Southern
Classic Bike Show 2014
As
usual preparations start long before any show with the LE Owners Club
night on the last Tuesday of April. I go in the car to let Chris F
borrow my bike trailer as his bike is not running yet. I have put in
the applications for the club and am waiting for the entry tickets to
turn up. They arrive on the Wednesday so I have to post them out to
everyone. Paul is having the splines done on the rear wheel of his LE
and is pretty sure he will have it back on the road for the event. I
have four for the stand. On the club night I collect all the prints
and club documents, banner and rope stands for the display from Chris
W. I only have to provide staple gun, sellotape and scissors plus a
few tools and wire coat hangers (always good to hang something from)
pliers, Stanley knife and screw driver. A few days before the event
Paul is having trouble getting his splines wheel to fit the drive
unit and lets me know that he will be unlikely to get to the show. I
am not able to help him as I head for St Ives near Cambridge on the
Buell to visit my brother who is on holiday there. I arrive home on
the Friday morning and load up the car and pick up George to go to
set up the stand at Kempton Park. Its all a bit sunshine and showers
here but my trip from St Ives was quite sunny and dry. Friday
afternoon and the traffic is not moving as I duck and dive around
Heathrow to get to Kempton. Chris F is already there and has his
bike, the Police box and manikin PC on the stand. It takes about an
hour to get all the posters and pictures on the walls and the banner
across the front. The sellotape is not sticking to the backing boards
so we will have to staple some posters to them. Bunting is draped up
high and other than the staple gun, that I forgot, we only have to
turn up on the bikes in the morning.
It
is a very wet trip on the Valiant first thing and I get to Kempton
just after eight. I am just behind George on his Viper Sports. Chris
F arrives a little later. Everything is in place other than Paul. I
wait until the last minute before positioning the bikes. Paul does
not arrive by the time the show starts. Probably a blessing as there
is only really room for three bikes. I like to have enough space to
invite people in for a chat or closer look. There is a great deal of
interest in the LE's and a few take away application forms. It is
quite a busy day. I do get a little time to visit the London
Motorcycle Museum stand. Pete and Chris are doing a grand job
talking, persuading and handing out fliers. So good are they that all
the fliers are gone by mid day. I have a little stash that I carry
everywhere with me and hand them over.
I
do a little shopping and see a 250 BMW, a little tatty but it was
ticking over so sweetly I almost bought it but then where would I put
it? My garage is full already! Around four the prizes were handed
out. After getting a highly commended last year for the Valiant and
the Museum Tiger Cub there was nothing this year. Never mind there
are other shows in the pipeline. Best stand this year was the New
Imperial and pride of place was the streamlined 125 racer.
A
Rocket Gold Star gets best in show and Museum Chris's Gold Star does
not get a look in, neither does Trusty. I was hoping to get my wife,
Gita, into a nurses uniform to get a cameo set up. Pete's mum did
have her own period inform. Perhaps next year.
I think the peach of the oldies was a very well restored
1911 Raliegh. There were so many good examples of bikes at the show
with a WW11 Triumph 350 single getting runner up.
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