lou fetched their rubber floor tiles and put them down and I moved into Lou’s wellies. It was time for Gav’s black patent rain jacket to get an airing outside of the bedroom. Before that though Chris put Gav’s contact lenses in for him. This was a fairly long process during which both Lou and I wanted to take a photo but didn’t want to exasperate the situation by making one them jump. Gav could’ve lost an eye.
Chris put his waterproof on and changed to a clear visor and set off for his first 1300s race. I couldn’t bear to watch it but Gav and Lou and the Majors faithfully went to get soaked at the fence. Derek, with the starter, got his fair share of walking to the holding area and back. Chris didn’t get off the line as quickly as he’d have liked. Tenth into the first corner and then had to pick off the riders one by one. He couldn’t catch Cormac, who was chasing George, but came in 3rd on the road and 3rd in class.
Gav came in during his first race as he was not happy with the bike and spent a while tinkering with it.
A soaked-through Marshal Neil arrived at lunch time. We stripped him off while he sat there in a bemused state as he was felt all over to find the wet bits and kitted him out with as much of Derek’s and Chris’ wet-weather gear as he could get under his crap, not-waterproof-at-all marshal’s coat. He headed for the gents while temporarily wearing my rain coat but I missed him coming back for his crap orange jacket and he’d just put it on, straight over mine, and gone off to his post. He’d also forgotten to take his thick leather gloves. So I had no rain coat, or phone or keys, as they were in the pocket. I borrowed another of Derek’s seemingly endless supply of coats and headed off to look for Neil while Derek tried ringing my phone which was set on max volume and vibrate. I came across Jono Yardley in the recovery van and he said he’d deliver the gloves and get my coat. When I put my coat on, the hood didn’t fit properly. I reached inside to find Neil’s hat! I chased after Jono but missed him and had to walk to Neil’s post to give it to him. ‘Racing suspended until the storm has passed’ came over the PA while I rushed back to the paddock. I was soaked through to the skin.
Our caravan looked like a laundry with everyone’s clothes drying. I added my own to the remaining cupboard knobs and had to wear my pyjama bottoms under my waterproof trousers until my jeans dried. We used a bottle of gas by that evening.
There seemed to be only five wheelie bins for the entire circuit. I saw one in the distance when we arrived but it had vanished by morning as the paddock filled up. A rare and shy species apparently.
The 125s were again called to the holding area by the powers that be. They seemed to think the weather was better but honestly I couldn’t see any difference. So they all headed out because they want the points and I thought ‘those poor sods’. Gav was in with this lot and the MT behaved and made it to the end of the race. Alan Major won all his races. He’s in serious competition with Stephanie Waddelow who has very sharp elbows.
By the time Chris was called the rain had eased a lot but it was incredibly windy. Chris finished 5th on the road and 3rd in class. He won the silver medal for coming 2nd on aggregate.
Derek’s tent’s floor was in danger of being submerged as a small pond started to appear behind the gazebo. We dragged the tent to minutely higher ground and Derek took out all his stuff. He was meeting with a friend that evening and was staying the night in a local hotel.
After a dry evening everyone turned in for the night. Chris pegged down the gazebo door as the rain started and we didn’t realise what a stormy night we were in for.
Sunday 27 March 2016
The weather was awesome during the night. I could hear the gale through my ear-plugs. Many people lost their gazebos and awnings. After some worryingly wet forecasts Sunday turned into a lovely day.
In the National and on a damp-in-places track Chris came in 2nd on the road, 2nd in class.
In the final 125s of the meeting there was a tangling of machines at Hatchetts. Gav, taking advantage of the confusion, whisked round the outside and was 2nd in class behind Jerry Lodge when the MT’s radiator split and he lost power. Gav hung on and got a third in class. What a great result when you remember he might have returned home on Thursday and missed it all.
Alan had earlier broken the 125 lap record but parted company with his steed in the final race allowing Stephanie to break the record again. Alan suffered a sprained ankle and Team W.A.N.C.A wish him a speedy recovery.
Chris got 3rd in class in his final race of the weekend. He will be having a good look at the RPS and the North and hope to get their problems sorted out in the long gap before Croft.
Thank you Gav and Lou for all your help this meeting. It was lovely being neighbours again after so long.
And thank you Derek for towing the North and being the gopher.
Monday 28 March 2016
Stormy Barney was a doddle after what we had at Pembrey. We awoke to find our neighbour’s trampoline in his neighbours’ garden with some of the fence. Looking at a site on Google regarding the storm damage, trampolines all over the country have ended up in the most peculiar places.
We unpacked the van and Chris has been washing the mats and the North this afternoon. The Coke van still has to be repacked but we’ve just had a visit from Tony Sawyer (sidecars) and Chris is having a chat. It will be dark by the time he finishes and we’ll be fumbling about in the lock-up for ages, sorting out his work stuff.
Chris will be visiting P&M with both bikes at some time and I am off to Shropshire to see the couple of hundreds lambs at the farm where my friend Sarah lives. Mint sauce!
Sorry there are so few photos. I’ll get more next time.
Long Suffering Wife