Ace Cafe Racer Day

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Cafe Racers at Brooklands

Sunday 23^rd June 2013.

The previous Sunday at the Museum, final preparations were going ahead for the London Motorcycle Museum to be present at Brooklands 5 prominent machines were taken from display and as the pre-building work for Ealing Council needed to be done the remaining bits at the end of the yard needed to be cleared. This was heavy work and not for me so I was asked to go along the next Sunday. Would I bring the Valiant along as well? I was at the Museum on the Monday and used the LE on both days. It seemed to be running much better and not boiling over now. When I pulled the dust cover from the Valiant I discover, much to my horror a broken speedo glass and damaged needle and face. The thoughts of waiting ages for a repair crossed my mind and I would not be able to use the bike for the Paul Fynn rally in less than two weeks time. I am not sure how the glass got broken but I needed to use some grab adhesive and I think the end of the gun was the culprit along with my clumsiness. I phoned Reg Allens’ bike shop and was given the number of the speedo repair man, who I managed to contact and he said to bring the speedo down tomorrow but phone again first to ensure he was there. My old Tomtom failed on me so until the new one arrived I was GPSless. Using my tried and tested memory I navigated my way to Ash near Aldershot on the Wednesday on the Buell to sort this speedo out. I went via Alsfords in Cobham to pick up some hand rail parts for the stairs. I arrived at the workshop within a few minutes of when I said I would and left the speedo with him for an hour and went to a cafe near Ash Vale railway station. A very pleasant hour having a big mug of tea and a bacon sandwich while watching the news programs on the big tele there. I returned to the workshop, the speedo was repaired for what I thought was a modest some of £45. He had repaired it some 4 years ago for me and we talked a bit about riding safely and how long it would take to get to Bridgewater going via the A roads. My guess would be 3 hours if you were progressive. Back home along the M3 and by early afternoon the speed was back in place and the bike checked over for Sunday. I had not given it a test ride since repairing the centre stand or after fitting the speedo, but I did make sure that the lights worked and the engine fired up.  I had spent most of Thursday and Friday fitting a new hand rail in the stairs and assembling some new furniture for the study. Sunday was a mixture of sunshine and a few spots of rain and I set out on the Valiant about 7:15 in the morning giving me an hour to get to Brooklands to help set up about 8:30. I was doing really well other than the gear change would not return. It felt stiff and for each downward movement I had to hook the lever back to neutral position to change gear. A minor nuisance, but another job to find time to do. When I got to Walton, the bridge was closed. The fine new structure is impressive but it meant I either had to go back to Hampton Court or on to Chertsey to get over the Thames. I chose Chertsey and followed the signs from there to Brooklands. I had not been to Brooklands by this route before so I missed the entrance and had to come back up the hill to get in.  I was soon allowed in and parked up in the Cafe Racer lot waiting to get on the Museum stand temporarily while I waited for the Museum van and trailer to arrive with bikes and gazebo. In that time I took a number of photos of interesting machines including this OHC B31!!  

 They soon arrived and we had the bikes in place and the gazebo erected and now there was no room for the Valiant. A bit disappointing but it would be displayed with the Cafe Racers.  By the time the 10am opening time came around I already had another tea and handed out lots of fliers to exhibitors. Brian is posing to impress!

.People passed us in a steady flow and at 11:00, when Sammy Miller started up the AJS V4 and the Moto Guzzi vee twin we were crowded out.

 In between the raucous sound of barking exhaust I managed to canvas many of the punters and even having an interview for Brooklands commentary as the guy was desperate for someone to speak. Another plug for the Museum. A bacon roll at twelve followed by lunch at 1:30 many people I handed out fliers to had received them from me at other events but there were always people who did not know about the Museum.  By 3pm I was starting to lose my voice. I was not able to compete with the second firing up of vintage bikes and Sammy’s pride and joys.  It was around this time I gave another interview plugging the museum. A couple of fellows who I had been talking to that were interested in being volunteers bought me a welcomed tea and by 4pm the crowds had thinned leaving only the exhibitors to collect their prizes. Another day promoting the museum and it took the best part of an hour to get the Velocette KTT, Triumph OHC prototype, the red Triton, the Charlie Sandby Norton Commando racer and the BSA Rocket 3 loaded along with all the other bits. I geared up and headed for home. The Valiant pulled well up the hill out of Brooklands and I was looking forward to a pleasant ride home, but that was not to be...........

Velocettes at Shiplake

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Visit to the Thames Valley Velocette Owners Club

Tuesday 11th June 2013.

I was late getting to the Museum on Sunday morning. Last night we were at the Lion Rally. I almost leapt out of bed at 9:40 am and made good progress to the Museum on the Valiant. I was there before 10:30. This Sunday there was an exhibition by motorcycleart.com with hand painted views of many of the classics. A photographer was present to take appropriate pics of paying customers with some of the bikes from the Museum. I spent nearly all day talking to visitors and little time to have a chat with the artist. Even at lunch I was talking to people between mouthfuls of sandwich. When I came to go home the Valiant refused to start, the plugs were wet. Even when dried off it took a push start to get it going. I got home fine. I was back in again on the Monday morning but when I arrived the Valiant was peeing petrol over the ground. The float bowl needle had stuck and even when I turned off the petrol tap it still kept peeing. Finally a whack with a spanner on the carburettor stopped the flow. I still could not turn the fuel off. This was the reason for the wet plugs yesterday. One of the petrol taps was not working properly. That was not the only tale of woe for today. I struggled to get the bike on the stand. Eventually I did. At lunch time around 1:30 after the morning visitors had left and I had consumed my lunch I had another look at the Valiant. The centre stand was cockeyed. I pushed one of the legs into a safer position and then inspected why this was so. The cross bar that is welded to each of the legs had broken away from the right leg. Secure enough to get home safely but would need repairing before I next went out on it. Off home as soon as I could, the Valiant started fine and there were no more problems with flooding. Once home I drained the fuel from the tank, cleaned the carburettor removed the Ewart tap to find a little nick in the cork seal. I turned the cork around to a better position and this now sealed. The stand would wait for another day.

 

 Tuesday was on, off drizzlely sort of day so I thought I would try to repair the Valiant centre stand. I have never encountered so many bits involved with a centre stand it is no wonder Velocette went bust. Just look at the photo and even then the 1/2inch square bar that it all sits on is still on the bike being a temporary stand pushed out one side. With my inexpert welding I spent most of the morning getting the leg back in place. Cleaned up, I give the stand a coat of primer and discover the other leg is breaking away too. By lunch time it is all welded together and with a bit of rod that had long gone now replaced with a bolt shaft, painted and I am waiting for the paint to dry so I can refit the stand.

 

I wait for a couple of hours and catch up with Moto GP. The best time to fit this stand is when you have a bare frame to handle so you can turn it upside down like a bicycle. I struggle with it for a couple of hours and finally get it back together. Another job done and I get ready for my evenings visit to the Velocette Owners Club who meet up at the Plowden Arms at Shiplake not far from Henley on Thames. I set off about 7:30 on the Buell and again into bright sunshine like last Tuesday and the visit to Wycombe MAG. I almost go by the Stag but turn off just before and enjoy the country lanes to Marlow and Henley and then out on the Reading road. I arrive at the pub and am welcomed by the guy who I spoke to at Kempton Park. I take some picture of the bikes. 

They are all impressive and look in showroom condition. There was a 250 BMW single from 1964 there too and when he rode off it sounded very sweet.  I handed out a few fliers but more applications for the BMCT, a deal not to be missed and in return I received invitations for the Velocette day at the pub for next weekend and Bike Night at Stoke Green Cricket Club on Wednesday 19^th June and the Jam Pot Rally at Reading Abbey RFC over the August Bank Holiday.

 

I’m not sure what I will be able to get to. A very pleasant evening talking Velocettes before heading home following the directions of TomTom that lead me towards the A404 and then towards the M4. It starting to get dark so I follow the motorway only to find the slip road for the M4 closed so I fight my way through the traffic that has backed up and I go back up the A404 to the M40 avoiding the diversion and come home that way. I have done 76 miles in the evening and enjoyed every minute.

The Lion Rally

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The Lion Rally

 I had a couple of trips out this past week on the Kawasaki one in lovely sunshine through London along the Embankment and Friday in the rain that seemed only to fall on me to get a haircut. I like to get out at least once a week to wrestle with traffic to keep my filtering skills honed.  Another cat table built and more decorating, a barbie at home to get me in the mood for my visit to the Rally in the evening. I persuade Gita to come along with the carrot of live music. I put the saddlebags on the Buell so we don’t have to carry much around and head off late afternoon into the sun. I looked up the location just before leaving and know pretty much where to go. It is not far from the 4X4 place at Pingwood. Along the country lanes near the site I’m enjoying myself too much and miss the entrance to the Rally. I do a quick u turn in the next gateway and come back to pass through the farm yard to the entrance. At the gate someone recognises me and they let me in for a donation. I park up close to the security tent and stow what we can in the saddlebags and I go back to the security tent to leave more filers.

 Pete, from Reading MAG, asks me for some fliers for the Newbury show on the 7^th July.  Today I have none to give him but I promised her would have some for the show.  Looks like I’ll be heading out to the Butlers Arms before that. On around the trade stands to the bar and hand out fliers to those outside and more inside. I chance meet Geordie, who has a session on Biker FM the on-line biker’s station. I give him a flier and he hands me his card and promises to do a radio link up with the museum. I have to get a tenners worth of tickets that I can exchange for drinks. Two pounds of which is refundable when I return the plastic glasses on the Sunday. I’m only there for the evening, so a shame that I won’t get that refund. More fliers handed out and I run into the guy who had his first visit to Wycombe MAG for ages is there with his wife for the whole Rally. I saw him last Tuesday and we talked for a while before I move on to more punters handing out more fliers.

 Drinks in hand we go to the stage where the Jason Hendrix Experience in having their moment. I am deaf within minutes and should have put my earplugs in from the Helibike tent. Another donation had made my wallet even lighter, but we have a free pen as well. 

Entertaining as it was with the lead singer doing long forgotten antics we retreated to the Christian Bikers tent for a nice cup of tea. I leave my plastic glasses with them to get the refund as a donation.  It was getting really cold and we went back to the bike so Gita could put on her bike gear and get warm. I have the camera with me to record the event and I hand out more fliers as we go. We arrive back at the stage for the next band via the beer tent handing out more fliers to those I had missed earlier. The next band is so slick in comparison to the first and we recognise a few of the artists from the “Jam nights” at the Black Horse in Greenford.  That is the other end of Oldfield lane from the Museum. We are entertained by some good music and vocals from the Broken Wheel. During that time Anne, of Wycombe MAG, is handing out balloons all around the audience. They are the ones they make sausage dogs from but they are the adult ones.

 It is approaching 10:30 and we need to be heading home. The dark has come along as has the cold. Going home on the bike was the warmest I had been all evening. It did not take long. At home I had to take the saddlebags off to get the bike in the garage. Brandy tea finished off the evening. I had to be up early to be at the Museum in the morning. There would be a Motorcycle Art exhibition and a professional photographer present and the museum needed all the people available around for the extra visitors expected.

Where has last week gone!

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Where has last week gone!

I look back over the last ten days and since the Southern Classic bike show life seems to have gathered pace. Tuesday after the show was the LE club meeting with one Chris returning my trailer and me passing the show stuff back to the other Chris for storage for the nest event which I think will be Ali Pali in September. I had to use the car to tow the trailer back home. I haven’t got a tow ball on any of the bikes. More DIY at home and building a cat table in the garden so that the cat can leap on and off it instead of charging at the wood fence, trying to crash through it before realising it is not possible and then crawling up the remainder of it claw over claw. It saves me from wondering what all the noise is about. 

We get to the first Sunday of the month and out with the Wey Valley bike club that meets at Ripley. More fliers handed out. I thought I had saturated the club by now, but there are still people who don’t know about the Museum. I was a bit short on time this morning so missed out on the back by one run but went with Graham and some guys visiting from Somerset to the Ride Safe promotion at the Fire Station at Hazelmere. Nice to ride in close formation with a group and still obeying the two second rule.

Handing out more fliers there to some of the locals but also the Honda owners club and the Christian Bikers Association both pledged to come and pay the Museum a visit on club runs. Monday, back on duty at the Museum on the Valiant and we had a visitor from New Zealand. He had come in on Saturday while his wife was shopping and had come in again while his wife was still shopping. He did meet his wife in the interim. He would like to come again to us but he will have to return to New Zealand soon and may never visit to the Museum again!  Tuesday was the continuing saga of decorating with a trip out to the Stag at Flackwell Heath in the evening.

A nice trip out on the Buell and meeting up with more friends from Wycombe MAG. A few more fliers handed out and lots of cards for me to pass on to the Museum about the Chinnor Bike Dayz at the beginning of July also reminding me of the Lion Rally taking place at Reading. I want some tickets for this but the ticket holder had been loaded up all day with bits for the forthcoming Lion Rally and had none with her. Never mind, I would get some on Saturday at the Rally. I like to think I know what is happening at the Museum but not today, I had a lovely surprise when they said they were having their club night at the Museum on Tuesday 18^th June with a barbie! I hope the weather will be good I plan to be there to help out with the festivities.