Magazine of the Thames Valley HOG Chapter
OCTOBER 2014
It’s been a brilliant month for me, starting from last month’s club night. I was completely taken aback when Don announced that I had earned an ‘Appreciation’ award for the work I’d done as editor. Thank you so much! Then, at the Blazin’ Blazers Rally, my trike won the ‘Best of the Rest’ trophy in the ride-in show! The public put money in the bucket by the motorcycle they liked the best and mine had the most! How cool is that? Second year running it’s won the same award. We got a medal, too, this time. Don’t forget to give your mileage to Don at the end of the month, and your ‘Miles of Fun’ cards to Nick. And, the last Poker Run is on 22nd of this month… Enjoy the last of the good riding weather and take care out there!
Sue
Inside this issue… Front cover:
Oct / November Birthdays
Ladies of Harley in Berkshire Life magazine
Page 2
Editor’s thoughts
Page 4, 7
Director’s Update
Page 7
News - SofER
Page 8, 9
LoH - Sue’s Scribbles
Michael Walters 19th Oct
Page 10, 11
Blazin’ Blazers
Geoff Cutting
Page 12,
Broom Farm Toy Run
Page 13
Mileage, adverts etc.
Page 14, 15
Calendar
Page 16, 19
Alpine Adventure - Doughnut
Nick West
4th Nov
Page 20
Photo Gallery
Ray Shepherd
7th Nov
Page 21,
News - Winter Bash
Page 22
Saturday Social
Page 23
A Mystery!
Page 24
Ride to the Wall
Page 25, 27
Safety First
Back cover:
Meet the committee
21st Oct
Malcolm Poulter 25th Oct Hayley West
26th Oct
Elaine Shepherd 11th Nov Bernie Churchill
13th Nov
Lee White
16th Nov
Happy birthday to you all!
A BIG Thank You to those who sent copy for this month magazine: Don, Sue B, Linda, Doughnut, CJ.
Hi Everybody... ...and welcome to the October edition of Tales from the Riverbank. After such a busy August, September and October have not been that different so far this month. A group of our members have been down to Blazing Blazers in Weymouth for the last Rally of the season. From the pictures on Face Book it looks like a great time was had by all that attended this year. Two members brought back trophies from the ride-in bike show, Sue Knight for Best of the Rest & Ray Shepherd for Best Tourer. Well done to both of you. On Saturday October 4th thirteen of us left Sportsable for Thames Valley’s Ride to the Wall. Not a bad turnout as the weather forecast was not looking very good for most of the day. Clive, our lead Road Captain for the day, had decided that the motorway route was our best option as we were certainly going to get wet on the way up to the Arboretum. It didn’t take long to get soaked - between Cherwell and Warwick we had a taster, which got worse as the ride went on. This carried on ’til early afternoon. Just before the service started at the foot of the wall somebody upstairs waved His wand and the weather changed to a beautiful afternoon, which stayed like that for the rest of the day and evening. An estimated 3000 + bikes attended the ride this year from all over England & Europe. Earlier this year, Martin Dickinson, the founder of Ride to the Wall, and the committee, handed over a cheque to the National Memorial Arboretum for £82,750 from the 2013 ride, which will go towards the upkeep of the Arboretum. 4
Following the service, many wreaths were laid on behalf of Hog Chapters & Motor Cycle clubs from around the country. Frank Mirtle & Diane Early asked to lay Thames Valley’s wreath. The Royal Marines are celebrating their 350th anniversary this year and after serving 29 years, Frank thought it would be appropriate to ask to lay the wreath. SofER A couple of weeks ago it was announced to all the 5 organising Chapters at the same time, that The South of England Rally had been booked at the world famous Hickstead Show Jumping grounds, just south of Crawley in West Sussex, for 2015. The Rally will open on August 14th and close Sunday lunchtime with a whole new set up including many new attractions and a few of the old favourites. We have no accommodation on site at Hickstead other than camping. There will be a Yippee Yurt Village erected on site, which will be available to book through the SofER website very soon. The nearest hotels are a Travelodge, which is a 10min walk from the main gate (½ mile), and a Premier Inn in Burgess Hill (3½ miles). Mini-buses will be available to both these locations and more. I would suggest booking sooner rather than later if you are the non-camping type. www.travelodge.co.uk & www.prenierinns.com I should have Thames Valley’s allocation of tickets for the Rally at November’s club night. The tickets are being sold for £40, inc VAT, for what looks like being a great weekend for bands and entrainment. Mileage Program &Miles of Fun Only a couple of weeks left to clock up those miles for the Chapter Challenge Mileage Program. All mileages need to be returned to me as soon after 31st October as you can get them to me, so I can get them signed off and sent to the Hog co-ordinator. After suffering being reminded from our Ladies of Harley Rep for the last couple of years, that she had ridden more miles than the Director, I am determined to put that right this year - I hope!! Miles of Fun cards need to be returned to Nick at the end of October for him to sort out the winners for this year’s prizes. 5
Committee Applications to join the committee for 2015 are still available up to the end of this month. All committee positions are available to be applied for and will be considered for 2015. We do have some of our committee COULD THIS BE YOU? members who will standing down from their posts at the end of this year, including the Ladies of Harley rep, the Poker Run co-ordinator & Membership Officer. If you would like to join the committee or organise the Poker Runs and be a part of a growing Hog Chapter, please put pen to paper and apply for a position, or at least come and talk to Pat or myself. Events Our Christmas Party, arranged for December 13th at the Calcot Hotel in Reading, is now fully booked with 40 Guests attending. Final payments are required by club night, tonight, paid to Pat & Barry, to secure your places at the table.
CALCOT HOTEL
The Christmas Hamper, for the December club night draw, has been ordered and our ladies will be selling raffle tickets for the hamper during October, November and December club nights.
The 2015 Winter Bash is now booked at Sportsable for February 14th which is, of course, Valentines Night! The theme for the evening is Black Tie & Posh Frocks. A buffet supper will be served during the evening with music by Robbie. Tickets available soon. Looking forward to 2015, our committee is starting to put the calendar together for rides and events. The first rally of the season is The Cider Rally held over the May bank holiday weekend. I hope everybody has booked, because the accommodation has been selling fast. 6
We have a Suggestion Box at club night for your suggestions and ideas for Rallies & Events that you would like to visit during 2015. We would love some input from you, our members. This is your club and we would like to arrange a ride for you. Just a little bit of Hot News about Reading Harley Davidson, gathered at the launch night for the 2015 bikes‌ Contracts for the building work have been signed and demolition is due start and be completed by Christmas. Building work is to start soon after. Great News. That’s it from me for another month, Ride safe and have fun.
Don The SofER Chapters are delighted to confirm that the eleventh South of England Rally will take place on 14 -16 August 2015 at their great new venue Hickstead, the home of International Show Jumping in the UK. 7
Sue says... I am just sitting down to write this month’s article after returning from an excellent lunch at the Jolly Woodman in Burnham. Thanks to Toni for arranging this month’s Saturday Social, and to Fred for recommending the venue. It was well very well attended and I will certainly be going there again. Thank you Linda for bringing along a copy of Berkshire Life, I hope the magazine and link that was shared on the TVHoG page has raised the profile of Thames Valley Ladies of Harley locally. Well, Autumn has finally caught up with us and memories of the summer holidays are beginning to fade into the background. We’ve had a fabulous riding season this year and l hope the winter is kind to us, too. One holiday memory that will always stay with me, however, comes from our recent road trip around Europe (which you can read a bit more about in Paul’s article, p16). We travelled through 7 countries and rode 100’s of hairpin bends, so I had already had lots of practice but was still feeling rather intrepid about riding the Stelvio Pass. The ride started in brilliant sunshine and as we started up the mountain I couldn’t envisage the extent of the twisty roads that lay ahead . I have seen the pictures but nothing could quite prepare me for that awesome sight. 8
Turn after turn after turn of steep twisty mountain roads. We were being buzzed by sports bikes all demonstrating their ability to whip round the bends faster than us, until one came unstuck and tipped over on an especially tight uphill turn. He wasn’t hurt (well, maybe just his pride) and we all rode past with a ‘we are better than you are’ grin our faces! Then there were the coaches - well fancy taking a coach up and down those roads! Fair play to the coach drivers but they were a bit of a hazard. I reached halfway and my hands were starting to chill, but there was no stopping. I looked up and saw at least another 40 turns and thought ‘sod the hands girl, just keep concentrating on keeping the bike on the road!’ The previous day’s snow was still edging the roadside, my fingers were starting to numb but we were all elated on reaching the summit, then would you believe it? It started raining! So, wets on and then down the other side we came. If it had been raining when we started the journey I would never have attempted the climb in the first place. The Stelvio was the most challenging ride of my life (that’s if you don’t count that little hairpin bend on the Brecon ride when I first had the Sporty, Postie!) and I felt so proud that I’d reached the top. If ever you get the chance to do it then you won’t be disappointed. For those ladies joining us in Bath, I will be sending out some details in the next week or so, so if you have changed your contact details, please let me know. Also, just a reminder to keep 17 January free for the LoH New Year dinner. Thanks for reading. Bye for now,
Sue x
Well done, New Forest Chapter, another great Rally! This year the goodie bags had school boaters for the girls and caps for the boys; toy pull-back cars, rings, school badges, sweets, and the usual gifts of bottled water and loo rolls (the caravans don’t provide it!) Fifteen members of Thames Valley joined in the fun, staying in caravans dotted around the site. It would have been better if they had grouped chapters together but it wasn’t too far to walk - if you could remember the caravan numbers! The 45 minute rideout on Saturday was very well organised with a police escort and excellent marshalling all-round. Over 500 bikes enjoyed the ride with many of them taking part in the charity, ’Cash for Kids’ Bike Show at the Pavilion. Two Thames Valley members came away with trophies! Good accommodation, good friends, good entertainment, good food, and good weather! What more could you ask for at a rally?
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ROAD MARSHALS FOR BROOM FARM TOY RUN CAN YOU HELP? SPEAK TO DON OR NICK
We’ve had miles and miles of fun throughout the summer and now the time has come to get your card up-to-date. Give it to Nick to sort out who’s done the most rides, the most miles and find our Chapter’s winners!
HOG Mileage Programme finishes on 31st October Please get your mileage to Don as soon after that date as you can so that he can finalise his report
We will be running private adverts in the club mag and on our website. If you would like to advertise your business here, it will cost £50 for 12 issues. See Don, Lee or Sue for further details.
Reach the membership of the club, and way beyond on the Website. To advertise your business contact a committee member..
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October
Nov cont. Club Night Thurs 20th, 7:30
Club Night Thurs 16th, 7:30
Ace Café Harley Night Thurs 27th, 6:00
Hoggin’ the Bridge Sunday 19th, S’Able, 9:00
(Reading Toy Run) Broome Farm Sunday 30th S’Able 10:30 for 11:15 Windsor Coach Park Depart 12:00
Poker Run - 7 Weds 22nd, The Cunning Man, Reading, RG30 3RB
See website for further details and updates
Ace Café Harley Night Thursday 30th, 6:00pm
November
December
Committee Night Tues 4th, 8:00
Committee Night Tues 2nd, 8:00
Remembrance Day Ride Sunday 9th, 9:00am Sportsable
Windsor Toy Run Sunday, 7th Starting at Foster Wheeler
Saturday Social Sat 15th, 12:30 Venue TBA
See website for further details and updates
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Dates, events, ride-outs and activities Details correct at time of going to print. Check the website for updates and amendments www.thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Club Nights
Entries for your Diary 2014/15 Mallorca Bike Week 3rd - 9th November
2015 Harley-Davidson Euro Festival Grimaud, St-Tropez 7th - 10th May
November
20th
December
18th
January
15th
February
19th
March
19th
Cider Rally - 1st -4th May
Mag contribution Deadlines
Ireland Bike Fest 29th May - 1st June Blazin’ Twenties New Forest Rally 25th - 28th Sept
November
14th
December
11th
January Check website for Changes / further details on all events 15
8th
February
12th
March
12th
This summer, Paul & Julie Houghton and Sue & Dave Brown, decided to do something a little different. This small, written piece is an attempt to give just a taste of their journey...
And so, the time for our long anticipated trip had finally arrived. It was Friday 29th August and we were travelling to the Holiday Inn Express, Ashford, to meet up with the rest of the group. It was bright and early on the Saturday morning when we all set off for the Channel Tunnel as part of the a Hadrain V Twin Alpine Adventure. a The next 16 days would be spent exploring the high mountain passes and majestic scenery of the European Alps and Dolomite Mountains and taking in the European Bike Week at Faak Am See in Austria. We had met the group earlier in the year at The London Excel Bike Show where Nigel, Jan, Dot and John (our Hadrian V Twin tour
guides) had given us a pre-trip briefing and a chance to meet the other riders who we'd be sharing this experience with. They seemed to be a very nice group of people, who would turn out to be great friends as the days rolled on. The first couple of days were spent just riding to get to the Alpine ranges where our real experience would begin. We travelled through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland. We stopped at some great hotels and dined in some good restaurants along the way, where everything was laid on for us. We didn't have to worry about anything, just enjoy each other's company and the riding.
A typical day would start off after breakfast by loading our suitcases and bags into the support van and assembling at the bikes, ready to roll at about 8:30 each morning. We'd usually stop for a coffee break mid morning, a decent lunch on route, another coffee break mid afternoon and aim to arrive at each of the 10 different firstclass hotels by approx 5pm each evening. We would be covering, on average, approx 200 miles of good roads with lovely scenery each day. Our group consisted of 21 people on 12 bikes and each came from different riding backgrounds and different levels of experience. We were all to gain extra skills in the coming days as we negotiated the stunning Grossglockner Pass, the twists and turns of the Furka Pass, the beautiful Susten Pass, the ride above the clouds on the Grimsel Pass, and the miles of cobblestones on the Old St Gotthard Pass. And, the breath-taking, never-to-be-forgotten, steep,steep climbs; sharp, sharp hairpin bends and even steeper, steeper descents of the famous Stelvio Pass.
As we stopped to catch our breath at the top of Stelvio and looked back down at the road we had just ridden it became very clear why Top Gear had voted it the best driving road in Europe, possibly the world.
There was a huge sense of achievement in the camp that particular evening and group hugs helped to cement the friendships that had formed. Midway through our Adventure we stopped for a few nights in Villach, Austria and took in the European Bike week. The Rally is set around the banks of Faak Am See lake and consisted of several biker villages, the biggest being Harley World. 17
Thousands of bikers ambled around the various trader tents, bars, food outlets and listened to the bands playing late into the night. The constant thunder of Harley Davidsons was never far away as they continually rolled past doing lap after lap of the lake in a never ending procession. If you haven't already been then I recommend that you add it to your “to do� list. Villach is perfectly placed for the rally, its a nice town with plenty of hotels and restaurants and is in easy reach of the lake. You can ride there during the day (be prepared to do several laps of the lake while searching for a parking place) and then return again later in
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the evening, by train, so that you can enjoy a drink or two while listening to the live entertainment on the main stage, or in the smaller bars dotted around. Its a huge event claimed to be on par with Sturgis in the USA. During our tour we had a couple of occasions where we stopped for two nights and had the chance for a day off if we chose to. Nige still had rideouts planned for those who wanted to continue in the saddle and on both occasions of course we did.
you, I would highly recommend Hadrian V Twin, they are just great - very professional and very friendly too. There were a few with lumps in their throats when the time finally came to say our goodbyes and go our separate ways; we had shared some great memories and forged some good friendships as well as having a fantastic holiday covering almost 2,800 miles, many of those around the Faak Am See Lake.
The scenery was just too stunning to miss out on and, as the group was
Doughnut. smaller on those days, we could let off some steam and ride faster :-) I have ridden many miles in my time but nothing as stunning, varied and often challenging as this. There was just so many different riding experiences all packed into one great adventure. If you fancy a biking holiday where all the planning and hard work is done for 19
WHEN?
February 14th (yes, Valentines Day!) 2015 WHERE? Sportsable, Club Night Venue DRESS? Posh frocks and Black Tie FOOD? Fabulous Buffet! Put this date in your diary!
ALL CLUB MEMBERS
Do you enjoy rideouts with the club? The calendar is being compiled for 2015 and we need YOUR input for rideouts and places to visit. Where would you like to go; what would you like to do with other club members? Put your ideas into the suggestion box on club night, or talk to activities officer or any committee member. 21
If your email address has changed since membership renewal PLEASE SEND UPDATE TO WEBMASTER
Leo, enjoying the Saturday Social
Saturday, 11th October, saw our first Saturday Social of the season. Twenty one people enjoyed a leisurely lunch at The Jolly Woodman, a quaint little pub in Burnham. It was great to see Bernie out for the first time since his sudden hospital stay, and great for everyone to catch up with each other’s news. Some had come from Guildford’s open day, and some went there, after lunch.
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IS TH D N A H SE
WHO
IS? Nick’s
hand
Linda’s hand
Genuine photo, completely untouched (more than can be said for Linda!)
Partying, Thames Valley style
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There were 6 in the bed and the little one said...
In spite of the terrible weather thirteen members of Thames Valley Rode to the Wall
‘We
will remember them forever’ carved onto the wall with the names of the fallen soldiers
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Thames Valley Chapter took part in a solemn and moving service
Thames Valley bikes joined thousands of others at the National Memorial Arboretum
Remembering those from all the Armed Forces who have fallen in the line of duty
Frank Mirtle (green beret, 4th from left) and Di line up to lay a wreath on behalf of our Chapter
I hope that none of our lady riders will mind my use of the term "man" throughout this article, I'm using it just for continuity with the name "second man drop-off".
Some months ago I was asked if I could publish an explanation of the Second Man Drop-Off system in the mag. I was reluctant to “re-invent the wheel� and so I have taken some information I found on the net and tweaked it a little to suit our riding style. Here at Thames Valley HOG, we usually prefer to adopt the second man drop-off system where there are 6 or more riders in the group. Such a group will consist of a minimum of a LEAD Road Captain and a TAIL Road Captain. The lead road captain and/or their pillion will be wearing a YELLOW hi-vis vest and the tail road The second man drop-off captain will be wearing an system of ride management ORANGE hi-vis vest. is designed to allow each member of a group of riders to arrive at a given destination, irrespective of the delays that riders behind the lead Road Captain may experience.
The second man drop-off system for group riding .
The system is based on the principle of leaving a rider (the second man) at key points on a route to direct following riders to the correct route.
When will the lead Road Captain drop the second man to mark the route? The Road Captain leading a ride SHOULD ALWAYS drop off a rider to mark a change of direction when at roundabouts, junctions etc. The lead Road Captain may not drop a rider where the route is straight on and where there is no doubt about which road is the straight ahead route.
Exceptions to this rule apply where a lead Road Captain has identified that a rider cannot be dropped to mark a route for legal reasons (such as marking a motorway exit) or where they judge that there is no safe place at which to drop the second man to mark the route. In these exceptional situations, the lead Road Captain should have clearly identified the correct route during the pre-ride briefing.
When the lead Road Captain points at the kerb, this indicates the point at which he/she wants the second man to stop. The lead Road Captain may give signals with his/her left or right hand indicating on which side of the carriageway the second man should stop.
and the lead Road Captain in order to have adequate time to follow the lead Road Captain's instructions. The second man should be aware that the lead Road Captain may wish to drop a rider off at any time - sometimes a lead Road Captain may, for instance, wish to drop a rider off on a long straight stretch of road.
The second man must always be vigilant for these signals - particularly when approaching The lead Road Captain junctions/roundabouts etc. may indicate that the second man should drop off to the left or right hand side of a lane in the road If you find yourself so the second man needs behind the lead to be in a good position to Road Captain, you are the second man! stop where indicated - for this reason, the second The second man in a ride man should ride in the middle of the lane. group should maintain a Lead Road Captain wears YELOW minimum of 2 seconds The second man, when gap between him/herself stopping, must ensure that The lead Road Captain he/she stops in a safe will give clear hand signals place. If he/she is not to indicate where he/she satisfied that the stopping would like the second man place indicated by the lead to drop off to mark a route. Road Captain is safe then Initially, the lead Road he/she should look for an Captain's arm will be bent alternative which is safe with a finger pointing to and from which he/she the sky. This is the sign can clearly communicate that the second man the route that following should be ready to drop Tail Road Captain wears ORANGE riders should take. off.
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Points to note for riders who have been delayed and are no longer with the lead group. When approaching junctions /roundabouts etc riders who are detached from the lead group should be aware of any particular instructions given by the lead Road Captain during the pre-ride briefing. If the rider is on a motorway When the tail end Road section of the route, the preCaptain arrives at the point If the second man does not ride briefing will include at which a dropped off rider stop when the lead Road details of which exit to take is stationed, the tail end Captain indicates that he/ from the motorway. Road Captain will clearly she wants to leave a rider If there is a rider dropped off communicate that the as a route marker, the third to mark the route, then the stationary rider can now rider should drop off to rider should follow the leave their station and will indicate the correct route to direction indicated by the give the rider an opportunity following riders. Again, this dropped rider. to re-join the ride. should only be if this rider If there is no rider marking As explained in the second can find an appropriate and the route and no specific safe stopping point. article in this series, riders instruction relating to this Riders who are close behind may have to wait a signifijunction, then riders should the third rider should therecant amount of time (20 or always assume that the fore be very aware that they 30 minutes is not unusual) route is straight ahead. may need to drop off if the before the tail end Road This is a situation in which it second man does not stop. is vital that dropped off ridCaptain arrives at their position. It is crucial that ers on the correct route When a rider has been dropped off riders do not maintain their stations to dropped off to mark the leave their station until the enable the second (lost) route, the following riders tail end Road Captain group to re-join the main MUST NOT switch to the arrives as the ride will break body of riders. opposite side of the stagger down if they do. Group riding can be great - this introduces an fun but it does require that unnecessary additional Points to note for good practice is observed element of risk. riders following the by everyone to ensure that all riders arrive at the same second man destination in safety. When a rider has been dropped off to mark a route, he/she must make it clear which direction the following riders should take. This may be achieved purely by their position on the road where stopped (as indicated by the lead Road Captain), or by pointing out the correct route to following riders by appropriate hand signals.
The rider behind the second man should retain his/her place on the road (i.e. on the left or right of the stagger) and should ensure that he/she is far enough behind the second man to allow the second man to stop safely in the place indicated by the lead Road Captain. The two second gap should be maintained between the second man and the next rider.
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Don Don Wibberley Wibberley Chapter Chapter Director Director Email: director Email: director@ director @thamesvallyhog.org.uk thamesvalleyhog.org.uk @thamesvallyhog.org. uk
Pat Adams Pat Adams Assistant Director Assistant Director Email: assistantdirector@ Email: assistantdirector@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Colin Wilkins Colin Wilkins Treasurer Treasurer Email: treasurer@ Email: treasurer@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Sue Moyler Sue Moyler Secretary Secretary Email: secretary@ Email: secretary@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Fred Cotsford Fred Fred Cotsford Cotsford Membership Officer Membership Officer Membership Officer Email: membership@ Email: Email: membership@ membership@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Nij Jones Nij Jones Head Road Captain Head Road Captain Email: headroadcaptain@ Email: headroadcaptain@ Thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Nick West Nick West Safety Officer & Safety Officer & historian Historian Email: Historian @thamesvalleyhog.org.uk Email: historian@
Barry Adams Barry Adams Activities Officer Activities Officer Email: activities@ Email: activities@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Lee White Lee White Webmaster Webmaster Email: webmaster@ Email: webmaster@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Sue Knight Sue Knight Editor Editor Email: editor@ Email: editor@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Bernie Meason Bernie Meason Photographer Photographer Email: photographer@ Email: photographer@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Sue Brown Sue Brown Ladies of Harley Ladies Harley Email: of ladiesofharley@ Email: ladiesofharley@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
facebook.com/groups/facebook.com/groups thamesvalleyhog thamesvalleyhog
youtube.com/user/ tvwebmaster1 Linda Friend Friend Linda Photographer Photographer Email: photographer@ photographer@ Email: thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
Shirley Shirley Churchill Churchill Merchandise Merchandise Email: Email: merchandise@ merchandise@ thamesvalleyhog.org.uk
youtube.com/user/ tvwebmaster1
Toni Charles Club Venue: Club Venue: Activities Officer SportsAble, SportsAble, Braywick Sports Ground, Email: activities@SL6 1BN Braywick Sports Ground, Maidenhead, thamesvalleyhog.org.uk Maidenhead, SL6 1BN