August back holiday generally means a trip out to Papplewick Pumping station for the classic bike show and this year did not disappoint. We spent a couple of hours there before I headed off to Lowdham show where the local guild had a display area.
No photos of the spinning but here are a few bikes for any two wheel enthusiasts still reading this blog.
and a touch of steam for any rail enthusiasts
That's about it for now, I'm trying to plot out a couple of hat patterns to keep me busy, photos to follow.
Last weekend we were back on the road and also back in Yorkshire. We booked the Bridlington campsite earlier in the year when we found out that the Race the Waves event was going ahead this June.
Now that we have slightly more free time, occasionally travelling on a Thursday enables us snatch three nights away rather than just two so we had Friday free to shop (thrift/charity shops for DVDs to watch in the van when the weather turns) and visit an old fashioned ice cream parlour that we had spotted on-line.
Back on the campsite this was the view from the window. There were three of the vintage trucks, two bikes, two vintage airsteam caravans and two very large RV's all camped together having travelled for the event for the first time.
Saturday morning we headed down to the south beach along with the crowds to see the bikes and cars on the beach, with more than 160 bikes and the same number of cars this was the biggest Race the Waves so far.
The bikes lined up first followed by the cars.
Then they paraded back so everyone could admire them.
They then time trialled back down the beach, some being really competitive, some just content to take part.
Brilliant weekend, fantastic weather ( a little bit sunburnt ) but as I said, a sting in the tail !!
On Sunday, this happened
Yep, tyre went bang, we were both ok and Ian just got on with sorting out the spare as I grabbed the warning signs and high vis vests, we were back on the road within the hour.
The van is now back to the dealers again for new tyres, we checked back and these had been fitted in 2018 so would be due to be changed soon given all the standing around during the lock downs.
May I wish everyone a very belated happy New Year :-) The bug got me, went to bed 9.30 New Years Eve, didn't suface until yesterday and then only long enough for a shower and a small bite to eat!
I've been mooching around today as all the unintentional rest has sent my body clock wrappy and I've been awake since 3am except for a short nap.
So to all my friends who I haven't caught up with, I'm not ignoring you, and will try to get the year off to a better start next week.
On the upside, we did catch some bike racing on Sunday before all this happened :-)
We woke up at about 6am yesterday so decided to get dressed and out to avoid the road closure. Left the cottage at 7 to find our way blocked by a police car, after a quick discussion and a check as to where the unusual load was we were allowed through. The next two police cars let us through and we took the back road out of fort Augustus heading up towards Inverness.
The mist was slowly lifting over the hills and in the valleys, very few cars around so the wildlife was taking advantage of it. Sheep all over the road and at one point a deer was running up the road towards us but it neatly turned right at the junction. We later saw what may have been a couple of pine martins crossing the road.
We were heading to the Grampian motorcycle convention at Alford transport museum near Aberdeen. We visited the museum a few years ago and they told us about the big event that they had held a few days earlier so this time we were determined to make it.
I have photos but none of the vintage bikes parked up as I was so tired on Saturday evening, I forgot to charge my camera up.
It was a good mix of vintage bikes ,stalls, a bit of racing and the purple helmets...
So we start with the scooters...
Then move on to some classic bikes
then some more scooters...
The World Famous Purple Helmets !!
A bit of moped mayhem...
and some super moto
A very good day plus we avoided the rain until we were back around the loch Ness area. A slight diversion took us off the beaten track to look for a farm shop that had been recommended, it was closed but we will head back out there tomorrow.
