Lee and I left Bognor in glorious sunshine and took a scenic route through Hampshire to avoid the M27 and had a refreshment break in Botley before heading into the New Forest.
We’d arranged to meet Booty in Lyndhurst – he’d ridden down from Nuneaton – and he was waiting for us in the car park behind the high street. We had a delicious lunch in Forage and then got back on the scooters for the second half of our ride.
At our final petrol stop in Bere Regis there was the biggest gang of GTS Vespas I’d seen, ridden by a group from Cleethorpes. I have to say that if I was travelling that distance then it would definitely be on the GTS… We also bumped into some people we knew so rode the final few miles with them.
Arrival in Weymouth
Our first challenge when we arrived was to find the hotel. I knew roughly where it was but then we realised it was tucked behind the kids’ funfair at the end of the prom. It was a great position, just across the road from the beach and within staggering distance of the do. It was close by the town and harbour too, so plenty of places to eat and drink on our doorstep. We also had a lovely sea view from our second floor room.
Finding somewhere to park the scooters
That was the good news though; the bad news was that there was nowhere to park; the hotel’s 5 spaces were taken up with cars owned by people who had booked directly with them – not cheapskates like us who used Booking.com. They couldn’t offer any alternative suggestions either, so we rode around for a bit to try and find a motorcycle bay which wasn’t jam packed with scooters – to no avail. To say Lee was getting frustrated was an understatement!
We ended up outside the Pavilion and spoke to some PCSOs who reckoned if we parked on the pavement and didn’t cause an obstruction then ‘nobody would bat an eyelid’. I was dubious about this but we didn’t really have a choice so we locked them up and left them there.
After freshening up we headed out for food, ending up in Nautico Lounge which was fab. It’s got really quirky decor and I had some scrummy tapas while Lee had macaroni cheese. We then met Booty and realised that he and Lee were coordinated in their Scoots And Soul t-shirts!
Booty was with Fish and Lisa from Nuneaton so we hooked up with them and did a mini pub crawl, ending up in Wetherspoons which at least had a cider I liked so I made the most of it.
Friday night at the Pavilion
We then wandered up to the do and luckily the scooters were still there and there was no sign of any parking tickets. The sun was setting and it was a great view across the bay.
The main room was really reminiscent of 80s rallies – a lovely big dancefloor and Disco Daz was spinning the tunes. We spotted Sandra and her A5 gang and had a lovely hug and catch-up, and before too long I was dancing.
We kept seeing people we knew which was lovely, and spent the rest of the night chatting and dancing. The band were the Accelerators, the latest incarnation of 2 Tonic / Orange Street. I didn’t actually realise that Stewart Rennie was playing the trumpet even though I know him really well! I took some photos of the band and went back to Lee who mentioned that ‘my mate’ was in the band. Really, I said? So I went to take a closer look to see who it was – and Lee was right! I know I’m face blind, but the hat and sunglasses were a great disguise too…!
I was knocking back the ciders still and although Lee and Booty wanted me to ‘calm down’, I ignored them. I barely drink, about 5 or 6 days a year, so my sense of ‘enough’ was slightly askew. It was such a great night, and I danced loads after the band finished, until I realised how knackered Lee was so we left and went back to the hotel.
A hangover from hell…
Saturday dawned, and I was woken by a commentator outside, taking us through the ins and outs of some international beach volleyball matches going on nearby. My hangover was like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, creeping up on me very slowly. I didn’t feel ‘too’ bad initially, just a bit tired with a very slight headache. But the longer the morning went on the worse I felt. There was no way I could face breakfast and had to leave the cafe where Booty and Lee were tucking into eggs and beans to get some fresh air. I wandered up to the Pavilion again to check on the scooters and luckily they were still intact.
Weymouth Rugby Club campsite
I went for a quick lie down but it didn’t really help so we rode up to the campsite at the Rugby Club. The custom show was in full swing and the scooters were quite crammed in so I couldn’t get brilliant photos. That’s my excuse anyway – I was feeling too poorly to do a proper job. I’m sure SLUK will have a great selection taken by roving reporter Pete Davies!
There was a massive queue at the clubroom for drinks and luckily Lee did the honours and got us some refreshments. I clearly looked awful as a really kind lady offered me some paracetamol, but I know I wouldn’t have been able to take them!
The rideout was gathering so I took some more photos and video before finding Tori who gave me a sympathetic hug. I kept bumping into people for a chat which was lovely – first Carl Grisley who was proudly clutching a Best Vespa custom show trophy for his Armando’s. Then I spotted Nita Derrick’s Tutti Fruiti Lambretta across the field so wandered over for a catch-up with her, plus some photos.
This was a weird rally for seeing people. I met some ‘online friends’ in person for the first time which was brilliant. We also caught up with many old friends – but didn’t even bump into lots of people I know were there. Weymouth has such a range of great pubs in the town there didn’t seem to be one central meeting point. No Deer Leap equivalent, or King Lud. The soul do was in The Gloucester and much as I love a bit of Northern, I preferred to have a base at the Pavilion. Even there, I would have loved to listen to Dave Lloyd DJing upstairs, but the DJs downstairs (Daz on Friday, Terry on Saturday) were playing such great tunes I couldn’t drag myself away!
Anyway, back to the campsite… Lee and Booty had also bumped into old mates which suited me just fine as I could wallow in my nausea and take scooter photos! I was in no position to make any decisions about what we did so just left it to the boys to take the lead – for once… I tried to eat something, taking a bite from my Emergency Apple (I never go anywhere without an emergency apple! they keep fresh and are ideal if you’re peckish and nothing else is available) but that’s all I could manage. One bite.
Recovering in time for Saturday night
Eventually we headed back into town and parked the scooters at the Pavilion again. We wandered past the volleyball with Lee and Booty studying the form (and outfits) of the English and Scottish ladies teams. Honestly, as if Weymouth doesn’t have enough to offer, this just about made it perfect!
They then went for a coffee while I attempted a siesta. My body was having none of it though, despite listening to Desert Island Discs on repeat which is usually guaranteed to send me off into a gentle slumber.
Tori had assured me earlier that I’d feel better by 6pm and she was right. If there’s anyone in this world you can trust it’s Tori, not just for her bookkeeping skills but also for hangover advice!
Reinvigorated, I took charge of our schedule once more. We headed out for fish and chips at the Marlboro near the bridge, which was just what the doctor ordered. It was delivered quickly and was absolutely delicious.
It was also perfect timing as, by the time we left, there was a huge queue outside, including the Choirboys from Salisbury. We hadn’t had a proper chat for a long time so we arranged to meet them in a nearby pub once they’d eaten.
Saturday night at the Pavilion
One of my internet friends is Helen Champion and we got a chance to have a proper chat, with her friend, another Helen. It’s amazing how quick you bond with people who’ve led parallel lives in a different part of the country.
After a couple of hours in the pub with the Salisbury lot we wandered up to the Pavilion again, and I think a few people were pleased to see me sober, not least Ness Greenslade who said she’d never seen me as drunk as I did on Friday! I was back to my normal self, drinking water quite happily. The music was great and I really enjoyed a dance. I was really excited to see Basket Case as I hadn’t seen them for a couple of years, and they didn’t disappoint.
Those guys are such brilliant entertainers, playing some classic songs (too many to mention but to give a flavour they included I Fought The Law, Kids In America, Nellie The Elephant and Sound Of The Suburbs). But with some party tunes that always go down SO WELL! Like Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You and The Wonder Of You, which produced some beautiful bromances, including Daz and his very special friend…
Once they’d finished their final encore Terry took over on the decks again and kept us dancing until I realised I really needed to get to bed. I don’t know what time it was but it had been a superb evening. The lights around Weymouth bay were twinkling and our scooters were still safely parked there, so we headed back to the hotel.
Sunday and the ride home
And then Sunday was here before we knew it. Thank goodness I felt well because I finally got to indulge in a smoothie bowl from the E-Bike Cafe that I’d been looking forward to all week. (It’s my latest obsession which started in Las Vegas at Easter so I’ve been seeking them out, firstly through California and then to Brighton and Selsey).
Lee and Booty had their full English / veggie breakfasts of course – you’d never catch them within touching distance of a smoothie. They don’t know what they’re missing!
Then we packed our bags and checked out of the hotel, heading off to the Pavilion for the final time to load up the scoots. There was still time for a bunch of quirky cyclists to catch my eye, and one last photo of the beach.
We rode off, spotting Sandra Baker on the way out of the town so I waved enthusiastically as we sped past. At Dorchester, Booty headed north and we went east. We avoided the M27 once again and wound our way through Totton, Botley and Wickham, climbing to the top of Portsdown Hill where we paused to take in the stunning views. Portsmouth, Gosport and the Isle of Wight were laid out in front of us, it was just beautiful.
Then onto the final leg to Havant, through Emsworth to fill up with petrol for the last time and then home to Bognor.
Thanks Weymouth, it was fun!
What a weekend it had been. The rally ticked so many boxes and the weather came up trumps and was the cherry on the icing on the cake. Andy, Stuart and the SWS team orchestrated it all superbly. I was more vigilant on Saturday than I was on Friday and watched Andy sorting out a few potential issues in the do quickly and professionally. He runs a well-oiled machine and I realised many scooterists take rallies and the immense effort that goes into them for granted. I don’t. I see what goes on behind the scenes sometimes and it’s such hard work, for months (sometimes years) before an event. Thanks guys – I appreciate you so much!
I’ll shut up now – enough waffling – here are the rest of the photos. I also shot loads of video including the custom show, rideout, various top scooters and a bit of dancing at the do. Check them out on my Instagram – I’m @scootergirlie and the videos will all be on my Reels feed soon.
