Disclaimer : I drove my car to this rally. I know for some people there will never be a reason to not go on a scooter but I have arthritic fingers which are incredibly painful to grip after an hour, and a chronic bad back (caused by the scooter in the first place) which means I can’t go far on the back of Lee. So any rallies over 120 miles are beyond my capabilities, and if that offends you then that’s on you, not me…
Friday
The weather was lovely when I set off with my wingman Gail along the M27 to Salisbury. We caught up with the scooter gang at a petrol station, with them having taken a more scenic route through the Hampshire and Wiltshire countryside.
When they set off again we followed them to Yeovil but then they disappeared so we went the quickest way I knew which was via the A303 and M5. I knew there were holdups near our normal exit so we took Waze’s advice and came off before then and hit the A38, but so did most other people heading west.
After sitting in traffic for at least half an hour we finally started moving and were on our way to Tiverton to meet the rest for lunch at Wetherspoons. I’d been feeling extremely hangry so greedily scoffed my pizza before we hit the road again.
The scoots went via Barnstaple but we went cross-country, to avoid any potential jams. This turned out to be a master stroke and we arrived at our off-site accommodation over half an hour before the others got there, as they’d been caught up in jams which were impossible to filter through.
None of us were staying at the Golden Coast rally hub, and we were spread over three local holiday parks. Me and Lee were booked with Booty in a two bedroomed bungalow at Tranquility Park. He gave us a grand tour and I loved the stunning views across the hills to the beach. I unpacked my bags and then took Gail down to the caravan she was sharing with Champs and Donna, who’d just arrived. They too had scenic views – we said a quick hello before heading back to our place.
After catching up properly with Booty we drove down to Woolacombe as he and Lee fancied some chips. I was shocked that the iconic Red Barn is no longer red and is now just called The Barn! It’s been taken over by a chain and all of its vibe and menu have been stripped away and replaced with fancier versions; it was not an improvement in my opinion and a sad day for the town. We usually gather there on Saturday lunchtimes but I won’t bother in future. There was nothing suitable on the menu for Lee either!
So the boys went to the chip shop and sat on a bench to eat their tea, making the most of a nice warm evening with the sun slowly setting over the horizon.
Friday Evening
When they’d finished eating we headed back up the hill to join the others. Nigel and his pal from the A5s, Mike, had joined the gang as they were also staying at the same caravan park, so we took some scenic photos, which Dean Percival photobombed. It was the only time I saw him all weekend!
After everyone had had a few drinks we headed to the Golden Coast for the do. It was already busy and we flitted about between the main room, the side bar and the northern room. I had a great boogie in there, with Emma Cox and other DJs keeping the dancefloor busy with some of my favourite tunes.
Then it was back to the main room for Rankin Junior’s version of The Beat. I spent most of the time in the bar with Sandra Baker, having done some jiggery-pokery on our phones we were able to play the next day’s Wordle early – in unison. I know this sounds really sad but we’re in a Messenger group of fellow Wordle addicts and post our results every day. I was unlikely to make it to midnight so used my techie skills to play early!
I also took my traditional rally photo of Pete Davies! I really should post an album of them because I have so many 😂 After the band finished Disco Daz hit the decks again and I managed a dance with Tori before calling it a night.
Saturday
The weather on Saturday was exactly according to the forecast – horrible! It was Lee’s birthday so after making him tea and toast we drove to the rally site in the mild drizzle. The custom show was soldiering on, and I got some quick photos and visited the stalls before the heavens opened.
Stuart Lanning helpfully told me that all the afternoon entertainment had switched to the main room, which made perfect sense. So we set up camp in there and grabbed a table and chairs. The bar lady told me there was no food, so I ran up to the shop to grab the last two limp sandwiches and some crisps, which we had as a picnic. Not the birthday lunch I’d planned for Lee but needs must!
(As it turned out, food was actually being served a short time later which was really annoying!)
The Robins SC always dress up on the Saturday of Woolacombe and this weekend was no exception. They were in morris dancing garb this year and you could hear their bells ringing before they even came into sight! Fun fact: I used to do morris dancing at school in Portsmouth and once broke the teacher’s stick from swinging mine so hard…
We played cards, chatted to people and waited for the rest of our lot to get there as they’d gone into town for a late breakfast and mooch around the shops. I think they had a nightmare getting a taxi back, and then the shuttle bus between the sites wasn’t operating so it was all a bit of a faff getting back to us.
The entertainment was provided by the Rocker Covers, who were brilliant. We’ve seen them before but they were perfect for the crowd, playing to a much bigger audience than they would have had in the outside bar, as it was tipping down with rain!
Everyone was making the most of the happy hour too, after all what else was there to do apart from drink and listen to the band?!
When they had a break, I nipped out to get the birthday cake I’d stashed away. I borrowed a lighter and Tori helpfully help me light the candles before I took it over to Lee, much to his embarrassment. He’s lucky because at one stage I thought about asking the whole room to sing Happy Birthday!!
Then it was time for ‘beer bingo’, aka music bingo. Which was fun but didn’t quite have the vibe of previous years, which surprised me as there must have been much more alcohol consumed compared with usual. But it was still great entertainment, with Liam, one of our A5 friends, sharing a jackpot prize with another player, winning £100!
I’m so grateful for that first year when the hypnotist couldn’t make it and the park laid on the bingo instead. It’s spawned a brilliant side hustle for me as I now create my own bingo nights (with a decent playlist!) and am really busy with them! I’d love to do a scooter music one, so if anyone wants to hire me then let me know!
Saturday evening
By now I was really hungry so four of us went up the hill to The Depot for a birthday meal. Keith, Booty and Lee had some yummy looking giant pizzas while I had a burger. It was all delicious, and afterwards went back to our respective parks to change and head out for the night. Well, that was the plan, but Booty was in a pizza coma so decided to stay in and watch Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. To be honest, I think lots of people were jaded after a fun Friday night, which is typical for many rallies. We just don’t have the staying power that we used to!
When we got to the Golden Coast at 8.30pm it wasn’t busy at all, so we sat in the bar where Donna, Gail, Nigel and Mike joined us for a chat. By the time we made it to the main room it was busier, and Terry Walters was playing some banging tunes which I couldn’t help but dance along to.
I grabbed Sandra again for an early Wordle and then it was time for Basket Case. I’ve seen them countless times before but they never get stale. They are so energetic and their humour, song choices and general banter make them so entertaining. Sadly though, we had an early start for our journey home the next day so had call it a night.
Polite request to rally organisers : please put bands on earlier! I know some people are still out until the wee small hours but so many people I spoke to would rather start earlier and finish earlier. A 6pm-10.30pm evening would be so much better than 8pm-12.30am!
Sunday
We were up at 6.30am and packed our stuff ready to meet the others for an 8am departure. Although it was raining, chief navigator Keith and I were confident it would have stopped by the time we got to Tiverton, and we were proved correct.
We stopped at the services at the M5 junction for petrol and hot drinks, and by now the sun was out. I just knew Lee would be complaining he was too hot before long!
We hopped a couple of junctions up the motorway, waved goodbye to Booty who carried on to the midlands, then set off in an easterly direction on the A303. A few miles up the road Gail and I both noticed that Rob’s exhaust seemed to hanging be very low, with neither of us sure whether it had been like that for the whole journey. Before long though, that was the least of our problems!
We were driving along the really busy dual carriageway, following the scooters who were doing around 60mph when Donna suddenly had what looked like a blowout. She lost the back end and came off spectacularly, falling onto the nearside verge under the crash barrier. We screeched to a stop, really worried because she was completely still. Gail ran over and checked her over, and she started moving – thank goodness! Gary Smith had managed to narrowly avoid her so scooted back, and Champs pulled over, walking back to find out what had happened.
Unfortunately Keith and Lee were at the front so didn’t know about the drama that had unfolded behind them, but as soon as they realised there was nobody behind them they took the next slip road and waited to find out what was going on.
Although Donna was sore, there didn’t seem to be anything broken. The scooter didn’t appear to have a flat tyre, which surprised us, so we assumed it must have seized instead, but any attempts to start it failed miserably.
Donna wouldn’t have been in a fit state to ride it anyway, so we pushed it along the road to a slightly less dangerous place (there were no laybys in sight) where we could make a plan. Donna called the RAC who promised to be with us within the hour. Keith and Lee rode 16 miles to get to us (that’s how far it was to ride back up the A303 to the next roundabout to then turn around and reach us). They tried to diagnose the problem with the scooter but it wasn’t clear what was going on, because one minute the kickstart was locked up and then next it wasn’t. It wasn’t like a normal heat seize because Donna had pulled in the clutch as soon as she lost power, but the scooter hadn’t freewheeled like you would have expected it to.
Her scooter definitely had a few battle scars. She’d only recently had the panels painted, and now one of them was seriously dented. There were scuffs and scrapes on the legshields, mirrors, levers, mudguard – all over in fact!
By now, the RAC had updated their ETA to 2-4 hours, so Gail and I stayed with Donna and sent the boys on their way. We didn’t think they needed to hang around, especially as before long the ETA was updated to be 5-8pm! We’d rung them before midday so that was just ridiculous!
Donna decided to leave the scooter there so came in the car with us and we headed for the slip road where we could refuel at a Macdonald’s. We pushed the scooter behind a bush so it wasn’t visible from the road, and cars were going by so quickly they wouldn’t have seen it. Luckily it’s a green PX, so somewhat camouflaged too, especially compared with something like Lee’s orange GTS!
Donna had tried to cancel the RAC, thinking she would pick it up herself the next day, but couldn’t find the option to do so, and once we were on our way they called her back. She explained what had happened and they were happy to pick it up and deliver it down to Bognor within a few working days, which was perfect! [as it turns out, it arrived the next day]
So we carried on, first to Chichester to drop off Gail and then back to Bognor, to drop Donna and then finally home for me.
What with all the drama we’d forgotten about Rob’s exhaust. It was indeed hanging on by a thread but I think he’s with the AA who were also taking forever to reach anyone so he limped home instead. We know he got back OK because we spotted him heading to the pub as we passed his house. It takes a lot for him to miss a Sunday meat raffle! 😂
Final thoughts
It had been a really brilliant weekend, made entirely by the people we spent it with and the hard work of the organisers. All the little hiccups – and the major one on the way home – were unavoidable and the British weather is always going to play a major role in the success of any outdoor activities. I just thank the scootering Gods that it had stopped by the time Donna had her crash, because that would have made an already bad situation ten times worse!
Thanks to our gang for their company, and Andy, Stuart and the SWSC team for putting on a great rally – for 25 years in the case of Woolacombe – and long may it continue!
Absolutely loved that,,, brilliant
Thanks Nigel!