 |
 |
 |
|
"P*ss Up on the Peninsula" (The Vikings Rally)28-31 May 2004 - Clatterbridge, Liverpool(By Annya Boal - C14)
With the new luggage loaded on the new bike (Annya got an XV1100 since last season, already christened 'Boudica' aka as 'Beauty' to Al's 'Big Beastie'), I set of in nigh-on perfect riding conditions heading for the M25. Pulling into Clackett Lane some 40 minutes later, I spot Al gesticulating wildly at me from the petrol area. After a quick chat to a very pleasant Irish fellow biker about the attributes of the VSOC & rallies (as you do!), we headed off round a heavily congested M25 (what's new) and off up the scenic route to Liverpool. Apart from the rain which closed in on us on the M54 and plagued us on and off for the remainder of the journey, it was a lovely ride up with surprisingly few loonies to look out for. We arrived on site and soon tracked down the Rejects pitch spotting Ian & Jackie, Tony & Gillian and Paul & Chrissy. With military precision 'Wing Commander Al' and the Pukka Bird soon had bikes unloaded and tent pitched. In the interim Nick Hodson, Ian "Burr-burr lips" Thorborn and Les had arrived so there was a flurry of welcomes interspersing the sort out. We headed for the clubhouse along a "fairy-light lit lane" (don't ask!!) in search of tea after a quick detour for a chat with Leigh & Sean of Essex Crusaders fame. After some socialising in the bar with Dave & Mary and Nick & Ju we headed back to the site where we spotted the Vultures arriving en-masse. Mutual greetings all-round, they pitched next to us and I delivered Dave's usual rally pasty much to his delight!! We spent the remainder of the afternoon and early evening greeting friends and compatriots as they arrived (hi Anne :-)….another pasty delivered!!) then headed off to find food, listen to music and generally get on down. As ever, a fantastic first evening catching up with people we haven't seen for a while….. hi to [amongst others] Roger and fellow Axemen, Nick & new beau Jane, Kevin H, sweet Caroline, various Outriders, etc etc…. The band (Kappa) and disco was great, the company even better, and we rolled back to the tent tired, giggling and mellow to hit the pit in the early hours.
Saturday morning dawned after a night of torrential rain and the Welsh crew (as always) in fine voice ;-) We decided against the ride-out being somewhat exhausted and mooched about for the morning looking at the stands going up and chatting before heading off with me on the back of Beastie to the local seaside town of Neston which turned out to have the best fish & chips in Merseyside (indeed maybe in the UK - yummmmm!!!) and wonderful views across the estuary into Wales. We arrived back on site late afternoon, had another look round the stands and then headed for the Clubhouse once again for another round of raving with more good music, a second excellent band (The Band with No Name) and the same crew from the night before still well up for singing, dancing and (in mine & Al's case anyway) romancing the night away….. by 'eck, us Rejects sure know how to party!!!!
Sunday dawned another beautiful day (although not quite so early for us - starting to flag now folks!!). A tad too late to join the ride-out, and after waving a fond farewell to Ian T and later to Caroline, just the two of us with both bikes headed for Horseshoe Pass and the Ponderosa Café to meet up with the others there. Lovely winding country roads and picturesque views made for a wonderful ride, although the pass itself was a bit of a challenge in places (I was VERY impressed with the Cool Dude's handling of the Big Beastie on the tight bends!!!). It appears the ride-out took a more roundabout route and arrived after we had been and gone, but not before consuming coffee, cheesecake and Eccles cakes as a little snack to fill a gap before admiring the scenery, taking photos and chilling out lying flat out on the grassy hillsides for a while watching the clouds roll by………….. :-)
Back to the site for the last evening's entertainment, we decide to eat at a local hostelry.. very good food and wonderful company. It seems several fellow Rejects and some Vultures had booked a table at the same place and rolled in just as we ordered dessert. After finishing dinner, we stopped in the carpark for while to chat to the gathered masses awaiting their table, passing on culinary recommendations and exchanging banter before heading back for a final night of fun, dance and general frivolity. For those of you who don't know, Anne Hodson has a novel way of "making" people join in the fun and we managed to literally drag several strangers (if there are any strangers at VSOC rallies..) onto the dance floor by engulfing them in and ever-widening dancing circle!!! It turned out to be a very interesting weekend for dancing as it happens….. the marquee and dance floor had been pitched on a slope and there were several bums on the floor over the course of the three nights (it couldn't possibly have anything to do with the consumption of copious amounts of alcohol… honest guv'nor!!!). There was a wonderful layer of icing on the cake on the final night of a fantastic weekend when Al's Big Beastie won best Royal Star at the rally (chuffed or wot!!). and for the last time, we headed back to our pit tired but grinning from ear to ear.
It only remains to say thanks to the Vikings for such a cracking start to what I am sure is going to be a memorable rally season, thanks to Ju for shaking her inimitable tail feather with me and amusing us all by doing all the actions to Bohemian Rhapsody, thanks to Nick for being the guy only he is, thanks to Dave & Mary for continuing to inspire me with their undying love for each other, thanks to Tony & Gillian just for being the lovely couple they are, thanks to Anne & Nick Hodson for being so fun-loving, thanks to Les for his weird nipples (he knows…. ha-ha!!!) and thanks to everybody else who made this such a fantastic weekend. Oh… and I nearly forgot… thanks to VSOC without whom I would not have met these and other wonderful folks and - most importantly of all - I would not have met the much beloved of the Pukka Bird, Al, who made this weekend truly complete……. :-)
|
I awoke on Friday morning with the sound of birds singing outside my bedroom window and a huge smile on my face knowing that (a) this morning was the start of the 2004 VSOC rally season, (b) I could get going without any hassle whatsoever (having moved from the smoke to the country a few weeks ago… HURRAH!!) and (c) I was meeting up with the Cool Dude at Clackett Lane Services for our first full rally together as an 'official couple'…….. what could be better? :-) :-)
Annya - aka 'Pukka Bird'