|
By AndyW - Bikers, more charitable than most!
First off this is what it was all in aid of:
|
Record Breakers are Urgently seeking 10,000 fun bikers to bring home
the World Record for the Largest Gathering of Santas on Bikes, which
is currently held by the Portuguese. Their record stands at 5,443
Santas. The record has been challenged in the UK once before but
fell short, that was before we were beaten by Portugal in Euro 2004.
The amazing spectacle will be held on December 19th 2004 at
Rockingham race circuit. The record attempt will be televised and
featured in The Sun, Motor Cycle News and many other national media
publications.
All funds raised to go in aid of a charity supporting children that
have/are suffering the effects of cancer either directly or as a
result of a parent having the disease. |
Well I'm pleased to say that against the odds I did attend the event
at Rockingham International Race Circuit on Sunday 19th December
2004.
I say "against the odds".......well 11:00pm the Saturday night
before the event, luggage packed and loaded on the bike, the bike
has had a good check over and I'm off to bed for an early night. The
plan is to be up at 05:00am Sunday morning to get away by 06:00am,
giving me 3 hours to make the 170 mile trip with time to spare for
the meet with my 4 friends from the SV1000 owners group at Tesco's
in Kettering at 09:00am. The plan, to have a nice fried breakfast
there to set us up for the day and on to Rockingham 12 miles or so
away having donned Santa Suites.
02:30am Sunday morning and I get a rude awakening (not that sort of
"rude", Sue was fast asleep!), some silly so and so (PC description
for public viewing!) was racing up and down the street on a
Motocross bike!!! ........ I get up and wander down to the kitchen
to get a glass of water. I stand at the kitchen sink, glass in hand
tap running, staring out the window in stunned disbelief.......it
looks like a seen from a Christmas card outside! - there's at least
an inch of snow on the ground and there's a minor blizzard still
going strong!! Now this is more snow than I've seen here in Weston
for years and of all days it has to be this one! Explains why the
guy on the crosser was hooning around the streets at that time of
day!.......enjoying the snow (anti-social bastard :-)
3 hours later having grabbed a few more hours restless sleep and
it's not looking much better out side, it is drizzling now though so
there's hope of a thaw. Brave or stupid I don't know but the snow's
turning to slush on the roads and I make the decision to give it a
go. 06:30am and I'm on the bike gingerly making my way down local
streets dragging my feet for extra stability in the cold slippery
conditions, the temperature is just 2 degrees C (anyone that knows
about wind chill factor will appreciate how cold this trip was going
to be!). Conditions are much better by the time I'm on the M5, just
very wet, windy and cold.....I take it steady for the first hour or
so as visibility is poor and it's still dark, raining and I'm
worried about being caught out by the occasional patches of slush.
70 miles in to the trip and I stop off to fuel the bike and myself
with a coffee......10 minutes later and back on the road - the snow
storms must have been very localised, the Motorway is almost dry
(just the damp the road salt pulls down), it's now a bright morning
and I pick up the pace to arrive on time at Kettering hopefully
without another photograph those little yellow boxes they dot
everywhere nowadays having been taken!
So, on to the event.............rather than write any more here are
a few links to news reports and photos etc.
www.sv1000.inuk.com/santa
(for photos)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/northamptonshire/4109239.stm
http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2004591022,00.html
http://www.sv1000.zyns.com/forums/showthread.php?p=152276
Sadly no records were broken but a great deal of money has been
raised for Antics.......at the moment the sum of £50,000 is being
quoted but this accounts only for the £20 per head paid up front by
participants so a considerably larger final figure is expected. I
don't have a final figure for my own sponsorship but know that it
will be close to £300 and the total for the group more than £800.
Thanks to everyone that sponsored me.
Top |
