We met up at the Tescos in Royston, Herts.
(Not Royston Vasey, though I did have visions of the Tescos
staff saying
"You're not local. This is a local supermarket for local
people. There's nothing for you here"
"I'm here to meet some bikers, we're going on a run"
"Run. RUN. We don't like runners here. <aside> Don't
worry Tubbs, they won't get far")
I met Paul N. in the petrol station as I arrived. We established that we were both there for the HUKRC and rode over to the car park. As we removed our lids, we realised that we knew each other from the last run. I guess that during the last run we were going too fast to notice the leathers and lids ...
We were just sitting down for a quiet coffee when we were disturbed
by the entrance of a bunch of noisy bikers. Allen 'Bullett' Beale,
Paul R, Andy and Derek. (Does 'Bullett' Beale ever go anywhere
quietly?) They informed us that Tanya and Stuart were at the money
machine and would be with us in a second.
Eight bikes, again not bad for a winter run. We were pondering
the fact that everyone who was there had been on the last run
and were wondering if we would ever see any new faces, when one
walked up and asked us if we were the HUKRC mob. Given that Tescos
Cafes are not notorious biker haunts, it was probably a safe bet
...
Chris introduced himself and was made welcome (We bought him a
coffee, insulted his bike, asked why he hadn't been on the last
run and Derek told him he should get a 'Big Trailie' TM.
So just the usual stuff).
Derek told us that he had found another cracking road that morning so the route would differ slightly from the advertised one, and just before we set out we had a brief discussion and decided that we would use the 'drop off' system at junctions and roundabouts to make sure that we all stayed together, but Derek had assured us that the route was mostly corners rather than fast straight bits so we would stay together anyway!
For the first few roundabouts we were all together so there was no point in someone stopping. Allen dropped off at the first point where there might have been confusion and sat at the back till he realised that no-one else was going to drop off. He then did what he does best on the VFR400. As he made his way back to the front we got an excellent view of his rear tyre disappearing in a cloud of dust.
Tanya had been saying before we set out that she was worried about the speed, given that she had passed her test only four months earlier, but we had reassured her that the run was not competitive and to go at her own pace. She did this and though not always as fast as the first few bikes, certainly not that much slower. More importantly, she rode at a speed she felt safe with, without being pressured to go any faster and didn't get dropped off the back of the group. Because we knew that she was worried, she wasn't at the back. (So if anyone reading this has been worried about coming on a run because of 'Lack of speed' or 'Lack of experience' or 'They'll all piss off and leave me', then don't worry, we do this for the fun of it, not to make people feel uncomfortable - and I'll see you on the 19th of March).
The first part of the run was pretty incident free, apart from the flashing blue lights that followed us for a while. It was a mile or so before I could be sure that they were not closing and I'm sure a police car being driven without regard to speed limits could have caught us up. There is always one of lifes 'oh shit' moments when you see blue lights behind you when you are on the bike. As we turned off onto one of Derek's 'C' roads a fire engine roared past.
Derek had thoughtfully arranged for the level crossing at the end of that road to be closed so we could re-group before tackling the next set of twisties.
As thoughts of food were setting in, Derek stopped us at a petrol station and announced that Paul R. would lead the next bit and we would be stopping to eat in twenty minutes. He asked us if we could use the drop off system and was answered by a chorus of 'obvious not'.
Paul R. lead us off to the Hard Times Cafe, a bikers cafe in Stradishall. On the way we experimented, pretty successfully, with the drop off system and I'm sure we'll get the hang of it at some point.
After the photo' op. and some deserved refreshments we saddled up again. Paul R. headed off homeward from there and Allen and Andy departed on their own route a few miles later. Derek leading us down the roads that he had discovered that morning.
I haven't yet mentioned anything about the roads. That's because I'm not sure I can do them justice. I had always thought that that part of the country was flat and dull and the roads were dead straight.
Wrong, wrong, wrong.
The roads that Derek lead us round are some of the best roads I have ever had the pleasure of riding. No flat out, nailed to the stop, straights (Though I did lift the front wheel under acceleration on one occasion - accidentally officer - honest). Not much in the way of traffic (Thought there was one slow car in a stretch of double white lines). Almost entirely empty roads with cracking corners. My hat is off to that man and that run is sure to become a regular event.
The final section back to Royston was the best. One person did almost loose it on one corner and came to rest on the verge, shaken but unbroken. To save any embarrassment, the corner shall go un-named ...
Excellent roads, excellent day out, 135 miles there, 90 mile run, 135 miles home. Tired and happy. I'd do it again tomorrow if I didn't have to work.