Stafford Show - Sunday 27 April

We were up bright and early at 6.00am which meant we were able to park near to the main hall and get to the BSAOC stand by 9.00am. No-one was there! We decided we should open up the stand, although we had no raffle tickets to sell and no regalia to sell either. This meant telling lots of people to come back later but we were also able to enjoy a natter with several of the visitors, including a very nice man from Holland who chatted about the BSA international rallies and admired a picture of my Angus the Tribsa. Eventually, survivors from the BSAOC camp started to trail in, looking a little the worse for wear. Colin turned up looking in a very sorry state. His wife, Linda, had driven him there. She had offered to bring everything to the show for him, leaving him in bed, but he had bravely struggled in bringing raffle tickets etc with him. After leaving all the bits and pieces he needed to leave and explaining that it was Linda's fault he was so ill as she had not collected him from the pub early enough, he allowed Linda to take him home so that he could have a lie down, poor thing!

I sold lots of raffle tickets, enjoying chatting to various people & promising them all that of course they had just bought the winning ticket. Tony and I did our best to help someone identify his newly acquired BSA - we did have some success but had to suggest he come back later to talk to expert Steve Foden. By now, there were far more capable people than Jon and I there to run the stand so we went for a wander, popping back from time to time to see if anyone wanted to have a break. The weather today was wetter than yesterday and it seemed to be a lot less busy - which made wandering around a lot more pleasant! Late in the morning, or possibly even in the afternoon, a frail Myles rang Jon to ask if we would drop some bits and pieces off at his house on the way home as he was far too ill to come to the show. Other BSA Owners informed us that he had been up all night, only going to his tent for a sleep at 8.00am Sunday morning. They're a rowdy lot, these BSA Owners......

There were lots of nice bikes to see and, with fewer people around, it was easier to take photos. I was on the look out for a Tiger Cub engine but without success. We found the Dirt Bike marquee but there didn't appear to be a dirt bike demo this year, much to our disappointment.

Late in the afternoon, I went off for a wander on my own and found a bargain jacket on the Triumph clothing stand - a jacket reduced from £100 to £15. As I was paying, it started chucking it down with rain which, apart from being incredibly loud, started leaking into the main hall through the skylight directly above the Triumph clothing stall. As the staff were panicking about the rain falling on to the till and clothing - one enterprising lad put a pint glass underneath the leak, which wasn't very effective as the rain was coming in on all sides of the roof panel which must have been at least a metre long - I was able to offer them some consolation by pointing out that it only seemed to be leaking above their stand and everyone else was ok. I judged it was now a good time to make myself scarce and I pottered around the rest of the hall, watched Jim Reynolds presenting a few trophies, then headed back to the BSAOC stand. This was already being rapidly disassembled so we tried to help a bit, lifting up carpet tiles etc. Colin was back by now, looking surprisingly happy and well. I tried telling him that the C15 had been stolen but he wasn't falling for that trick so Jon and I went to fetch it from the van. I rode it across the car park to the doors to the main hall and waited on it while BH went to ask Colin what he wanted to do with it. Jon was gone quite a while and lots of people commented on what a nice bike it was; one nice man even remarked that I looked really good on it. Andy came to admire it and we argued over which of us should get to keep it......then Jon bought us back to reality by coming out to tell me to push it into the hall for now and give it back to Colin. BH then rode it to Colin's van while the rest of us carried on clearing up the stand. We loaded the New Hudson and my BSA bicycle back on to the van, after stopping to let someone take a picture of the bicycle, then set off for home. We dropped off Myles' belongings on the way back - but no sign of Myles, he was still in bed and dead to the world! We were very tired but happy after a hectic and enjoyable weekend - time to start looking forward to the next Stafford Show!

Stafford Show - Saturday 26 April

We didn't get up as early in the morning as we had intended so ended up stuck in a queue of traffic for quite some time. Fortunately, we knew of a detour around the lanes that skipped a lot of the queue, emerging just down the road from the Showground. We parked the van in the car parking field, quite a long way from the main hall and set off for the BSAOC stand. Things were a lot busier today than on Friday and, as there were so many people already manning the stand, we went for a wander in the direction of the NACC stand. Liz filled up the kettle and we enjoyed a welcome cuppa. BH arranged to meet John at 1.00 and I had already arranged to meet Jen from the Morini Owners Club at 1.00 and we hoped to co-ordinate our trip to the vans - firstly, to collect the Raleigh Runabout rolling chassis from John and secondly to offload a Morini frame on Jen. When I met with Jen she asked if we could bring the frame to the Morini stand, which was upstairs so I went with BH & John to get the Runabout. We unloaded it from John's van and I set off accross the field using only pedal power - this tickled John immensely and out came his new camera. Jon also filmed the event on my digi-camcorder.

We loaded up the Runabout then decided there was time for a little play on Colin's C15 again (he had told us we should have a ride again!). Jon rode it around the field and then I did the same. When I got back, Jon came over all adventurous and went for a little ride in the nearby woods, then realised that this was an area the happy campers from the far end of the field had been using for a toilet, so he came back and we loaded the bike back into the van. By now it was 1.30 and we had to get the Morini frame to Jen before meeting people from the Classic Bike Forum at 2.00. We had underestimated how heavy the frame was and were getting unpleasantly hot and sweaty. Of course, most people we passed had a funny comment to make. We struggled up the stairs and through the bar area and deposited the frame at Jen's feet then collapsed in a heap. When she took a tenner out of her pocket, Jon grabbed it and headed for the bar. He returned with a cool refreshing pint of cider for me and a lager for himself and gave Jen the change. Several Morini owners gathered around the frame, discussing ideas for its future. I realised it was nearly two o'clock and we rushed to the Real Classic stand to meet some new people. Cliff and his wife Sue, from the Classic Bike forum were there, as was young Jamie - a 15 year old who has nicely restored an Ariel Colt and now has several other projects underway. His Dad was with him too. We all headed out into the sunshine for a chat in the sunshine and to take a small group photograph of me, Cliff and Jamie. Velton hadn't turned up but we weren't too surprised as there had been a question mark over whether he would get to the show at all.

Later on, after heading back to the BSAOC stand, the chap who had offered me a bicycle came back. He had the bicycle outside the door to the main hall so I went for a look. It was very original with hub dynamo for the lights and hub gears and I readily agreed to pay him £25 for it. Soon after this, Jon reappeared from wherever he had disappeared to, wasn't too surprised to see me with yet another bicycle and we headed for the NACC stand to show off my new acquisition. On the way, I saw a bloke who had commented on the the Morini frame earlier - he now remarked that I had come a long way with my project very quickly! I cycled down to the van and loaded the bicycle then went back to meet up with Jon again. Lots more wandering around the show, taking pictures and looking for bargains. We met Velton from the Classic Bike forum, who had left a message for me with Myles on the BSAOC stand - I was pleased he had made the effort and it was nice to put a face to the name. We also said hello to Andrew Wilson, from CBG, and his wife Elaine - this was nice as I was able to personally thank him for kindly sending me some of his photos for use in the newsletter I edit for the North Staffs BSAOC.

Soon, it was time to close down the stand. Again, we headed for the Railway Inn to meet up with the campers from the BSAOC. The pub were serving a choice of chicken curry or stew so we both enjoyed some stew and a chat with everyone. Derek was happily telling me how much he loved everyone so I surmised he was somewhat inebriated. As we drove home, we couldn't help but speculate on what sort of state everyone would be in in the morning.

Stafford Show - Friday 25 April

On Friday, I had the day off work and had borrowed the work van for the weekend because Jons New Hudson and my BSA bicycle were being exhibited in the Stafford Show. When we arrived there were only two other people on the BSAOC stand with their bikes and there was nothing we could do as none of the display equipment had arrived yet. We spent most of the afternoon chatting and looking around at the other stands being set up. John from the NACC turned up with his New Hudson which he left with us while he had a look around. When he came back we sat and watched all the bikes being pushed or ridden into the main hall and we felt like kids in a sweet shop - there was virtually nothing that we wouldn't have loved to own!

Eventually, Colin, Arthur and Idris turned up with their vans full of the components of the BSAOC stand and suddenly there was lots to do - laying carpet tiles, erecting the gazebo, setting up the lighting and computer, laying out tables ready for selling raffle tickets and BSA regalia and so on and so on........I was pleased with myself when someone came asking for advice about paint colours and I was able to help him by pointing him in the direction of BSA paint expert Polly Palmer. By the time the main components of the stand were in place it became clear there were too many of us working in a small space so Jon and I took ourselves off to the NACC stand to see if we could help there. There was little to be done but I rolled out some artificial grass matting, wrote out some machine details and attached numbers to Jon and John's New Hudsons. John gave us a boxful of Raleigh Runabout engine and carburetor bits for spares, with the rolling chassis to follow tomorrow. We then returned to the BSAOC stand to find all the bikes now in place but my poor bicycle had been forgotten and left out so we found it a small corner of the stand and cable-tied it to some railings next to the computer.

Colin had bought his BSA C15 trials bike, in the hope that the guys doing the dirt bike demo would ride it and give him their opinion on it. Because he would not have use of his van on Saturday we had arranged that we would take it home on Friday and then bring it back to the show on Saturday. Before we loaded it into our van, Colin insisted I try it out. He started it up for me and I set off cautiously accross the car park. Although it hurt my dodgy toe joint to change gear, by the time I was in 3rd gear I had fallen in love with the bike - lovely and light and sounded gorgeous too. Then it was Jon's turn and he was more adventurous, riding it up and down the steep bank to one side of the car park. He too had clearly fallen for this pretty bike and reluctantly loaded it into the van. We then set off to the Railway Inn where some of the BSAOC were camping. The pub had laid on a barbecue with delicious cheeseburgers or hotdogs so we stopped for a couple of drinks and a chat before setting off home. The main topic of conversation while we drove back was Colin's C15 - Jon was feeling inspired to get his B40 sorted in a similar style while I was making plans for the spare Bantam rolling chassis that has been languishing in the shed for a couple of years. When we reached home we carried on discussing these plans over a few glasses of wine - a very pleasant end to a very enjoyable day!

Sunday 6 April 2008

Severn Valley Railway Vintage Day
Yesterday, we met up with Derek at the cafe at Quat. Myles wasn't able to come as his bike was still not fixed. I had asked my insurance company if he could be added to my policy temporarily so that he could borrow one of my bikes but, because I have one "modern" bike on the policy - the W650 - they were unable to help. Derek, Jon, Rhys & I enjoyed a delicious breakfast and then set off for Kidderminster Station for our first stop on the Severn Valley Railway Vintage Transport Day. Derek was on his recently acquired BSA A7, I was on the Tribsa and Jon and Rhys were on Jon's 1993 Enfield. It was an enjoyable ride but I noticed that my clutch had less "feel" than I had previously enjoyed and that the bike didn't feel as smooth as possible. I assumed that the clutch problem was attributable to an incident earlier in the week when the Tribsa had fallen off the workshop stand while BH was replacing its front wheel, after fitting a new tyre. When we got to Kidderminster, I struggled to ride up the steep kerb because of this lack of feel in the clutch but Jon gave the bike a push and then helped me adjust the clutch once I had parked up. The jerky ride was initially attributed to the new front tyre perhaps not being evenly seated but we later thought it might just be due to having a fairly modern round tyre on the front and an old fashioned square-shaped tyre on the back. The Tribsa is booked in for an MOT on Thursday so Jon will be changing the rear tyre before then which we hope will resolve the problem. After looking round at all the vintage cars, bikes and vans we set off for the next railway station on our journey, Bewdley. More interesting bikes and cars and some familiar faces from the Wyre Forest BSAOC. After chatting a while and having a look around we set off again to Arley where we enjoyed a hot drink and a piece of cake, a look around the vintage cars and a chat with some passengers from one of the trains doing the trip from Kidderminster to Bridgnorth. By now, it had started to rain and we sheltered in the doorway of the small shop at the station. As the rain cleared, we set off for Highley where there is a new museum called the Engine House. We didn't go in but made a mental note to come back another time. We were impressed by how much SVR have achieved since being devastated by last years floods. There were more cars to admire and a very nice Morris pickup. The Velocette Owners were visiting and there were several of their bikes parked up, together with a nice BSA and a BMW. At the station, we were able to treat ourselves to much needed hot pasties. We then headed for Bridgnorth station for a drink and a chat. Derek was meeting up with his family who had been travelling on the train and I got to play with my cheapo camcorder, filming one of the steam trains(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efOyOuD2I9I). It was getting very cold and, once another heavy shower had cleared, we headed for home. As always, I thoroughly enjoyed the ride from Bridgnorth to Telford but was still glad get to a warm house and enjoy a hot drink! The Tribsa was misfiring a bit so Jon suggested that I leave it at home tomorrow and take the Morini instead. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to start the Morini as easily so we dragged it out of the conservatory and I tried to start it. First kick and it roared into life. Decision made - Morini, you shall go to the Big Breakfast!!

CBG Big Breakfast, Prees Heath
I woke up at about 3.00 in the morning and peeked out of the window to see a 2-3 inch thick blanket of snow, and the snow was still falling. I crawled back to bed, hoping it would have melted by the time we needed to get up. Jons alarm went off at 6.30 and he looked out of the window - no change! Yesterday, he had noticed the clutch cable on the Enfield was looking dangerously frayed so had decided to take the W650. We had changed the seat so there was comfortable pillion space for Rhys. On seeing the snow, he decided he wouldn't be happy taking Rhys on the slippery roads and on my bike, which is the most expensive bike in our stable. Had it just been him on the Enfield he might have thought differently but wasn't happy to risk Rhys or my bike. We both went back to sleep.....a bit later Jon got up and made drinks and I stayed in bed with my cup of tea, feeling rather disappointed. Jon came upstairs again about half an hour later, asking how quickly I could be ready as the snow was starting to melt. So I leapt into action and by 10.00am we were ready to set off.

After a quick fuel stop, we were soon on our way &, due to our choice of bikes for the day, travelling somewhat quicker than usual. It was very cold especially since, for some reason, I was wearing one less layer than I had yesterday, when it wasn't quite so cold :-( The route from home to Prees Heath is a very enjoyable ride and I was smiling happily to myself and feeling very pleased I had decided to bring the Morini & that it is probably the best of my bikes. It feels very well balanced, the handling is very confidence inspiring even for a wuss like me, the engine is brilliant and the riding position is very relaxed and comfortable even if the cut-down seat is a little hard. Someone on the Classic Bike forum describes his favourite bike as being "the one I am riding" and I was reflecting on how true this is. When I am on the Tribsa, it is definitely my favourite but I can say the same for the Morini and whenever I get back on the W650 I am always impressed by how well it does everything. I hope I never have to pick out which one(s) to sell!! As we got close to Prees Heath, we were following a small motorhome at a fairly slow speed and I was distracted by a motorcycle and sidecar combination belting along the bendy lane in front of it. Jon on the W650 was between me and the campervan. By the time I noticed the campervan had stopped and was indicating to turn right, it was too late to brake and Jon was already swerving around the left hand side of the van. I shouted something unrepeatable as I swung the Morini around the back corner of the van, not feeling sure I would get away with the manoeuvre, but the Morini took it all in its stride and I was grinning broadly by the time I'd got past the camper van. As we reached the end of the road, where we had to turn left at a T-junction, we pulled up behind the bike and sidecar. The rider waved us past, we pulled out on to the main road and soon arrived at the Big Breakfast. We pulled into the car-park and as we parked up, I said to Jon "I didn't notice the campervan was going to turn right". He said "Neither did I". I said "To be honest, I was watching the sidecar....". "So was I.." he smiled.

Once we had parked the bikes, we headed to an outside stall for hot drinks and bacon sandwiches so we could warm up before looking at all the bikes. We spotted Myles, who had got the B40 back together and running, only to break the kick start - so he was now reliant on bump-starting. A few other friends from the BSAOC were there so there was time for a chat and a joke, then I took Rhys around the car park so that he could take some photos with his single-use camera. We then shared use of my digital camera to take some more pictures. Later, Jon called us over to the Shuttleworth Snap replica, which now has a Ukelele holder! The owner was now playing the Ukelele so I took the opportunity to catch a couple of short films on my recently acquired cheapo digi-camcorder. These are now on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSxsa5Pdhs4 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gY846ip9cNQ). We tried to wait around long enough to film the Shuttleworth Snap in action but it was getting too cold so we gave up and got ready to leave. Myles bump started the B40 without too much trouble and we followed him back to Telford.

Photos from both events http://www.flickr.com/photos/bsanorthstaffs