Dalesman Rally

 A wee bit of a change from the norm last weekend, we go to a couple of Winter Rallies but seldom go to Summer rallies because we are too busy doing our own thing normally. Earlier in the year I received an E mail from Peter Holland (Ex NOC Treasurer) asking if I fancied going to a rally in the Yorkshire Dales in July run by the Dean Valley club, a quick 5 minutes discussion and a check of our Diaries and we decided to go.

We left Friday morning and headed via a very busy Edinburgh Bypass to the A68 to head down to Yorkshire thus avoiding a lot of Motorway riding. A few roadworks with Traffic lights didn't hold us up too much and we noticed the speed cameras were out of action for some reason ( I have just checked and seemingly it was due to improved drivers behavior???)

There was an dodgy part just before the border where a pick up and caravan must of had a puncture coming down from the border and stopped immediately before a hairpin to change a tyre, he was on the road, his wife was just standing there doing nothing and the traffic including another van and caravan were overtaking as if it was a dual Carriageway, we has just enough room to squeeze past as the oncoming traffic was blind to us until it was too late! I did think about stopping and trying to educate them but then I would have been putting us in more danger so I carried on a bit slower.

A stop at the cafe in England at Rochester Relish for Brunch, worth a visit, and when we were leaving I was speaking to some guys outside about their Bikes (a Z900, 350LC and 250 RGV) when one of them turned round and I realised it was Mark Jackson from Edinburgh, an old friend of David T who'd we had been out in Edinburgh with him and his wife Fran when we lived in the big smoke, small world!

Apart from a suicidal Fireblade rider who was overtaking an Arctic dangerously coming in our direction on our side of the road and the roads getting busy as we neared Darlington it was a good run down. I think we took a more interesting route than we should have done but we arrived at 4.30, met Peter, Tents up, booked in and off to the pub where we met Nigel from Hinkley who we seem to see at every rally we go too, as the weekend passed we met lots of people we knew, there is no escaping for sure (Not that we were trying to escape) 

Good weekend and a great rally. Toilets were portaloos and we camped quite close which meant there was a certain smell over the weekend but that was our fault for camping too close, Fiona won Long distance female so that was a bonus.

An early start Sunday, Tents away and on the road for 07.15 which is unheard of and a reasonable but chilly run home (Despite it being very warn Friday and Saturday) A burst of Rain Saturday but we were in the pub so it didn't matter.

Photos tell the story as always

All in all a great weekend, where too next??   

Nice LC

And RGV

And Mark's Z1000

Mark and pal ready for the off

Almost there, last of the Summer wine

Dinner self cooked on Friday

And again

Nigel on the left and his Triumph pal on the Right

Getting dark

2 CBX's ridden by a husband and wife (I think he said he had 6!)

Breakfast

Honda maintenance

Vetter panniers on a modern Z1000

an older GS

General view

I spoke to this guy a few times over the weekend, he has bought this 400 Scrambler to replace a long line of GS's, he spoke very highly of it

A bit dull but warm

Braw BSA

Our Triumph pal who reckons he is now getting mid 40's to a gallon

wing

General view 3

Plenty outfits there

Looking like rain

A Beer before Dinner

Still looking like rain

And more importantly sun in the Morning (But colder)