Written by Ray Humphrey FBIPP
The Round Britain Rally: The Final Story 4th September 2006, 3600 miles and 24 landmarks visited – out of a potential 84 – and I have decided that I need to call a halt to my involvement in this year’s Rally. I am quite pleased really, what with the fact that I have not only had the chance to explore some landmarks and places of interest that I would never had discovered, but in doing so I have raised some £1,600 for Pancreatic Cancer. I have been a BMF member for 8 years or so and have always fancied having a go at the Rally. Due to the enforced ‘extended holiday’ I am on, I decided, back in February, not only to have a go, but at the same time to raise money for Pancreatic Cancer. I was diagnosed with this disease in April 2005, and research is urgently needed to help fight this deadly, but low profile, form of cancer.
On to a lighter note! When submitting my £25 entry fee I was asked for the registration number(s) of the bike(s) I intended to use for the Rally, so I registered my two bikes, a Yamaha 900 Diversion and a Kawasaki Z650. I have managed to use neither of those bikes and instead completed my rally using 5 different machines – a Suzuki 800 Marauder, a Suzuki 600 Bandit, a Yamaha V-Max, a Suzuki 125 Marauder (yes! A 125!) and a Suzuki 650 V-Strom. It sounds like a promo for the Suzuki Corporation of Japan. I picked up some useful pub quiz trivia on the way too. For instance, the first roundabout in the UK was built in 1908 at Letchworth, Hertfordshire. And did you know that approximately 30,000 prisoners were incarcerated near the village of Stilton, Cambridgeshire, during the Napoleonic Wars (1799 to 1815). You see, I am not just a pretty face and am now well versed in the use of village pounds, grave watchers’ huts and various other monuments to our past. I would recommend participation in this yearly rally. It is a great way to spend some or all of your holidays, and I found it fascinating doing the research and trying to plan the routes. Discovering little villages like Briantspuddle for example is a case in point. The landmark there is the war memorial and entering the village itself is like going back 50 yrs. Check out the Post Office and village stores! Brilliant! I think I will sign off now, before Lynne edits me!! Cheers
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