AFSC NORTHERN DIV CLEETHORPES 05

Cleethorpes rally 2 BSRA number 5 15 – 17^th July 2005

Scribe By Mik Boon.

The last ever (possibly) Cleethorpes rally started for me at Skeggy, when my crank threw its hand in, forcing a complete strip and rebuild. I managed to get a new looking crank, from Portsmouth custom show parts fair, a fortnight ago for £30 so I stripped the engine and gearbox completely and really pleased with every piece coming out finding a little innocenti stamp on. Not bad for a T reg Indian eh?

Considering I’ve owned her from new I guess I should have known that but, I’ve never replaced the gearbox or chain since new in 78, (yes I even predate the 79 revival thanks for the reminder) anyway I replaced all the seals and bearings and finally got the engine back in the frame on Wednesday night.

Thursday got the cables set and test run so I was really pushing my luck taking her to a rally on Friday considering I have a newly run in LML star in the garage. Luckily, the Cleethorpes rally is on my doorstep only 4 miles from our home village of Holton le Clay in sunny Lincolnshire. Sue and I took a trip out into Grimsby and Cleethorpes on the Friday morning covering about 20 miles with no more trouble than Sues shopping falling off the back rack on Cleethorpes seafront so I was happy with the GP, running better than she had done in a long time.

The resort was already throbbing by one o’clock with about a hundred scoots parked up outside the bootlegger so we stopped off for an hour, had a yarn with a few of the Mansfield monsters lads who were running the rally. Then called in to Beedspeed for a yarn and Trev had just bought a load of mirrors and lights unseen and did not like them So Sue bought me them for an early anniversary present. Then heading home to change and out for seven back to the ‘legger for the entertainment, Circa were the chosen band very loud for us old fogies but they had everyone up on the floor for a couple of hours. The place was heaving with the bar about eight deep so bad one of the local lads so desperate for liquids had resorted to the local shop and bought a case of panda pops!

We chose to head over to the official venue, the Winter Gardens, about 2100 hours and found it fairly empty but that made it easy to get to the bar and the added bonus of John Smiths at £1-80 a pint. Within an hour the bootlegger was empty and the gardens were full, it holds 1200 downstairs and 200 up and the "one out one in" policy was in full swing. I found one AFSC shirt and introduced myself It was Mark from Lambretta art.

We eventually got home after a great night at around 0100 and up again at 0700 to start again. Fitted the new mirrors and lights and out into glorious sunshine. We have about seven local scooter clubs, do not ask me why but they had arranged to meet on the A180 outside Grimsby for a mass ride in. I had arranged to meet Trev and the mid life crisis group on the sea front so we met at 1000 and rode the reverse route out to meet up. We had gone no more than a mile when I lost my gears. Stuck in 3^rd I pulled up and had a look all seemed well at the bottom, so it must be at the top. Bollocks the skeggy curse again. We made the decision to get to the RV and fix it there so off we went setting off in 3^rd and slipping the clutch long enough to pick speed up every light was red every roundabout busy but we got there. Stripped off the headset top (after removing mirrors brackets flyscreen etc) and found … nothing wrong. On further inspection, I noticed the very small circlip which holds the gear selector on was missing and it had simply slipped off. An easy fix except no one had a spare circlip so the RAF in me came out (Rough As Fcuk) botched a repair with a bit of wire rebuilt the top and I was ready before all the other Lammy’s were repaired, still thinking about the LML in the garage!!!

About eighty scoots in all on the ride into Cleethorpes was awesome but the funniest thing was the poor lad on a BSA bantam who inadvertently got stuck in the middle of us with “Rocker till I die” in studs on his back. He must have thought it was his last day as a rocker. I thought my suspension was a bit iffy until I realised Sue had turned into David Bailey on the back and was twisting around taking photos. I noticed when I looked back for a quick lifesaver and found myself staring into her eyes through a camera lens!

We arrived on the sea front and cruised up to the winter gardens waving to the Grimsby evening telegraph photog who was taking her life into her hands in the middle of the road. We pulled up and parked turned off the ignition and walked away only to realise the engine was still running. Aw bugger unlucky Alf strikes again. Killed her with the choke and went off to play. Trifle was the first to find us she’d seen us ride in and came over soon followed by Rob James and Baggy with Rick 63 and family. Into the parts fair and one of our local lads was presented with a poster of next month’s scooterist scene front page with his scoot on it. Then Andy looked at his patch and realised it was Acid Trip on the patch. Rob was over the moon. I found Oggies Scoot but he left very soon after for a gig so we didn’t meet. Sue Alex was there but again the rally is spread the full length of Meggies and our paths just never crossed.

We had a group photo done with the members we could muster, again the evening telegraph muscled in so we may get the tripster and my Gp (I’ll have to give her a name, competition maybe) in the local rag. Then a bit of a ride around Cleethorpes … except now, the GP will not start. Mirrors off, brackets off flyscreen you know the score by now. Green wire pulled out. Plugged back in, this time the bathroom furniture strapped to the backrack and were away. I guess there were 800 or 1000 scoots in Cleethorpes the campsite was so congested there was hardly room to ride in or out so we pulled in and straight out again. We bumped into the Salford knight and met Haggis’s brother. Rode around the area for an hour or so then Andy and Rob had to get back so I led them out the back way and shortcuts to the A16 waved them off from Holton le Clay and repeated the ritual, quick curry shower change and out. This time straight to the Gardens, the bootlegger had the All mod cons on, Seem em before and they are excellent, but we did not fancy the crush and inevitable queue later.

What a fantastic night except for the heat, one of the reasons this is the last Cleethorpes rally is because the neighbours all complain about the noise in the winter gardens so they shut all the windows and doors and there is no air con. It looks like they will be knocking it down this year. Met up with a member called Andy Stead a matelot from Doncaster who was 3 parts pissed so we had a couple and I last saw him 4 parts pissed. Never did find Murph who was supposed to be staying with us but we could not contact him. If you got to Cleethorpes mate many apologies. We got home about 0130 with every intention of going back on the scoot for breakfast on the promenade but I woke up still half cut and ended up with Sue driving us there most of the scoots had already packed up and left this not being a bank holiday weekend curtailed it somewhat. This rally will certainly take some beating for a lively but trouble free weekend, I didn’t hear of a single fight or arrest all weekend. Moreover, the weather was almost Mediterranean and after discussions in the café this morning if this is the last national rally here we may hopefully organise our own.