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- George Washington

Sunday 21 August 2011

West Wales Motorcycle Show

Well, it's that time of year again. West Wales Motorcycle Show, organised by the Carmarthen and District Motorcycle Club, was on over this weekend. I managed to get there yesterday to help man the TOMCC stand, as I was working today. Plenty of club stands and plenty of traders, plus an auction of motoring items including a few vintage bikes and cars. Better weather (despite a shower on my way there) meant there were more people than last year and the atmosphere was good.

Hightlights for me were a pair of stunt riders and a trials exhibition. I had never seen proper stunt riding up close and it was amazing. The trials riding of Steve Colley was a long way from the muddy or rocky ascents and flat caps of the trials I used to watch. He was an proper athlete with bike skills I found almost hard to believe. Yeah, bunny hopping over a series of boxes ...



But then riding up the vertical side of his trailer and landing on top? Neat trick!



(Sorry about the picture - iPhones lack zoom, amongst other things, but if you look carefully ...)

As for the rest of the show, well ... see last year's posts. We had fun, lots of tea and biscuits and maybe found a few new members. I'll leave you with some bike porn, or at least some objects of interest:



The Sue Randall Memorial Bike, a Suzuki 250-based bobber built by the father of a girl who died before it could be completed, to her design. I like bobbers, and this was a beautifully neat construction. The back story was tragic, especially to one who has seen his own daughters grow up to womanhood.



A few Triumphs ...



And a few more (spot mine?) ...



A trike Full of Bull ...



With Beer Barrels for Bollocks ...



A brace of Kawasaki triples: a learner-legal (cough) 250 and a batshit mental 500 ...



A grand Z1A from 1974, although I'm not sure about the mustard and chocolate paint scheme ...



And proof that the Freemasons have a finger in every pie. I did have a chat with him, and I won't be joining.

And finally, the One I Would Take Home If I Could:



Inspired by Steve Colley's performance, I liked this TY175. Light, simple, utterly effective, and I have wanted one since I don't know when. Sadly, I doubt if I would be capable of much more than falling off it these days.

4 comments:

  1. Looks like you had a great time, thanks for sharing your piccies.

    The event was lucky to have a barn to keep the exhibits clear of the elements. There's nothing more depressing than polishing your bike, only to have the rain p-down on it, eh?.

    I bet a few bikes revved-up to make music for the attendees.

    ReplyDelete
  2. We were lucky to have a stand inside the main exhibition hall. There was a lot outside, mainly dealer stands and traders, and the Goldwing crowd, and the trike crowd, and the chopper crowd, and the sidecar crowd. Our secretary has friends.

    We were on our best behaviour, so no rolling burn-outs in the hall. Sadly.

    ReplyDelete
  3. That mustard and chocolate paint is a sight to behold. Ummm shall we just say it is retro.

    Looks as though there were a lot of interesting bikes on display. Thanks for sharing.

    -Brandy

    ReplyDelete
  4. Did Ray Williams Motorcycles of Llanelli have a stand there? I bought my Kawasaki 250 triple from him in 1972.Thanks to that bike I married my wife. We moved up to a Yamaha 650 then a BMW 750.
    Thanks for a glimpse of life back home.

    ReplyDelete

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