Motorsport Saturday

6th August 2016

The first Saturday in August saw C&F try something a little bit different, a ride out on a Saturday to a Motorsport event at Silverstone. Not knowing the level of interest in visiting a motorsport event or riding on a Saturday was a minor inconvenience compared to planning a route that avoided any Saturday shopping traffic.

Motorsport Saturday arrives and it looks like the weather gods have been very kind and given us the finest day of the year so far. So with lifted spirits I head off for the participation sign in at the Ace Cafe, London. It’s 8:15am when I pull into the car park and I'm not the first one here in fact there's a full table of C&F riders tucking into their breakfast, including one pillion rider who was challenging the rear suspension of a street glide by eating the biggest bowl of porridge I’ve ever seen. (Names can be supplied as part of a freedom of information request). Sign in for the ride was using the good old fashioned pen and paper method and once signed, you were issued with your British Racing Green sticker.

I allowed a few extra minutes in case of late comers then started the briefing, luckily everyone knew this was my first official C&F ride-out so I was given a very easy time with absolutely no heckling at all...

At 10am all 40 bikes lined up on the North Circular slip road and we set off. Heading out of London on the A40 then joining the A413 heading towards Aylesbury. We followed the A413 for most of the ride with two sections where we used minor country roads and a small section where we rode through a new housing estate, I can honestly say on the first recce ride, that was no more than a country lane with no houses in sight. Around the 50 mile point we stopped a few miles south of Buckingham for a comfort break and fuel for the smaller tanks.

It was now just a short run to Silverstone circuit and the slight problem with getting tickets. Trying to talk to someone at the circuit to confirm details had been nigh on impossible but I eventually found out that ticket sales would be from the ticket hut, in car park 10. I led the 40 bikes into the car park only to find the ticket hut closed and deserted, time to smile and pretend it was all part of the plan. We headed back out onto the road and towards the main gate where we were finally able to part with our £10 notes in exchange for an entry ticket. Slight problem number 2, getting to the circuit infield and parking, “plenty of attendants will be able to guide you where to go” in reality nobody! We found what looked like an good place to park up and got on with taking the group photo.

We now had all afternoon to enjoy the sights and sounds of the racing, a full program of 7 races organised by the Bentley Drivers Club. First stop the burger bar for lunch and then to the grass bank at Copse corner where a group of 20 or so C&F members gathered to watch the cars in action, while other club members headed to the grandstand at Woodcote or Luffield, all fantastic places to watch cars old and new being driven to their limit and quite often beyond. People started to drift away as the afternoon wore on and I think myself, Andrew Eborn and Christopher Poole were among the final few and we headed back to the Ace Cafe for a final cup of Rosie Lee at 7pm. What a long but fantastic day, I couldn’t have wished for better.

Finally, I’d like to thank Mick Newstead and Fred Woolcott for joining me on the recce ride and for doing the Road Captain duties with me on the day, your help was invaluable. I’d also like to thank Andrew Eborn for his help with sorting the route and joining me on the first ride back in February and Nick Deal for his help with the briefing notes. Lastly I’d like to thank everyone who turned up on the day and made the event very special for me, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Next up is ‘Last of the Summer Wine’ this coming Sunday, 14th of August, led by Paul Wiggins followed on the 11th September by ‘Given the Boot’ led by Steve Graham.

Steve Graham - C&F Photographer & Road Captain