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Summer 2015
Inside issue no. 19: Stand & Deliver 2 News & Membership 2 3 Ed’s Bit Summer Party 3 Familiarisation Ride Out 3 Social Chatter 4 4 Photo Competition Ladies of Harley 5 Lady Road Captain 5 6 Safety First Royal Cornwall Show 6 Early Years Hosts H-D 7 70th Birthday Party 7 Wendy’s First 8 Caption Competition 9 Zut alors! 10 Cider Rally & B-MAD 11 Joke spot 11 BB11 12 Spot the Difference 13 Three Countries 14 Ride Outs 15 Chapter Merchandise 15 Chapter Information 16
Chapter No. 7861
SATURDAY 25 JULY 2015
T U O HE T H T I W OLD www.plymouthhog.co.uk
Sponsored by Plymouth Harley-Davidson
Chapter Hotline
07534 974311
Clive Ball ‘Director’
Stand & Deliver! This year is flying by! At the start of 2015 my thoughts were on what an epic year ahead it was going to be, with two European trips and one UK rally planned - BB11 Rally in Brittany in May, European Rally at Puerto Sherry in June and Rutland Chapter’s Horseshoe Rally in mid July. Well BB11 and the European Rally are done and dusted and by the time you’re reading this so will the Horseshoe Rally. Of course there’s still the Route 66 trip to look forward to in September, with 33 of us (18 bikes) travelling down the mother road. Once again, our French friends of Cornouaille Chapter looked after us very well at BB11. Several very well planned ride outs, I even had the chance to marshall on a couple of rides as part of the security team. Great fun, but I think I wore my brake pads out! 11 bikes and 15 of us travelled down through Spain to join in the festivities on offer at Puerto Sherry, Jerez. The road trip both there and back was really enjoyable and there was only one morning where our bikes got damp as we reached a peak of a small mountain covered in low cloud. At times the heat reached 95ºF, great whilst travelling but very hot when stuck
in traffic. A special mention must go to Helen Wheatley who passed her test last July and undertook this venture and did herself proud by riding in the pack and doing a great job of it. Look out for her article about the trip in this edition of High Decibel. Our Chapter continues to go from strength to strength as we attract new members on a regular basis. Welcome to your club, please join us on our events which are detailed in our events calendar in the Events & Ride Outs tab on our website www.plymouthhog.co.uk The road crew has been strengthened recently by two of our lovely ladies, Debz Haynes and Jules Butler-Waddon qualifying as Road Captains. I’m delighted as they have already undertaken lead and sweep duties - many of you have already been on their ride outs. We also have two newly elected Road Marshals, Adie Taylor and Martin Thomas, both are providing support to the road crew this summer and will be undertaking Road Captain training in 2016. If any of you would like to be considered for road crew duties please let either myself, Derek Wood (Head Road Captain) or Geoff Crocker (Chapter Officer Road Crew)
know and we will see what we can do. I hope you all enjoyed the Summer Party, another successful night, thank you all for coming and a special thanks to all who worked to make it happen. Great venue, good food and excellent music. By the time you’re reading this magazine our dealership will be established in their new premises. Bigger and better facilities with the latest workshop facility to ensure they continue to provide a level of service set by HarleyDavidson and the Marsh Motorcycle Group. The new range of motorcycles in their 2016 colours will soon be upon us so I guess a few of you will be making that decision to move up or down or change the style of bike you want to ride. We are lucky that the Harley range gives us that opportunity. Chris and his team will continue to help you with all your enquiries. Well there’s still plenty of riding left this year so hopefully I’ll see you on a ride out, at our social nights or simply in the dealership. Thank you for continued support and ride safe. Clive
Richard Lucking ‘Assistant Director’ & ‘Membership Officer’
We’re In It Together
Membership Status: 147 members
In the spirit of there being something for everybody; even with a large number of our Chapter away touring Spain, it was great that recent ride outs and our club night were still well attended Please remember the HOG (not Chapter) rule - you must be a current HOG member (Life, Full or Associate) to be a Chapter member. If you want to renew/join the Chapter please complete the 2015 Chapter Renewal/ New Member application form. These are available from me, the Dealership (either from Chapter Dealer Rep’ Kev “Tomo” Tomlinson or the Chapter website.
Gordon “Scott” Davidson Peter “The Vicar” Bruce rejoining us after a break Steve and Dawn Dadd Richard “Richy” and Charmain Rainey Tony Studden rejoining us after a break Richard Smith Mark Smith
Please welcome the following to our Chapter:
Rich Wilkinson Jane Mayes Dougie Collins Stuart Charles Roy Restell Shaun “Weekser” Weeks Ray Borkowski rejoining us after a break Adam “Barney” Barnaby
“Nice” Richard “Weasel” Lucking 2
Summer Summer’s Here!!! Party!
Danny Frayne ‘Editor’
This edition is crammed full of great stories, trips, rallies and competitions - so get out your cameras and pens and start winning some great prizes! Seems ages since my last Rally outing Faaker See, Austria 2014 - have not had the opportunity to attend any rallies yet this year - been a busy boy, but that could change? I am still looking forward to the ‘Route 66’ trip in September, with a great bunch of mates, what an adventure this is going to be - “America here we come”. My ‘Big 60’ birthday celebration on 30 June is now a distant memory, thanks to everyone who came along on the night, and for those of you who like stats, I was 21,900 days old and still counting...
“Yes - It’s happened again!” Another Year - Another Bike! Five years in Plymouth Harley Owners Group and along comes Harley Davidson No. 5:# 2015 CVO Ultra Glide Limited “The Dogs Danglies” Had it lowered, detachable tour pack + lower aerials, sissy bar, 5in highway peg extenders and Vance & Hines Monster Squares just to finish it off I think??? The October Edition of High Decibel will be available at our Quarterly Meeting at Plymouth Harley-Davidson on Thursday 15 October. Please can I have all articles, photos, etc., in by Wednesday 30 September.
Finally, if you’re reading this magazine electronically and would like a paper copy, you can pick one up in the New Dealership from Danny (the Ed) Danski Kevin.
Familiarisation Ride Out Sunday 12 April 2015 With Derek Wood to Wembury, Looe and return via Tavistock and the moors
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What an excellent summer party, thoroughly enjoyed by everyone Once again the music was superb and thanks to all the committee and other Chapter members for the hard work put in to ensure a great night. The raffle raised £178 for our charities, Devon and Cornwall Air Ambulance. Abundant raffle prizes being donated did make a difference, so thanks for these also. Judith
Judith Mills ‘Activities & Events Officer’
Social Chatter Midsummer has passed and as some of our more positive members would say, “the nights are drawing in” Since our last edition of HD it has been a busy time for Chapter members with excellent rides taking place with many visits and scenic routes both home and away Events started with a bang in May with the BMAD Festival in Paignton. This was the first sight and use of our new Chapter gazebo and certainly it was well used and a very welcome shelter on the Saturday. There was excellent support form Chapter members manning the Chapter stand so a huge thanks to everyone who willingly helped out. Plymouth Chapter were well represented at BB11, organised by our twin Chapter in Quimper, at Plestin les Greves in Brittany. The scenery and ride outs were excellent but the accommodation and meals, apart from the lunches, were very basic. Clive and Derek with Elaine and me holding on behind were ‘security’ for the weekend which was very exciting indeed.
The following weekend 12 members of Cornouaille Chapter in Quimper spent the weekend with us, travelling as far north as Clevedon and west to Bideford. Weather, apart from the Sunday, was spectacular and everyone had an amazing time. Our French friends were so grateful for the ‘English’ support they had throughout the weekend. Thanks to everyone who joined us for the weekend. May finished with our Summer Party and what an excellent night it was too. Thanks to members for decorating the Loft and Pete for once again making magic music. June started with the birthday party in Exmouth and a great afternoon/evening was had by all. I vaguely remember the ride home! The main event in June has to be The European Rally; there is a full report elsewhere in this edition. I am writing this in June, but July is starting with the opening of our new Dealership premises which all of us have been looking forward to. We also will have had our Chapter
visit to the 10th Anniversary Horseshoe Rally being organised by Rutland Chapter and the day following the issuing of this mag, 6 bikes are travelling east to spend the weekend with 1066 Chapter. July is ending with the dealership organising a ‘new premises opening party’ and on the last Thursday in July is the Route 66 meeting in The Hunting Lodge at 7pm for all participants to receive final details. The second weekend in August is our Chapter trip to Swansea. I am still hoping to organise our annual Fish and Chip run to Looe, but as you can see, there is so much happening even without including all our regular Sunday/Saturday ride outs. However, I am happy to organise anything, legal of course, that you would like me to. Hope to see you at a Chapter event soon. Judith Cheers,
Martin Thomas ‘Photographer/Historian
Photo Competition! The winner of this months ‘Harley at Sunrise or Sunset’ competition is Paul Renshaw. The next theme is ‘Harley in the Wild’. The photo must include at least one Harley and reference to Plymouth Harley-Davidson, the deadline is 30 September 2015.
Julie Butler-Waddon ‘Lady of Harley’
Ladies of Harley “Well Ladies here we are well into the riding season and hasn’t it been great so far? Firstly I must congratulate Debz Haynes on her first ride out. She took us on a scenic route around Devon finishing at Captain Jaspers on the Barbican. It was a really lovely ride and great to finish in such a prominent location, drawing lots of attention to all the lovely bikes. Well Done Debz! In the last ‘High Decibel’ Debz and I were preparing to attend the HOG Road Captains course in Oxford at Harley-Davidson HQ. On Friday 24 April we set off from Exeter Services and headed up to meet Debbie Atterton from Bridgwater Chapter at services on the M4. After a good gossip we continued to Oxford and found the Premier Inn very easily. We all checked in then Debbie A decided to post a photo of her room on FB, whilst in her underwear and with the bathroom mirror in front of her, (she was totally unaware of the mirror!). Needless to say, it went viral and proved to be a great ‘icebreaker’ with the rest of the guys, much to Debbie’s embarrassment. A few drinks later and we were all well acquainted and looking forward to the course. We were the only ladies on the course, which was made up of a few ‘first timers’ like us and the rest were on ‘refreshers’ as the course had been updated recently.
Saturday morning and we all congregated at HD for a morning of introductions and classroom instruction. Our instructors were great and the time flew by. After lunch we all rode around Oxford for a couple of hours using the ‘Buddy System’, this was interesting with 25 bikes in heavy traffic, but no one got lost, we regrouped back at base to Q&A our experiences. It had been an intense day so we all felt some down time in the bar was needed and a chance to get to know our fellow Road Captains. Sunday morning and no hangovers, we were all mindful that we would be in the saddle for most of the day. A quick refresher on what we had covered the day before, then we were split into groups of 6-8 with 2 instructors. Our mission today was to take turns in leading the group ride and take turns as sweep. I felt slightly anxious as we all just wanted to get it right, we were told our instructors would be acting out some difficult situations to see how we coped. This ranged from refusing to be dropped on the ride to being too drunk to ride, this was great fun and we all enjoyed every minute. Again the time flew by and we headed back to HD to discuss our thoughts and wind up the course.
Lady Road Captains 1st Ride Out 10 May 2015 Ride out with Debz Haynes through the South Hams, finishing at Captain Jaspers. This is Debz first ride out since qualifying as a road captain along with Julie Butler-Waddon 5
It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and I came away with such a better understanding of why our Road Captains do what they do and the sense and reasoning behind it. I would highly recommend this course to anyone and everyone and I am really looking forward to leading my first ride out to Swansea in August. I know we have had a number of ladies pick up their new bikes over the past few months, so a BIG welcome to you all, I hope to meet up with you at some time. Well that’s it for now, we are off to Hamburg for the ‘Harley Days’ rally, having had a great time last weekend in Jerez, Spain. Which reminds me. A certain lady did her first European ride to Spain after passing her test last year... AMAZING! I met up with Ali Cutts last month for a cuppa and a catch up, it was impromptu but next time we can post on FB and anyone is welcome along. Helen Wheatley, you are an inspiration to us all. I know the sense of achievement after one of these rides is so empowering and the experience is priceless. On that positive note I will end and wish you all a great summer of fabulous rides and rallies. Ride Safe!
Jules
Brian Haynes ‘Safety Officer and Road Captain’
Safety First I hope that you are all enjoying the riding season and getting the most out of the dry weather. For myself I have just completed the Institute of Advance Motorcycling (IAM) skills for life course which culminated in my passing the advance motorcycling riding test. Prior to doing this training I always considered extra training as something that I did not need as I rode a bike all year for pleasure and going to work every day. I thought that I was a half decent rider and that I did not need extra training. I also thought that the IAM was for ‘boring old farts’. As the Chapter Safety Officer I organised a BikeSafe course for Chapter members and did the course myself. I discovered that I was not as good a rider as I thought that I was and that I could improve, so I decided to do the IAM skills for life course. I signed up online and was informed that my local group would contact me. The local group Plymouth advance motorcyclist [PAM] contacted me and allocated an observer [trainer] to me. My observer was to be Jerry who is the chairman of PAM. Jerry is a good trainer and nothing like the ‘boring old farts’ that I thought the IAM to be, they are bikers just like the rest of us. On my first ride out with Jerry I was a bit nervous not knowing what to expect, but an observed ride is just that, you ride for a bit in your normal riding way then you stop usually for a cuppa and the observer gives you a brief
on your ride and suggests ways in which you could improve. You then ride for a bit more trying to apply the advice you have been given. At the end of the ride you get a de-brief and points on which to practice before the next ride. Gradually over a number of observed rides my riding improved until I reached a point that Jerry thought I was ready for a check ride with a different observer to see if I was ready for test. After doing a check ride and being passed ready for test PAM put me forward for test with the one of the local examiners. Greg the examiner then contacted me to arrange a time and date for the test. I arrived at the appointed place at the appointed time feeling nervous about what was to come [why I don’t know as he could not take me licence away]. After the formal bit of checking that I was all legal Greg then explained how the test would go and the route to take and what he expected of me. The test was just like an observed ride and lasted for 1½ hours, after which we had a de-brief and Greg gave me his opinions on my riding standards - and told me that I was at the standard for a pass. Although I have passed the IAM test I can still improve by constantly applying the advice that I was given during the training. The IAM and its local groups PAM, CAM [Cornwall] DAM [Devon] are also bike clubs that have social
nights and ride outs the members are definitely not ‘old farts’ as I first thought, but are riders just like the rest of us, I hope to continue my association with them. Another course that I recently attended at the invite of Devon and Cornwall police was a speed awareness course. This was the result of a speeding offence committed before I passed IAM. I thought that this course would be a chore and that I just had to attend to avoid getting points on my licence. But I found the course to be thought provoking and I did learn a few things to help me improve my driving and riding, definitely better than 3 points and cheaper than a fine. If any readers are interested in doing the skills for life course all the information is on the IAM website, www.iam.org.uk. There is also a link from the HOG website and as HOG members you get a discount on the joining fees. If anyone is interested in doing a BikeSafe course please contact me. Unfortunately the only way of doing a speed awareness courses is at the invitation of the police/camera safety partnership. Hope you all enjoy safe riding over the summer. Brian
Royal Cornwall Show 4, 5 & 6 June 2015
See Dawn on the
Last Saturday of the Month at Dealership Day or
Tel 01752 519500 6
Rob Butler ‘Public Relations Officer’
Early Years Hosts a Harley Visit! As part of the Early Years Department’s topic of transport, Pupils at Woodlands School in Plymouth were delighted to receive a visit from the Plymouth Chapter of the Harley Owners Group Nine Harleys roared into the car park on a sunny morning to be greeted by a group of excited mini-bikers, dressed in bandanas, leather jackets and face-paint moustaches! The Owners invited the children, who have sensory and physical disabilities, to explore the Harleys, try on the helmets and jackets and even start the engines and listen to music over the bikes’ speaker systems! Woodlands School are really grateful to all the people who gave up their time to spend the morning with them, and to the Harley Dealership for their support. A special thank you goes to Martin Thomas who arranged the visit. Rob
70th Birthday Party In Exmouth
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Wendy’s First European Harley Rally 25th European HOG Rally, Puerto Sherry, Spain 2015! Day 1: We met for lunch at Quay 33 in Plymouth, others had fish and chips outside and eventually all caught up with all the rest of our friends on the ferry over lots of wine...and then more wine (buying a box was better than a bottle anyway!). Grabbed some food to soak up the alcohol, luckily, as when we went back at 10.30 the restaurants were closed. Off to bed after you wandered the corridors looking for your cabin (or was that just Clive!).
Day 2 Off to Burgos: 100 mile trip! Up for breakfast, then the bikes are last to be called to collect them from D2. Mayhem getting out of ferry but all OK. Great ride down, quick stop for coffee and cake. Then on route we rode through some misty mountains. Trying to concentrate, stay in formation around bends, don’t look down sheer drops (did I say I don’t like heights?) damp foggy roads at the top aaahhh!!! Such a relief to get down the other side! So what was just a little hill to you lot, seemed like Mount Everest on a helter-skelter to me on my first go! Finally, we got to the hotel at Burgos. Shower, change and out for lively meal in a Spanish-only speaking restaurant. Remember the ‘Punch and Judy’ waiter Trevor C! That’s the way to do it! Lovely walk through the town with an amazing ornate cathedral. Lots of jugs of sangria too... Oh yeah I wasn’t going to drink tonight. Note to self: don’t let Sumo order the drinks!!!
Day 3: Breakfast at the hotel then off to Madrid: (not the Madrid of ‘Wild Hogs’ fame). Mainly motorway, beautiful scenery and strangely enough a bit chilly. Is it only my bike that vibrates when you are going along at 70mph? I feel like I am holding on for dear life when we are passing lorries. We stopped for lunch and fuel, the weather got warmer as we got nearer! Madrid was busy with traffic for the city and the airport, but we made it here safely - thanks to Clive and his sat nav! Hot here now! Arriving later than 2.00pm after 150 mile trip. Sumo, Geoff, Terri, M&M and I all went on the Metro underground to the Hard Rock Cafe and the remainder stayed locally. We all met up again in the bar for a drink before bed! Day 4 Ride to Cordoba: We passed 2 Harley’s on the way, only to see they had Plymouth patches...it was Duncan and Mack! We stopped at the services to catch up, 250 mile trip today and it got very hot. We travelled over a ravine with a high bridge - not good for someone who is scared of heights!!! I experienced a kind of panic attack, I tried to ride through the fear but in the end Sumo and I had to slow down, breakaway from the group and pull over for a break. We only had about 50 miles left to go so we did this on our own. Eventually we found the stealthhotel in the centre of the town. It was down cobbled streets - after going through 2 sets of red lights, the wrong way down one way streets and down no entry roads! It seems the rest of the gang had the same problems and got as lost as we did! Thanks to Clive and Geoff for guiding us in and for Clive for parking my bike! After a much needed shower, we met up for a drink with jugs of sangria then split up for dinner, some went
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for tapas, but we had pizza and pasta - and lots more sangria! Day 5 150 mile ride to Cadiz and our destination: Great ride today and the first expensive toll €7 each bike! It was very hot now and busy through Seville, but we found the hotel without too many problems. Glad to get there, no more riding for 3 days!!! Popped out for lunch round corner and broke my tooth in half on a really nice pork steak with pepper sauce! Are you finally going to dye your hair orange now Trevor? (Tango as he is now fondly known). Met up with our Danish friends Rolf and Anja, who now live and work in Benalmadena (Iron Skull Motorcycles). Shower, lunch and then to the event for a wander round. Met up with more Plymouth friends very, very hot and very windy here today! Nothing much going on and very few stalls. Out for dinner with R&A and more of their friends to a lovely restaurant in the centre of town. Day 6 1st Rally Day: Event was very quiet, still hardly any stalls and nowhere to eat except hot dog stands, plus the drinks are really expensive €3 for a can of coke! Looked around but nothing really going on, so came back to shower, change and then back to the event for dinner at a really great buffet place (€30 for the buffet, eat as much as you like, plus 2 drinks!). Lots of sangria (this is becoming the norm now). Great to see the others from the Chapter who flew down. The bands were crap, but we drank and danced until late and then got a taxi home! Day 7: Sumo and I walked to event with Anja, it was super hot but only took about 30 minutes. We visited their Kess-Tech stand (plug!) and mooched about but still nothing much going on, apart from mega-expensive t-shirts and accessories, etc. We caught up with Sam and Bob, stopped for lunch.
Later we took a taxi back to the event (not walking again). Buffet dinner again not drinking tonight as riding back tomorrow!
ended up with a drink and tapas first (which was lovely) with M&M, then a while later met up with some others who had eaten already.
Day 8 190 mile trip to Merida: Very, very hot, felt like a hair dryer blowing in your face! One stop for fuel & drinks. We got stopped by the Guarda Civil at the Petrol Station who wanted to charge us all €100 fine for crossing the white line! Clive didn’t quite understand his way of thinking so it was Sumo to the rescue with his fluent Spanish he learnt from a CD “Fue un accidente! Lo siento! No intiendo!” Came back over a massive bridge too, OMG! Couldn’t really see over the edge, so OK. Towards the end of the ride, everyone overtook us maybe they thought 70mph was too slow! We followed them and caught up with them near to hotel. Lovely hotel, this was Elaine’s ‘querky’ hotel, but I loved it, big rooms and great decor. Got here early afternoon, usual shower and then out for Italian yum! Geoff drank most of the shots! Elaine dived in on the lemon one though!
Day 10 off to Leon 130 miles: Stopped 35 miles towards Zamora for fuel and breakfast (tapas) real proper local service station and café, it was superb! Got to Leon to find the most amazing hotel that used to be a Monastery. We walked for hours around town to finally find something to eat! There were fireworks at 11.30 for St John’s Day, they were amazing and so loud! How Clive and Elaine slept through it, I will never know!! Breakfast was lovely, then we left 10.15ish with Chris, Mike and Sumo. The others were going through the Pico’s Mountains and that was a definite NO-NO for me so we planned to go the detour route and along the coast! Little did I know that we would be coming down a bloody great mountainside ourselves!!! OMG!!! I have since found out that it was 300 metres higher than Ben Nevis! And how many bloody viaducts can you go over in one day too!
Day 9 Off to Salamanca 170 miles: Sumo and I are making our own way today, I am doing my best, but get the feeling I am holding some people up, so I wanted to go at my own pace, just the two of us with no pressure - it’s no problem as we will meet the others at the hotel. We had a lie in, breakfast at McDonalds and left about 11.00am. We got there with only one stop for a drink and apparently only about an hour after everyone else! This is such a beautiful place. Wine first, then shower and out for food with M&M across the bridge into town. Salamanca has a fabulous ornate cathedral and stunning architecture. Sumo was trying to teach Martin how to use his camera! We saw some of the others out drinking, we shopped around and
I really didn’t prepare for the terrain out there, you have to laugh! Got to Santander in one piece (phew!) but when we stopped I was so tired, physically drained and my wrist was killing me that I went to move bike over to the ferry check in and dropped it... well, lightly placed it down - but picked it up all by myself, all fine no scratches! More tapas with the ‘Tapas Boys’ (Mike and Chris) with cake and coffee, then back to the port to wait, and wait, and wait ... Finally we board, leaving the port at 9.15. Got to our room to sort things out, change and go for a drink where we meet up with the Bridgwater
Caption Competition Get inspired and win a £10 dealership voucher! We are looking for pun-tastic, funny, brilliant, bizarre, thought provoking and entertaining suggestions! Email your entry, with ‘Caption Competition’ in the title, to danny.frayne@yahoo.co.uk on or by 30 September 2015. Winner announced in the next issue of HD alongside the next caption competition photo! The Spring 2015 issue Caption Competition Winner is Martin with:
“Does this bike make me look fat?” Thanks Martin - a £10 dealership voucher will be ‘winging’ its way to you soon! 9
Chapter and had a great laugh. We go to get some food and find they stopped serving food at 10pm! Ended up with a salad and crisps. So tired, we went to bed, it was a bit rocky in the night (the water that is!). Lovely breakfast in the morning, sat on deck a while with Geoff & Terri and M&M when we all mooched about, a bit bored by the end of the crossing, just waiting to get back. It was the usual chaos getting off the boat but finally on our way home! I think, in hindsight, that riding to Spain was probably a little ambitious - bearing in mind that I only passed my test less than a year ago. But hey, nothing like throwing yourself in at the deep end! I apologise if I held anyone up or slowed anyone down at times but I did get lots of positive comments about my riding and I think that most of the time I kept up with the ride.
I had loads of fun with some very special friends, lots of laughs and memories that I will treasure forever! Thank you to everyone for their help, advice and kindness and to Clive and Elaine for all the organisation and planning of a fantastic trip. But thank you especially to my wonderful husband Chris (Sumo) for guiding me on my first ever European Harley rally... I definitely couldn’t have done it without you! x Wendy
Do You Have Something to Share? If you have a story, event, joke or message you would like included in the Newsletter please email Danny at: danny.frayne@yahoo.co.uk
Zut Alors! The late May bank holiday weekend saw us welcome our twin Chapter of Cornouaille (Quimper) from Brittany for their annual visit 14 bikes from Plymouth Chapter greeted 6 bikes (11 members) off the ferry on Thursday night and escorted them to their hotel, where a welcome drink was enjoyed by all. Sadly one couple could not travel due to expired passports when they arrived to check in at Roscoff.
to Windy Ridge Café in some of the worse conditions we had seen all year. Here we all enjoyed a warm coffee and biscuits before the final leg of our journey via the Torpoint ferry to the Barbican. The visit ended with yet more food and a farewell meal at the Pasta café in Plymouth where yet more Chapter members joined us. After everyone was fed and watered it was time to escort our friends back to the ferry port for their return journey home. Everyone agreed a great time was had by all and new friendships formed and existing ones strengthened.
Friday saw a full days riding, led by our very own Derek M stopping for a coffee at a French owned café in Moretonhampstead - all pre-planned of course! This was followed by lunch at Riders at Bridgwater where Wullie joined the group for a ride to Bath and sight-seeing.
It’s now time to diet !!! Kerri
Our overnight stay was spent at the Walton Park Hotel, Clevedon, where to continue the French theme we managed to have a French Assistant Manager on duty. For those on their first visit to the UK Derek M presented them with their twinning patches during a very relaxed and enjoyable evening meal. Hearing that we were in the area 5 members of Bridgwater Chapter came over to say hello and spend the evening. The following day in bright sunshine and joined by 2 members of Bridgwater Chapter we took the very pretty and scenic route to Wookey Hole where we all enjoyed a coffee, ice cream and a visit from T-Rex. Wullie once again joined us here for the ride to Dunster for lunch (yes, more eating and drinking!) At Dunster Derek and Judith said their goodbyes as they were heading to Scotland, but were replaced by Clive, Elaine, Geoff and Terri. From Dunster we had an exciting and at times interesting ride via Porlock Hill to Lynton and a ride on the cliff railway and yet more ice cream. The day ended with an overnight stay at The Durrant House Hotel in Bideford where we were joined by M&M, Brian and Debs, Rob and Jules and Pete and Ruth. They excelled themselves with our evening meal and our French visitors described it as a feast. Yes more eating and drinking! Sadly the weather turned on the Sunday for our ride to Bude led by Geoff where we met up with 8 more Plymouth Bikes who were led from the dealership by Adie on his first ride as Road Captain. After a lunch break and a chance to get warm and dry, 23 bikes in total made their way back 10
Cider Rally 2015
BMAD@Paignton
Plymouth members of the 3am club
Plymouth Chapter Class of 2015
Richard texting Clive Again
Plymouth at the coffee table
HAND JOB
AMERICAN
A crusty old biker out on a long summer ride in the country pulls up to a tavern in the middle of nowhere, parks his bike and walks inside. As he passes through the swinging doors, he sees a sign hanging over the bar:
ALL WELCOME
BURGER VAN OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
COLD BEER: $2.00 HAMBURGER: $2.25 CHEESEBURGER: $2.50 CHICKEN SANDWICH: $3.50 HAND JOB: $50.00
L MEALS DE A
S GE R BUR
CHI
S CAKE
Checking his wallet to be sure he has the necessary payment, the ole’ biker walks up to the bar and beckons to the exceptionally attractive female bartender who is serving drinks to a couple of sun-wrinkled farmers.
PS
LD CO
S NK I DR
T HO
She glides down behind the bar to the ole biker. “Yes?” she enquires with a wide, knowing smile, “may I help you?”. The ole biker leans over the bar, “I was wondering young lady,” he whispers, “are you the one who give the hand-jobs?”
&
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PIES &
PASTIES
VEGETARIAN DRINKS CHOCOLATE
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She looks into his eyes with that wide smile and purrs “Why yes, yes, I sure am”.
PRE-ORDER HOTLINE 07842 571905 Langage Business Park, Eagle Road, Plympton, Plymouth Devon PL7 5JY
The ole’ biker leans closer and into her left ear whispers softly, “Well, wash your hands real good, cause I want a cheeseburger”. 11
BB11 BB is short for Breize Brothers as it is a rally put on between 3 French Chapters in Brittany and moves around each year. This year it was held in the coastal town of Plestin Les Greves at a Holiday Park with amazing views over the bay Having all met at Pizza Hut, Plymouth we set off to catch the overnight ferry to Roscoff. We spent a pleasant evening on board with a few drinks to help us sleep the crossing was smooth and every one woke up happy and relaxed. After a scenic ride and a coffee stop in Morlaix, Derek led us to the small market town of Lannion, where we looked around the town and market then enjoyed a relaxed lunch, leaving in plenty of time to get to our accommodation. We were met at the holiday park by the French and a yellow band was put on all our bikes, we found out this was because there were 200 bikes at the rally and the ride outs would be in groups of 50. We were in the yellow group. Our accommodation was basic, but as we were to find out later it didn’t really matter as you were hardly there. We gathered for aperitifs at 7.00pm there was plenty, however we found out that the bar closed early so Clive and Derek bought 40 litres of red wine and 60 litres of white - we were all happy. After the aperitifs it was off to the restaurant for the meal. Plenty more wine was on the table 1 bottle of red 1 white and 1 rose. The food was a little strange to say the least for both vegetarians and carnivores, but with plenty of wine, bread and cheese we couldn’t complain the sweet was also very nice. The rest of the evening was spent drinking more wine with a disco.
On Friday morning it was up early for breakfast which was 7.30 to 8.30am then leaving on the ride at 9.00am. The weather started a bit grey and gradually tuned to misty rain as we road on which was a shame as apparently there were some spectacular views we rode to the peak of Montagne St Michele.
Clive and Derek bought 40 litres of red wine and 60 litres of white we were all happy We continued to ride through some lovely windy roads while the sun came out and on to the Quimper dealership they provided us with a very nice meal - even for us veggies - and more wine which of course we couldn’t really drink as we were riding, George had to stick to water it was torture. We arrived back at the holiday park at 6.00pm. Followed by more aperitifs strange food, more wine and a band for entertainment. Saturday saw us up early once again for breakfast followed by the ride along the pink
The start of it all
Too much for some 12
granite coast which started wet and got wetter, we stopped at a little cove very picturesque and had coffee. The weather was clearing up. We then rode some spectacular roads stopping at a most amazing place with a house between two rocks and a pool in front of it we spent a little while there exploring the rocks and admiring the views over the sea. From there we rode on stopping for a lovely long leisurely lunch in a restaurant right on the sea front. Then back for another evening of food, drink and fun. With a presentation to all the attending Chapters, Clive, as our Director, being our representative. I don’t think anyone could understand his Brummie French. Those who had never been on a BB rally were given a patch. On Sunday we had a much needed lie in, breakfast was a little later - as was a short ride taking in a coffee stop in a pretty French village. Some went on to Brittany for lunch while a few of us joined the ride and had lunch back at the holiday park. Then on to Roscoff to catch the ferry home. Thankfully it was a fairly smooth crossing we were all tired and happy, the French had shown us a really good time, Debz they are so hospitable.
Spot the Difference Just for fun, spot 8 differences between the images
Lunch at the Dealership
How to use a workshop
Directors Presentation
We know what he is up to
Keeping in Touch
Plymouth Harley-Davidson See our notice boards in the café or in the window
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CHAPTER WEBSITE: www.plymouthhog.co.uk
Weekly Email Updates Make sure we have your current email address or you could be missing out on some really exciting times to come this riding season!
Plymouth Chapter UK Our open page where you can see what we’re doing and without logging in or signing up to Facebook.
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Plymouth Harley Owners Group (HOG) The place to have your say!
Three Countries Road Trip Why did I do it? With Route 66 coming up I needed to get some miles under me, the longest trip I had done on my fat bob was to Leicester and back over a weekend. I needed a challenge that would see me in the saddle every day for a week, so I decided to make my way up the coast of Wales, Cumbria, and Scotland, from west to east coast and dropping back down through Yorkshire and then home. Around 2000 miles in a week. This is a diary of my adventure.
District. The sun had now started to set and by the time I got to Ravenglas it was dark. It was a lovely guest house, Rosegarth, with a very friendly biker owner. My room was right next to the dining room and even had its own front door. Here’s the view:
decided to abandon a visit to Edinburgh HD, as I didn’t know how long the journey was going to take. Amazing ride across the Cairngorms and down to Balmoral, on the roads that are usually first to close due to snow, and I could see why. And so on down across the Forth Bridge heading through Northumberland and into Yorkshire, the ride being mainly sunny but still windy. The Buck Inn at Hambleton was very comfortable and the food excellent.
Day 1: Teignmouth to Aberystwyth Although I would like to have taken a more scenic route, I knew I would have to use the motorway if I was to get to my overnight stop at a reasonable time so it was M5 and M4. The weather was warm and dry and the journey to Swansea HD was pretty unremarkable. The staff at Swansea seemed quite friendly and were interested in my trip. After a meal in the café I set off for the west coast. The road down towards St David’s was good with some nice bends. Then eventually I came over the top of a hill to be greeted by my first sight of the coast.
Day 3: Ravenglas to Oban The weather was bright and cold and the forecast was for heavy showers, but I was prepared to chance it. Lovely roads and scenery up the coast of Cumbria and inland to Carlisle. Then on to Gretna and towards Glasgow. The wind was becoming very strong and I was glad I was riding a heavy bike rather that a sports bike. I stopped at a service station on the motorway just as a heavy hailstorm arrived, which thankfully blew through before I left, so I left off the wets. I decided I didn’t have time to look for West Coast HD in Glasgow, as I didn’t want another late stop. The ride up alongside Loch Lomond was much more sheltered from the wind but it was quite cold. Then turned off towards Oban on a perfect biking road. Ten miles from Oban I hit another hailstorm, and arrived in the town wet and very pleased to find the accommodation, which was fairly basic but at least a DIY breakfast was included.
Day 7: Hambleton to Tewkesbury Having decided the trip home was too much in one day I added another day by planning an overnight stop in Gloucestershire, avoiding motorways and driving across the Yorkshire dales, and over the Pennines. The day started dry, but I soon hit fog and low cloud, which lasted until I got to the Peak District, so I missed out on much of the spectacular views. The Lower Lode Inn was the only one which I had not pre-booked. A big mistake as when I arrived I was told the landlord was on holiday and the rooms were closed. As I was planning to visit Cheltenham HD the next day, I decided to seek accommodation there, not realising that the races were on, and there was nowhere available. So it was back to Tewkesbury, where I found a lovely B&B on the high street, a town house which was a mix of Medieval and Georgian.
On to St David’s, the smallest city in the UK. More like a village but with this beautiful cathedral set down in the valley. After a short stop here it was time to hit the coast road to Aberwystwyth. I had booked all my accommodation in advance using the biker guide. The first one, Maes-y-Mor, was a guest house but with self-catering room. I was shown to a reasonably comfortable room with a shared bathroom, then the owner said that another large room had just come available. As the house was just off the town centre it was easy to get a meal in the local pub and breakfast in a friendly café. This was the lounge area of my room/apartment:
Day 2: Aberystwyth to Ravenglas The original plan was to work my way right around the North Wales coast, calling in at Chester HD, on my way to Cumbria. When I looked the map I realised this was going to be too ambitious, I turned inland to Lake Bala. A great biking road with wonderful scenery. After a quick pub lunch in Bala I made my way to Chester HD, where I was again made welcome. I wanted to avoid the M6 to get to Cumbria, and drove up through Liverpool, then to Preston where I had a fruitless search for the HD dealership, and somehow ended up in Blackpool, with still miles to go. I found another lovely twisty road that took me up towards Lancaster. As it was getting late I had no choice but to hit the motorway for a few miles to the Lake
Day 4: Oban to Thurso As it was raining and very windy when I set off, it was on with the wets. The journey was mainly dry and sunny but with a few heavy showers, and boy it was cold! Up alongside Loch Ness from Fort William for a lunch stop in Inverness. Plenty of snow on the mountains added to the already spectacular scenery. Then up the east coast to the turn off across the moor to Thurso. It was now so windy I thought I was going to be blown off the road! The accommodation was in a converted flat attached to a sports Bar, The Inn at Y-Not. Day 5: Thurso to Corgarff The day dawned crisp and bright, so I just had to go to John O’ Groats. The guy in the biker café there said I could take my bike up to the signpost and a friendly visitor took my picture. Then it was off down the east coast through Wick, not the best place I’ve been through. Then across the Firth and inland down through the river valleys to my hotel, Allargue House, at Corgarff, in the Cairngorms. A friendly owner and good food, and a view from my room of the river Don. Day 6: Corgarff to Hambleton It was time to head back to England. Again I 14
Day 8: Tewkesbury to Teignmouth I made my visit to Cheltenham HD, where the dealer pin was twice the price of the others purchased en route. Still avoiding motorways I headed south through Bath, having to divert through narrow country lanes as the A46 was closed! A quick hop on to the M5 to cross the Exe and I was home, after 2100 miles with a great feeling of satisfaction at my achievement. Would I do it again? Yes I would, but I would take much more time to do so and would not do Wales and Scotland on the same trip. At an average of 250 miles per day it left me little time to relax and take pictures and explore. Two advantages of visiting Scotland in the spring were the spectacular scenery, with the snow on the mountains, and the lack of visitors clogging up the roads. The drawbacks are the cold and the salt on the roads. In fact some of the roads were closed by snow less than two weeks later! The bike really behaved itself and I learnt a lot about handling it on the highland roads. I was pleased I had changed the seat to a tall boy one as it is a lot more comfortable than the original. So if you have a spare week sometime in the summer, or even the autumn, just take off and explore some part of the UK you’ve not visited before. After all we live to ride. Nick Bone
Fabulous Ride Outs Dartmouth
Dealership Ride Out
27 April 2015
11 April 2015
Exmouth
Buckland Monachorum
19 April 2015
13 June 2015 This ride out was to Buckland Monachorum village fair to show off the bikes. There was also a wedding going on with members of the armed services giving the bride and groom a guard of honour.
Chapter Merchandise Goodies for you to purchase ... Large HOG Patch ....................... £15.00 Small HOG Patch ......................... £6.00 Large Chapter Rocker ................ £17.50 Small Chapter Rocker .................. £5.50 30th Anniversary Pin ..................... £6.50 30th Anniversary Key Rings ......... £6.50
Large Lady of Harley Patch ......... £10.50 Small Lady of Harley Patch ........... £3.50 Poppy Patch .................................. £4.00 Poppy Pin ...................................... £3.50 Small Chapter Flag ...................... £21.25 Please remember these are cash only 15
Just to let you know that all Chapter merchandise can be purchased from the Dealership, on the first floor, cash only. You can also purchase these either from me or Judith at our Thursday social night. Derek
Plymouth Chapter Info Chapter Officers - Who’s Who ... Sponsoring Dealer:
Richard Marsh
richard.marsh@marshholdings.co.uk
01752 283253
Chapter Manager:
Chris Iris
chris.iris@plymouthharley-davidson.co.uk
01752 283253
Director:
Clive Ball
director@plymouthhog.co.uk
07949 467439
Assistant Director: Richard Lucking ad@plymouthhog.co.uk
07804 031050 01752 813973
Treasurer:
Derek Mills
treasurer@plymouthhog.co.uk
01803 843412
Secretary:
Elaine Ball
secretary@plymouthhog.co.uk
07855 454393
Activities & Judith Mills activities@plymouthhog.co.uk Events Officer:
07733 030267 01803 843412
Julie Butler-Waddon loh@plymouthhog.co.uk Lady of Harley:
07772 328437 01837 810799
Head Road Captain: Derek Wood roadcaptain@plymouthhog.co.uk
07762 143591 01752 881566
Editor: Danny Frayne editor@plymouthhog.co.uk
07870 204443 01392 467778
Brian Haynes safety@plymouthhog.co.uk Safety Officer:
07831 334913 01752 215785
Martin Thomas photographer@plymouthhog.co.uk Photographer/ Historian:
07799 427896 01752 291087
Membership Richard Lucking membership@plymouthhog.co.uk Officer:
07804 031050 01752 813973
Geoff Crocker go1@plymouthhog.co.uk General Officer: (Road Crew)
07836 625261 01579 346646
General Officer: Rob Butler go2@plymouthhog.co.uk (Public Relations)
07944 524657
Chapter Liaison Kev Tomlinson Officer:
07930 854604 01752 283253
kevin.tomlinson@plymouthharley-davidson.co.uk
Activities & Events
please see the e-update for further info
Club Social
Dealership Day
Third Thursday every month
Last Saturday of the month, an ideal opportunity for everyone to meet up
Will be back again in October on the second Friday of the month
Dawn of Crafty Cow will be there to sew on your patches
Dine in a different restaurant each month and sample a variety of cuisine from around the world
January, April, July and October Quarterly Meeting at Plymouth Harley-Davidson Rest of Year: Hunting Lodge
Eat Around the World
Ride Outs Our Riding season is now underway! Check out the Events & Ride Outs section on our website
Eagle Road Langage Business Park Plympton, Plymouth PL7 5JY
www.plymouthHarley-davidson.co.uk 16
Tel 01752 283253